In a photo-like finish, Paranoid Android is your next tournament champion (defeating Idioteque 66-64). The readers and interlopers of MerrySwankster.com have decreed: it is the best song in Radiohead's catalogue, as determined by a 65-team bracket.

Paranoid Android
OK Computer
1

We have some ideas for our next tournament, but, I must ask, "Do you?" In the comments, please.

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 11:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

You stuck around this long, so why not chose the winner? Anything else would be un-American.

Voting ends 5pm Friday.

Paranoid Android
OK Computer
1

Approbations:

NME - Greatest Tracks from 1996-2006
#3

Rolling Stone list of "500 Greatest Songs of All Time"
#256

Q Magazine greatest songs of all-time (Aug, 2006)
10

VS

Idioteque
Kid A
2

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 08:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Here's your final four. Results of the Round of Eight after the jump

Karma Police (1) v. Idioteque (2)

Paranoid Android (1) v. Fake Plastic Trees (2)

Continue reading "And, then, there were four" »

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 12:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So I can't be accused of electioneering, I wanted to inform readers that the fourth-round voting at our Radiohead song contest will end Saturday at 11:30AM.

We pretty much know who will be winning three of the contests, but, right now:

Karma Police 50% (19 votes)
Airbag 50% (19 votes)

Fascinating!

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 12:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Radiohead, through the ages: Fake Plastic Trees, Airbag, Karma Police, Exit Music (For a Film), Paranoid Android, No Surprises, Everything in its Right Place, Idioteque. Which is your favorite? Don't leave it to chance, vote here.

Below, based on what I've witnessed from voting, is my reconfigured rankings.

Paranoid Android (1)
Karma Police (1)
No Surprises (4)
Idioteque (2)
Exit Music (For a Film) (6)
Airbag (10)
Fake Plastic Trees (2)
Everything in Its Right Place (1)

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 08:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Third round results

Roxy Music bracket

Paranoid Android (1)

VS

Exit Music (From a FIlm) (6)

Pink Floyd bracket

Karma Police (1)

VS

Airbag (10)

Kraftwerk bracket

Everything in its Right Place (1)

VS

Idioteque (2)

Pink Floyd bracket

No Surprises (4)

VS

Fake Plastic Trees (2)

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 08:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

HM Blog has the mp3 of Lupe Fiasco, Pharrell Williams, and Kanye West rapping over Thom Yorke's "Eraser."

It's called "US Placers" and its found here.

Did you know that the third round of our Radiohead tournament ends at 5pm today? It's so very true. If you haven't voted, you can do so here.

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 12:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Third-round voting in the Radiohead tournament has begun at our tournaments page here.

After the jump, the upsets and the ecstasy.

Continue reading "More high seeds left High & Dry" »

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 11:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So begins our Radiohead tournament. New and improved. How new? How improved?

Well, we have a poll system that actually allows you to see the votes. We have a sonic device mechanism that allows you to listen (stream) the two songs in contention. Caution, it may be a little slow at first. No defenestration of computers.

We have moved it to a new page, for those of you who hate Radiohead... and, by proxy, America [and England].

And, finally, it's a new tournament - the search for the best Radiohead song.

So those of you ready to start judging coldly, join us at our tournaments page here.

For those of you who like those fancy RSS feeds, you can get that here. After the jump, the matchups you will be able to vote on at merryswankster.com/tournaments.

Continue reading "Disinfected... and eager to please" »

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 09:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In our quest to help you while away your Friday (while savoring that Warriors victory), we're gearing up for the Radiohead tournament by asking MS.com editors to create a "Oscar winner "-type prediction for songs found in each album. We continue with The Bends, OK Computer, and B-sides.

Editors were asked which song will last the longest in the tournament and whether it would win the tournament. They were also asked which song they thought should last the longest (aka, which they think deserves it). Editors also had to give a "Dark Horse" (low seed that had a chance for some upsets), overrated (high seed expected to get upset), and most unfair seed (a low seed that should have been seeded higher). Finally they were asked to rank each album (out of seven: Pablo Honey, Bends, OK Computer, Kid A, Amnesiac, Hail to the Thief, B-sides/etc.)

MS.com editors opinions after the jump. Please put your own scoresheet in the comments.

Continue reading "A tournament preview: the rest (pt.1) - The Bends" »

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 10:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

In our quest to help you while away your Friday (while savoring that Warriors victory), we're gearing up for the Radiohead tournament by asking MS.com editors to create a "Oscar winner "-type prediction for songs found in each album. We continue with Kid A, Amnesiac, and .

Continue reading "A tournament preview: the rest (pt. 2) - Kid A" »

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 10:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In our quest to help you while away your Friday (while savoring that Warriors victory), we're gearing up for the Radiohead tournament by asking MS.com editors to create a "Oscar winner "-type prediction for songs found in each album. We start with Pablo Honey.

Editors were asked which song will last the longest in the tournament and whether it would win the tournament. They were also asked which song they thought should last the longest (aka, which they think deserves it). Editors also had to give a "Dark Horse" (low seed that had a chance for some upsets), overrated (high seed expected to get upset), and most unfair seed (a low seed that should have been seeded higher). Finally they were asked to rank each album (out of seven: Pablo Honey, Bends, OK Computer, Kid A, Amnesiac, Hail to the Thief, B-sides/etc.)

Here are the Pablo Honey songs in the tournament. MS.com editors opinions after the jump. Please put your own scoresheet in the comments.

Creep (1)

Stop Whispering (9)

Anyone Can Play Guitar (11)

How Do You? (15)

Blow Out (16)

I Can't (16)

You (16)

Continue reading "A tournament preview: Pablo Honey" »

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 10:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

For an explanation of our Radiohead tournament, click here.

THIRTEEN

Like Spinning Plates

Killer Cars

A Wolf At the Door.

A Reminder

FOURTEEN

How to Disappear Completely

Life in a Glass House

Go To Sleep.

Pearly

FIFTEEN

Polyethelene, Pt. 1-2

How I Made My Millions

How Do You?

Climbing Up The Walls

SIXTEEN

Scatterbrain.

You

Blow Out

I Can’t (play-in game)

Talk Show Host (play-in game)

For those of you counting at home, of the tournament's 65 songs, five are from Pablo Honey , twelve are from the Bends , eleven are from OK Computer , eight are from Kid A, seven are from Amnesiac, eight are from Hail to the Thief songs, and twelve are from B-sides/soundtracks/etc.

Since we believe in transparency, I have included the IM transcript of our seeding selections for the final 17 teams, after the jump. Feel free to poke huge holes in our obvious biases. There can be no tournament without seeding controversies!

Continue reading "How to seed completely" »

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 09:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

For an explanation of our Radiohead tournament, click here.

NINE

Lucky

Bends

Stop Whispering

Where You End and I Begin.

TEN

Bones

The Tourist

Motion Picture Soundtrack

Pyramid Song

ELEVEN

Punch Up At A Wedding.

Fog

Anyone Can Play Guitar

You and Whose Army

TWELVE

You Never Wash Up After Yourself

Trickster

Dollars and Cents

Sit Down. Stand Up.

For those of you counting at home, of the top twelve seeds, two are from Pablo Honey , twelve are from the Bends , ten are from OK Computer , seven are from Kid A, five are from Amnesiac, six are from Hail to the Thief songs, and six are from B-sides/soundtracks/etc.

Continue reading "Lucky Seeds" »

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 09:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (12)

(image found at A Reminder)

For an explanation of our Radiohead tournament, click here.

Last Wednesday night, the esteemed Randall Monty and I got together, via IM, to seed the Radiohead tournament. Friday we announced seeds 1-4 (click here). Today, you will get 5 - 8.

Since we believe in transparency, I have included the IM transcript of our seeding selections for the first 16 teams, after the jump. Feel free to poke huge holes in our obvious biases. There can be no tournament without seeding controversies! On Tuesday, we will reveal 9-12.

FIVE
Street Spirit (Fade Out)
Subterranean Homesick Alien
Morning Bell
National Anthem

SIX
Electioneering
Exit Music (For a Film)
How Can You Be Sure?
Packt Like Sardines In A Crushd Tin Box

SEVEN
Black Star
Sulk
True Love Waits
Airbag

EIGHT
My Iron Lung
Bullet Proof ( Wish I Were)
I Might Be Wrong
Myxomatosis

For those of you counting at home, of the top eight seeds, one is from Pablo Honey , ten are from the Bends , eight are from OK Computer , five are from Kid A, three are from Amnesiac, three are from Hail to the Thief songs, and two are from B-sides/soundtracks/etc.

Continue reading "True Seeding Waits" »

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 06:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

For an explanation of our Radiohead tournament, click here.

On Wednesday night, the esteemed Randall Monty and I got together, via IM, to seed the Radiohead tournament. We initially suggested our eight top prospects (in order of preference), with any song mentioned in both lists deserving a #1 seed. Three such songs existed: "Paranoid Android", "Creep", and "Karma Police". Through a process too complicated to explain quickly, we got "Everything in its Right Place. Since we believe in transparency, I have included the IM transcript of our seeding selections for the first 16 teams, after the jump. Feel free to poke huge holes in our obvious biases. There can be no tournament without seeding controversies! On Monday, we will reveal 5-8.

ONE SEEDS
Paranoid Android
Creep
Karma Police
Everything in its Right Place

TWO SEEDS
Idioteque
Fake Plastic Trees
High & Dry
2+2=5 (The Lukewarm.)

THREE SEEDS
Planet Telex
Let Down
Just
There There. (The Boney King of Nowhere.)

FOUR SEEDS
No Surprises
(Nice Dream)
Optimistic
Knives Out

For those of you counting at home, that's one Pablo Honey song, five Bends songs, four OK Computer songs, three Kid A songs, one Amnesiac song, two Hail to the Thief songs, and zero B-side/soundtrack songs.

Continue reading "Every seed in its right place" »

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 08:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

As you may have seen yesterday, we're embarking on our second music-themed tournament. Our focus, this time, is Radiohead.

Well, as fortuity had it, Thom weighed in on his choice for the best song in 2006.

Speaking to 'The Culture Show' last night (October 22), Yorke was asked what single moment he would most like to be remembered for.

His response was 'How To Disappear Completely' from 2000's 'Kid A' album. Explaining why, he simply said, "because it's the most beautiful thing we ever did, I think".

The article goes onto say that respondents to an August 2006 NME.com poll named "The Bends'" Just as the band's greatest song. Both of these songs are currently in the field of 60. Help determine the final five here.

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 08:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Do you get the feeling we love tournaments? Boy, do we. We do, boy. The pageantry; the statistics; the upsets. Oh, I could elucidate for hours as to why I love determining everything by virtue of tournament, but we have more tournaments to run.

We recently concluded our March Madness-styled tournament to find the top album of the 90s. Radiohead's (Duke University-esque) OK Computer bested Nirvana's( UNLV-esque) Nevermind.

Thus, it makes sense that our next tournament would be to find the best Radiohead song of all time. Co-tournament creator Randall Monty and I have picked sixty songs for inclusion in the Radiohead tournament (found below). We're now asking you, the public, to help us find the last five to round out the bunch. We haven't begun seeding yet, so don't assume your pick is just a 16th seeded lamb to the Paranoid Android slaughter. These tracks will have as good a shot at garnering good seeding well as the ones we picked. After the jump, please tick five boxes for the five songs you want in the tournament. Also after the jump, our explanation of our drafting process.

Teams with spots in the tournament

Nice Dream (The Bends), 2+2=5 (Hail to the Thief), A Punch Up At A Wedding (Hail to the Thief), A Wolf At The Door (Hail to the Thief), Airbag (OK Computer), Anyone Can Play Guitar (Live), Just (The Bends), Black Star (The Bends), Blow Out (Pablo Honey), Bones (The Bends), Creep (Pablo Honey), Dollars & Cents (Amnesiac), Electioneering (OK Computer), Everything In Its Right Place (Kid A), Exit Music (OK Computer), Fake Plastic Trees (The Bends), Go To Sleep (Hail to the Thief), High And Dry (The Bends), How Can You Be Sure (Nowhere), How Do You? (Pablo Honey), How I Made My Millions (No Surprises), How To Disappear Completely (Kid A), I Can't (Pablo Honey), I Might Be Wrong (Amnesiac), Idioteque (Kid A), Just (The Bends), Karma Police (OK Computer), Killer Cars (Oxford's Angels), Knives Out (Amnesiac), Let Down (OK Computer), Life In A Glass House (Amnesiac), Like Spinning Plates (Amnesiac), Lucky (OK Computer), Morning Bell (Kid A), Motion Picture Soundtrack (Kid A), My Iron Lung (The Bends), Myxomatosis (Hail to the Thief), No Surprises (OK Computer), Optimistic (Kid A), Packt Like Sardines In A Crushd Tin Box (Amnesiac), Paranoid Android (OK Computer), Planet Telex (The Bends), Polyethylene (Paranoid Android), Pyramid Song (Amnesiac), Scatterbrain (Hail to the Thief), Sit Down, Stand Up (Hail to the Thief), Stop Whispering (Pablo Honey), Street Spirit (Fade Out) (The Bends), Subterranean Homesick Alien (OK Computer), Sulk (The Bends), Talk Show Host (Romeo + Juliet), (The Bends) (The Bends), The National Anthem (Kid A), The Tourist (OK Computer), The Trickster My Iron Lung [EP], There There (Hail to the Thief), True Love Waits (I Might Be Wrong), Where I End And You Begin (Hail to the Thief), You (Pablo Honey), You And Whose Army? (Amnesiac), You Never Wash Up After Yourself (My Iron Lung)

JUMP NOW TO VOTE

Continue reading "Knives Out! for this tournament" »

Posted by Keith O'Brien at 05:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (25)