no surprises
"No Surprises" is a song by the English rock band Radiohead, released as the fourth and final single from their third studio album, OK Computer (1997), in 1998. It was also released as a mini-album in Japan, titled No Surprises / Running from Demons.
The singer, Thom Yorke, wrote "No Surprises" while Radiohead were on tour with R.E.M. in 1995. It features glockenspiel and a "childlike" sound inspired by the 1966 Beach Boys album Pet Sounds. Yorke described it as a "fucked-up nursery rhyme", with a gentle mood and harsh lyrics conveying dissatisfaction with social or political order.
The music video, directed by Grant Gee, features Yorke wearing a helmet as it fills with water. It was inspired by 1960s science fiction, underwater escape acts, and the lyric "a job that slowly kills you", with Gee aiming for a video that would convey the feeling of "murderous seconds".
"No Surprises" reached number four on the UK singles chart. In 2011, NME named it the 107th-best track of the preceding 15 years.
Similar Artists