2016's A Moon Shaped Pool was like a lot of latter-day Radiohead: Inspiring, confounding, elusive, melancholy—and for the most part, awfully quiet. So if you’re expecting a long-awaited B-side from the record to be a bold stylistic change-up, you haven’t been following Radiohead lately.
“Keep your distance,” goes the first line of “Ill Wind,” a track that has until now only been available on a CD that accompanied the vinyl edition of Moon Shaped Pool upon its release three years ago, paired with the band’s would-be James Bond theme song, “Spectre.” But as of today, your distance is no longer required: The song has finally been made available on streaming services, and if you haven’t heard it before, your response can probably be determined by your thoughts on the record for which the track was recorded. If you miss the verses and choruses and melodies that were present in the first half of the band’s career, then this likely won’t do much to change your mind. If, however, you’re among those of us who continue to be fascinated and enthralled by the stutter-step rhythms, subtle musical themes, and languid minor-key explorations of its recent work, this should be right up your pensive, anxiety-ridden alley. You can listen to “Ill Wind” below.