Formed by school friends in 1986, Radiohead did not release their first single until 1992. "Creep", from their debut album Pablo Honey (1993), became a worldwide hit as grunge music dominated radio airwaves. Radiohead were initially branded as a one-hit wonder abroad, but caught on at home in the UK with their second album, The Bends (1995), earning fans with their dense guitar atmospheres and frontman Thom Yorke's expressive singing. The band's third album, OK Computer (1997), propelled them to greater attention. Popular both for its expansive sound and themes of modern alienation, it has been acclaimed by critics as a landmark record of the 1990s.

Radiohead's original influences were alternative rock and post-punk bands like The Smiths, Pixies, R.E.M. and Joy Division. With their albums Kid A (2000) and Amnesiac (2001), the band reached their peak global popularity even as their music became less conventional, turning toward influences in electronic music, experimental jazz and avant garde classical, ranging from Autechre and Can to Charles Mingus and Olivier Messiaen. Although the band's recent albums have polarised listeners and failed to spin off major radio hits, Radiohead continue to be seen as figureheads in the music industry, drawing adoring crowds to their live concerts, influencing artists in many genres and enjoying surprising commercial success for a band of "outsiders".

(1986-1991) Formation and first years
Radiohead were formed in the mid-Eighties at Abingdon School, a public (in American English: private) boys-only school located just outside the city of Oxford, which drummer Phil Selway, guitarist Ed O'Brien, guitarist/vocalist Thom Yorke, bassist Colin Greenwood and Colin's multi-instrumentalist brother Jonny all attended. They began practicing in the school's music room, which led to the formation of their first band On a Friday, so named because of their customary rehearsal date. The band played their first gig in September 1986, at Oxford's Jericho Tavern. Jonny was the youngest member, and played only harmonica until he could persuade the others to allow him on guitar. Ironically, he soon developed into the band's lead player.

When the five band members left Oxford to attend university they temporarily put aside On a Friday, but continued to practice on holiday breaks, always planning to return to the band. After four years of inactivity, On a Friday began releasing demos (such as the Manic Hedgehog Demo) and performing live again in Oxford in 1991, becoming popular in the region to the extent of appearing on the cover of a local music magazine Curfew. Though Oxfordshire and the Thames Valley had an active independent music scene in the late 80s and early 90s, it centred around shoegazing bands like Ride and Slowdive. Radiohead was not seen to fit into this trend, and commented that they had missed it when they returned from university.


(1992-1995) Pablo Honey and The Bends
As On a Friday's live bookings increased, various record labels began to show interest in them. Eventually the group signed a six-album recording contract with EMI. The band also changed their name to Radiohead at the behest of the label, the title of a song on Talking Heads' True Stories album. The band's debut EP was produced by their managers Chris Hufford and Bryce Edge, who both remain Radiohead's managers to this day. However, shortly after releasing Drill in March 1992, the band hired Paul Kolderie and Sean Slade, known for their work with the Pixies and Dinosaur Jr., to produce their first full-length studio album. Radiohead's first album was finished in three weeks in an Oxford studio.


Jonny GreenwoodWith the limited release of single "Creep" in 1992, the band began to receive interest from the British music press, not all of it favourable. One journalist called them "a lily livered excuse for a rock band," and after a few plays the single was blacklisted from BBC Radio 1 for being too depressing. The ba