Friday Fartwork: Radiohead's The King of Limbs

Radiohead
The King of Limbs
(Self-released)

Today, we'll take a look at the very simple, yet deceptively complex, fartwork of Radiohead's new album The King of Limbs.

A few thoughts will hit you when you first come into contact with this piece of art - and they are, by-and-large, mundane observations: What are these things? Why does one appear to have three arms (possibly just on one side) and the other doesn't? Is one a reflection of the other? Where are they and what are they feeling? And if at all, which one between these two creatures is the implied king of limbs?

And thus we move on to the more complicated, even abstract, probings: What do the contrasting colours of these two creatures say about the colours of Thom Yorke's chakras? What's the significance of the juxtaposition between the tree details at the top of the album cover and the abstract vertical paint lines at the bottom? Is the "The King Of Limbs" typography acting as a separator to the fragmented psyche of Mr Yorke, and if so, are there any clues suggesting how this king will hold both extremes in tension?

The key to really understanding this fartwork, however, lies not in any of the above questions but in this: Where is the band name "Radiohead" and what have these two ghouls to do with it?

It should now become much clearer to you that the green ghoul in the background has just eaten the word "Radiohead" and has choked while trying to swallow it. That explains why he has turned green and that his eyes are wide with terror - nay, desperation! The white diagonal lines above the green ghoul's head indicates its surprise and alarm at having choked so badly.

The other ghoul, the one in yellow, is clearly seen running away from the scene (to the left - the two brown ovals above "The" are its eyes) to get help for his friend. Look closely and you will see the urgency in his eyes, expressed through the horizontal paint daubs under each of the brown ovals. It doesn't take much to feel his determination to seek medical treatment and seek it fast. His fleeing from the scene now lends new meaning to the expression on his choking friend's face - he now fears the thought of being alone in this forest at night.

Would Thom Yorke himself show up - much like in the video for There There - and exact vengeance on this ghoul for its bandname binge? A truly chilling thought, left unanswered.

Radiohead - Feral (from the album The King of Limbs)