Radiohead's rough-hewn debut catches them cosplaying as a Pixies tribute act, all chunky distortion and quiet-loud dynamics lifted straight from the grunge playbook. The irony is palpable: "Creep" made them accidental spokesmen for outsider angst whilst they clearly yearned to be anything but the misfits it portrayed.

Sean Slade and Paul Q. Kolderie's production aims for Boston alt-rock grit, yet hints of the band's coming transformation flicker beneath the formulaic guitar crunch. A commercially necessary stepping stone they'd spend years trying to escape.