Track Review - I Promise/Man Of War/Lift by Radiohead

Rating: 10/10

Though released as part of the OK Computer OKNOTOK 1997 2017 reissue, the three tracks were in fact recorded during the original OK Computer era — left unreleased for years, and gradually taking on a mythical status among fans. In hindsight, they were right to hold them back. These songs were too grand, too immaculate — almost too perfect — and releasing them at the time might have burdened the band with fame, and, too much pressure.
“I Promise” is perhaps the most straightforwardly romantic song in Radiohead’s catalogue — a declaration of unwavering commitment delivered with emotional restraint, built around a steady, unadorned pattern of acoustic strumming. “Man Of War” is an anti-war-themed track opening with creeping suspense before launching into a full-on orchestral-rock assault. “Lift” is the most expansive of the three. “You’ve been stuck in a lift / We’ve been trying to reach you, Thom.” The lyric lingers like a lifeline thrown to someone lost in the world. Thom’s vocals swell and shiver as the song builds, and the grand arrangement carries the weight of a homecoming.