Part of the joy and/or the challenge of being a Radiohead fan is that the band is always going to confound your expectations and are never going to make the same album twice. There are plenty of fans who are still waiting for them to make the Bends II, or another experimental electronic album like Kid A, or to become the next Pink Floyd. It's not going to happen. Radiohead please themselves. It's human nature to have hopes and expectations, but in order enjoy life as a Radiohead fan you've got to let go of preconceptions and just enjoy the ride.

The following is a pastiche of Junkmedia writers' varying opinions and observations about the album. The 4-star rating reflects the sum of our reviews. –Laura Sylvester

After all the in-depth analysis that surrounds Radiohead's bold "pay what you want" strategy, the fact remains that In Rainbows actually is free. Free, that is, of any untoward external influence. With the complete removal of any need to meet deadlines or the pressure to appease EMI's powers that be, Radiohead have set their own agenda, bound only by the rabid anticipation of their patient fan base. A modest tour in 2006 helped ease fears, but In Rainbows was what everyone was waiting for.

Like all good albums, In Rainbows is a set of songs, each with unique appeal, but sequenced together for the greater good of the album. And while that has been Radiohead's mantra all along, it has never been so well-executed. Whereas previous Radiohead albums have steadily built towards a climax, such as "The Tourist's" soaring outro on OK Computer or "A Wolf At The Door's" bile closing Hail to the Thief, In Rainbows does quite the opposite. – Karl Butler

The songs are varied, fully-realized, and deeply satisfying, yet leave the listener wishing there was even more. The production by the band plus longtime collaborator Nigel Godrich is nothing short of exquisite: pristine even in its 160 kbps version, every instrument comes through rich and clear in the mix. The clever use of panning structures a unique sense of space for each track. The overall sound feels timeless, owing as much to 70s Krautrock as to the Beatles; yet has one foot heading into completely new territory.

The recording itself is sensuous; the sounds that have been committed to tape as well as the sinuous dance of Thom Yorke's voice. Having never sounded exactly the same twice on any successive record, yet always remaining recognizable, Yorke's voice on In Rainbows is unabashedly emotive, tender and soulful; a trend first noticeable on last year's remarkable solo effort The Eraser. -Jennifer Ingrassia Vogtner.

With skittering electronics combined with East-African style guitar, "15 Step's" 5/4 time signature proves the value of a good opener. Yorke's common notion of the album as a cycle is evidenced in the lyric "how come I end up where I started?" Following, "Bodysnatchers" returns to a triple-edged sonic guitar assault, the likes of not seen since 1997's "Electioneering"; it's a classic one-two punch designed to grab attention. – Karl Butler.

The standout track here, and possibly of 2007, is "Nude." The song, originally called "Big Ideas," played by the band for over ten years, has finally been put to record, and wonderfully so. An ethereal intro leads up to Colin Greenwood's piercing bass and Yorke's soulful, beautiful vocals. This sounded so good on first listen, it nearly made me put it on repeat before listening to the rest of the songs. The band must be ecstatic it has finally been recorded, and perhaps even a little surprised themselves at just how good it sounds. - Grant Cameron.

"Nude," is the Disney song of the album. All Technicolor and orchestral strings (though they are quite impressively effected) it ultimately falls hollow by its final major chord. Where "Nude" should communicate the listless disappointments of suburbia and a 'settled' life, and fails, the rest of the album finds its way around this tricky and rather demoralizing subject with fantastic grace and confident sadness. –Jessica Pinney.

Getting deeper into the album now (and make no mistake, this is an "Album" with a capital A, with careful attention to tracklisting and pace) "Weird Fishes/Arpeggi" has the feeling of an epic, though at slightly over five minutes it's not particularly long. It takes its time gathering itself in raiments of shimmering guitar arpeggios, heaped upon themselves to create an almost Philip Glass aura as the protagonist edges ever closer to the cliff above the ocean. A symbolic splash heralds the second part of the song, with a sense of urgency drawn by rushing noises (are they guitars? Is it the Ondes Martenot? Who knows?) that spur the song to its exhilarating conclusion.

The gorgeous dark shine of "All I Need" comes quick on the heels of Arpeggi to out-epic an epic. Sinister as a black rainbow, the ambient noises in the verses are reminiscent of "Climbing Up the Walls" from OK Computer: Whereas that song detonated into deranged guitars and shrieking strings, "All I Need" embarks on a steady climb up the roller-coaster with Yorke banging away at a piano, as violins vibrate seemingly knowingly behind him; then the whole song erupts in a shower of cymbals that recall a spouting roman candle. "It's all wrong, it's all right," Yorke's voice claws the air as if desperate to calm itself. It may well be the album's most emotional moment. -Jennifer Ingrassia Vogtner.

The two highest highs are the songs that came out of left field. "Faust Arp" is a beautiful acoustic guitar ballad that's equal parts Beatles and Elliott Smith, with Jonny Greenwood's string arrangement providing weight and counterbalance to the sweetness of the melody. And "Reckoner"… Holy Mother of God, where did this song come from? Longtime fans, upon seeing the track listing, rejoiced, because "Reckoner" is a well-loved unreleased track that was played during the 2001 tour. This "Reckoner" bears no resemblance to that angry, desperate, growling rocker. It's perhaps the least "Radiohead-like" track on the album, rolling with falsetto grace through rhythmic hills, with a middle part that has Yorke harmonizing with himself over synthesized washes of sound guaranteed to send goosebumps through the most hardened flesh. The lyrics are all but indecipherable – Yorke seems to be singing about love or redemption or something, but it doesn't matter because even without knowing its meaning, the song manages to be the heart and soul of the album. -Laura Sylvester.

"Jigsaw Falling Into Place" saunters through its night-club encounters and dissatisfying outcomes, "House of Cards" finds nothing but emptiness in its extra-marital experiments, "All I Need" appears ultimately disabled and revolted by the very things its voice does need. Finally, "Videotape" develops a color photograph of a day of perfect simplicity. It is a touching and ultimately redeeming song that is shrouded in a restrained acceptance of death.

In these areas In Rainbows is particularly successful. This apparent theme runs tightly through the songs and the disappointments felt by the characters within the album is almost palpable in the clear vocalizations of Thom Yorke and the alternately stuttering and strutting instrumentation. The rhythm section of Radiohead outshines everyone on this album…Phil Selway's drumming and Colin Greenwood's bass work together to communicate the essential feelings within the albums with as much clarity as Yorke's layered vocals. –Jessica Pinney.

There are two key moments that stand apart from the rest. Firstly, that intro to "Nude"; confirming that simply the four-year wait (or in this song's case, 10 years) really was worth it. Secondly, that ending to "Videotape." In fact, it is the whole ending sequence that confirms the worth of In Rainbows; it shows Radiohead's unerring and uncompromising belief in the album of the art form – for instance the decision to temper the ferocity of the live "Jigsaw Falling into Place" (where it had been known as "Open Pick") in favor of a more subtle build-up. But "Videotape" is the real sacrifice. Gone are the powerful swells, the full band arrangement, the soaring vocals and most importantly the positivity. It emerges simply and bulging with self-imposed restraint. The piano line remains, but that is all. Yorke's vocals arrive desolate and forlorn; as he approaches the "pearly gates" and reminds us of "the good and days," he simply fades away, as if sunk without a trace. Fractured drums enter, building minimally; akin to a death march. It's uncomfortable listening, the musical equivalent of staring death in face. The drums and the time signature manipulation build in intensity, and then it's over, it's a sea of emptiness. Paradoxically, it's exhilarating.

As for the overarching meaning of In Rainbows, all that is certain right now is that it's a far more personal album than anything preceding it, borne out by several confessionals. "I don't want to be your friend/I just want to be your lover" ("House of Cards") and "I hit the bottom and escape" ("Weird Fishes/Arpeggi"). Elsewhere, images or life and death abound, and there are even blatant references to Faust, not only the title of "Faust Arp" but also when "Mephistopholes is just beneath and he's reaching up to grab me" in "Videotape". Perhaps In Rainbows is simply a dream gone wrong, as Yorke "wish(es) away the nightmare" towards the end of the album. - Karl Butler.

Thematically this is an album about compromise, accommodation, deals made and broken, and relationships in all their fragility and strength; it's written by and for adults: I see "pushing 40" written all over it, but by that I mean all the good things about age: the increasing complexity of everything, children, the partner you've been with for twenty years and still remains in some senses a stranger, how that can spark love all over again.

This is an album about living in the world. It's not the plunges and escapes and otherworlds of Kid A/Amnesiac. It really is face up against the real. -Juliet O'Keefe.

And just for balance… The release of Radiohead's seventh studio album is news enough to send the music press into apoplectic fits, but the way in which they decided to unleash the record on the world has managed to overshadow any song on it. And, as much as it pains me to say so, this will most likely be the case in the future when In Rainbows is placed into the context of the band's career. It is a record that starts off strong, with four songs that fit solidly into the band's redoubtable catalog, but spends the rest of its time in a slow fizzling decline, sounding unsure and, at times, uninspired. -- Bob Ham.