When Radiohead dropped The Bends on March 13, 1995, everything changed. They left the shadow of “Creep” behind, stretched their creative muscles, and created one of the defining alt-rock albums of the ’90s. Radiohead were here to stay, and they weren’t about to be boxed in. Let’s dive into five lesser-known facts that make The Bends a landmark worth celebrating.
1. The Bends Was Born in a Barn (Literally)
Before heading into fancy London studios, Radiohead spent weeks rehearsing in an old barn on a fruit farm in Oxfordshire. They needed to fall in love with the songs again after endless touring for Pablo Honey. The rustic surroundings helped strip things back to basics, setting the raw emotional tone that defines The Bends. Sometimes, it turns out, you need mud on your boots to make magic.
2. “Fake Plastic Trees” Made Thom Yorke Cry In The Studio
“Fake Plastic Trees” nearly broke the band — early versions were grand and bombastic, sounding closer to Guns N’ Roses than Radiohead. Then one night, after seeing Jeff Buckley live, Thom Yorke found the heart of the song. Inspired, he recorded three stripped-down acoustic takes — and burst into tears after the final one. The rest of the band built their parts carefully around that raw moment, creating one of the most heartbreaking alt-rock ballads ever made.
3. “Planet Telex” Was Recorded in a Drunken Blur
“Planet Telex,” the opener that feels like it floats in from another galaxy, was recorded after the band returned from a night out drinking. Thom Yorke sang the vocals slumped in a corner, drunk, while the band built a trippy wall of sound around him. The song was written, recorded, and basically finished in a single evening — because sometimes brilliance doesn’t wait for a hangover.
4. The Bends Was Almost Too Ambitious for Its Own Good
Midway through recording, pressure from EMI and internal band stress made things messy. Radiohead were trying so hard to craft perfect singles that it nearly broke them apart. By the time they paused for an international tour, tensions boiled over in Mexico in one epic, tearful band fight. But that release turned out to be cathartic — they came back stronger and finished the album with a renewed sense of purpose.
5. The Album Cover Was a Happy Accident
The unforgettable, ghostly face on the cover of The Bends? It’s not a statue or a model — it’s a CPR training dummy. Thom Yorke and Stanley Donwood stumbled across it while filming random footage for the artwork. They found something haunting in the mannequin’s expression, and by snapping a photo off a TV screen, they turned it into one of the most iconic alt-rock album covers of all time.
The Bends was more than just Radiohead’s second album — it was their rebirth. It bridged the gap between Pablo Honey and the even greater risks they’d take on OK Computer and beyond. It’s a record where guitars roar, hearts break, and the groundwork for a new era of alternative rock is laid brick by brick. 30 years later, it still sounds like the future knocking on the door.
