Mnemonic [HACKED]
He may be paranoid but he's not an android
After taking a break from my previous Halloween-themed playlists, I felt like going back to science fiction and there was one film on the list that fit the bill. It’s by no means a critical darling but it had all the right vibes for Radiohead.
What is Known
For over thirty years, Radiohead has reinvented their sound with each album. From the grungy debut “Pablo Honey” to the one-two punch of “OK Computer” and “Kid A” and beyond, each release has left fans and critics guessing where they’ll go next and it’s taken them to interesting locations from the “pay what you want” method for 2007’s “In Rainbows” to branching out to video games like “Polyfauna”, and the virtual exhibition for “Kid A Mnesia” to having their music reinterpreted for Shakespeare in ballet and stage. The band isn’t shy about being in the movies, either. This ranges from songs appearing in Clueless, Romeo + Juliet, and Nowhere to a partial band appearance in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Half of the members have provided scores for films large (Jonny Greenwood working with Paul Thomas Anderson since 2007’s There Will Be Blood, Thom Yorke with the Suspiria remake from 2018) and small (Philip Selway with Let Me Go and Carmilla, Thom Yorke with Confidenza, Johnny Greenwood with Bodysong). While the band has taken a break to work on solo releases and side projects since 2016’s “A Moon Shaped Pool”, it’s clear that the talent and legacy is undeniable as they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019.
Johnny Mnemonic is a short story from 1981 by William Gibson, famed cyberpunk author of Neuromancer. The story itself only spans twenty-three pages or so and it’s clear that it’s a different tale than what Hollywood gave us. Rather than the transhumanist John Wick type in the film that only dresses in high-class suits, Johnny switches between types:
“If they think you’re crude, go technical; if they think you’re technical, go crude. I’m a very technical boy. So I decided to get as crude as possible. These days, though, you have to be pretty technical before you can even aspire to crudeness.”
On top of that, new elements were written into the film version from Gibson himself like the Nerve Attenuation Syndrome epidemic, the Street Preacher and other characters, and the opening exposition.
The film came out in 1995, a time when the Internet was beginning to take hold. It wasn’t the box-office smash as expected, especially when this was Reeves’ follow-up to Speed. Obviously, this was only a bump in the road as he would later go on to lead two quadrilogies: The Matrix and John Wick. The director, Robert Longo, would never direct a film after this and instead returned to other forms of art. The film received renewed interest in 2021, the year it takes place, as events described in the opening crawl did come to pass in one form or another: corporation rule, an epidemic with no known cure, “info wars”. This now places the film in a pantheon of other sci-fi classics where the date has come and gone but parts of it still ring true.
Authorial Intent
By and large, the majority of films with a Radiohead sync are rooted in science fiction, whether it’s the likes of visual spectacles like The Fifth Element and Avatar to the more literary-based works like Minority Report, Total Recall, and Jurassic Park. Surprisingly, Johnny Mnemonic hasn’t been covered by them despite being a perfect candidate. Within the film, there are elements of other works that would come after: an operatic singer at the club (The Fifth Element), recovering memories (Total Recall 1990 and 2012), a man in a suit referred to as “Mr. Smith” (The Matrix series), and general dystopian landscapes (12 Monkeys, Waterworld, District 9).
I chose the black and white version of the film in crafting this setlist because the director wanted to film it like that initially but was denied. It wasn’t until a few years ago that a proper black and white conversion was made and released for home media, much in the same vein as more contemporary works like Logan, Mad Max: Fury Road, Parasite, and Nightmare Alley (2021). In an interview with Screen Slate, Robert cited films like Jean-Luc Godard’s Alphaville and Chris Marker’s La Jetée (the latter of which would serve as inspiration for 12 Monkeys in 1995) as inspiration for Johnny Mnemonic and his other work. This version elevates the film noir aspects of the story as well as lending further visual reference to other cyberpunk films before and after the film’s release like Tetsuo: The Iron Man and Pi.
The Setlist
Sessions October 7-19, 2024. Completed October 19, 2024
Instructions
Start the playlist just before the clouds fade in for the Tristar logo. While the color and black and white cuts have the same runtime, this playlist was constructed using the latter and is the preferred version. Regardless, those versions are the American cuts. The Japanese version contains extra footage.
The Setlist Commentary
Planet Telex (Hexidecimal Mix). This remix of “The Bends” opener lets us know that “everything is broken” in the now-dated year of 2021. This is also an homage to the Waterworld sync as the regular version of the track opens the movie followed by exposition.
Backdrifts. Ol’ Johnny boy is “damaged goods” with the memory expansion but with the need to do one last job, he’s “got nothing more to lose”. In the exposition between him and the clients, “all evidence has been buried” as Johnny won’t recall the actual data until the receiver uses the download code. “But your footsteps giving you away” isn’t so much a threat as it is a reminder of the digital fingerprints we leave behind. It’s also referenced in the short story when Johnny is hiding with the Loteks. The ending instrumental is a cool trip through cyberspace as the download happens, at least until the yakuza arrive.
The National Anthem (Live in France). The first of many shoot-outs. It’s easy in retrospect to just think of the visuals in The Matrix, alluded to in their “Kid A Mnesiac” video game exhibition. Plus, with this version from their only official live album to date, you get Thom scatting to the gunfire with his “pop pop” sounds.
Vegetable. A bitter meeting between bosses. Both Johnny and Shinji want to “spit on the hand that feeds me”.
How Do You? Still in the realm of “Pablo Honey”, this song is all about Ralfi and his power. The lyric of “he’s a dangerous bigot/but we try to forget” sounds out of place but within the short story, Ralfi is said to have “worn the once-famous face of Christian White for twenty years - Christian White of the Aryan Reggae Band…”
Inside My Head. As Johnny tries to make his rendezvous, it’s clear that it’s not what it seems. “What do you want from me?” It’s all “inside my head”.
Karma Police. Plenty of fights break out with not a cop in sight. Johnny holds a gun to Ralfi’s head, “here to crash your party”. Alas, it goes south as Ralfi’s goons knock him out. “This is what you get when you mess with us.”
Fast-Track. This B-side from “Amnesiac” shows more violence between Ralfi and his goons and encountering the band of Loteks.
If You Say the Word. One of the handful of tracks recorded during “Kid A” and “Amnesiac” that didn’t get a proper release until the “Kid A Mnesia” triple disc edition. Johnny deals with some early rounds of seepage and talks about how he can’t divulge the information he carries until someone uses the code and “if they say the word”.
Everything in Its Right Place. I can only imagine what it was like to be an active Radiohead fan at the time “Kid A” first released. The cold electronic textures, the elusive mountains adorning the cover, the freaky blips as advertisements. It’s taken a life of its own as a live favorite as well as an appearance on their only “best of” compilation and as the most appropriate trailer music ever for The Accountant. Here, we get an extensive glimpse into cyberspace and the only way to get past the firewalls is by making sure everything is in its right place.
We Suck Young Blood. Johnny is “begging for a break” and wants answers for what’s in his head. Elsewhere, there’s a meeting with “The Street Preacher” via video to order a hit job: “would you do anything?”. While Johnny calls an unlisted number, it’s reminiscent of some posters used for the “Hail to the Thief” album where the song lyrics are printed and there’s a phone number at the bottom. At the mall, Jane talks about a person named Spider who could help but she suffers from the mysterious Black Shakes: “our veins are thin, our rivers poisoned”.
The Gloaming (The 33.33333 Remix). A scrambled remix as Jane is brought over to Spider to fix her.
Bishop’s Robes. The Street Preacher pays a visit to an unsuspecting victim, “terrifies me still in bishop’s robes”.
Myxomatosis. Spider takes everyone to the makeshift clinic as we see those with NAS “twitching and salivating like with myxomatosis”.
My Iron Lung. Where would you find a medical device like an iron lung? A medical establishment, though probably not like the one in the movie. As Johnny gets a better diagnosis other than “my brain says I’m receiving pain”, we learn what’s actually inside the head: the cure for NAS. Not much can be done as the clinic is ambushed by the Street Preacher, one of the “head shrinkers who want everything”.
High and Dry. Johnny and Jane arrive at the Lotek base in an effort not to be left high and dry, and deal with a flaming car dropped on them. Johnny goes into a rage and lists off all the things he wanted but never could because of his job, “the best thing you’ve had has gone away”.
15 Step. At his lowest point, Johnny can only ask “How come I end up where I went wrong?” The seepage gets worse and worse as he is lifted into the Lotek base, Heaven. His body is carried through the headquarters: “You used to be alright/what happened?” Plus, as Johnny talks about how he’s recalling a memory, you hear kids cheer in the background, reminiscent of Johnny’s birthday party.
Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors. This electronic whiplash from “Amnesiac” shows off the nerve center of Heaven. I wanted to refer to the music video that includes this and “Like Spinning Plates” here. You have the marine life at the start of the video and Jones in his tank. There’s also the wall of television screens in the movie, a reference to the work of Nam June Paik, like in one of the rooms in the videogame. It’s also worth noting in the music video, as it transitions to “Like Spinning Plates”, we get a brief glimpse of control panel with the name “Hauser”. Within the realm of science-fiction, that is the last name of the protagonist in the Philip K. Dick story “We Can Remember It for You Wholesale”, better known as Total Recall from 1990 and 2012. Since Johnny here is trying to remember his past, it all comes full circle here.
Burn the Witch. A good old-fashioned shoot-out and there’s flames galore There’s plenty of imagery here of “shooting the messengers” (Johnny and the Loteks), “we know where you live” (the raid of Heaven), and the “low flying panic attack” that comes in the form of missiles and bullets.
2+2=5 Live at Earl’s Court. This live track from the “COM LAG” EP sets the stage for a life or death battle above water where “you can scream and you can shout/it is too late now”. More soldiers are picked off in the ensuing fight; “I swat ‘em like flies but like flies the buggers keep coming back”.
Pyramid Strings. A snippet from “Pyramid Song” provides some suspense as the Street Preacher attacks one last time.
When Bluebirds Fly. Possibly the dreariest version of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” from The Wizard of Oz, this track has Johnny lock in with the recall code with all of its blips and beeps. I’m also a sucker for whenever control panels and buttons are shown during an electronic track in a sync so I wanted it here.
Street Spirit (Fade Out). As the playlist started with “The Bends”, so shall it end the same. Since the film has a black and white version, I wanted to pay homage to the music video and its dreamy cinematography. Plus, having PharmaKom burn in flames as Johnny and Jane “immerse your soul in love” is a Hollywood ending.
The Cutting Floor
The King of Limbs. In all honesty, the album’s sound doesn’t really vibe with the tech-centric elements of the movie. I’ve mostly associated it with some kind of weird nature elements, helped mostly from the album artwork and the sync for Avatar.
TKOL RMX 1234567. I tried to get two tracks from the album to work, “Good Evening Mrs. Magpie - Modeselektor RMX” and “Bloom - Objekt RMX”, at various points in the film but unfortunately, they didn’t gel the way I had hoped. It’s a shame because I particularly like those two from the album.
Remyxomatosis - Cristian Vogel RMX. While the original does appear in the setlist, I also tried to get the remix included in roughly the same spot. It’s less rock-centric and a little more sinister, which would’ve been perfect for the film.
Fitter Happier. This two minute interlude on “OK Computer” would’ve been included at some point when Johnny gets jacked in.
The Expanded Editions. While most of the supplemental material would appear on streaming, there’s some stuff that didn’t cross over, most of it live stuff from their early albums.
MiniDiscs [Hacked]. Sixteen hours of initially stolen material before Radiohead put it up for sale for a few days. I highly doubt it’ll hit Spotify at any point.
The OK NOT OK Cassette. Included in the 20th anniversary release of the album, this little white tape contains goodies like a ZX Spectrum bleeps and bloops, alternate takes, and scattered sound effects. Again, not on Spotify.
I Want None of This. This 2005 track made for a charity album would’ve gone in the scene where Johnny goes on his rant outdoor and stating what comforts he wanted but never got because of his line of work.
Chernobyl 2. This instrumental that appears in the credits of each episode of The Most Gigantic Lying Mouth of All Time is nowhere on streaming. If so, it would've been an alternate candidate for the opening text crawl to demonstrate how utterly bleak it all is.
The Untitled Tracks on Disc 3 of Kid A Mnesia. Short and to the point but I couldn’t fit them anywhere, primarily “Untitled V3” that uses strings from “Motion Picture Soundtrack”.