They used to wish they were special. Now Radiohead are the most significant band of the past two decades.

Although the 1993 modern rock hit "Creep" may have been their formal introduction to the world (and, in hindsight, not representative of them at all), the Oxfordshire five-piece didn't take long to demonstrate they were so much more. Promptly rejecting the fame that came from their earliest buzz and spurning anyone else's expectations of who they should be, Radiohead released a string of increasingly ambitious albums during the '90s that paved the way for some of the most complex and intellectually challenging work ever released by a mainstream act.

Led by eternally enigmatic frontman Thom Yorke and genius composer Jonny Greenwood, Radiohead have managed the improbable feat of being the most critically adored band in the world while remaining commercially huge. Thanks in part to their forward-thinking approach to releasing records and their undeniable ability to turn intimate and academic sonic exploration into arena-shaking anthems, Radiohead have redefined what it means to be a band in the 21st century.

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