The secret rhythm behind Radiohead's "Videotape"

I can only imagine how frustrating this song is to play live when you have thousands of people clapping to the piano..

So Radiohead basically created something that they are secretly hearing differently than their audience, so they are the only ones who know the real song. That’s just beautiful

The most profound thing for me is that the syncopation gives the effect of gasping for one last breath, but only the performer - ie. the dying person - is aware of it. The outside world just sees regular breathing and pulse. Only the gasper feels the gasp.

So, essentially, they're essentially playing to a muted drummer in their heads which only they hear -- delivering something that sounds darker and more-detached to the listener but which is brighter and more-engaged in their own minds?!

Radiohead's music is so interesting that you can make a 10 minute long music theory analysis of that one time Thom Yorke made a mistake.

Those crappy cell phone recordings of concerts are finally useful!

This video reminded me that I really don't know anything about music. Lol

Easy... can we talk about Pyramid Song now ?

now tell me are you rushing or are you dragging?

why does Vox have to be so extra, instead of just clapping they pull out a $150 sampler to do the clapping

Musicians are downplaying the video because syncopation is nothing new. True, I play music for decades and I get that. But the tricky part here is having no clue to the downbeat through the entire song and singing on top of it. Of course, nothing impossible for a seasoned musician on a studio, but it can become very risky for a live performance.

I’m tired of watching old videos, why aren’t you guys making anything like this anymore? this is an amazing work.

I found it to be an odd choice to put together a ten minute video on this song without focusing on the second half of the recorded version, where the percussion changes and the rhythmic complexity is most evident.

As someone who plays music, playing in the half time before or after the beat has never been especially difficult beyond a bit of extra focus. Nor has it ever seemed particularly special where it crops up in music. Not putting down the band or anything, I don't understand how something that takes 30 seconds to explain is glorified as musical genius in a 10 minute video.

“No ones watching this video anymore” “Probably”

The outro should've been just the entire video 9:48

Not quite my tempo.

It's a specific type of syncopation called "anticipation". All of these smart musicians and no one mentioned that the piano chords anticipate beats 1 and 3 by an 1/8th note. It's what gives the song that forward momentum. Also, if you just heard the piano chords alone and clapped along with them, you wouldn't be wrong. In order to use syncopation, you need something else to syncopate against. From the listener's perspective, the piano is the steady beat, the drums enter and sound like they're syncopated against the piano, but then there's suddenly a point when the piano is actually syncopated against the drums. It's a jarring effect, a big switch, but it's definitely not the first time it's been used. Listen to an Afro-Cuban tumbao bass line by itself and try to find the downbeat. All antici ....... pation.

You had me at Radiohead.

This kind of syncopation is not so weird or complex for musicians. In my opinion this song is brilliant because syncopation goes perfectly with the emotions that the lyrics convey. The song is about someone that is about to die (or even dying in that moment) and is recording a final message. This person knows he/she is going to die and its heart is trying to catch the pulse to keep on living, the same way the piano tries to go with the rhythm, but goes "behind" it.