Wikipedia

Hail to the Thief (Live Recordings 2003–2009)

Hail to the Thief (Live Recordings 2003–2009) is the second live album by the English rock band Radiohead, released on 13 August 2025 by XL Recordings. It comprises performances of songs from Radiohead's sixth album, Hail to the Thief (2003). Radiohead decided to release the recordings after revisiting them while working on a theatre production. Live Recordings received positive reviews.

Hail to the Thief (Live Recordings 2003–2009)
Live album by
Radiohead
Released13 August 2025 (2025-08-13)[1]
VenueVarious
Length47:41
LabelXL
ProducerIan Davenport
Radiohead chronology
Kid A Mnesia
(2021)		 Hail to the Thief (Live Recordings 2003–2009)
(2025)

Background

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Radiohead released their sixth album, Hail to the Thief, in 2003.[2] The singer and songwriter, Thom Yorke, wrote many of its lyrics in response to the war on terror and the resurgence of right-wing politics in the west after the turn of the millennium.[3]

Radiohead toured in 2003 and 2004, with performances in Europe, the US, Australia and Japan, including performances at the Field Day, Glastonbury and Coachella festivals. Radiohead rearranged some songs for live performance; for example, they integrated live sampling and a new bassline into "The Gloaming".[4]

Years later, Yorke reworked the album for Hamlet Hail to the Thief, a production of Hamlet by the Royal Shakespeare Company that opened in 2025.[5] In the process, he revisited Radiohead's Hail to the Thief performances and was "shocked at the energy ... I barely recognised us".[1] He said to have not released them "would have been insane".[1]

Content

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Live Recordings contains performances from cities including Dublin, Amsterdam, London and Buenos Aires.[6] Radiohead described it as a way to "re-evaluate their relationship" with Hail to the Thief,[1] and Rolling Stone described it as "basically a track-for-track remake".[6] To bring it to vinyl length, it excludes "Backdrifts" and "A Punchup at a Wedding".[6]

Release and reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic83/100[7]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusicStarStarStarStar[8]
Classic RockStarStarStarHalf star[9]
Cult FollowingStarStarStarStar[10]
MojoStarStarStarStar[11]
Record CollectorStarStarStarStar[12]
Pitchfork8.1/10[13]
Rolling StoneStarStarStarStar[6]
Spectrum CultureStarStarStarStar[14]
UncutStarStarStarStar[15]

Hail to the Thief (Live Recordings 2003–2009) was released digitally on 13 August 2025, followed by CD and vinyl releases on 31 October. It was mixed by Ben Baptie and mastered by Matt Colton.[1]

In AllMusic, Neil Z. Yeung wrote that Live Recordings "is an energised, visceral reimagining of the original album, with the urgency of the band's performances and Yorke's uninhibited live vocals elevating these songs into a brand-new beast ... For any critics who complained that Hail to the Thief was just too long, bloated, and disjointed, this is the course correction that'll give that album the justice it has always deserved."[8] In Spectrum Culture, Justin Vellichi argued that Live Recordings transcended Radiohead's previous live album, I Might Be Wrong (2001), and wrote: "As the western world faces political crisis, it's interesting to question why Radiohead revisited (and rereleased) music recorded during a different political crisis more than two decades ago."[14]

Rolling Stone praised the performances and expressed hope for further live releases.[6] In Pitchfork, Molly Mary O'Brien praised the "mutation of the acrid mood on the studio album into something immense, constructive, and cathartic".[13] She wrote that Live Recordings "does feel like a particularly authentic musical expression of what the band truly is, and maybe always has been: not a band making protest music with a particular call to action, just a band checking the barometers and pointing out how fucked we already are".[13]

Track listing

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No.TitleLength
1."2 + 2 = 5"3:36
2."Sit Down, Stand Up"4:12
3."Sail to the Moon"4:19
4."Go to Sleep"3:46
5."Where I End and You Begin"4:11
6."We Suck Young Blood"4:57
7."The Gloaming"3:59
8."There, There"5:34
9."I Will"2:09
10."Myxomatosis"4:05
11."Scatterbrain"3:26
12."A Wolf at the Door"3:31
Total length:47:41

Charts

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Weekly chart performance for Hail to the Thief (Live Recordings 2003–2009)
Chart (2025) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[16] 15
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[17]9
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[18]31
Croatian International Albums (HDU)[19] 1
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[20]15
Irish Albums (Official Charts)[21]29
Scottish Albums (Official Charts)[22]5
Spanish Albums (Promusicae)[23]59
UK Albums (Official Charts)[24]12
UK Independent Albums (Official Charts)[25]2
US Billboard 200[26]200
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[27]4
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[28]20
US Vinyl Albums (Billboard)[29]5

In addition, the album charted on the UK Official Album Downloads Charts, peaking at 8 on the 15 August 2025.[30]

References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Dunworth, Liberty (13 August 2025). "Radiohead revisit 'archive' Hail to the Thief recordings on new live album: 'It's been a very cathartic process'". NME. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
  2. ↑ Fricke, David (27 June 2003). "Bitter prophet: Thom Yorke on Hail to the Thief". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 18 March 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  3. ↑ Fricke, David (26 July 2006). "Bitter Prophet: Thom Yorke on Hail to the Thief". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  4. ↑ Randall, Mac (2011). "Chapter 15". Exit Music: The Radiohead Story. Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-1849384575.
  5. ↑ Wiegand, Chris (25 September 2024). "Hamlet Hail to the Thief: Thom Yorke revisits Radiohead album for Shakespeare show". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Sheffield, Rob (19 August 2025). "Radiohead return to their most controversial album for a killer live record". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  7. ↑ "Hail to the Thief (Live Recordings 2003-2009) by Radiohead". Metacritic. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  8. 1 2 Z. Yeung, Neil. "Hail to the Thief (Live Recordings 2003-2009) Review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  9. ↑ It can't and shouldn't replace the original, but this is a fascinating insight into the band's creative process and latter-day regrets. [Dec 2025, p.79]
  10. ↑ Gleadow, Ewan (26 August 2025). "Radiohead – Hail to the Thief (Live Recordings 2003 – 2009) Review". Cult Following. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
  11. ↑ Captures Radiohead during their majestic 2000s, delivering muscular, meticulously detailed material to an audience eager for rousing, off killer anthems (There, There) and piano-led laments (We Suck Young Blood) alike. [Nov 2025, p.101]
  12. ↑ Even if stronger records would follow, the fuel that energised them is on often glorious show here. [Nov 2025, p.95]
  13. 1 2 3 O'Brien, Molly Mary. "Radiohead: Hail to the Thief (Live Recordings 2003-2009)". Pitchfork. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  14. 1 2 Vellucci, Justin (13 November 2025). "Radiohead: Hail to the Thief (Live Recordings 2003-2009)". Spectrum Culture. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  15. ↑ Their selection is most impressive during climactic moments - the opening double whammy of an explosive "2=2+5" and impatient "Sit Down. Stand Up" a frantic "Where I End And You Begin", a thunderous, almost unhinged "Myxomatosis" - but quieter moments like the skittish "The Gloaming also flourish. [Nov 2025, p.50]
  16. ↑ "ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. 27 October 2025. Retrieved 24 October 2025.
  17. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Radiohead – Hail To The Thief - Live Recordings 2003-2009" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  18. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Radiohead – Hail To The Thief - Live Recordings 2003-2009" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  19. ↑ "Lista Prodaje 47. Tjedan 2025" [Sales list Week 47 2025] (in Croatian). HDU. 23 November 2025. Retrieved 9 December 2025.
  20. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Radiohead – Hail To The Thief - Live Recordings 2003-2009" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  21. ↑ "Official Irish Albums Chart on 7/11/2025 – Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  22. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart on 7/11/2025 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  23. ↑ "Spanishcharts.com – Radiohead – Hail To The Thief - Live Recordings 2003-2009". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  24. ↑ "Official Albums Chart on 7/11/2025 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  25. ↑ "Official Independent Albums Chart on 7/11/2025 – Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  26. ↑ "Radiohead Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  27. ↑ "Radiohead Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  28. ↑ "Radiohead Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  29. ↑ "Radiohead Chart History (Vinyl Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
  30. ↑ "Official Album Downloads Chart on 15/8/2025". Official Charts. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
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