Remember the summer of 2000? Creed ruled the airwaves, boy and girl bands ruled MTV and nothing particularly noteworthy was coming from anyone. Radiohead, however, had a new CD coming out that would "save rock and roll," according to most music critics. "Kid A" was the CD, and its combination of synthesizer noise and spaced-out lyrics made little sense to anyone, including me.

The band followed a year later with "Amnesiac," which rocked a little but was generally dull. Once "Hail to the Thief" neared, people got excited again. Rolling Stone magazine declared Radiohead was back, guitars and all. They must have a different version of the CD. Contrary to what Rolling Stone and others have said, Radiohead isn't back.

The guitars are back, but the drums remain conspicuously absent most of the time. Three songs - "Backdrifts," "The Gloaming" and "Sit Down. Stand Up" can probably be tossed right away. They all boil down to Thom Yorke moaning and the band playing keyboards and making noise.

"We Suck Young Blood" and "I Will" are in the same vein, with Yorke moaning and the band carrying a funeral dirge pace. One would do, but both is too much.

That leaves us with just a handful of songs that make "Hail to the Thief" worth listening to. The opener, "2+2=5," deals with Yorke's political views (anti-war), and actually plays out rather well. "Myxomatosis" is a big, fuzzed-out guitar party that goes on far too long but turns out OK. Three tracks are particularly good, though. "There there" uses the entire band and gets back to the band's early days.

"Punchup At a Wedding" broods with intensity for its length, but never reaches the peak you're expecting. It builds and builds until it's about to explode but then stops.

The closing track, "Wolf At the Door," finds Yorke delivering lyrics in a manic, early Dylan style. He runs the lines together like he's running out of time and turns it into a powerful track.

But unfortunately, Yorke and Radiohead really are running out of time. It's getting to the "boy who cried wolf" stage. The last three albums have been heavily hyped, and all have failed to deliver.

"Hail to the Thief" proves that the best Radiohead is, and will always be, early Radiohead. Do yourself a favor this time around - go buy 1995's "The Bends" instead of falling to the "Thief."