Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke has explained that a combination of personal bereavement and emotional exhaustion played a major role in the band’s seven-year absence from touring.

In a recent interview with The Times, Yorke reflected on the final shows of the A Moon Shaped Pool tour, which concluded with a performance in Philadelphia in August 2018.

“I guess the wheels came off a bit, so we had to stop,” Yorke said, describing the decision to halt touring rather than risk further harm.

He also opened up about the death of his first wife, Dr. Rachel Owen, in late 2016, saying that he hadn’t given himself space to grieve and that the strain eventually made performing untenable. “My grief was coming out in ways that made me think, I need to take this away,” Yorke recalled.

For Yorke, music could be both solace and wound: at times playing felt healing, but at others it “literally hurts… the music hurts,” he said, explaining how trauma made returning to the piano physically painful.

Guitarist Ed O’Brien echoed the emotional cost of the band’s last tour, admitting that by its end he’d reached a breaking point. He described enjoying the concerts themselves but feeling drained by everything around them, saying the experience left him “f—ing spent.” Over time, however, reflection brought renewed appreciation for his bandmates and their catalogue.

Radiohead have since announced a limited European run of 20 shows across five cities — Madrid, Bologna, London, Copenhagen and Berlin — with the tour scheduled to begin on Nov. 4. All dates sold out quickly after tickets went on sale.

The interview also addressed lingering controversies tied to the group, including criticism over their 2017 Tel Aviv concert, Yorke’s confrontation with a protester at a 2024 solo show in Melbourne, and Jonny Greenwood’s work with Israeli artist Dudu Tassa. Yorke described the backlash as a “low-level Arthur Miller witch-hunt” that troubles him, while Greenwood said he “politely disagreed” with calls to boycott Israeli musicians.

European Tour — Cities

• Madrid
• Bologna
• London
• Copenhagen
• Berlin

As the band prepares to return to the stage for the first time since 2018, members say the hiatus ultimately allowed space for healing and perspective, making the prospect of renewed live performances meaningful again.

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