Can a bizarre, improvised performance take a music video with almost no budget and push it to iconic status? An astounding yes if Thom Yorke has anything to say about it.

Radiohead aren’t new to turning blindingly simple concepts into riveting visual pieces. Their video for “Creep” does little more then subject you to an agonizing minute of Thom Yorke’s head fully submerged beneath water, but the raw emotion it evokes in that minute and the one that follow makes it stand out amongst the flood of highly intricate, million dollar set pieces we’ve became accustomed to seeing in the televised and now digital age of music videos. Sometimes removing the theatrics and cues and instead allowing the talent to shine in a given scenario offers something uniquely captivating and human.

Radiohead’s 2011 video for “Lotus Flower” pours with that same raw spirit, Thom’s bombastic moves transcending beyond the realms of what you’d expect any seasoned choreography to offer, yet also brilliantly conveying tonal energy of the song which he of course grasps more than anyone else. Pieces like this offer a glimpse into the performer behind the performance; strangely intimate, truly unique and a rare treat.