Thom York is a good artist I'll admit, but his stuff is too conceptual and not focused enough. I doubt he'll ever be a great artist. Pinkerton is one of the most raw and emotional albums ever recorded. Almost every single person in the world can relate to that album.
|0 pinkerton was their worse album when it first dropped, so apparently ,no one at the time, related to it at all.
Yorke's writings are very focused, they are so precise, that his songs target specific feelings instead of just broad themes that are easily related to. Whereas Rivers Cuomo does the exact opposite and writes music easily related to. They are two writers from very different ends of the spectrum, so i hardly think they are comparable in the sense that you keep pursuing. To doubt that either bands are great is nonsense, both are amazing and both employ the writings of musical geniuses.
But in terms of having a defined sound, Radiohead wins. Cuomo can't decide whether to write serious music or feel good pop music now 'n days. Radiohead is consistent.