Released 17 August 2009 Length 5:31 Writer(s) Radiohead | Format Download Label Self-released | |
Genre Alternative rock, experimental rock, krautrock | ||
"These Are My Twisted Words" is a song by the English alternative rock band Radiohead. It was leaked via BitTorrent on 12 August 2009, possibly by the band, and officially released on 17 August as a free download from the Radiohead website.
Contents
Composition
Matthew Schnipper of the Fader described "These Are My Twisted Words" as a "simple song" with "a plodding, stubborn forward spirit". It opens with a motorik beat from drummer Phil Selway before Thom Yorke's vocal enters. Daniel Kreps of Rolling Stone noted a krautrock influence, likening the song to the In Rainbows track "Weird Fishes / Arpeggi".
Release
On 12 August 2009, the song was leaked via BitTorrent. A text file included in the torrent file contained ASCII art, a cryptic poem and a reference to a release date of 17 August. Commentators including the Guardian and Rolling Stone speculated that Radiohead leaked the song themselves following the unconventional pay-what-you-want release of their seventh album In Rainbows (2007).
On 17 August 2009, guitarist Jonny Greenwood announced on Radiohead's blog that "These Are My Twisted Words" was available as a free download from the Radiohead site or via a torrent hosted by Mininova. The download included several pieces of artwork by Yorke and longtime Radiohead collaborator Stanley Donwood, with the suggestion to print it on tracing paper and put "in an order that pleases you."
Critical reception
Brian Parks of PopMatters gave "These Are My Twisted Words" seven out of ten, describing it as "the most recent in a long line of unconventionally beautiful songs for which Radiohead is renowned." However, Ryan Dombal of Pitchfork found that its "nauseous guitars" and "vaguely whiny lyrics almost read as parody" and concluded that the song "isn't as enticing as its method of distribution".