If You Say the Word

2021 single by Radiohead
"If You Say the Word"
Single by Radiohead
from the album Kid A Mnesia
Released7 September 2021
RecordedJanuary 1999 – April 2000
Genre
  • Alternative rock
  • electronica
Length4:22
LabelXL
Songwriter(s)Radiohead
Producer(s)
  • Nigel Godrich
  • Radiohead
Radiohead singles chronology
"Man of War"
(2017) 		"If You Say the Word"
(2021) 		"Follow Me Around"
(2021)
Music video
"If You Say the Word" on YouTube

"If You Say the Word" is a song recorded by the English rock band Radiohead, released on 7 September 2021 as the first single from their compilation album Kid A Mnesia.[1] It was recorded during the joint sessions for Radiohead's fourth and fifth albums, Kid A (2000) and Amnesiac (2001), but remained unreleased until 2021.[2]

Music

"If You Say the Word" features "delicate" fingerpicking, a "foreboding groove", "chiming" percussion and ondes Martenot.[1]

Music video

Radiohead released a video for "If You Say the Word" on 23 September 2021.[3] It was directed by Kasper Häggström and features a crew capturing businessmen from nature and taking them to work in London.[4][5][6] Spin likened the video to the science fiction series Black Mirror.[7] The video won "Best Alternative Video" at the 2022 UK Music Video Awards.[8]

Reception

Reviewing "If You Say the Word" for Pitchfork, Marc Hogan described it as "lush and elegant". He observed the lyrics that seem both loving and threatening, and wrote, "While 'If You Say the Word' doesn't immediately stand out as fodder for a Radiohead best-of playlist, it's still of such strikingly high quality that it's surprising it hasn't surfaced before now".[1] Contact Music described it as a "typically melancholy ambient number" in line with other material from Kid A and Amnesiac.[9]

Personnel

Radiohead

Additional personnel

  • Nigel Godrich – production, engineering, mixing
  • Gerard Navarro – production assistance, additional engineering
  • Graeme Stewart – additional engineering

References

  1. ^ a b c Hogan, Marc (7 September 2021). "Radiohead "If You Say the Word"". Pitchfork. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  2. ^ Richards, Will (23 September 2021). "Watch Radiohead's haunting new video for 'If You Say The Word'". NME. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  3. ^ Fu, Eddie (23 September 2021). "Radiohead Share New Video for "If You Say the Word": Watch". Consequence. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  4. ^ Strauss, Matthew (23 September 2021). "Radiohead Share Uncanny New "If You Say the Word" Video: Watch". Pitchfork. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  5. ^ Kreps, Daniel (23 September 2021). "Radiohead Go Businessman-Hunting in New Video for 'If You Say the Word'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  6. ^ Caraan, Sophie (24 September 2021). "Radiohead Drops Visual for Previously Unreleased Track "If You Say the Word"". Hypebeast. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  7. ^ Whitaker, Marisa (23 September 2021). "Radiohead Unveil 'If You Say the Word' Video". Spin. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  8. ^ "UK Music Video Awards: Little Simz campaign honoured with more trophies". www.musicweek.com. Retrieved 2022-10-28.
  9. ^ "Radiohead - If You Say The Word Audio Stream". Contact Music. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
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