(Judge, Jury & Executioner)
This song strangled me. As soon as the machine-drone falling synths and
spitfire percussion kicked in I simply forgot to breathe.
No in. No out. Completely still, tingling, and frightened. I didn't remember to inhale until a few moments after Thom Yorke's
schizoaffective mumbling fell into place.
Myxomatosis is an aggressive,
claustrophobic song. The
minimalist, menacing scales pad heavily beside Thom's sullen melodies, accompanied by a relentless cascade of beats, hollow and distorted metallic scratches, and extraterrestrial whines. This is simply
migraine inducing stuff; it assaults as it serenades.
In interviews, Thom has declared that Myxomatosis is about mind control. The nail that sticks up gets hammered down. The nightmarish world woven around the speaker is rapidly growing beyond his ability to comprehend it. All around him he sees people turning into gibbering wrecks, mere shells to contain the mania of an existence that's lost all meaning. In a feat of pathetic arrogance, he feels himself to be the only person free of this disease, this myxomatosis deliberately released upon the docile population. Every attempt he makes to understand or explain it is leveled, and with increasing isolation he slips into the communal madness himself. His words become garbled and unintelligable. All he can clearly articulate is his inability to speak. I don't know why I feel so tongue tied.
Myxomatosis reinforces an emotion of complete helplessness that courses throughout Hail to the Thief. It embraces an extremely common theme of Radiohead's: alienation in an increasingly complex and impersonal society, but by making a metaphor of the devestating disease introduced by man that nearly wiped out the rabbit species in Britain, Thom concocts a new, sinster edge to this theme. The song first appeared in Lisbon, Portugal during Radiohead's June 22, 2002 performance. Its structure is much looser in concert than as settled in the studio, much like The National Anthem. The chorus ("I don't... skinned alive") during which everything cuts out except the drums was also used in the B-side Cuttooth off the Knives Out single. Thom must've taken a liking to it.
Keen-eyed thebigbadme kindly noted further lyrical borrowings within the song. The line, "I sat in the cupboard and wrote it down in neat," appeared alone in red on a page of Kid A's secret booklet concealed beneath the CD tray. Likewise, the slightly modified line, "We did some of his card tracks for the mafia geeks." Rarely does a Radiohead song stand absolutely alone among the band's body of work.
There are two lyrical versions of the song: the lyrics listed in the Hail to the Thief booklet and the lyrics as they are actually sung on the studio release. I will give the sung version
The mongrel cat came home
Holding half a head
Proceeded to show it off
To all his new-found friends
He said, "I've been to where I like.
"I've slept with who I like.
"She ate me up for breakfast.
"She screwed me in a vice.
"But now,
I
don't
know
why I
feel
so
tongue
tied."
I sat in the cupboard
And wrote it down in neat
They were cheering and waving
cheering and waving
twitching and salivating
like with myxomatosis.
But it got edited fucked up
Strangled beaten up
Used as a photo in Time magazine
Buried in a burning black hole in Devon
And now,
I
don't
know
why I
feel
so
tongue
tied.
Don't
know
why
I feel
so
skinned
a-
live.
My thoughts are misguided and a little naïve
I twitch and I salivate
like with myxomatosis.
You should put me in a home or you should
Put me down
I got myxomatosis.
I got myxomatosis.
Yeah and no one likes a smart arse
But we all like stars
(Oh please) That wasn't my intention
(blah blah)
I did it for a reason (reason)
It must've got mixed up
Strangled
Beaten up
I got myxomatosis.
I got myxomatosis.
And now,
I
don't
know
why I
feel
so
tongue
tied.
Radiohead/Hail to the Thief/2003/Track 12
In concordance with E2's new copyright policy, a second listing of lyrics as they were given in the album's booklet has been removed. The currently cited lyrics run to 211 words, the analytical content stands at 450. This fits within fair use guidelines. Questions, objections, or concerns: please message me and I'll reply as soon as possible.