House of Cards (Radiohead song)

"House of Cards"
Promotional single by Radiohead
from the album In Rainbows
A-side"Bodysnatchers"
ReleasedApril 6, 2008 (radio)
Recorded2005–2007
GenreArt rock
Length5:28
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Nigel Godrich
Music video
"House of Cards" on YouTube

"House of Cards" is a song by the English rock band Radiohead, from their seventh studio album, In Rainbows (2007). It was serviced to American modern rock radio on April 6, 2008, as a promotional single.

The music video, directed by James Frost, was produced using motion capture and lidar technology and released in June 2008. "House of Cards" was nominated for the Grammy Awards for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, Best Rock Song and Best Music Video.

Writing

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"House of Cards"
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The Radiohead singer, Thom Yorke, first performed "House of Cards" in an acoustic rendition at the 2005 Trade Justice rally in London.[1] According to the bassist, Colin Greenwood, an early version had a bass riff in the style of R.E.M.[2] Yorke and the drummer, Philip Selway, reworked the song with the rhythm on the final version.[2]

Yorke described "House of Cards" as "mellow and summery", and likened it to the 1968 instrumental "Albatross" by Fleetwood Mac.[3] Rolling Stone described it as "surprisingly sexy", with references to the key parties of the 1970s and 1980s.[4] In a 2008 television performance, Yorke dedicated the refrain, "denial, denial", to the American president George W. Bush for rejecting the Kyoto Protocol, an international treaty to reduce greenhouse gases.[5]

Music video

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The "House of Cards" music video was directed by James Frost.[6] In lieu of traditional cameras, it was made with motion capture technology developed by Geometric Informatics and lidar technology developed by Velodyne Lidar.[7] This produced "contoured 3D versions of Yorke's face, like the computer simulation of a mountain range", and "ghostly exteriors and indoor party shots".[8] The Guardian described the video as "spectral, dazzling and eerie",[8] and The Quietus said it had a "haunting hyper-futuristic aspect".[9]

Yorke wrote on Radiohead's website: "It was a strange experience, sitting in front of a laser in the dark, then emailing back and forth with James the director as he sat in front of computers for a whole month with the amazing technicians who processed the data etc... But it says something about the song and came out better than I had dared hope."[10] He was interested in using technology in unintended ways, and liked the idea of turning human beings into "mathematical points ... and how strangely emotional it ended up being".[8] Frost said it was "a direct reflection of where we are in society. Everything is [computer] data. Everything around us is data-driven in some shape or form. We are so reliant on it that it seems like our lives are digital."[11]

The data used to make the video was released as open source under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 license on Google Code as CSV raw data and Processing code.[11][12] Radiohead collaborated with Google to host a making-of documentary and selection of rendered scenes.[8]

Release

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"House of Cards" was released on Radiohead's seventh album, In Rainbows (2007). Along with another song, "Bodysnatchers", it was serviced to American modern rock radio on April 6, 2008, as a promotional single.[citation needed] At the 51st Annual Grammy Awards, it was nominated for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, Best Rock Song and Best Music Video.[13] A performance of "House of Cards" was included on the 2008 live video In Rainbows – From the Basement.[14]

Charts

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Chart (2008) Peak
position
US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[15] 24

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[16] Gold 40,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

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Region Date Format Label
United States[17] April 6, 2008 Modern rock radio ATO, TBD

References

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  1. ^ Randall, Mac (1 February 2012). Exit Music: The Radiohead Story Updated Edition. Backbeat Books. ISBN 9781458471475.
  2. ^ a b "Radiohead". Pitchfork. 28 March 2008. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
  3. ^ Kent, Nick (1 August 2006). "Ghost in the Machine". Mojo. EMAP. pp. 74–77.
  4. ^ Binelli, Mark (7 February 2008). "The Future According to Radiohead". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  5. ^ Gregory, Jason. "Thom Yorke Criticises George Bush In Special TV Appearance | Gigwise". gigwise.com. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
  6. ^ "Radiohead make new video – without cameras". NME. London. 11 July 2008. Retrieved 11 July 2008.
  7. ^ Nye, Calley (14 July 2008). "Radiohead partners with Google for music video launch". The Washington Post. Retrieved 5 February 2011.
  8. ^ a b c d Michaels, Sean (14 July 2008). "Radiohead's camera trick". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  9. ^ Samways, Dean (14 July 2008). "Radiohead get laser treatment". The Quietus. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  10. ^ "New Radiohead video available to download". NME. 30 July 2008. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  11. ^ a b Chacksfield, Marc (17 July 2008). "Radiohead embrace open source". TechRadar. Archived from the original on 22 August 2009. Retrieved 5 February 2011.
  12. ^ Steuer, Eric (14 July 2008). "Radiohead's 'House of Cards' video data published under Creative Commons license". Creative Commons. Retrieved 30 June 2013.
  13. ^ "The 51st Annual Grammy Awards Nominations List". National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. 6 June 2013. Archived from the original on 2 January 2010. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
  14. ^ "Revisiting Radiohead's In Rainbows: From the Basement". Far Out Magazine. 26 June 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
  15. ^ "Radiohead Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  16. ^ "Canadian single certifications – Radiohead – House of Cards". Music Canada. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  17. ^ "R&R Going For Adds: Alternative (Week Of: April 6, 2008)". Radio & Records. Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
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