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My Iron Lung is the third EP by the English rock band Radiohead, released on 26 September 1994 by Parlophone Records in the UK and by Capitol Records in the US. It was produced by Radiohead, John Leckie and Nigel Godrich. The EP compiles songs not included on Radiohead's second album, The Bends (1995), plus the Bends song "My Iron Lung", which was also released as a single.

My Iron Lung
EP by Radiohead
Released	26 September 1994 (1994-09-26)[1]
Recorded	1993–1994
Genre	Alternative rock[2] Britpop[3] post-punk[4]
Length	28:23
Label	Parlophone Capitol
Producer	John Leckie Nigel Godrich Radiohead
Radiohead chronology
Itch (1994) My Iron Lung (1994) The Bends (1995)
Radiohead singles chronology
"Stop Whispering" (1993) "My Iron Lung" (1994) "High and Dry" / "Planet Telex" (1995)

Radiohead wrote "My Iron Lung" in response to the success of their debut single "Creep" (1992). Unsatisfied with the version they had recorded at RAK Studios in London, they used a performance recorded in May 1994 at the London Astoria.

My Iron Lung received positive reviews. Though the single only reached number 23 on the UK Singles Chart, sales of the EP were better than expected, and suggested that Radiohead had found a loyal fanbase and were not one-hit wonders. My Iron Lung marked Radiohead's first collaborations with Godrich and the artist Stanley Donwood, who have worked on every Radiohead release since.

Recording

Radiohead recorded most of the songs on My Iron Lung at RAK Studios, London, during the sessions for their second album, The Bends (1995).[5] The songwriter, Thom Yorke, said the EP was "just for fans", and described it as a collection of songs that did not fit on the album rather than outtakes: "We think they're good, otherwise we wouldn't have plugged them on."[6] The EP also includes an acoustic version of Radiohead's debut single, "Creep" (1992), from a performance on KROQ-FM on July 13, 1993.[7]

My Iron Lung marked Radiohead's first collaboration with the cover artist Stanley Donwood. Donwood was not a fan of rock music, and said he took the work because he knew Yorke from their time as art students at the University of Exeter.[8] The EP was also Radiohead's first collaboration with the producer Nigel Godrich, who was assisting producer John Leckie at RAK as a tape engineer.[5] Donwood and Godrich have worked on every Radiohead release since.[8][5]

"My Iron Lung"

Only "My Iron Lung" was included on The Bends.[9] According to the journalist Mac Randall, it transitions from a "jangly" opening hook to a "McCartney-esque verse melody" and "pulverising guitar explosions" in the bridge.[5] Radiohead wrote it in response to the request from their record label, EMI, to record a single to repeat the success of "Creep".[10] The caustic lyrics use an iron lung as a metaphor for the way "Creep" had both sustained Radiohead and constrained them: "This is our new song / Just like the last one / A total waste of time / My iron lung".[11] Yorke said in 1995: "People have defined our emotional range with that one song, 'Creep'. I saw reviews of 'My Iron Lung' that said it was just like 'Creep'. When you're up against things like that, it's like: 'Fuck you.' These people are never going to listen."[12]

Radiohead recorded versions of "My Iron Lung" at RAK, but were not satisfied with the results. Instead, they used a performance recorded in May 1994 at the London Astoria, with Yorke's vocals replaced and the audience removed.[13] The producer, John Leckie, said: "Considering it was recorded in the back of a truck outside the hall – not the best sound to get something from – we did quite well."[14] Jonny Greenwood used a DigiTech Whammy pedal to pitch-shift his guitar by one octave, creating a "glitchy, lo-fi" sound.[15] Ed O'Brien used an EBow, an electronic sustaining device, on his guitar to generate a drone.[16] The Astoria performance was included in the video Live at the Astoria, released in March 1995.[17]

Release

"My Iron Lung" was released as a single and serviced to US college radio stations, where it fared poorly. Yorke and Greenwood expressed disappointment that EMI had not promoted it more.[13] A&R VP Perry Watts-Russel said EMI had not pursued radio play as it was "only meant to be a fan-based item" rather than a "proper first single" for The Bends.[18]

CD1 of the single features the B-sides "The Trickster", "Punchdrunk Lovesick Singalong", and "Lozenge of Love",[19] while CD2 features the B-sides "Lewis (Mistreated)", "Permanent Daylight", and "You Never Wash Up After Yourself".[20] The single reached number 23 on the UK Singles Chart.[21] Sales of the EP, however, were better than expected. and suggested that Radiohead had found a loyal fanbase and were not one-hit wonders.[22]

On 19 October, 2007, Harmonix released "My Iron Lung" as downloadable content for the music video game Rock Band.[23] On 31 August, 2009, EMI reissued The Bends in a "Collector's Edition",[24] including the My Iron Lung EP.[25] Radiohead had no input into the reissue and the music was not remastered.[24] The "Collector's Editions" were removed from streaming services after Radiohead's back catalogue was transferred to XL in 2016.[26]

Critical reception

According to the journalist Mac Randall, "My Iron Lung" initially puzzled fans and critics, confounding expectations, but "makes much more sense" on The Bends.[5]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[9]
Entertainment.ie	[27]

The AllMusic critic Greg Prato praised the EP, writing: "Because of the tracks' consistency and sequencing, it plays like a real album rather than a collection of B-sides and outtakes thrown together haphazardly." He felt the acoustic version of "Creep", with a "surprisingly harsh and off-key middle section", was "the only weak spot".[9] Entertainment.ie wrote: "While these off-cuts are inevitably more low-key and experimental than the classics we're all familiar with, the same spirit of anguish [of The Bends] and fragility is still thrillingly familiar."[27]

Reviewing My Iron Lung when it was reissued as part of The Bends in 2009, the Pitchfork critic Scott Plagenhoef wrote that it had seen Radiohead finding "new ways to pick apart and re-construct the typical alt-rock template" and "demonstrated a band whose collective heads seemed to crack open and spill out new ideas".[28]

Track listing

Personnel

Adapted from the liner notes.[7]

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart performance for "My Iron Lung"

Chart (1994–1995)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)[29]	100
UK Singles (OCC)[30]	24

Year-end charts

2001 year-end chart performance for "My Iron Lung"

Chart (2001)	Position
Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)[31] Import	22
Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)[32]	157

2002 year-end chart performance for "My Iron Lung"

Chart (2002)	Position
Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)[33]	28

Certifications

Certifications for My Iron Lung

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[34]	Platinum	70,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[35]	Gold	100,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

External links

• "My Iron Lung" video on YouTube
• My Iron Lung at MusicBrainz

На других языках

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[de] My Iron Lung

My Iron Lung ist eine EP der britischen Alternative-Rock-Band Radiohead. Die EP erschien ein Jahr nach ihrem Debütalbum Pablo Honey und ein Jahr vor seinem Nachfolger The Bends. Es war die erste Zusammenarbeit der Band mit Nigel Godrich der in der Folge bei fast allen weiteren Veröffentlichungen der Band Produzent war. Die EP wurde später als Bonusdisk in die Special Edition von The Bends inkludiert.

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- [en] My Iron Lung

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[es] My Iron Lung

"My Iron Lung" es un EP lanzado en 1994 por la banda inglesa Radiohead. Contenía la canción del mismo nombre (la cual sería incluida en el disco The Bends), varios Lados B de Pablo Honey y la versión acústica de la composición "Creep", primer sencillo de Radiohead.

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[ru] My Iron Lung

«My Iron Lung» — третий мини-альбом английской альтернативной рок-группы Radiohead, выпущенный в октябре 1994 года. Титульная композиция позже вошла во второй студийный альбом группы, The Bends (1995). На EP также содержится материал, записанный во время продолжающейся к моменту его выпуска работы над The Bends, который первоначально был выпущен как би-сайды на двух раздельных дисках сингла «My Iron Lung» в Великобритании и других странах. В формате мини-альбома My Iron Lung первоначально был выпущен только в Австралии, но в настоящее время доступен повсеместно.

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