The Birthday Party (song)

"The Birthday Party" is a song by British pop rock band The 1975. The song is the fourth single from the band's fourth studio album, Notes on a Conditional Form. The single was released on 19 February 2020.

"The Birthday Party"
Single by The 1975
from the album Notes on a Conditional Form
Released19 February 2020 (2020-02-19)
Genre
Length4:38
Label
Songwriter(s)
  • Adam Hann
  • George Daniel
  • Ross MacDonald
  • Matty Healy
Producer(s)
  • George Daniel
  • Matty Healy
The 1975 singles chronology
"Me & You Together Song"
(2020)		 "The Birthday Party"
(2020)		 "Jesus Christ 2005 God Bless America"
(2020)
Music video
"The Birthday Party" on YouTube

Lyrics

The song's lyrics make a reference to the band Pinegrove[3] and an accusation of sexual coercion levied against Pinegrove's lead singer Evan Stephens Hall.[4]

Music video

The music video for "The Birthday Party" came out on 19 February 2020. It was directed by Ben Ditto and featured digital artwork by Jon Emmony.[5] The video features lead singer, Matty Healy, being admitted into a digital detox center, called the "Mindshower Retreat".[6][7] There he enters a nature-scape surrounded by various Internet meme characters, specifically ones that originated on the popular imageboard site, 4chan.[7] According to Healy, the music video was influenced by the incel culture of the Internet, as well as the viral spread of memes that originate on places on the dark web. On the video Healy said in an interview with Dazed that, "I think incel culture reveals a really interesting and scary perspective on men and how they deal with women. It's a really fascinating world and I'm just interested in how it materialises in pop culture."[7]

Critical reception

El Hunt, writing for NME, called "The Birthday Party" "a foot-scuffing stream-of-consciousness, [...] completely lacking in conventional structure. Instead, it's packed full of The Sims soundtrack country-twang, and topped off with a gusty sax solo. Motoring forward on atop a lazy drum groove, Matty Healy reflects on society’s relationship with intoxication and issue-avoidance, breezily recounting a birthday party preceded by an earlier piss-up, and mimicking a robotic choir of girls asking 'do you wanna come and get fucked up?'"[1]

Charts
Chart (2020) Peak
position
Ireland (IRMA)[8] 86
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[9] 27
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[10] 69
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[11] 23
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References
  1. Hunt, El (19 February 2020). "The 1975's 'The Birthday Party' is foot-scuffin' country twang for the internet age". NME. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  2. Collar, Matt. "Notes on a Conditional Form - The 1975 | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  3. Minsker, Evan (19 February 2020). "The 1975 Share New Song "The Birthday Party":Matty Healy sings about Pinegrove's "weird stuff" on the track". Pitchfork. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  4. Pelly, Jenn (26 September 2018). "Reckoning With Pinegrove". Pitchfork. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  5. Spanos, Brittany (19 February 2020). "The 1975 Take 'Digital Detox' in Animated 'Birthday Party' Video". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  6. Gordon, Amanda (19 February 2020). "The 1975's New Meme-Heavy Video Will Make You Feel 1,000 Years Old". Vulture. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  7. Peters, Alex (19 February 2020). "Matty Healy on How Incel Culture Inspired The 1975's Latest Video". Dazed. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  8. "IRMA – Irish Charts". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  9. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. March 2, 2020. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  10. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  11. "The 1975 Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
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