The Denial Twist
Encyclopedia
"The Denial Twist" is the third single released from American alternative rock
band The White Stripes
' 2005 album, Get Behind Me Satan
.
. Like some of his previous work (namely The Chemical Brothers
' "Let Forever Be
" and Kylie Minogue's
"Come Into My World"), the video features a spectacular array of visual effects as it follows The White Stripes from a talk show performance to a late night drive back to an apartment. As the camera pans in a circle, Jack and Meg appear distorted. This refers to the lyric of the song; that what people think is true is often shaped by the context in which information is presented to them and their willingness to be deceived—even by themselves—as various aspects of the video radically shift in perspective, size, proportion and believability. The choice of Late Night with Conan O'Brien
as a setting for the video, aside from the band's personal association, is due to the lesser known fact that, like many film and TV sets, the Late Night stage looks much larger on television than it actually is.
The optical illusion used in the video is the technique of forced perspective
, through an Ames room
and distortions derived from it.
The creators of the distorted props, Jeff Everett and John Furgason, won a Music Video Production Association Award for Art Direction in 2006.
Conan O'Brien
makes a cameo appearance in the video; The White Stripes had been a week-long musical guest on Late Night with Conan O'Brien
when they were promoting Elephant
. The square-headed O'Brien doll in the video was a reference to a similar one given to the comedian at the end of their week-long stay on the show. The plaster blow-up was actually created by Gondry.
Writer Tom Breihan, who runs the Status Ain't Hood blog at the Village Voice
website, also appears in the video. He blogged about his experience shooting the video before it came out, which led to Jack White insulting him in an interview with the British magazine NME
.
This is Gondry's fourth video with The White Stripes, after "Fell in Love with a Girl
", "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground
" and "The Hardest Button to Button
". The video can be found on the DVD compilation Michel Gondry 2: More Videos (Before and After DVD 1)
The song is also the final 3" record made for the triple inchophone. However, it was never on general sale and only Jack himself had them to give out to fans, friends and family. These 3" records are extremely rare and very few have ever come up for sale on eBay
.
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band The White Stripes
The White Stripes
The White Stripes was an American rock band, formed in 1997 in Detroit, Michigan. The group consisted of the songwriter Jack White and drummer Meg White . Jack and Meg White were previously married to each other, but are now divorced...
' 2005 album, Get Behind Me Satan
Get Behind Me Satan
Get Behind Me Satan is the fifth album by American alternative rock band The White Stripes, released on June 7, 2005 on V2 Records. Though still basic in production style, the album marked a distinct change from its guitar-heavy 2003 predecessor, Elephant...
.
Track listing
- CD version
- "The Denial Twist" – 2:35
- "Shelter of Your Arms" (The GreenhornesThe GreenhornesThe Greenhornes are an American garage rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio, formed in 1996 by vocalist/guitarist Craig Fox, bass guitarist Jack Lawrence and drummer Patrick Keeler. They released their debut album Gun For You in 1999, followed by a self-titled album in 2001. A third studio album, Dual...
cover) – 3:30
- 7" version 1
- "The Denial Twist" (album version)
- "Shelter of Your Arms" (The GreenhornesThe GreenhornesThe Greenhornes are an American garage rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio, formed in 1996 by vocalist/guitarist Craig Fox, bass guitarist Jack Lawrence and drummer Patrick Keeler. They released their debut album Gun For You in 1999, followed by a self-titled album in 2001. A third studio album, Dual...
cover) (album version)
- 7" version 2
- "The Denial Twist" (Live on KCRW)
- "As Ugly as I Seem" (Live on KCRW)
Music video
The music video for "The Denial Twist" was directed by Michel GondryMichel Gondry
Michel Gondry is an Academy Award winning filmmaker, whose works include being a commercial director, music video director, and a screenwriter. He is noted for his inventive visual style and manipulation of mise en scène. - Life and career :...
. Like some of his previous work (namely The Chemical Brothers
The Chemical Brothers
The Chemical Brothers are a British electronic music duo comprising Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons. Originating in Manchester in 1991, along with The Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, The Crystal Method, and fellow acts, they were pioneers at bringing the big beat genre to the forefront of pop culture.- Background...
' "Let Forever Be
Let Forever Be
"Let Forever Be" is a song by English big beat band The Chemical Brothers, released as the second single from their third album Surrender. It contains the vocals of Noel Gallagher of Oasis, who also co-wrote the song....
" and Kylie Minogue's
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...
"Come Into My World"), the video features a spectacular array of visual effects as it follows The White Stripes from a talk show performance to a late night drive back to an apartment. As the camera pans in a circle, Jack and Meg appear distorted. This refers to the lyric of the song; that what people think is true is often shaped by the context in which information is presented to them and their willingness to be deceived—even by themselves—as various aspects of the video radically shift in perspective, size, proportion and believability. The choice of Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien that aired 2,725 episodes on NBC between 1993 and 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and musical and comedy performances. Late Night aired weeknights at 12:37 am...
as a setting for the video, aside from the band's personal association, is due to the lesser known fact that, like many film and TV sets, the Late Night stage looks much larger on television than it actually is.
The optical illusion used in the video is the technique of forced perspective
Forced perspective
Forced perspective is a technique that employs optical illusion to make an object appear farther away, closer, larger or smaller than it actually is. It is used primarily in photography, filmmaking and architecture...
, through an Ames room
Ames room
An Ames room is a distorted room that is used to create an optical illusion. Probably influenced by the writings of Hermann Helmholtz, it was invented by American ophthalmologist Adelbert Ames, Jr...
and distortions derived from it.
Conan O'Brien
Conan O'Brien
Conan Christopher O'Brien is an American television host, comedian, writer, producer and performer. Since November 2010 he has hosted Conan, a late-night talk show that airs on the American cable television station TBS....
makes a cameo appearance in the video; The White Stripes had been a week-long musical guest on Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien that aired 2,725 episodes on NBC between 1993 and 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and musical and comedy performances. Late Night aired weeknights at 12:37 am...
when they were promoting Elephant
Elephant (album)
Elephant is the Grammy winning fourth album by the American alternative rock band The White Stripes. Released on April 1, 2003 on V2 Records, the album marks the band's major label debut...
. The square-headed O'Brien doll in the video was a reference to a similar one given to the comedian at the end of their week-long stay on the show. The plaster blow-up was actually created by Gondry.
Writer Tom Breihan, who runs the Status Ain't Hood blog at the Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
website, also appears in the video. He blogged about his experience shooting the video before it came out, which led to Jack White insulting him in an interview with the British magazine NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
.
This is Gondry's fourth video with The White Stripes, after "Fell in Love with a Girl
Fell in Love with a Girl
"Fell in Love with a Girl" is a song by the American garage rock band The White Stripes, written and produced by Jack White for the band's third studio album, White Blood Cells . Released as the album's second single in 2002, it reached number twenty-one on both the U.S. Bubbling Under Hot 100...
", "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground
Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground
"Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground" is a song by American garage rock band The White Stripes, featured on their 2001 third studio album White Blood Cells...
" and "The Hardest Button to Button
The Hardest Button to Button
"The Hardest Button to Button" is a 7" single by the American alternative rock band The White Stripes. It is the third single from their album Elephant...
". The video can be found on the DVD compilation Michel Gondry 2: More Videos (Before and After DVD 1)
Michel Gondry 2: More Videos (Before and After DVD 1)
Michel Gondry 2: More Videos is a DVD compilation of music videos and short films by director Michel Gondry. It was released in April 2009 and includes videos which were not included on Gondry's Directors Label DVD. The compilation includes nearly three hours of videos and never-before-seen...
The song is also the final 3" record made for the triple inchophone. However, it was never on general sale and only Jack himself had them to give out to fans, friends and family. These 3" records are extremely rare and very few have ever come up for sale on eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
.