Thom Yorke of English rock band Radiohead has been keeping himself busy while self-quarantining. As you might expect, he’s been writing a new song, and it was ready just in time for his appearance on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon.
The song titled Plasticine Figures had never been heard by public ears before Yorke’s appearance on The Tonight Show last night (April 29).
Jimmy Fallon’s show has been broadcasting special “at home” episodes during the current pandemic and has been encouraging celebrities to perform remotely from home.
Yorke took that concept a bit further by performing a brand new song that was reportedly written before last night’s performance.
Plasticine Fingers was very reminiscent of many of Radiohead’s classic songs.
Variety suggested it was very similar to the fan-favorite Fake Plastic Trees, particularly with lyrics like “happy to serve, happy to linger, while you make up your face.”
As you might expect, the song was quite somber and covered a range of unpleasant themes. Yorke performed the tune from a dimly lit room with lockdown long hair and greying beard, which added to the mournful atmosphere.
You can check out the full performance in the video below.
Earlier in the day, Yorke posted a pic with the lyrics of his new song to Twitter, which was complete with his handwritten notes.
.@FallonTonight pic.twitter.com/2MFvIoib67
— Thom Yorke (@thomyorke) April 29, 2020
Many fans took to Twitter to show Thom Yorke some love
Jimmy Fallon took to Twitter to thank the Radiohead frontman, “I mean… I can’t thank you enough,” he wrote.
I mean… I can’t thank you enough. A BRAND NEW UNHEARD SONG FROM THOM YORKE?!?! #FallonTonight https://t.co/fs0m8S8YOB
— jimmy fallon (@jimmyfallon) April 29, 2020
Many fans also shared their appreciation on Twitter. One user called Yorke an “admirable genius.”
Thom, you will always be an admirable genius, I love the music you make
— Walter Camarena (@W_Camarena) April 30, 2020
While another Twitter user wrote “beautiful song! Tremendous.”
Beautiful song! Tremendous ?
— Tommy Neumann (@tommyneumann) April 30, 2020
Last June, Yorke released his third album, Anima, and was scheduled to do a tour of the US in Spring 2020, but the coronavirus pandemic put an end to that.
Radiohead’s Ed O’Brien also suggested recently that the band was planning a new tour in 2021.
Musicians are increasingly performing at home
Celebrities performing at home is the new craze in recent weeks for obvious reasons. Coldplay’s Chris Martin was one of the first to perform an at-home concert in mid-March, but John Legend quickly followed.
On March 23, Garth Brooks and his wife Trisha Yearwood crashed Facebook Live when 3.4 million fans all tried to log into their at-home concert.
Other artists have been attempting even more innovative methods to get their music out to the masses. Last week, Travis Scott attracted a record 12.3 million when he performed an interactive show within the Fortnite game.