| "Inertia Creeps" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single byMassive Attack | ||||
| from the albumMezzanine | ||||
| B-side | "Reflection" | |||
| Released | 19 October 1998 (1998-10-19)[1] | |||
| Recorded | 1997–1998 | |||
| Studio | Massive Attack, Christchurch (Bristol, England) | |||
| Genre | Electronica[2] | |||
| Length | 5:56 | |||
| Label | Virgin | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Neil Davidge | |||
| Massive Attack singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Inertia Creeps" onYouTube | ||||
"Inertia Creeps" is a song by Englishelectronic music bandMassive Attack, released on 19 October 1998. It was the fourth and final single released off their third album,Mezzanine (1998). It is the least commercially successful of the four singles released fromMezzanine, charting only on theNew Zealand Singles Chart atNo. 16, but it has been noted as one of the best singles from the album.
The song describes a relationship thatRobert del Naja had, which at the time had just ended:
I already had a lot of the lyrics written before. It was just about a relationship I had been going through. It's about being in a situation but knowing you should be out of it but you're too fucking lazy or weak to leave. And you're dishonest to yourself and dishonest to the other person. You're betraying them everyday [sic] and the whole scene feels like it's closing in on you, d'ya-know-what-I-mean? The idea is a combination of movements propelling yourself forward and pulling yourself back at the same time. That's what the track's about—a fucked up relationship basically and there it is.[3]
The rhythm of "Inertia Creeps" has a strongçiftetelli influence, inspired by nights out inIstanbul. Robert del Naja acquired some tapes of such music, which were used as a basis for the song.[3] The song is composed in the key ofD-sharp minor[2] and it runs at a tempo of 84beats per minute.[4] It samples the song "ROckWrok" bynew wave bandUltravox.[5]
The single contains four remixes of the original song, the first from Welsh rock bandManic Street Preachers, the second from British DJState of Bengal, the third from fellow Bristol trip hop groupAlpha, and the fourth titled "Back She Comes" from dub producerMad Professor, along with another track called "Reflection".[6]
The music video for "Inertia Creeps" features Robert del Naja sitting on a sofa. He is watching an explicit clip of his partner having sex with who appears to beMushroom. The clip is directed and recorded byDaddy G, who is in the same room as the extramarital couple. Del Naja is shown to be frequently shocked by the clip (especially a scene where she performsfellatio on Mushroom whilst sitting in a lounge chair); he breathes heavily while watching it, turns away a lot from the camcorder, fast-forwards a lot of the video, and at one point he ends up hiding behind a blanket. The video has received over 10 million views on YouTube.[7]
The lounge chair featured in the videoclip is aknock off of the iconic 1956 Charles and RayEames lounge chair as authorised copies of the chair do not feature any kind of lever or wheels.[8][9][10]
In the album review ofMezzanine, John Bush ofAllMusic gave "Inertia Creeps" critical acclaim, describing the song as the highlight of the album: "Inertia Creeps" could well be the highlight, another feature for just the core threesome. With eerie atmospherics, fuzz-tone guitars, and a wealth of effects, the song could well be the best production from the best team of producers the electronic world had ever seen."[11]
A separate review for the single, also carried out onAllMusic but by Matt Whalley, gave the single 4 stars out of 5,[12] praising the song itself, saying "Between 1990-1998, Massive Attack has never made a single that was more interesting and unmatched in style."[12] The three remixes also received positive attention, with Whalley stating that they took the track into "two unique directions which ensure replay value."[12]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Inertia Creeps" | 5:56 |
| 2. | "Inertia Creeps" (Radio edit) | 4:09 |
| 3. | "Inertia Creeps" (Manic Street Preachers version) | 5:02 |
| 4. | "Inertia Creeps" (State of Bengal remix) | 6:23 |
| 5. | "Inertia Creeps" (Alpha mix) | 5:54 |
| 6. | "Back She Comes" | 6:07 |
| 7. | "Reflection" (Written byRobert del Naja andNeil Davidge only) | 4:52 |
| Total length: | 37:59[13] | |
Massive Attack
Additional personnel
Recording personnel
| Chart (1998) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[14] | 16 |
The music came from nights out in Istanbul. There's some mad music there at some belly dancing shows which are pretty embarrassingly tourist-orientated. But the music was fucking really cool. I got some tapes and I was in the studio when we were working on this music. Mush came in and I was fucking really bitching and beat as shit and I said "I got this fucking wicked beat I heard from this fucking tape" and we started writing this new beat from it and so it was really cool, d'ya-know-what-I-mean? It was one of those good fucking days in the studio when everyone was on the same fucking vibe.
