Songfacts®:

• The Smile's "Bending Hectic" is an epic, eight-minute journey that morphs from a folksy intro to a full-blown rock explosion. The song crescendos with heavy grunge guitars, pounding drums, chromatic, cascading strings, and soaring vocals by Thom Yorke.
• Yorke's lyrics detail a brush with mortality. Driving a classic convertible through the Italian mountains, he approaches a treacherous hairpin bend. The song evokes that feeling of suspended time as he flirts with disaster before pulling back. Lines like "Despite these slings, despite these arrows, I'll force myself to turn" capture the struggle to regain control.
• Thom Yorke's lyrics for Radiohead's "Airbag" also deal with the theme of an automotive disaster. Both songs center on the harrowing experience of a near-death encounter in a vehicle. While "Bending Hectic" focuses on Yorke nearly killing himself by driving off a cliff, "Airbag" is about an actual car accident in which the singer was involved.
• The song title doesn't appear in the lyrics. As well as Yorke's hectic drive round the dangerous bend, it may reference Jonny Greenwood's guitar playing, where he bends the strings to create a sense of tension and distortion.
• The Smile debuted "Bending Hectic" during their performance at the Montreux Jazz Festival on July 12, 2022. They performed it in the encore of the set. "I can see the words – that's good," Yorke said to introduce the song. "'Cause I just wrote them about half an hour ago. So follow us down the train crash."
• After touring North America, The Smile recorded "Bending Hectic" at the legendary Abbey Road Studios. Production by Sam Petts-Davies (Warpaint, Frank Ocean) and string arrangements by the London Contemporary Orchestra added further depth to the track. Finally, on June 20, 2023, "Bending Hectic" was released via XL Recordings.