Machine Gun (Portishead song)

"Machine Gun" is a song by English band Portishead. The song made its radio and download debut on 24 March 2008, acting as the lead single from their third studio album, Third (2008). It premiered on Zane Lowe's BBC Radio 1 show and was made available for download on the band's official website. A UK one-sided 12 inch vinyl was released on 14 April 2008.[1]

"Machine Gun"
Single by Portishead
from the album Third
Released24 March 2008
Recorded2005–2008
GenreElectro-industrial
Length4:45
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Portishead
Portishead singles chronology
"Only You"
(1998)		 "Machine Gun"
(2008)		 "The Rip"
(2008)

Release

The 12-inch vinyl was released on 14 April, while a digital version was made available from the official site on 10 April. A music video for the song was released. It features the band playing the song at the studio. On 29 May, during the first concert at the Estrella Damm Primavera Sound Festival in Barcelona, Chuck D of Public Enemy joined the band onstage to perform a rap section on the instrumental part at the end of the song.

The song's beat was sampled by The Weeknd on his song "Belong to the World" from his debut album Kiss Land. According to Geoff Barrow, the sample was used without the band's permission.[2]

Track listing
  1. "Machine Gun" – 4:45
  • A different version of the song appeared in the teaser for the video game Metro: Last Light.
  • The song was featured in an episode of the British teen drama Skins, which is set in Bristol which is where the band are from.
  • The song is used as entrance theme of professional wrestler Marty Scurll in Progress Wrestling.
  • The song was used in the credit sequence of "Well This Took a Dark Turn", a season 6 episode of the Netflix series Orange Is the New Black.
  • The song was also featured at the end of Netflix Italian drama Curon as a closure with the lyrics depicting some instances of the plot of the series.

Charts

"Machine Gun" entered the UK Singles Chart at number 52 on 30 March 2008, their first singles chart entry for ten years since "Only You" in March 1998.

Chart (2008) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[3] 87
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[4] 12
Belgium (Ultratip Wallonia)[5] 17
France (SNEP)[6] 82
UK Singles Chart (Official Charts Company)[7] 52

References
  1. "Portishead Reveal Third single, Box Set details". pitchforkmedia.com. Archived from the original on 21 March 2008. Retrieved 20 March 2008.
  2. Gordon, Jeremy (5 May 2014). "Portishead Vs. The Weeknd Battle Heats Up Again". Pitchfork. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  3. "The ARIA Report: Issue 946 (Week Commencing 14 April 2008)" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. p. 4. Retrieved 7 June 2013.
  4. "Portishead – Machine Gun" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
  5. "Portishead – Machine Gun" (in French). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
  6. "Portishead – Machine Gun". lescharts.com (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 June 2013.
  7. "Portishead". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 7 June 2013.
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