Spitting Off the Edge of the World

"Spitting Off the Edge of the World"
Single by Yeah Yeah Yeahs featuring Perfume Genius
from the album Cool It Down
ReleasedJune 1, 2022 (2022-06-01)
Genre
Length4:17
LabelSecretly Canadian
Songwriters
ProducerDavid Andrew Sitek
Audio sample
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Music video
"Spitting Off the Edge of the World" on YouTube

"Spitting Off the Edge of the World" is a song by American indie rock band Yeah Yeah Yeahs, featuring American musician Perfume Genius, from their fifth studio album, Cool It Down (2022). It was released by Secretly Canadian as the album's lead single in June 2022, marking their first single release in nine years. Written by the band and producer David Andrew Sitek, "Spitting Off the Edge of the World" is an indie rock song and ballad with lyrics inspired by singer Karen O's thoughts on the climate crisis.

"Spitting Off the Edge of the World" was praised by reviewers and nominated for the inaugural Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Performance in 2024; it reached the top 30 of two digital charts upon release, and topped Billboard's television chart in 2025.

Background

In April 2013, Yeah Yeah Yeahs achieved their highest peak on the US Billboard 200 with their fourth studio album, Mosquito.[1] In December 2014, lead singer Karen O announced the band were "on a bit of hiatus" due to a lack of inspiration.[2] They announced their comeback in June 2017,[3] sparsely playing shows over the next five years and reissuing their debut studio album, Fever to Tell, in the interim.[4][5]

Yeah Yeah Yeahs announced new music in May 2022, and their fifth studio album, Cool It Down, was released in September of that same year.[6] It was promoted with a world tour and three singles, one of which was "Spitting Off the Edge of the World".[7][8] The band wrote the song with David Andrew Sitek, their longtime collaborator.[9] It was recorded for Cool It Down at either Sonic Ranch in Texas, Federal Prism in California, or guitarist Nick Zinner's basement.[10]

Composition

Mixed by Shawn Everett and mastered by Greg Calbi and Steve Fallone,[10] "Spitting Off the Edge of the World" is four minutes and 17 seconds long.[11] The song features Perfume Genius as a guest performer, the first time a first Yeah Yeah Yeahs track has included a feature;[12] he often accompanies the band when the song is performed live.[13]

The lyrics of "Spitting Off the Edge of the World" were inspired by Karen O's thoughts on both the climate crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic.[14] It is an indie rock song and power ballad characterized by synthesizers, "keening" riffs and "crashing" drums, creating what critics have called an "ominous" atmosphere.[15]

Reception

"Spitting Off the Edge of the World" was released by Secretly Canadian on June 1, 2022 as the lead single of Cool It Down;[16] it was simultaneously released with a music video directed by Cody Critcheloe.[17] The song did not enter the Billboard Hot 100 or the UK singles chart, but it peaked at number 15 on the Billboard Digital Song Sales chart and number 21 on the ARIA Digital Tracks chart, their first entry on both charts.[18][19] It later topped the Billboard Top TV Songs chart after appearing in the 2025 film The Gorge.[20]

"Spitting Off the Edge of the World" received positive reviews and was nominated for the inaugural Best Alternative Music Performance award at the 2023 Grammys.[21] Stacey Anderson of NPR praised the "great, filmic swaths of synths", "ominous production", and vocal performances; Perfume Genius's feature was welcomed, with Anderson writing "together they build slowly through this pain, ultimately embracing an aura of heels-down defiance, a faith in the path of resistance."[22] Pitchfork's Ryan Dombal awarded the song a best new track title and wrote, "Karen [O]'s delivery is painfully vulnerable one moment and strident the next, pinging between existential hopelessness and mighty resistance. The song's titular refrain nails this internal conflict—a small act of defiance hocked into a bottomless abyss."[15] Jem Aswad at Variety similarly deemed it a "killer new song", praising Brian Chase's "powerhouse drumming, Zinner's towering guitars and O's unmistakable vocals" and comparing it to the sound of their 2009 album, It's Blitz!.[23]

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Cool It Down.[10]

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Additional personnel

Technical personnel

Charts

Chart (2022–2025) Peak position
Australia Digital Tracks (ARIA)[18] 21
US Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[19] 15
US Top TV Songs (Billboard)[20] 1

References

  1. ^ Aderoju, Darlene (May 2, 2022). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs Sign With Secretly Canadian, Promise New Music & Announce U.S. Shows". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 15, 2024. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  2. ^ nadiakhomami (December 22, 2014). "Karen O says Yeah Yeah Yeahs 'are on a bit of a hiatus'". NME. Archived from the original on April 11, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  3. ^ Blistein, Jon (June 20, 2017). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs Announce First Concert in Four Years". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 28, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  4. ^ Wicks, Amanda; Blais-Billie, Braudie (September 26, 2017). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs Announce Fever to Tell Reissue, Share Unreleased Song: Listen". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on March 28, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  5. ^ Richards, Will (May 22, 2018). "Why we're so excited about Yeah Yeah Yeahs' UK comeback this weekend". DIY. Archived from the original on April 11, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  6. ^ Kreps, Daniel (May 2, 2022). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs Are Finally Back With New Music". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 25, 2024. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  7. ^ Walthall, Catherine (August 8, 2022). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs Release New Song "Burning" from 'Cool It Down' Album". American Songwriter. Archived from the original on February 26, 2024. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  8. ^ Richards, Will (June 1, 2022). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs announce long-awaited new album 'Cool It Down' with Perfume Genius collaboration". NME. Archived from the original on August 17, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  9. ^ Cober-Lake, Justin (October 10, 2022). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs Create Some Heat on 'Cool It Down'". PopMatters. Archived from the original on June 15, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  10. ^ a b c Secretly Canadian (2022). Cool It Down (Media notes). Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
  11. ^ "'Spitting Off the Edge of the World' (feat. Perfume Genius) by Yeah Yeah Yeahs". Apple Music (US). Archived from the original on July 6, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  12. ^ Condon, Dan (June 3, 2022). "Hear Yeah Yeah Yeahs' first new song in almost a decade". Double J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on May 28, 2024. Retrieved October 8, 2025.
  13. ^ Harris, David (June 12, 2023). "Concert Review: Yeah Yeah Yeahs/Perfume Genius". Spectrum Culture. Archived from the original on June 14, 2023. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  14. ^ Blistein, Jon (June 1, 2022). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs Confront the Climate Catastrophe on First Song in Nine Years 'Spitting Off the Edge of the World'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on August 20, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  15. ^ a b Dombal, Ryan (June 2, 2022). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs: "Spitting Off the Edge of the World" (ft. Perfume Genius)". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on March 19, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  16. ^ Bloom, Madison (June 1, 2022). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs Announce First Album in 9 Years, Share Video for New Song: Watch". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on August 20, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  17. ^ Curto, Justin (June 1, 2022). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs Make Their Grand Return in a Custom Spiked Limo". Vulture. Archived from the original on September 22, 2024. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  18. ^ a b "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 24 February 2025". The ARIA Report. No. 1825. Australian Recording Industry Association. February 24, 2025.
  19. ^ a b "Yeah Yeah Yeahs Chart History: Digital Song Sales". Billboard. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  20. ^ a b Rutherford, Kevin (March 26, 2025). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs' 'The Gorge' Synch Leads Top Movie Songs Chart". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 6, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  21. ^ Lee, Taila (November 15, 2022). "2023 Grammy Nominations: See The Complete Nominees List". Grammy Awards. Archived from the original on September 18, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  22. ^ Anderson, Stacey (September 30, 2022). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs' 'Cool It Down' is an exhilarating yet unhurried return". NPR. Archived from the original on September 18, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  23. ^ Aswad, Jem (June 1, 2022). "Yeah Yeah Yeahs Return With Towering New Song, 'Spitting Off the Edge of the World'". Variety. Archived from the original on February 5, 2024. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
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