2 + 2 = 5 (song)


"2 + 2 = 5" is a song by the English rock band Radiohead, released as the third and final single from their sixth album, Hail to the Thief. It reached number two on the Canadian Singles Chart, number 12 on the Italian Singles Chart, and number 15 on the UK Singles Chart. It was also featured on .

Recording

"2 + 2 = 5" is a rock song that builds to a loud climax. It was recorded in 2002 at Ocean Way Recording studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles, with producer Nigel Godrich. It was recorded as a studio test, and finished in two hours.

Title

The title is a reference to the slogan 2 + 2 = 5 from the 1949 dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. The song's alternative title, "The Lukewarm", references Dante's Inferno, in which the "lukewarm" are those in hell who did nothing wrong but did not oppose wrongdoing.

Track listings

Promotional CD
  1. "2 + 2 = 5" – 3:21
Promotional 12"
  1. "Sktterbrain"
  2. "Remyxomatosis"
CD1
  1. "2 + 2 = 5" – 3:21
  2. "Remyxomatosis" – 5:07
  3. "There There" – 7:43
CD2
  1. "2 + 2 = 5" – 3:21
  2. "Skttrbrain" – 4:26
  3. "I Will" – 2:14
DVD
  1. "2 + 2 = 5" – 3:21
  2. "Sit Down Stand Up"
  3. "The Most Gigantic Lying Mouth of All Time"

    Personnel