Critics praised the visuals and story line , comparing it to '' Femme Fatale '' ( 2002 ) and Lorde 's style to Trinity from '' The Matrix '' franchise and the White Witch from '' The Chronicles of Narnia '' . '' Consequence of Sound '' stated that while the Lawrence brothers are not seen in the video , Lorde " carries the clip masterfully on her own . " In an analysis from '' The Atlantic '' , writer Spencer Kornhaber stated that the music video was part of a trend of women portraying violence in music videos . In it , he mentions Taylor Swift 's " Bad Blood " ( 2015 ) and " Blank Space " ( 2014 ) as well as Rihanna 's " Bitch Better Have My Money " ( 2015 ) which all show women performing acts of violence towards other people , trying to " blow up social expectations that women remain passive . " The author ends by alluding that this is part of an " online war for attention . " The stylist of the video , Karla Welsh stated that she and Lorde wanted to explore how " sexy a covered-up look could seem . " Some of the outfits used included latex Dior boots , a Rona Pfeiffer arresting swallow necklace , and a cream gown from Michael Costello . Bianca Jagger was one of the style inspirations . Welsh explained that the corset " represented that she still had this armor around herself . " Disclosure and Lorde performed the song on '' Saturday Night Live '' on 14 November 2015 , which was followed by a performance of " Omen " ( 2015 ) with Sam Smith and the duo only . '' Rolling Stone '' stated that the " drumline-enhanced performance also featured a brief tribute to Paris , " who experienced a terrorist attack the prior day . The stage was lit up in the " bleu , blanc et rouge " ( English : '' blue , white and red '' ) of the French flag . '' The Fader '' stated that the performance benefited from the " extra musicians , with the sampled hits being supplemented by live marching drums . " Idolator described Lorde 's look as being an all-black dress with a " shorter haircut and blood-red eyeshadow " which fully embraced the " vengeful and sultry vibe found " in the video and song . The performance sparked controversy over the singer 's alleged lip syncing . Lorde later responded to the accusations by saying that she has not and will never lip sync and took the allegations as an " awesome compliment . " She also joined the duo for a surprise performance at the 2016 Coachella festival
terrorist attack
November 2015 Paris attacks
Magnets (song)