"Flinch" is a pop rock

Pop rock

Pop rock is a music genre which mixes a catchy pop style and light lyrics in its guitar-based rock songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a subgenre of pop music...

 song written by Alanis Morissette

Alanis Morissette

Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...

, and produced by her for her sixth album, Under Rug Swept

Under Rug Swept

Under Rug Swept is the fifth album by Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette. Released by Maverick Records in the United States on February 26, 2002 and in the United Kingdom a day earlier , it was the first album Morissette had written and produced on her own...

(2002).

Background

Morissette said she wrote "Flinch" immediately after an experience she had in Canada during which she nearly ran into the subject of the song, only eluding them by driving away. According to her, she was surprised that in spite of years after their last meeting (which was when she was "very, very young"), she was "responding to the situation as though I had been spending time with him two minutes earlier. I was kind of ashamed and a little embarrassed, but it was where I was at: just really being curious about how someone can have that much of an effect on me ... I do believe that I will be able to get to a point where hearing his name or even running into him or hearing from him won't trigger me as much as it did and still does. I don't know when that day will come but I'm singing about it hopefully coming."

Release and reception

Billboard

Billboard (magazine)

Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

described "Flinch" as one of the "expansive, introspective interludes [on the album] ... highly skilled, bravura turns – both in terms of lyrical content and performance." In a separate review of Under Rug Swept the song was named a "delicate ballad [that] recalls Joni Mitchell

Joni Mitchell

Joni Mitchell, CC is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter. Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in her native Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto...

 at her best". The LA Weekly

LA Weekly

LA Weekly is a free weekly tabloid-sized "alternative weekly" in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Editor/Publisher Jay Levin and a board of directors that included actor-producer Michael Douglas...

called it "the most straight-ahead ballad at over six minutes", and that it "falls short of [Morissette's] majestic 'Uninvited

Uninvited (song)

In October 2007, a new Freemasons electro/house version was released, featuring a vocal by Bailey Tzuke. This version is shorter than their earlier mix and arranged in a more radio-friendly way....

'".

"Flinch" was released to radio and television as the second single

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 from the album in Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

; elsewhere, "Precious Illusions

Precious Illusions

"Precious Illusions" is a song written and produced by Alanis Morissette, and recorded for her sixth album Under Rug Swept . It released as the album's second single in mid-2002 ; CD1 was released on August 5 and CD2 followed on October 29.Its lyrics describe a conflict between idealism and...

" served as the second single. The music video

Music video

A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

 was a performance of the song Morissette did as part of a showcase for the television newsmagazine Fantástico

Fantástico

Fantástico is a Brazilian weekly television newsmagazine broadcast on Sundays by Rede Globo.-Format:The show's first episode was on August 5, 1973 in black-and-white. It began as a variety show featuring music, dance numbers, teletheater, humor, mixed with a small amount of news. The following...

, directed by Mauro Mendonça Filho.

A live version of "Flinch" recorded at the Whisky a Go Go

Whisky a Go Go

The Whisky a Go Go is a nightclub in West Hollywood, California, United States. It is located at 8901 Sunset Boulevard, on the Sunset Strip.-History:...

is also available, which can be accessed with a copy of the album.