It depicts Lo performing the track on a beach alongside couples of varied races, ages, and sexual orientations who are fighting and reconciling with each other.

Michael Ilbert mixed the track at Hansa Tonstudio in Berlin, Germany, while Björn Engelmann helped master it at Cutting Room, Stockholm, and David Nyström contributed to the piano.

[3] Both Ilana Kaplan from Refinery29 and the staff of Capital FM described it as an "anthemic" recording,[25][26] while Sam Lansky from Time called the song a "madcap stampede" while pointing out "talky lyrics and a chorus that explodes like a confetti cannon".

[27] In his review of Queen of the Clouds, Jenesaispop's Raúl Guillén called "Timebomb" "wonderful and epic" and "one of the key elements from the album".

[22] Will Hermes of Rolling Stone wrote: "The beat-trampling word rush of 'Timebomb' sounds like The Hold Steady reimagined by The Kick Inside-era Kate Bush".

[34] In a more negative review, Maxie Molotov-Smith from Fortitude Magazine criticized the song's composition, saying that the "melodic structure falls into a rather clumsy area as a seemingly endless army of syllables battle their way into the track for a space".

[21][39] In March 2015, photos of the singer naked with her nipples censored while filming the clip on a beach located in California were published by several websites.

[47][48] The widescreen music video takes place on a beach, where Lo is sitting on a wood platform wearing a black swimsuit.

[34] Complex's Jessie Morris wrote that the music video "leans into the singer's habits for passion and pain as it scopes across the explosive relationships between couples against the background of a desolate beach".

[45] Carl Williot of Idolator described it from an emotional standpoint as "simple and effective",[49] while Jonathan Hamard and Yohann Ruelle from French website Pure Charts stated that the video had "a beautiful message for a romantic accomplishment".

[50] Writing for The Line of Best Fit, Laurence Day said that the visual was "emotionally explosive",[51] while the staff of Capital FM felt it was a "raw, emotion-filled video".

Trish Bendix of AfterEllen.com included it on her list called "2015: The Year in Lesbian/Bi Music" as part of the positive and supportive songs, and videos from allies.

"[53] Spanish website Jenesaispop announced that the song was featured, due to its clip's themes, on the parade Orgullo Gay in Madrid, which took place on 4 July 2015.

[59] Jordi Bardají of Jenesaispop, who reviewed her show in Barcelona, Spain, said that the track was the most effective song performed live from the repertoire.

[61] On 11 September 2015, she held a concert at the Deutsches Theater in Berlin, Germany, and performed "Timebomb" among tracks from Truth Serum and Queen of the Clouds.