Helicopter (song)

This article is about the Bloc Party song. For other songs of the same name, see Helicopter (disambiguation).
"Helicopter"
Single by Bloc Party
from the album Silent Alarm
B-side "Skeleton" (7")
Released 25 October 2004
Format
Recorded 2004
Genre
Length 3:40
Label Wichita
Writer(s) Russell Lissack, Gordon Moakes, Kele Okereke, Matt Tong
Producer(s)
Bloc Party singles chronology
"Little Thoughts/Tulips"
(2004)		 "Helicopter"
(2004)		 "Tulips"
(2005)
Music sample
"Helicopter"
30-second excerpt of "Helicopter".

"Helicopter" is a song by English rock band Bloc Party that was originally released in the UK in 2004 on the Little Thoughts EP, and two years later as a single from their debut album, Silent Alarm in the US. The song was received with much acclaim, reaching number 26 on the UK Singles Chart on its first release, but failing to chart in the US. Various remixes have been recorded.

The song has also been featured on the video games Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, Guitar Hero: On Tour, FIFA 06, Project Gotham Racing 3, Burnout Revenge, Colin McRae Dirt 2, and Marc Eckō's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure. The song was also featured in the films Yes Man, Charlie St. Cloud and Grandma's Boy and in the Malcolm in the Middle episode "Morp". A remix of the song was featured in the film Reverb.

Composition

"Helicopter" is an indie rock[1][2] and garage rock[3] song, written by all band members prior to their debut studio album. Composed in B minor, it was written in common time and has a quick tempo of 171 beats per minute.[4]

Music video

Two music videos were created for the song. The first video is displayed in black and white and shows the band playing in an old, empty house, intercut with surreal imagery. It has received the most views of any of Bloc Party's songs on YouTube, gaining over 20 million views.[5]

The second video is computer animated and depicts the band traveling through bizarre landscapes before finally ending up in the barrel of a gigantic revolver and being shot into outer space.

Track listing

7" Wichita / WEBB070S (UK)
  1. "Helicopter"
  2. "Skeleton"
CD
Wichita / WEBB070SCD (UK)
  1. "Helicopter"
  2. "Always New Depths"
  3. "Tulips" (Minotaur Shock mix)
US CD
  1. "Helicopter" (Diplo remix)
  2. "Helicopter" (Weird Science remix featuring Peaches)
  3. "Helicopter" (Whitey remix)
  4. "Helicopter" (Original version)
US 12" vinyl
  1. "Helicopter" (Diplo remix)
  2. "Helicopter" (Weird Science remix featuring Peaches)

References

  1. ↑ Boydston, Joshua (17 February 2015). "A tribut to Bloc Party's Silent Alarm". Oxford Karma. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
  2. ↑ Taylor, Benji (14 August 2013). "Review: Bloc Party - 'The Nextwave Sessions'". Pretty Much Amazing. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
  3. ↑ Fleischer, Norman (2 February 2015). "Hoping For a Miracle: 10 Years of Bloc Party's 'Silent Alarm'". Nothing but Hope and Passion. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
  4. ↑ Commercial sheet music for "Helicopter". Wichita Recordings Music Publishing. Distributed by International Music Publications. Retrieved 10 February 2009.
  5. ↑ Video on YouTube
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