Animal (Miike Snow song) explained

Animal
Cover:Miike Snow - Animal.png
Type:single
Artist:Miike Snow
Album:Miike Snow
B-Side:"Billie Holiday"
Studio:Robotberget (Stockholm, Sweden)
Genre:Pop
Producer:Miike Snow
Next Title:Black & Blue
Next Year:2009

"Animal" is a song performed by Swedish indie pop band Miike Snow. It was released as the first single from the band's 2009 self-titled debut album on 17 February 2009 through Columbia and Downtown Records. Written by the band alongside Henrik Jonback, "Animal" is a pop song with instrumentation provided by horns and staccato synthesizers. Lead singer Andrew Wyatt has explained that it has an ambiguous meaning; its lyrics can be interpreted as dealing with matters such as addiction, basic instincts or dissatisfaction when one's needs are not met by society.

Applauding its catchiness and pop sound, critics were positive towards "Animal". Following its release, the single managed to peak at number 50 in Scotland and number 98 on the UK Singles Chart. It was later certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Two music videos were made to promote the release of "Animal"; the first was directed by Sebastian Mlynarski and depicts the band wearing different animal masks, and the second video, directed by Anthony Dickenson, features a mixture of projections, animation and performance footage.

Background

"Animal" was written by Miike Snow's three members, Christian Karlsson, Pontus Winnberg and Andrew Wyatt, in collaboration with Henrik Jonback. In an interview with Dustin Fitzharris of Out, Wyatt explained that the song has an ambiguous meaning, "It can deal with addiction. It can deal with just the basic instincts – some of them are wonderful and some of them are very dangerous."[1] In a separate interview with Joe Zadeh for Clash, Wyatt deemed it a "very simple song" and elaborated on its subject matter, "Directing your attention to man's underlying nature and how sometimes things in society just don't work out to meet your needs. And a lot of people end up feeling very dissatisfied. And the way people feel the need to fit into certain circumstances without even thinking about what they want."[2] "Animal" was recorded at Robotberget, the band's own studio in Stockholm, Sweden.[3] The band produced the track and then mixed it with Anders Hvenare.

Downtown Records first released "Animal" as the band's debut single on 17 February 2009 via digital download in the United States. The record label then sent it for alternative airplay in the country on 12 April 2009. In the United Kingdom, Columbia Records first released the single as a 12" remix vinyl on 27 July 2009.[4]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Need To Know: Miike Snow. Out. Fitzharris. Dustin. 24 September 2009. 9 May 2013. Here Media.
  2. Web site: Live Talking – Miike Snow. Zadeh. Joe. 13 August 2009. 9 May 2013. Clash. John O'Rourke.
  3. Web site: 10 Essentials: Miike Snow. GQ. Condé Nast Publications. 28 March 2012. McKnight. Ren. 2 March 2013.
  4. Web site: Animal: Miike Snow. Amazon.co.uk. 3 March 2013.
  5. Web site: Animal. AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. 7 March 2013.
  6. Web site: Billie Holiday (Legal Title) . https://archive.today/20140417095858/http://repertoire.bmi.com/title.asp?blnWriter=True&blnPublisher=True&blnArtist=True&page=1&keyid=12785916&ShowNbr=0&ShowSeqNbr=0&querytype=WorkID . dead . 17 April 2014 . . 9 May 2013 .
  7. Web site: Black & Blue – EP by Miike Snow. 16 October 2009 . iTunes Store (United Kingdom). Apple. 19 July 2014.
  8. Web site: Newman. Jason. 'Crazy, Stupid, Love.' soundtrack aims to create the perfect mixtape. https://web.archive.org/web/20170711031459/http://www.mtv.com/news/2806367/crazy-stupid-love-soundtrack-review/. dead. 11 July 2017. MTV. 26 July 2011. 5 June 2017.
  9. Web site: Miike Snow – Miike Snow. AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Lymangrover. Jason. 9 May 2013.
  10. Web site: Miike Snow, 'Animal' - Composition Sheet Music. 13 September 2010 . Musicnotes.com. Alfred Publishing.
  11. Web site: New Band of the day – No. 554: Miike Snow. The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. Lester. Paul. 26 May 2009. 9 May 2013.
  12. Web site: Miike Snow – Miike Snow Album Review. Kaye. Natalie. 3 December 2009 . Contactmusic.com. 5 March 2013.
  13. Web site: Review of Miike Snow. BBC Music. BBC. Wade. Ian. 14 August 2009. 13 September 2012.
  14. Web site: Miike Snow: Miike Snow. PopMatters. Sarah Zupko. Bergstrom. John. 11 June 2009. 13 September 2012.
  15. Web site: Miike Snow – Miike Snow. Sputnikmusic. Klapper. Rudy. 21 June 2009. 14 September 2012.
  16. Web site: Miike Snow – Miike Snow. Drowned in Sound. Ashman. Neil. 29 October 2009. 9 May 2013. 10 October 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121010224301/http://drownedinsound.com/releases/14819/reviews/4138282. dead.
  17. Web site: Miike Snow. Now. Now Communications. Bimm. Jordan. 5 August 2009. 9 May 2013.
  18. Web site: Album review: Miike Snow – 'Miike Snow'. NME. IPC Media. Richards. Sam. 12 August 2009. 13 September 2012.
  19. Web site: Miike Snow – Miike Snow. musicOMH. OM Media. Hogwood. Ben. https://web.archive.org/web/20091020074753/http://www.musicomh.com/albums/miike-snow_1009.htm. 20 October 2009.
  20. Web site: Miike Snow: Miike Snow. Pitchfork Media. Hogan. Marc. 11 June 2009. 14 September 2012.
  21. Animal (first version) Miike Snow. YouTube. 22 October 2014.
  22. Animal (second version) Miike Snow. YouTube. 22 October 2014.
  23. Web site: Miike Snow's Animal and The XX's Basic Space by Anthony Dickenson. 21 August 2009. Promo News. 10 July 2014. Knight. David. https://web.archive.org/web/20110827105728/http://www.promonews.tv/2009/08/21/miike-snows-animal-and-the-xxs-basic-space-by-anthony-dickenson/. 27 August 2011. dead.
  24. Web site: Miike Snow 'Animal' directed by Anthony Dickenson. August 2009. CreativeReview. 10 July 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140714113755/http://www.creativereview.co.uk/feed/august-2009/17/miike-snow-animal-directed-by-anthony-dickenson. 14 July 2014. dead.
  25. Web site: UK Music Video Awards 2009 – here are the nominations. Promo News. 5 March 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20131104163205/http://www.promonews.tv/news/2009/09/28/uk-music-video-awards-2009-here-are-nominations. 4 November 2013. dead.
  26. Animal. Miike Snow. 2009. 12" single. Columbia. 88697565531. United Kingdom.
  27. Web site: Animal (2009) . . 13 September 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140429202620/http://www.7digital.com/artist/miike-snow/release/animal-1 . 29 April 2014 .
  28. Animal. Miike Snow. 2009. CD single. Columbia. 886975676026. United Kingdom.
  29. Web site: Animal – EP av Miike Snow. 7 August 2009 . iTunes Store (Sweden). Apple. sv. 13 September 2012.
  30. Web site: Animal (Remixes) – Single by Miike Snow. January 2009 . iTunes Store. Apple, Inc. United States. 13 September 2012.
  31. Web site: The Secret Life Of Pets 2 | The Final Trailer [HD] | Illumination]. https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211115/EUZpVWepAQw. 2021-11-15 . live. YouTube. May 16, 2019. August 30, 2021.
  32. Miike Snow. Miike Snow (album). Miike Snow. 2009. Downtown. DWT70085.
  33. Web site: Miike Snow – Animal. Tophit. 5 March 2018.
  34. Web site: Schweizer Airplay Charts 37/2009 - hitparade.ch . hitparade.ch . March 2, 2022.
  35. Web site: Animal (Digital Download – Downtown). AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. 9 May 2013.
  36. Web site: Animal: Miike Snow. https://web.archive.org/web/20110611004806/http://www.amazon.com/Animal/dp/B001TFBQOY. 11 June 2011. Amazon .
  37. Web site: Alternative – Week of: April 12, 2009 . . Radio & Records, Inc . 3 March 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140714133055/http://gfa.radioandrecords.com/publishGFA/GFANextPage.asp?sDate=04%2F12%2F2009&Format=6 . 14 July 2014 .
  38. Web site: Animal [12" vinyl]|publisher=Amazon.co.uk|access-date=9 May 2013}} The label later digitally released it on 7 August 2009,[4] and as a CD single on 10 August 2009.[5] The CD and digital releases in the UK include the song "Billie Holiday", written by Karlsson, Winnberg and Wyatt,[6] as a B-side. A digital extended play (EP) with remixes by Crookers, Fake Blood, Fred Falke, Punks Jump Up and Style of Eye was released in European countries on 7 August 2009. Two remixes by Peter Bjorn and John and Mark Ronson were digitally released in the US on 8 December 2009. Ronson's remix also appears on the UK iTunes Store release of the band's next single, "Black & Blue" (2009),[7] and was featured on the soundtrack album of the film Crazy, Stupid, Love (2010).[8]

    Composition

    "Animal" is a pop song with horn and staccato synthesizer instrumentation.[9] According to sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Alfred Publishing, the song is written in the time signature of common time with a moderate beat rate of 118 beats per minute. It is written in the key of E major and Wyatt's vocal range spans the notes of B3 to C6. It has an E–Fm7–Cm chord progression and a verse-chorus structure.[10] Sam Richards of NME and Ben Hogwood of musicOMH compared the sound and rhythm of the song to works by English band The Police, while Paul Lester of The Guardian likened lead singer Wyatt's vocals to those of The Police's lead singer Sting.[11] Jason Lymangrover of AllMusic compared the hook to works by American band Vampire Weekend, and said that "dubby synths circulate around flighty vocals with heavy sentiments". Wyatt sings lyrics such as "But I'm still trying to make my mind up, am I free or am I tied up?" with "unassuming cheeriness", and the chorus contains the line "I change shapes just to hide in this place, but I'm still, I'm still an animal".

    Reception

    "Animal" received a positive response from music critics. Natalie Kaye of Contactmusic.com described it as a "solid pop song", before adding that the "infectious" chorus is "irrefutably something you'll end up whistling in the shower".[12] Similarly, Ian Wade of BBC Music commented that it "takes approximately one play for its catchiness to cluster bomb your memory bank",[13] and John Bergstrom of PopMatters called it "sharp, catchy pure pop" with a chorus that "charm[s] [its] way into your brain".[14] Rudy Klapper of Sputnikmusic commended lead singer Wyatt's "chameleonic" vocals, calling them "a highlight from the beginning". Klapper concluded, "['Animal'] bounc[es] along a deceptively catchy progression to a jangly chorus that hits immediate pop pay dirt."[15] Neil Ashman of Drowned in Sound commented that it "boasts a number of indelible hooks worked around its staccato synth blasts".[16]

    Jordan Bimm of Now described "Animal" as "catchy and creative" and said that the horns and the "playful vocal hook" will appeal to listeners who enjoyed Britney Spears' "Toxic" (2003), a production of Miike Snow members Karlsson and Winnberg.[17] Sam Richards of NME viewed "Animal" as an "impressive piece of sleight of hand" and compared its sound to that of The Police, "while remaining bearable".[18] Ben Hogwood of musicOMH said that it sounds like a "lost Police song given a new, vividly coloured change of clothes". He felt that the lyrical vignettes and hooks seem "awkward" during the first listen, and "gloriously different the next".[19] Hogwood furthermore said that this applied for the album as a whole. Marc Hogan of Pitchfork Media called it a "kiddie-pop lilt".[20]

    Commercially, "Animal" was a minor chart success. It made its first chart appearance on 16 August 2009, on the Scottish Singles Chart at number 50. The single also peaked number 98 in the issue dated 22 August 2009 of the UK Singles Chart. "Animal" achieved some airplay in Russia, spending five weeks in the lower ends of the Tophit airplay chart and peaking at number 297. In December 2013, the single was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the band's first certification, indicating 1,000,000 digital sales.

    Music videos

    Two music videos were released to promote "Animal". The first video, directed by Sebastian Mlynarski, was released in July 2009.[21] It opens with the band performing on a street at night, holding umbrellas. The band then appears wearing different surgical masks with animal prints throughout the video. Near the end, they are seen performing in a grass field. Anthony Dickenson directed the single's second music video,[22] released in August 2009.[23] Dickenson created projections and sculptures, utilizing both animation and performance footage.[24] The video features projections of a forest which turns into a city as the video progresses. It interspersed with shots of the band performing in a dark room. The video ends with the band's jackalope logo being projected onto the cityscape. The video was nominated in the category Best Visual Effects in a Video at the 2009 UK Music Video Awards.[25]

    Formats and track listings

    1. "Animal" (Fake Blood remix)
    2. "Animal" (Crookers remix)
    3. "Animal" (Style of Eye remix)
    4. "Animal" (Punks Jump Up remix)
    1. "Animal" – 4:24
    2. "Billie Holiday" – 4:01
    1. "Animal" (Fake Blood remix) – 5:06
    2. "Animal" (Crookers remix) – 3:20
    3. "Animal" (Style of Eye remix) – 7:57
    4. "Animal" (Punks Jump Up remix) – 5:20
    5. "Animal" (Fred Falke remix) – 8:45
    1. "Animal" (Peter Bjorn and John remix) – 3:58
    2. "Animal" (Mark Ronson remix) – 4:31

    In popular culture

    • The song is featured in the soundtrack of the video games and .
    • The song was used in the Gossip Girl episode "The Lost Boy", in the ending scene.
    • The song was also used in Season 2, Episode 13 of 90210.
    • The song was used in the final trailer for the 2019 film The Secret Life of Pets 2.[31]
    • The Mark Ronson remix of the song is featured in the 2011 film Crazy, Stupid, Love.
    • The Punks Jump Up remix of the song was used as the theme tune to British TV sitcom, Friday Night Dinner.

    Credits and personnel

    Credits are adapted from the Miike Snow liner notes.[32]

    Charts

    Chart (2009)Peak
    position
    Russia Airplay (Tophit)[33] 297
    scope="row"
    Switzerland Airplay (Schweizer Hitparade)[34] 80

    Release history

    CountryDateFormatLabel
    United States[35] [36] [37] 17 February 2009Digital downloadDowntown Records
    12 April 2009Alternative radio
    United Kingdom27 July 200912" vinylColumbia Records
    7 August 2009Digital download
    10 August 2009CD single

    External links

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