Helicopter (Bloc Party song)

"Helicopter" is a song by English rock band Bloc Party that was originally released as a stand-alone single in the UK in 2004 and would later feature on the Little Thoughts EP, and would then be released 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.

"Helicopter"
Single by Bloc Party
from the album Silent Alarm
B-side"Skeleton" (7")
Released25 October 2004
Recorded2004
Genre
Length3:40
LabelWichita
Songwriter(s)Russell Lissack, Gordon Moakes, Kele Okereke, Matt Tong
Producer(s)
Bloc Party singles chronology
"Little Thoughts/Tulips"
(2004)		 "Helicopter"
(2004)		 "Tulips"
(2005)
Audio sample
30-second excerpt of "Helicopter".
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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, Burnout Legends, 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, Silent Alarm. Composed in B minor, it was written in common time and has a quick tempo of 171 beats per minute.[4] The main riff was adapted from "Set The House Ablaze", a song by The Jam featured on the 1980 album Sound Affects.[5]

Music video

The official 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 30 million views.[6]

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)

Charts
Chart (2004) Peak
position
UK Singles (OCC)[7] 26

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[8] Silver 200,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

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. Thomas, Lou. "BBC - Music - Review of The Jam - Sound Affects: Deluxe Edition". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-12-08.
  6. Video on YouTube
  7. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  8. "British single certifications – Bloc Partytitle=Helicopter". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved July 12, 2019. Select singles in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Bloc Partytitle=Helicopter in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
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