The song was written by David Schmitt, Kyle Even, Eric Armenta, Joshua Aragon, Luis Bonet, and Simon Wilcox while production was handled by Ian Kirkpatrick, and was the first song written for the album.[3] While describing the writing process of the song, Even said the song is "one song that we created. We're very eclectic, and we definitely do whatever we want."[4] It was recorded in Los Angeles, California in 2010. On December 22, 2010, a snippet of the song was previewed by Fearless Records, however, the name of the song was not given.[5] It premiered via MTV Buzzworthy on June 13, 2011,[6] while being available for digital download the following day.[7]
Musically, "Blackout" is a synthpop[1] and dance-pop song that also blends house, Italo disco and electro genres[6] and features a "chugging bassline" and "punchy beats", while Schmitt's vocals have been described as "nasal".[8] The song has also been said to be reminiscent of pop music from the late-1980s.[1] It has also been described as having heavy influences of pop punk, and has been compared to the music of Cobra Starship.[8] Lyrically, the song mentions references to alcohol intoxication and partying, singing "I'm only getting started/I won't blackout" throughout the chorus.
The song earned the duo, MTV Push Artist of the Week on November 7, 2011.[9][10]
Critical reception
"Blackout" received generally positive reviews from music critics. Jason Newman of MTV called the track, "anthemic" stating, "The heavily effected vocals mask the motivational hook, which is perfectly suited to a night out."[6]Alternative Press called the tune, "an irresistible synth-pop song."[1] Lewis Corner of Digital Spy compared the song to Kesha and You Me at Six stating, "The cut is a rebellious combo of '80s power synths and rock-ready beats."[11]
Music video
The music video for the song premiered on September 20, 2011 on the duo's official VEVO channel via YouTube.[12] The music video garnered over 850,000 views within the first five days of its release.[13] It was shot during the summer of 2011 in Los Angeles, California.[14] It includes shots of the duo performing live with their band whilst also including sequences of the group "partying" and "getting into trouble".[15][16] It has since ranked on MTV's 10 On Top list.[17]
A lyric video was also uploaded onto the duo's official YouTube channel and has since garnered more than 16 million views.[18]
Commercial performance
"Blackout" debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 on November 19, 2011 at number 92.[19] The song later peaked at number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song sold 175,000 digital downloads in December 2011.[20] On the week of January 8, 2012, "Blackout" saw its highest sales week yet with over 75,000 copies sold. As of January 2012, the song has sold over 400,000 copies in the US.[21] Outside of the United States, the song also charted in Canada, New Zealand and Scotland. In the UK, the song peaked at number 21 on the UK Singles Chart and number 1 on the UK Independent Singles Chart.
Live performances
The duo performed "Blackout" on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on June 16, 2011 in their first televised performance ever.[22] The duo also performed it on The Daily Habit.[23]
Other media
The song was featured during the 2011 Spike Video Game Awards when Batman: Arkham City received the award for "Best Action Adventure" game. It was also featured on a promo for WWE's Monday Night Raw on December 12, 2011.
