Raise Your Weapon

"Raise Your Weapon"
Single by Deadmau5 featuring Greta Svabo Bech
from the album 4×4=12
ReleasedMay 23, 2011
Genre
Length
  • 3:22 (radio edit)
  • 8:22 (album version)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Deadmau5
Deadmau5 singles chronology
"Sofi Needs a Ladder"
(2010) 		"Raise Your Weapon"
(2011) 		"Aural Psynapse"
(2011)

"Raise Your Weapon" is a song by Canadian electronic music producer Deadmau5 featuring vocals from Faroese singer Greta Svabo Bech.[1] It was released on May 23, 2011 as the fifth and final single from his fifth studio album 4×4=12. The song was written by Deadmau5, Cydney Sheffield and Skrillex.[2] Musically, "Raise Your Weapon" is a progressive house song that begins with a piano melody and Bech's vocals and ends with a dubstep breakdown with the vocals repeated.[2][3] The song received generally positive reviews from music critics, with some highlighting it as a standout track from the album. It reached number 100 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it his first song to make an entry on the chart.[4] It also reached number 117 on the UK Singles Chart. The song was nominated at the 54th Grammy Awards for Best Dance Recording, where he also performed the song in a sequence with David Guetta, Chris Brown, Lil Wayne and Foo Fighters, with the other songs being "I Can Only Imagine" and "Rope".[5]

Critical reception

"Raise Your Weapon" received generally positive reviews from music critics. David Jeffries from AllMusic gave the song a positive review, saying, "When the one-two punch of "Raise Your Weapon" and "One Trick Pony" introduce the Mau5's newfound love of dubstep, you've got just enough variety."[6] Will Hermes of Rolling Stone also gave a positive review, "The masterstroke is "Raise Your Weapon," which breaks down into a sick dubstep beat. "How does it feel now, to watch it burn?" asks singer Greta Svabo Bech before the bass hits".[3] Dave Simpson of The Guardian said "Raise Your Weapon – featuring Greta Svabo Bech's soulful vocal – shows he can turn his hand to thoughtful sounds".[7] Alex Denney of BBC Music "Raise Your Weapons lurches suddenly from vocal-led, ambient house into the dentist-drill arsenal of sounds more commonly associated with Benga".[8] Michelangelo Matos of The A.V. Club gave the song a mixed review, calling Bech's verses "half-baked" and the use of dubstep "by-the-numbers".[9]

Chart performance

In the United Kingdom, the song charted at number 117 on the UK Singles Chart. In the United States, the song debuted at number 100 on the Billboard Hot 100 on the issue date of March 3, 2012 as well as number 11 on the Heatseekers Songs chart. It also made an entry at number 93 on the Canadian Hot 100. According to Keith Caulfield of Billboard, its latest chart entries is possibly due to a sales boost after performing at the 54th Grammy Awards along with David Guetta, Chris Brown, Lil Wayne and Foo Fighters.[10]

Track listing

Digital download EP Remixes[11]
No.TitleLength
1."Raise Your Weapon" (radio edit)3:23
2."Raise Your Weapon" (album version)8:23
3."Raise Your Weapon" (Madeon extended remix)4:15
4."Raise Your Weapon" (Noisia remix)5:36
5."Raise Your Weapon" (Stimming remix)7:18
Digital Download [12]
No.TitleLength
1."Raise Your Weapon"8:22

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of 4×4=12.[13]

Management

Personnel

  • Joel Zimmerman – lead artist, songwriter, producer, arrangement
  • Greta Svabo Bech – featured artist
  • Cydney Sheffield – songwriter
  • Sonny Moore – songwriter

Charts

Chart performance for "Raise Your Weapon"
Chart (2011–2012) Peak
position
Belgium Dance (Ultratip Flanders)[14] 1
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Wallonia)[15] 16
Belgium Dance (Ultratop Wallonia)[16] 34
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[17] 93
UK Singles (OCC)[18] 117
US Billboard Hot 100[19] 100
US Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[20] 15
US Dance/Mix Show Airplay (Billboard)[21] 7
US Dance Singles Sales (Billboard)[22] 2

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[23] Platinum 80,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ "Vagaportal". Archived from the original on September 14, 2012.
  2. ^ a b David Jeffries. "4 x 4 = 12 - Deadmau5 | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  3. ^ a b Will Hermes (December 7, 2010). "4x4=12 | Album Reviews". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  4. ^ "The Hot 100 : Mar 03, 2012 | Billboard Chart Archive". Billboard.com. March 3, 2012. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  5. ^ Swickey, Zachary (February 13, 2012). "deadmau5, David Guetta Celebrate EDM's Big Night At The Grammys - Music, Celebrity, Artist News". MTV.com. Archived from the original on February 15, 2012. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  6. ^ David Jeffries. "4 x 4 = 12 - Deadmau5 | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  7. ^ Dave Simpson (December 2, 2010). "Deadmau5: 4x4=12 – review | Music". The Guardian. London. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  8. ^ "Music - Review of deadmau5 - 4x4=12". BBC. December 7, 2010. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  9. ^ Matos, Michaelangelo (December 7, 2010). "Deadmau5: 4 x 4 = 12". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on December 9, 2010. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  10. ^ Mitchell, John (February 13, 2012). "Skrillex, deadmau5 Likely To Experience Boost From 2012 Grammys - Music, Celebrity, Artist News". MTV.com. Archived from the original on February 15, 2012. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  11. ^ [1] Archived December 14, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  12. ^ "Raise Your Weapon - Single by deadmau5". February 14, 2012.
  13. ^ 4×4=12 (Booklet). Deadmau5. United States: Mau5trap. Ultra Records. 2010. 617465251825.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. ^ "Deadmau5 – Raise Your Weapon" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Archived from the original on April 23, 2019. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  15. ^ "Deadmau5 – Raise Your Weapon" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  16. ^ "Deadmau5 – Raise Your Weapon" (in French). Ultratop. Archived from the original on October 1, 2016. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  17. ^ "Deadmau5 Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  18. ^ "Chart Log UK". Zobbel.de. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  19. ^ "Deadmau5 Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  20. ^ "Deadmau5 Chart History (Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  21. ^ "Deadmau5 Chart History (Dance Mix/Show Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  22. ^ "Deadmau5 Chart History (Dance Singles Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  23. ^ "Canadian single certifications – Deadmau5 – Raise Your Weapon". Music Canada. Retrieved December 19, 2017.