"Breezeblocks" is a song by British
indie rock
Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...
band
alt-J
Alt-J (stylised as alt-J, real name Δ) are an English indie rock band formed in 2007 in Leeds. Their lineup includes Joe Newman (guitar/lead vocals), Thom Sonny Green (drums), Gus Unger-Hamilton (keyboards/vocals), and formerly Gwilym Sainsbur ...
from their debut studio album ''
An Awesome Wave
''An Awesome Wave'' is the debut album by English indie rock band alt-J, released on 25 May 2012 through Infectious. The album includes the singles "Matilda"/"Fitzpleasure", " Breezeblocks" and "Tessellate". It peaked at number thirteen on the U ...
'' (2012). The song was released on 18 May 2012 as the album's second single. The song was written by Joe Newman, Gus Unger-Hamilton, Gwilym Sainsbury, Thom Green and produced by
Charlie Andrew
Charles Andrew, (born 1980) is a British record producer, mixer and songwriter. He is best known for his work with indie band Alt-J.
In 2013 he was awarded 'Breakthrough Producer of the Year' by his peers at Music Producers Guild awards, in ...
. It reached the top ten in the
UK Indie and
US Alternative charts, and was voted into third place in Australian radio station
Triple J
Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian Radio in Australia, radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greate ...
's
Hottest 100 of 2012, behind "
Thrift Shop
Thrift may refer to:
* Frugality
* A savings and loan association in the United States
* Apache Thrift, a remote procedure call (RPC) framework
* Thrift (plant), a plant in the genus ''Armeria''
* Syd Thrift (1929–2006), American baseball execut ...
" and "
Little Talks
"Little Talks" is the debut single by Icelandic indie folk/indie pop rock band Of Monsters and Men. The song was released as the lead single from their debut studio album, '' My Head Is an Animal'' (2011). It was also released on the band's EP ...
".
Songwriting
The song contains multiple references to the children's book ''
Where the Wild Things Are
''Where the Wild Things Are'' is a 1963 children's picture book written and illustrated by American writer and illustrator Maurice Sendak, originally published in hardcover by Harper & Row. The book has been adapted into other media several tim ...
'' by
Maurice Sendak
Maurice Bernard Sendak (; June 10, 1928 – May 8, 2012) was an American author and illustrator of children's books. He became most widely known for his book ''Where the Wild Things Are'', first published in 1963.Turan, Kenneth (October 16, 200 ...
. Newman sings, "Do you know where the wild things go?" In addition, the repeated refrain at the end of the song is a modified version of a portion of the book. Breezeblocks' lyrics are "Please don’t go, I'll eat you whole / I love you so". Sendak's words are "Oh, please don't go — we'll eat you up — we love you so!".
The song is about a man who's in love with a partner that wishes to leave him, and in response, the man resorts to violent outbursts and threats to force the two to remain together, with implications that the ending lyrics of "please don't go, I'll eat you whole, I love you so" is supposed to mean said partner is murdered, as per the cannibalism metaphor from ''Where the Wild Things Are''.
[Archived a]
Ghostarchive
and th
Wayback Machine
Writing for the song started when Joe Newman read a warning label on an
aresol can which said the can "may contain traces of something that may be flammable", to which Newman translated into the repeated leitmotif of "she may contain the urge to run away"
Music video
A music video was created to accompany the release of the song. Directed by Ellis Bahl and starring actors Jonathan Dwyer, Jessica DiGiovanni, and Eleanor Pienta, it is the band's first official music video.
The song and its music video seem to convey very different messages, with the song being about a deranged, obsessive man, whilst the music video shows a murderous and presumably vengeful ex-girlfriend. In an interview with Interview magazine, Joe Newman states "Our video for this track has a really different message, and yet it worked really well with the song. It’s quite a weird one; people aren’t sure what’s going on. We liked that you might have to go back and watch it a second time to figure out what is happening"
The video features a violent fight in an apartment between a male and a female character shown in reverse, beginning with the death of the female character at the hands of the male character, who bludgeons her with a
breeze block
A concrete masonry unit (CMU) is a standard-size rectangular block used in building construction. CMUs are some of the most versatile building products available because of the wide variety of appearances that can be achieved using them.
Tho ...
. As the fight progresses backwards, it is revealed that the female character is the aggressor in the fight, having ambushed the male character as he returned home to discover his wife bound and gagged.
The video aired for the first time on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
on 23 March 2012. As of February 2022, it has over 237 million views.
alt-J (∆) Breezeblocks
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
The video won at the UK Music Video Awards
The UK Music Video Awards is an annual celebration of creativity, technical excellence and innovation in music video and moving image for music. The awards began in 2008. There is a wide range of opportunities for UK individuals and companies to ...
for "Best Alternative Video" on 8 November 2012.
Track listing
7" single
#"Breezeblocks" – 3:47
#Tom Vek's Remix – 3:59
Digital download – single
#"Breezeblocks" – 3:47
Digital download – remixes
#"Breezeblocks" – 3:47
#Tom Vek's Remix – 5:18
#B-Ju Remix – 3:59
#Rockdaworld Remix – 4:41
Credits and personnel
*Lead vocals – Alt-J (∆)
* Producers – Charlie Andrew
Charles Andrew, (born 1980) is a British record producer, mixer and songwriter. He is best known for his work with indie band Alt-J.
In 2013 he was awarded 'Breakthrough Producer of the Year' by his peers at Music Producers Guild awards, in ...
*Lyrics – Joe Newman, Gus Unger-Hamilton, Gwilym Sainsbury, Thom Green
Chart performance
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Radio and release history
References
External links
*
{{authority control
2012 singles
Alt-J songs
Experimental rock songs
2012 songs
Songs written by Thom Sonny Green