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"It Ends Tonight" is a song by American
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band
the All-American Rejects The All-American Rejects is an American rock band from Stillwater, Oklahoma, formed in 1999.Move Along ''Move Along'' is the second studio album by the American rock band The All-American Rejects, released on July 12, 2005, by Interscope Records. It spawned three top 15 singles, which helped the album ship 2 million units to be certified double ...
'' on September 17, 2006.


Background and composition

"It Ends Tonight" was written by Nick Wheeler and
Tyson Ritter Tyson Jay Ritter (born April 24, 1984) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actor, and model. He is best known as the lead vocalist, bassist, pianist, and songwriter of the multi-RIAA certification, platinum selling American alternative ...
. Along with the title track, it was one of the last songs written for ''Move Along'' and as revealed by the band in an interview on ''
Soundstage A sound stage (also written soundstage) is a soundproof, large structure, building, or room with large doors and high ceilings, used for the production of theatrical film-making and television productions, usually located on a secured movie or ...
'' is about a "dude" rather than addressed to a female love interest. The song utilizes a string section, with an arrangement by composer
Deborah Lurie Deborah Ruth Lurie is an American composer, arranger, and music producer. Her work has appeared in films such as '' Dear John'', '' An Unfinished Life'', ''Safe Haven'', and '' 9''. She has also been a string arranger for rock and pop performers ...
.


Reception


Critical reception

The song received mostly positive reviews from music critics.
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commented: It Ends Tonight' will provide a suitably dreamy sounding late evening mood for the band's eager fans, but it fails to reach the distinctiveness of their previous hits 'Dirty Little Secret' and 'Move Along'. The lyrics kick off in intriguing fashion with 'Your subtleties / They strangle me,' but that is as good as it gets. Ultimately, it's a grandly ambiguous tune about the end of a generic relationship."
Contactmusic.com Contactmusic.com is an online magazine of cultural criticism based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, and ...
responded positively to the track, saying that they loved hearing the band "take a break from the perfect guitar power-pop of recent singles and show their softer side with a piano-led ballad. The track shows off singer Tyson Ritter's powerful vocals and has provided their legion of fans with a perfect lighters-up pause in the set."


Chart performance

"It Ends Tonight" peaked at No. 8 on the ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...
, making it The All-American Rejects' highest charting song in the U.S and Australia, until the release of their single "
Gives You Hell "Gives You Hell" is a song by American rock band the All-American Rejects, released as the lead single from their third studio album, '' When the World Comes Down'' on September 30, 2008. The song is The All-American Rejects' most successful s ...
" in 2008 which reached position No. 4 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in early 2009.


Music video

The music video for "It Ends Tonight" was directed by
Wayne Isham Wayne Isham (born December 2, 1958) is an American film director and music video director who has directed films and music videos of many popular artists. Early life and education Isham was born in December 2, 1958. He attended the Univers ...
and shot in July 2006 in
Moapa Indian Reservation The Moapa Band of Paiute Indians of the Moapa River Indian Reservation are a federally recognized tribe of Southern Paiute, who live in southern Nevada on the Moapa River Indian Reservation. They were in the past called the Muappa / Moapat and ...
in the
Nevada desert The Great Basin Desert is part of the Great Basin between the Sierra Nevada and the Wasatch Range. The desert is a geographical region that largely overlaps the Great Basin shrub steppe defined by the World Wildlife Fund, and the Central Basin a ...
, before premiering on ''
Total Request Live ''Total Request Live'' (known commonly as ''TRL'') was an American television program broadcast on MTV that premiered on September 14, 1998. TRL featured popular music videos played during its countdown, and was also used as a promotion tool by ...
'' a month later on August 28. The video portrays the band throwing an impromptu concert/fireworks show near a truck stop in the middle of nowhere. Prior to the performance, a road-weary Tyson Ritter is seen shopping at a nearby fireworks store, stocking up on a huge supply before hauling them out to the desert in his shopping cart and releasing them. The fireworks also serve as a backdrop for the concert, and the audience joins in setting them off, including an attractive brunette Ritter had met at the fireworks shop earlier that night. Morning breaks as the band sings the lyric "When darkness turns to light," and the band members are seen walking off into the distance.


Appearances in popular culture

"It Ends Tonight" is featured in the television shows '' Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County'' and ''
All My Children ''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 20 ...
'' as well as various commercials for TV shows such as ''
One Tree Hill One Tree Hill may refer to: * "One Tree Hill" (song), a 1987 song by U2 referencing One Tree Hill, New Zealand volcanic peak * ''One Tree Hill'' (TV series), a 2003–2012 American drama series named for the U2 song ** ''One Tree Hill'' (soundtr ...
'' and ''
Battlestar Galactica ''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The franchise began with the Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series), original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel se ...
''. The song has also made an appearance in the video game '' Karaoke Revolution Presents: American Idol Encore''. The song is also used as the background music for the Surface Studio commercial, with
Julie Delpy Julie Delpy (; born 21 December 1969) is a French-American actress, film director, screenwriter, and singer-songwriter. She studied filmmaking at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and has directed, written, and acted in more than 30 films, includi ...
and
Scarlett Johansson Scarlett Ingrid Johansson (; born November 22, 1984) is an American actress. The world's highest-paid actress in 2018 and 2019, she has featured multiple times on the ''Forbes'' Celebrity 100 list. ''Time'' magazine named her one of the 100 ...
. The band performed the song on an episode of ''
Smallville ''Smallville'' is an American superhero television series developed by writer-producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on the DC Comics character Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The series was produced by Millar Gough ...
''. "It Ends Tonight" has also been covered by bands such as Overboard and
Joy Electric Joy Electric is the brand label for a series of electropop/synthpop productions by Ronnie Martin. Martin began producing music under the Joy Electric name in 1994, after the demise of Dance House Children, a band Ronnie was in with his brother ...
.


Track listing


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Release history


References

{{authority control 2005 songs 2006 singles The All-American Rejects songs Song recordings produced by Howard Benson Music videos directed by Wayne Isham Rock ballads Interscope Records singles Songs written by Tyson Ritter Songs written by Nick Wheeler