''Playing in the Shadows'' is the third studio album by British

recording artist A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...

Example Example may refer to: * '' exempli gratia'' (e.g.), usually read out in English as "for example" * .example, reserved as a domain name that may not be installed as a top-level domain of the Internet ** example.com, example.net, example.org, ex ...

, released on 4 September 2011 through

Ministry of Sound Ministry of Sound or Ministry of Sound Group is a multimedia entertainment business based in London with a nightclub, shared workspace and private members' club, worldwide events operation, music publishing business and fitness studio. James ...

. Example confirmed that much like the previous album, there would be no collaborations, besides that of producers (including frequent collaborator

Skream Oliver Dene Jones (born 1 June 1986), known as Skream, is an English electronic music producer based in Croydon. Skream was an early and influential exponent of the dubstep genre. After producing several singles, he released his first full-len ...

). During an interview, Example said the album remains dance oriented, although he would make a gradual move into

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

and dubstep genres. The album's release was preceded by two singles, "

Changed the Way You Kiss Me "Changed the Way You Kiss Me" is a song by British singer Example from his third studio album, '' Playing in the Shadows''. It was released on 5 June 2011 as the album's lead single, after it had premiered on BBC Radio 1 as Zane Lowe's 'Hottest ...

" and " Stay Awake", which both peaked atop of the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. A third single,

Laidback Luke Lucas Cornelis van Scheppingen (born 22 October 1976), better known under his stage name Laidback Luke, is a Dutch DJ and music producer. He notably remixed the Robin S. song, " Show Me Love" which charted at No. 11 on the UK charts in 2009. He ...

collaboration "

Natural Disaster A natural disaster is "the negative impact following an actual occurrence of natural hazard in the event that it significantly harms a community". A natural disaster can cause loss of life or damage property, and typically leaves some econ ...

", has been released on 16 October. A fourth single, "

Midnight Run ''Midnight Run'' is a 1988 American road action comedy film directed by Martin Brest and starring Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin. Yaphet Kotto, John Ashton, Dennis Farina, Joe Pantoliano, and Philip Baker Hall play supporting roles. At the 4 ...

" was released on 4 December.

Background and development

In an interview with Lowe he revealed that his third album would be released in September 2011 entitled ''Playing in the Shadows''. Example described the album as a darker record than previous album ''

Won't Go Quietly ''Won't Go Quietly'' is the second studio album from British recording artist Example. It was released as a digital download on 20 June 2010, with the physical release the following day. Noted producers that helped with the album include Calvin ...

'' ("dark, epic beast"). He also said production on the record will come from Michael Woods,

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 un ...

Faithless Faithless are an English band that formed in 1995, with its core members being Rollo, Sister Bliss and Maxi Jazz. Their first album, '' Reverence'', was released in 1996 and their most recent, ''All Blessed'', in 2020. They have sold millions ...

, Brookes Brothers, Dirty South and hopefully

Chase & Status Chase & Status are an English electronic music duo composed of Saul Milton (Chase) and Will Kennard (Status). In addition, Andy Gangadeen is the drummer when the band performs live. MC Rage formerly performed as MC with the group, but left in Ju ...

, as well as writing with English songwriter and producer

Guy Chambers Guy Antony Chambers (born 12 January 1963) is an English songwriter, musician and record producer, best known for his work with Robbie Williams. Education Chambers attended Quarry Bank Comprehensive School sixth form in Liverpool. From 18, h ...

. Funkagenda will be producing the intro track also (as per their respective Twitter feeds). In a discussion on Twitter, Example also revealed the final track to be completed on his album would be produced by Feed Me.

Singles

" was the album's lead single. It is produced by Michael Woods and was released on 5 June 2011. On 24 March 2011 "Changed the Way You Kiss Me" debuted on

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

Zane Lowe Alexander Zane Reid Lowe (born 7 August 1973) is a New Zealand radio DJ, live DJ, record producer, and television presenter. After an early career in music creation, production and DJing, he moved to the UK in 1997. He came to prominence thro ...

's Hottest Record in the World. The video was released on Example's website on 24 April 2011. The single debuted at number 1 on the

. "Changed the Way You Kiss Me" is featured in Adidas' launch event for new Predator Football boots. *" Stay Awake" was the second single from the album and was produced by

. The single debuted on 1 July 2011 on

Annie Mac Annie Mac (born 18 July 1978), is an Irish DJ, broadcaster and writer. She hosted a variety of shows on BBC Radio 1, including BBC Switch and ''Future Sounds''. She also DJed in various locations, including hosting her AMP (Annie Mac Presents) ...

's BBC Radio 1 show and was released on 28 August 2011. The video premiered on 18 July 2011. The single debuted at number 1 on the

. *"

" was released on 16 October. It debuted at number 37 on the UK charts. The song is a collaboration with Dutch DJ

. The single is billed to Laidback Luke vs. Example. *"

" was the fourth single from the album, which was released on 4 December 2011 and was produced by Feed Me. The song debuted at number 30 on the UK official charts. However the single topped the UK Indie chart with 1 and achieved 5 on the UK dance chart.

Other singles

*" Shot Yourself in the Foot Again" was released as a free download in January 2011. The track is produced by

and has gained over 13 million views on YouTube. It features on Example's album as an

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

bonus track. Although it was a free download, it managed to chart at 82 in the UK. *The

bonus track "Plastic Smile" (with

Felguk Felguk is the stage name of the Brazilian DJs and record producer duo Felipe Lozinsky (born February 12, 1986) and Gustavo Rozenthal (born February 26, 1982). The duo performed - and had their single "2nite" as the track for the official trailer ...

) is featured as the B-side track of Felguk's "Jack It" EP and on the 2012 video game '' SSX''. The track has not made any major chart appearances, although it has charted at No. 39 in the

UK Indie Chart The UK Independent Singles Chart and UK Independent Albums Chart are charts of the best-selling independent singles and albums, respectively, in the United Kingdom. Originally published in January 1980, and widely known as the indie chart, the rele ...

."Archive Chart"

. 2011-09-17.

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Playing In The Shadows 2011 albums Example (musician) albums Albums produced by Chase & Status Ministry of Sound albums