''Push the Button'' is the fifth studio album by English

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroa ...

duo

The Chemical Brothers The Chemical Brothers are an English electronic music duo formed by Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons in Manchester in 1989. They were pioneers (along with the Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, the Crystal Method, and other acts) in bringing the big beat gen ...

, first released in January 2005. The album received mostly positive reviews from

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

and won the

Grammy Award for Best Electronic/Dance Album The Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards — a ceremony that was established in 1958 — to recording artists for quality albums in the dance music and electronica genres. Honors in several cate ...

in January 2006. It was

certified gold Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

by the BPI on 28 January 2005.

Development

The making of the album started in mid-2003. Most of the album was finished in the last couple of months.

Singles

" Galvanize" was the first

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

from the album, released on 22 November 2004 in the United States and on 17 January 2005 in the United Kingdom. It peaked at number three on 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 ...

. " Believe" was the second single from the album, released on 2 May 2005. It peaked at number 18. "

The Boxer "The Boxer" is a song written by Paul Simon and recorded by the American music duo Simon & Garfunkel from their fifth studio album, '' Bridge over Troubled Water'' (1970). Produced by the duo and Roy Halee, it was released as a standalone si ...

" was the third single from the album, released on 11 July 2005. It peaked at number 41. '' Live 05'' was released as a digital EP promoting the album on 29 November 2005. It was recorded live from their 2005 tour.

Usage in media

* Track No. 1, "Galvanize", has been featured in US commercials for

Budweiser Budweiser () is an American-style pale lager, part of AB InBev. Introduced in 1876 by Carl Conrad & Co. of St. Louis, Missouri, Budweiser has become a large selling beer company in the United States. ''Budweiser'' may also refer to an unrela ...

, as well as on an episode of ''

All Star Family Fortunes ''Family Fortunes'' is a British television game show based on the American game show '' Family Feud''. The programme ran on ITV from 6 January 1980 to 30 December 2002. A celebrity version, ''All Star Family Fortunes'', followed from 2006 t ...

'' aired 23 December 2006. A remix, produced by

Scratch Perverts The Scratch Perverts are a collective of turntablist Turntablism is the art of manipulating sounds and creating new music, sound effects, mixes and other creative sounds and beats, typically by using two or more turntables and a cross fad ...

, was included in the game ''

DJ Hero 2 ''DJ Hero 2'' is a rhythm video game and a sequel to ''DJ Hero'', a spinoff of the ''Guitar Hero'' series. ''DJ Hero 2'' uses a special turntable-controller, the same as introduced in ''DJ Hero'', to simulate turntablism, the act of creating a ...

''. It was also used in '' Need for Speed: Most Wanted'' in 2012. It was also used in an ad by Oculus to promote their Quest 2 model, the ad was entitled "Break free" and published in 2020. Also in 2012, it was used to start the entrance of the athletes at the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Summer Olympics * Track No. 6, "The Big Jump", was featured on the soundtracks of the video games ''

Burnout Revenge ''Burnout Revenge'' is a racing video game developed by Criterion Games and published by Electronic Arts for PlayStation 2, Xbox and Xbox 360. Similar to its predecessor '' Burnout 3: Takedown'', ''Revenge'' focuses on a mixture of racing in th ...

'' and ''

Project Gotham Racing 3 ''Project Gotham Racing 3'' is a racing video game developed by Bizarre Creations and published by Microsoft Game Studios. It was released exclusively for the Xbox 360 as a launch title in November 2005. The game was rated by '' Official Xbox ...

''. * Track No. 9, "Shake Break Bounce" was used in the

BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes targeting 16 to 34-year-olds, covering all genres including animation, comedy, cur ...

comedy ''

Cuckoo Cuckoos are birds in the Cuculidae family, the sole taxon in the order Cuculiformes . The cuckoo family includes the common or European cuckoo, roadrunners, koels, malkohas, couas, coucals and anis. The coucals and anis are sometimes separ ...

'' in the episode "Ken on E". 4 time Commonwealth gold medalist,

Claudia Fragapane Claudia Fragapane (born 24 October 1997) is a British artistic gymnast. She came to prominence at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, where she was the first English woman to win four gold medals in a single Games since 1930. In 2015, Fragapane was ...

also used Shake Break Bounce as her floor exercise music during 2013 and 2014. It was also used as the background music to the

Ford S-Max The Ford S-Max (stylized as Ford S-MAX) was a car produced by Ford Europe for the European market. A multi-purpose vehicle (MPV), Ford also describes the S-Max as an SAV (sports activity vehicle). Introduced at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show, the ...

TV advert, shown in the UK in August–September 2006 * Track No. 10 "Marvo Ging", featured in Season two of ''

The O.C. ''The O.C. '' is an American teen drama television series created by Josh Schwartz that originally aired on the Fox network in the United States from August 5, 2003, to February 22, 2007, running a total of four seasons. "O.C." is an initiali ...

'', in the episode The Risky Business. It is also used on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

, E4 and

More4 More4 is a British free-to-air television channel, owned by Channel Four Television Corporation. The channel launched on 10 October 2005. Its programming mainly focuses on lifestyle and documentaries, as well as foreign dramas. Content When ...

in the United Kingdom to advertise

Film4 Film4 is a British free-to-air television network owned by Channel Four Television Corporation launched on 1 November 1998, devoted to broadcasting films. While its standard-definition channel is available on Freeview and Freesat platforms, i ...

, and in the final episode of ''

Time Trumpet ''Time Trumpet'' is a six-episode satirical television comedy series which aired on BBC Two in August 2006. The series was written by Armando Iannucci, Roger Drew and Will Smith in a similar manner to Iannucci's earlier one-off programmes, '' 20 ...

''. * Track No. 11, "Surface to Air", was featured on

Sky Sports News Sky Sports News (SSN) is a British paid television sports news channel run by Sky, a division of Comcast. History Since 1992, Sky Sports had broadcast sports news, initially a brief ''Football Update'' and later this was expanded into a ...

as its title music and in

Anna Faris Anna Kay Faris (; born November 29, 1976) is an American actress. She rose to prominence for her work in comedic roles, particularly the lead part of Cindy Campbell in the ''Scary Movie'' film series (2000–2006). She has appeared in a number ...

's 2007

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

Smiley Face A smiley, sometimes referred to as a smiley face, is a basic ideogram that represents a smiling face. Since the 1950s it has become part of popular culture worldwide, used either as a standalone ideogram, or as a form of communication, such a ...

''.

Reception

''Push the Button'' received very positive reviews by music critics upon its release.

BBC Music BBC Music is responsible for the music played across the BBC. The current director of music is Bob Shennan, who is also the controller of BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 6 Music, and the BBC Asian Network. Officially it is a part of the BBC's Radio ...

said of the album "The Chemical Brothers return with their rebel rockin' fifth studio album that blows all stylistic boundaries down in the process." Lead single " Galvanize", with Q-Tip on lead vocals, peaked at number 3 in the

. "

" also charted in the UK Singles Chart, in addition to " Believe". ''

Complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...

'' called it a "remotely forgettable project."

Track listing

Note * As with all other albums by The Chemical Brothers, some of the tracks segue into the next. These are 2 into 3, 3 into 4, 5 into 6, 6 into 7, 7 into 8, 9 into 10, and finally 10 into 11. Sample credits * "Galvanize" contains samples of "Just Tell Me the Truth", written and performed by

Najat Aatabou Najat Aâtabou ( ar, نجاة اعتابو; born 1960) is an Berber Moroccan singer, songwriter and composer. Her song "Hadi Kedba Bayna" was sampled by the Chemical Brothers in their 2004 song " Galvanize". Early life Najat Aâtabou was ...

. * "Come Inside" contains samples of "Everyday We Die a Little", written and performed by Sara Ayers. * "Left Right" contains samples of "Heavy Dramatic Track", from ''Production Music Beds MM123''. * "Shake Break Bounce" contains samples of "Party & Bullshit", written by Rashia Fisher, Justin Smith and Curtis Jones, and performed by

Rah Digga Rashia Tashan Fisher (born December 18, 1974), known professionally as Rah Digga, is an American rapper and actress. She is best known as a longtime member of the Flipmode Squad, a hip hop group led by Busta Rhymes. Her debut album, ''Dirty H ...

Personnel

Credits for ''Push the Button'' adapted from album liner notes.

The Chemical Brothers

* Tom Rowlands –

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

* Ed Simons – production

Additional musicians

* Q-Tip – vocals on "Galvanize" * Tim Burgess – vocals on "The Boxer" *

Kele Okereke Rowland Kelechukwu Okereke (born 13 October 1981), also known mononymously as Kele, is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. He is best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the indie rock band Bloc Party. Early life Okere ...

– vocals on "Believe" *

Anna-Lynne Williams Anna-Lynne Williams (born February 8, 1978), better known by the stage name Lotte Kestner, is an American singer and songwriter. She started her musical career as vocalist for the indie rock band Trespassers William in 1997, and adopted the Lotte ...

– vocals on "Hold Tight London" * Jon Brookes – percussion on "Hold Tight London" *

Anwar Superstar Anwar Superstar, born Anwar Khalil Prescott, is an American hip hop artist. He began rapping at the age of 14 on the streets of Atlantic City, New Jersey. Anwar has battled MCs from across the US and abroad. Anwar’s skills have been compare ...

– vocals on "Left Right" *

The Magic Numbers The Magic Numbers are an English pop rock band consisting of two brother-and-sister pairs, from Hanwell in west London. The group was formed in 2002, releasing their debut album titled '' The Magic Numbers'' on 13 June 2005. Their follow-up al ...

– vocals on "Close Your Eyes"

Additional technical personnel

* Cheeky Paul – editing * Steve Dub –

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...

* Ben Thackery – engineering (assistant) * Mike Marsh – mastering * Vaughn Merrick – recording on "Galvanize"

Design

* The Chemical Brothers – art direction * Tappin Gofton – art direction * Kam Tang – artwork

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control The Chemical Brothers albums 2005 albums Astralwerks albums Virgin Records albums Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronica Album