"Miracle Aligner" is a song by English

baroque pop Baroque pop (sometimes called baroque rock) is a fusion genre that combines rock music with particular elements of classical music. It emerged in the mid-1960s as artists pursued a majestic, orchestral sound and is identifiable for its appropria ...

band

The Last Shadow Puppets The Last Shadow Puppets are an English supergroup consisting of Alex Turner (Arctic Monkeys), Miles Kane ( the Little Flames, the Rascals), James Ford (Simian, Simian Mobile Disco), and Zach Dawes ( Mini Mansions). The Last Shadow Puppe ...

released on 28 March 2016, through

Domino Recording Company Domino Recording Company, or simply Domino, is a British independent record label based in London. There is also a wing of the label based in Brooklyn, New York that handles releases in the United States, as well as a German division called ...

. The song was included on their second studio album, ''

Everything You've Come to Expect ''Everything You've Come to Expect'' is the second studio album by English supergroup the Last Shadow Puppets, released on 1 April 2016 by Domino Recording Company. It was written by band co-frontmen Alex Turner and Miles Kane in 2014 betwe ...

'' (2016). Written by frontman

Alex Turner Alexander David Turner (born 6 January 1986) is an English musician. He is the lead vocalist and songwriter of the rock band Arctic Monkeys. Turner is known for his Songwriter, lyricism ranging from kitchen sink realism to surrealism, surreal ...

, singer-songwriter

Alexandra Savior Alexandra Savior McDermott (born June 14, 1995) is an American singer-songwriter originally from Portland, Oregon. She first came to public notice at age 17 in 2012 after being publicly lauded by Courtney Love, who saw a video of Savior performing ...

, and produced by James Ford, "Miracle Aligner" is a baroque pop,

soul-pop Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in African-American communities throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps and extemporaneous body movements, are an important hall ...

, and

sophisti-pop Sophisti-pop is a pop music subgenre that developed during the mid-1980s out of the British new wave era. It originated with acts who blended elements of jazz, soul, and pop with lavish production. The term "sophisti-pop" was coined only afte ...

track. Savior described the song as being "obviously about a coke dealer." The accompanying music video was directed by

Saam Farahmand Saam Farahmand (born 1979) is a British film and music video director. A fine arts graduate of Goldsmiths, Farahmand is considered, according to ''The Guardian'', "one of the most talented music video directors of his generation.Iqbal, Nosheen ( ...

, and shot at

Hotel Café Royal The Hotel Café Royal is a five-star hotel at 68 Regent Street in Piccadilly, London. Before its conversion in 2008–2012 it was a restaurant and meeting place known as the Café Royal. History The establishment was originally conceived and set ...

in London. The video is the last part of a trilogy entitled, "The Italian Saga", and features Turner and Kane in an empty ornate room, dancing in a choreographed manner, while being observed by a film crew. It was released on 15 May 2016, and is the band's most popular video. The Last Shadow Puppets performed the song on television shows such as '' Le Grand Journal'' and ''

The Late Late Show with James Corden ''The Late Late Show with James Corden'' (also known simply as ''Late Late'') is an American late-night talk show that aired on CBS from 2015 to 2023. It is the fourth and final iteration of '' The Late Late Show'', and aired in the United Sta ...

''.

Background and release

Turner had the idea for the song and a few chords, he shared them with Kane, who responded "positively." He said the beginnings of the song were "really old," and that the idea "had always been around" and "came back in the end." When writing for

's debut record she and Turner completed the lyrics. They didn't feel it fit on her record, so Turner brought it back to Kane and "ended up being under the Shadow Puppets umbrella." On rejecting it, Savior said the song is "obviously about a coke dealer - it's a lifestyle that I didn't relate to myself." In another interview she added, "It always felt like it was more Alex's song though. He was totally in love with the song. ..I'm just happy that the song saw the light of day. It's great to be involved in music that's so well received." The song was premiered on

Zane Lowe Alexander Zane Reed Lowe (born 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 through pr ...

Beats 1 Apple Music 1, previously branded as Beats 1, is a 24/7 music radio station owned and operated by Apple Inc. It is accessible through iTunes or the Apple Music app on a computer, smartphone or tablet, smart speaker (such as the Apple HomePod), ...

Radio show, where Zane named it his "World Record" for March 28, 2016. The duo jokingly claimed the song was inspired by a "yoga teacher" and a "make-believe wrestler."

Composition

Musically, "Miracle Aligner" has been described as "honeyed soul-pop" and "sophisti-pop". On this song, it has been said the album is at its most "lush" and "seductive." The song has a "breezy melody." Instrumentally, it makes use of "

tremolo In music, ''tremolo'' (), or ''tremolando'' (), is a trembling effect. There are multiple types of tremolo: a rapid repetition of a note, an alternation between two different notes, or a variation in volume. Tremolos may be either ''measured'' ...

-heavy guitars." The chorus has been said to be reminiscent of Turner's work with

Arctic Monkeys Arctic Monkeys are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. They comprise lead singer Alex Turner, drummer Matt Helders, guitarist Jamie Cook and bassist Nick O'Malley. The co-founder and original bassist Andy Nicholson ...

Music video

The music video for "Miracle Aligner" is the last part of a trilogy entitled, "The Italian Saga", directed by

. It has been described as "A tale of

Italian organized crime Criminal organizations have been prevalent in Italy, especially in the southern part of the country, for centuries and have affected the social and economic life of many Italian regions. There are major native mafia-like organizations that are ...

, love and music in stunning Italian 60s

cinemascope CinemaScope is an anamorphic format, anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its cr ...

". It was shot at

in London, and first released onto

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

on 17 May 2016. The video begins with Kane and Turner standing in a balcony while rose petals fall from the sky. A dialogue, dubbed in

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

, occurs between the two, where Kane asks "What's this?", to which Turner responds "This...This is an attempt to extract truth...approximately." In the next shot, now inside an empty ornate room, Turner and Kane stand in front of each other, wearing cream coloured suits and looking extremely tanned, an allusion to the events shown in the ''

Aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...

'' and ''

'' music videos. Turner and Kane start dancing across the room. A circular

dolly shot In cinematography, a tracking shot is any shot where the camera follows backward, forward or moves alongside the subject being recorded. Mostly the camera’s position is parallel to the character, creating a sideway motion, tracking the charac ...

reveals they are being observed by a film crew. They keep dancing in a choreographed manner while looking into the camera. The video ends with the film crew leaving while Kane and Turner, now looking at each other, keep dancing. Turner kneels on the ground, Kane embraces him, and both collapse on top of each other.

Personnel

;The Last Shadow Puppets *

– vocals, guitar, percussion *

Miles Kane Miles Peter Kane (born 17 March 1986) is an English singer and musician, best known as a solo artist and the co-frontman of the Last Shadow Puppets. He was also the former frontman of the Rascals, before the band announced their break-up in Au ...

– vocals * James Ford – drums, percussion, keys *

Zach Dawes Zachary Edwin Dawes (born July 2, 1985) is an American musician, producer, engineer, and technician, best known as the bassist for the bands Mini Mansions and The Last Shadow Puppets. He has also worked extensively with Brian Wilson, Lana Del Rey ...

– bass guitar ;String section *Leah Katz, Rodney Wirtz – viola *Richard Dodd, John Krovoza, Peggy Baldwin – cello *Eric Gorfain, Marisa Kuney, Amy Wickman, Daphne Chen, Gina Kronstadt, Alwyn Wright, Chris Woods – violin *Ian Walker – contrabass *Sara Andon – flute ;Additional personnel *

Owen Pallett Michael James Owen Pallett-Plowright (born September 7, 1979), known professionally as Owen Pallett, is a Canadian composer, violinist, keyboardist, and vocalist. Under their former pseudonym Final Fantasy, Pallett won the 2006 Polaris Music P ...

– strings arrangement

Charts

Certifications

References

External links

* {{authority control 2016 singles 2016 songs The Last Shadow Puppets songs Songs written by Alex Turner (musician) Song recordings produced by James Ford (musician) Songs about cocaine Domino Recording Company singles Alexandra Savior songs