"Oblivion" is a song by English rock band

Terrorvision Terrorvision are an English rock band. They were formed in 1987 (as The Spoilt Bratz) in Keighley, West Yorkshire, and initially disbanded in 2001. The band used Bradford as a base after the name change to Terrorvision in 1991, by which time ...

. Written by the band and produced by

Gil Norton Gil Norton (born in Liverpool) is an English record producer known for his work with alternative rock bands such as Pixies, Echo & the Bunnymen, Foo Fighters, Tribe, Jimmy Eat World, Dashboard Confessional, Feeder, the Distillers, Maxïm ...

, the song was included as the second track on the band's second studio album, '' How to Make Friends and Influence People'' (1994). Like most Terrorvision songs, "Oblivion" contains political themes, but according to bass player Leigh Marklew, the messages were not taken seriously because of the song's

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a subgenre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, ...

chorus. Released as the album's first single on 28 March 1994, the song peaked at number 21 on the UK Singles Chart and number 65 in Australia.

Release and reception

On 28 March 1994, "Oblivion" was issued as the lead single from '' How to Make Friends and Influence People''. When the album was released on 18 April 1994, "Oblivion" appeared as the second track. According to

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

reviewer Leslie Mathew, the song is a satirical critique on "

squatter Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building (usually residential) that the squatter does not Land ownership and tenure, own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estima ...

hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...

s". Upon the single's release, ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later m ...

'' magazine likened the song to

the Smithereens The Smithereens are an American rock music, rock band from Carteret, New Jersey. The group formed in 1980 with members Pat DiNizio lead vocals, (vocals and guitar), Jim Babjak (guitar and backing vocals, vocals), Mike Mesaros (bass guitar and bac ...

' "

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

" (1991) and called it "hard-to-forget" with "instant 'got-ya' quality". Danny Martin of

WhatCulture WhatCulture Ltd. is a British online entertainment news website and magazine which was launched in 2010. The site offers news in the field of professional wrestling, television, films, music, video games, and board games. History Originally star ...

praised the song's chorus, referring to it as "singalong perfection", as well as Tony Wright's vocals, calling them a "perfect vessel" for the track's offbeat lyrics. On 3 April 1994, the single debuted at number 47 on the UK Singles Chart. The following week, it rose to its highest position of number 21, becoming

's highest-charting single in the UK until February 1996, when " Perseverance" reached number five. "Oblivion" spent six weeks on the UK Singles Chart and is the band's second-longest-charting single in the UK, after 1999's "

Tequila Tequila (; ) is a liquor, distilled beverage made from the blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila, Jalisco, Tequila northwest of Guadalajara, Jalisco, Guadalajara, and in the Jaliscan Highlands (''Los Altos (Jal ...

". Its British sales registered on the

Eurochart Hot 100 The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by ''Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately f ...

, peaking at number 72 on the issue dated 30 April 1994. In Australia, "Oblivion" is Terrorvision's only song to enter the top 100 of the

ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

, reaching number 65 in mid-1994.

Track listings

UK CD1 # "Oblivion" # "

The Model "Das Model" ("The Model" in English) is a song recorded by the German group Kraftwerk in 1978, written by musicians Ralf Hütter and Karl Bartos, with artist Emil Schult collaborating on the lyrics. It is featured on the album, ''Die Mensch-M ...

" (with Die Cheerleader) # "Remember Zelda" UK CD2 and Australian CD single # "Oblivion" # "Problem Solved" (by Die Cheerleader) # "What Do You Do That For?" # "Oblivion" (demo) UK 7-inch single :A. "Oblivion" :B. "What Do You Do That For?" UK 12-inch single :A1. "Oblivion" :A2. "The Model" (with Die Cheerleader) :B1. "Remember Zelda" :B2. "Problem Solved" (by Die Cheerleader) French CD and 7-inch single :A. "Oblivion" :B. "The Model" (with Die Cheerleader)

Credits and personnel

Credits are adapted from the ''How to Make Friends and Influence People'' booklet and the UK CD1 liner notes. Studio * Mixed at The Church (London, England) Personnel * Terrorvision – writing, arrangement ** Tony Wright – vocals ** Shutty – drums ** Mark Yates – guitars ** Leigh Marklew – bass * Anita Madigan – backing vocals *

– production, mixing *

Chris Sheldon Chris Sheldon (born 25 September 1962) is an English record producer, particularly of rock music based in London, England. He has produced or mixed records for the Foo Fighters, Garbage, Big Country, Feeder, Therapy?, Biffy Clyro, Oceansize, Pi ...

– mixing * Elliot Ness – mixing assistant * John McDonnell – mixing assistant * Al Clay – engineering * Mike Cyr – engineering assistant * Mark Phythian – programming * Union Design – artwork design * Toby McFarlan Pond – photography

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1994 singles 1994 songs EMI Records singles Political songs Song recordings produced by Gil Norton Songs about hippies Satirical songs Terrorvision songs Britpop songs