Paddling Out
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"Paddling Out" is a song by Swedish
indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...
band
Miike Snow Miike Snow ( ) is a Swedish indie pop band formed in 2007. The band consists of producing team Bloodshy & Avant and American singer Andrew Wyatt. The band is often represented by a silhouette image of a jackalope. In their career, the band has re ...
from their second studio album, ''
Happy to You ''Happy to You'' is the second studio album by Swedish indie pop band Miike Snow. It was released in the United States on 13 March 2012 by Downtown Records and Universal Republic Records, and in the United Kingdom on 19 March 2012 by Columbia Rec ...
'' (2012). It was released as the album's
lead single A lead single (or first single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. A similar term, "debut ...
on 23 January 2012 through Columbia,
Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in American and Canadian English to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ( ...
and
Universal Republic Republic Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Based in New York City, it was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially ...
. Written and produced by the band, the song was recorded in a studio previously occupied by Swedish pop group
ABBA ABBA ( ) were a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the List ...
, which influenced its sound. Band member
Pontus Winnberg Bloodshy & Avant are a Swedish songwriting and production duo consisting of Christian "Bloodshy" Karlsson and Pontus "Avant" Winnberg. They have worked with many prominent artists, including Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, Ms. Dynamite, Madonna, ...
dubbed the track an homage to dance floor
disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...
. Musically, "Paddling Out" is a piano-driven
electropop Electropop is a popular music fusion genre combining elements of the electronic and pop styles. It has been described as a variant of synth-pop with emphasis on a hard electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a rev ...
and
house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...
song with disco,
Italo house Italo house (often simply referred to as "Italian" or "Italian house" in the UK) is a form of house music originating in Italy. Typically popular in Italy, Britain, and United States since the late 1980s, it fuses house music and Italo disco. ...
and
acid jazz Acid jazz (also known as club jazz, psychedelic jazz, or groove jazz) is a music genre that combines elements of funk, soul music, soul, and hip hop music, hip hop, as well as jazz and disco. Acid jazz originated in clubs in London during the 1 ...
elements, backed by a
four on the floor ''Four on the Floor'' is a 1999 compilation album consisting of songs by bands on Panic Button Records. It features four tracks by four of the labels bands, Screeching Weasel, Moral Crux, Enemy You, and The Teen Idols The Teen Idols were a pop ...
beat. "Paddling Out" received positive reviews from music critics, some of whom praised its dance production and hailed it as one of the best tracks on ''Happy to You''. Commercially, the release is among the band's most successful singles. It achieved its highest national peak position on the
Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 () is a weekly music chart compiled by ''Stichting Nederlandse Top 40''. It started as a radio program titled "Veronica Top 40", on the offshore radio, offshore station Radio Veronica in 1965. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" ...
at number 32. It also became the band's fourth consecutive entry on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 90. Elsewhere, it managed to enter the Scottish singles chart and the Flemish
Ultratip Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium. Ultratop is a non-profit organization, created in 1995 on the initiative of the Belgian Entertainment Association (BEA), the Belgian member organiza ...
chart. The single's accompanying
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
was directed by Andreas Nilsson, who created the concept after discussing
genetic engineering Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification or genetic manipulation, is the modification and manipulation of an organism's genes using technology. It is a set of Genetic engineering techniques, technologies used to change the genet ...
and surveillance with the band. The visual tells the story of a man who is abducted and transformed into a "Perfect Human" by a group of childlike aliens dressed in
Victorian fashion Victorian fashion consists of the various fashions and trends in British culture that emerged and developed in the United Kingdom and the British Empire throughout the Victorian era, roughly from the 1830s through the 1890s. The period saw m ...
. The story continued in the video for ''Happy to You'' follow-up single " The Wave" and concluded with the album's third single "Pretender". Miike Snow has performed live renditions of "Paddling Out" on several occasions, including ''
Late Show with David Letterman ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production com ...
'' and a session for
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 Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
.


Background

"Paddling Out" was written by
Miike Snow Miike Snow ( ) is a Swedish indie pop band formed in 2007. The band consists of producing team Bloodshy & Avant and American singer Andrew Wyatt. The band is often represented by a silhouette image of a jackalope. In their career, the band has re ...
's three members, Christian Karlsson,
Pontus Winnberg Bloodshy & Avant are a Swedish songwriting and production duo consisting of Christian "Bloodshy" Karlsson and Pontus "Avant" Winnberg. They have worked with many prominent artists, including Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, Ms. Dynamite, Madonna, ...
and
Andrew Wyatt Andrew Wyatt Blakemore (born May 15, 1971) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. Born and raised in Manhattan, New York, he began his career playing in New York bands such as The A.M. and Black Beetle. He gained wider ...
, for the band's second studio album, ''
Happy to You ''Happy to You'' is the second studio album by Swedish indie pop band Miike Snow. It was released in the United States on 13 March 2012 by Downtown Records and Universal Republic Records, and in the United Kingdom on 19 March 2012 by Columbia Rec ...
'' (2012). The song was recorded along with the rest of the album during the second half of 2011. "Paddling Out" and several other album cuts were recorded in a studio previously used by Swedish pop group
ABBA ABBA ( ) were a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the List ...
in the 1970s. Regarding the studio, Winnberg told ''
HuffPost ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...
'', "It was full of old recording equipment, and we recorded the drums and acoustic instruments in there. It added a kind of classic environment to the whole album. And it was vibey; we hung out there a lot." The band told ''
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 advertis ...
'' that of all the tracks recorded there, "Paddling Out" has the most prominent ABBA-influenced sound, calling it "definitely a
house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...
song". Winnberg described it as an homage to "a kind of dancefloor disco-inferno he's not heard in too long". Wyatt first came up with the piano loop eleven years prior to finalizing the song. While working on their debut album, ''
Miike Snow Miike Snow ( ) is a Swedish indie pop band formed in 2007. The band consists of producing team Bloodshy & Avant and American singer Andrew Wyatt. The band is often represented by a silhouette image of a jackalope. In their career, the band has re ...
'' (2009), the band focused on creating structured pop songs and completed most of the process themselves, apart from mixing. For the ''Happy to You'' sessions, they worked with several other musicians, feeling they had more creative freedom and could "plan the process more". The band went to the studio with the goal to complete an album, as opposed to their debut album which was "a bunch of songs that ended up on album". Wyatt said of ''Happy to You'', "The way we thought about songwriting was quite different, and also the production process was different because we could use other methods." One of the collaborators invited to the sessions was Swedish drummer Thomas Hedlund, a touring member of Phoenix, who was enlisted to play the drums on "Paddling Out". The remainder of the instruments utilized in the song were played by the band, which also handled arrangement, programming, production and recording. Additional recording was managed by Nille Pernerd. It was then mixed by Niklas Flyckt and
mastered Mastering is a form of audio post production which is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device called a master recording, the source from which all copies will be ...
by
Ted Jensen Ted Jensen (born September 19, 1954) is an American mastering engineer, known for having mastered many recordings, including the Eagles' '' Hotel California'', Green Day's '' American Idiot'' and Norah Jones' ''Come Away with Me''. Early life ...
.


Composition and lyrics

Musically, "Paddling Out" is an
electropop Electropop is a popular music fusion genre combining elements of the electronic and pop styles. It has been described as a variant of synth-pop with emphasis on a hard electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a rev ...
and house song with a
four on the floor ''Four on the Floor'' is a 1999 compilation album consisting of songs by bands on Panic Button Records. It features four tracks by four of the labels bands, Screeching Weasel, Moral Crux, Enemy You, and The Teen Idols The Teen Idols were a pop ...
beat. The track has disco and
Italo house Italo house (often simply referred to as "Italian" or "Italian house" in the UK) is a form of house music originating in Italy. Typically popular in Italy, Britain, and United States since the late 1980s, it fuses house music and Italo disco. ...
influences and "chopped up bits of
acid jazz Acid jazz (also known as club jazz, psychedelic jazz, or groove jazz) is a music genre that combines elements of funk, soul music, soul, and hip hop music, hip hop, as well as jazz and disco. Acid jazz originated in clubs in London during the 1 ...
". Its instrumentation is primarily based on drums, a piano, and synthesizers. The production features a piano chord loop, an "amped-up" backbeat and occasional
sirens Siren or sirens may refer to: Common meanings * Siren (alarm), a loud acoustic alarm used to alert people to emergencies * Siren (mythology), an enchanting but dangerous monster in Greek mythology that lured sailors to their deaths. Places * Si ...
. The beat "stutters and stops" throughout the track. Lily Moayeri of '' Under the Radar'' compared the piano riffs to early 1990s Italo house. Similarly, Lewis Corner of ''
Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its initial launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television pro ...
'' felt the piece "fus sItalo-house piano with pacey beats and chants". Music commentators characterized lead singer Wyatt's vocals as "sex-less" and "vaguely androgynous", while the chorus features "bubbly" backing vocals. Some critics noted "Paddling Out" melancholic lyrics, and Ailbhe Malone of ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...
'' observed that it includes a "big beat bounce" and "sing-along melancholy". The chorus begins with the lyric "There's someone here who laughs too hard at everything", followed by the lines "You say isn't it hard / Paddling out, paddling out". Sputnikmusic's staff writer Rudy K. commented that the contrast between the song's "infectious tone" and melancholic lyrics is similar to that of Miike Snow's debut single "
Animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the Biology, biological Kingdom (biology), kingdom Animalia (). With few exceptions, animals heterotroph, consume organic material, Cellular respiration#Aerobic respiration, breathe oxygen, ...
" (2009).


Release and remixes

Miike Snow premiered "Devil's Work", the first offering from ''Happy to You'', on 6 December 2011 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 ...
's radio show 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 Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
, and put it up for free download as a
buzz single A promotional recording, promo, or plug copy is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as mus ...
. In early January 2012, the band launched a newspaper-esque website called ''The Tiimes'' with a teaser video of "Paddling Out". The full track was subsequently made available for streaming on 19 January 2012 via
SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...
. Although initially reported to become available for download on 11 March 2012, the song was released to digital retailers on 23 January 2012 through Columbia as the official
lead single A lead single (or first single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. A similar term, "debut ...
for ''Happy to You''. Another digital release, with three remixes produced by
Wolfgang Gartner Joseph Thomas Youngman (born March 17, 1982), better known by his stage name Wolfgang Gartner, is an Americans, American DJ and music producer. Much of his music prior to 2010 was released through his own record label, Kindergarten, but he signe ...
,
Jacques Lu Cont Stuart David Price (born 9 September 1977) is an English electronic musician, DJ, songwriter, and record producer. His acts include his own band Zoot Woman (with Adam Blake and Johnny Blake), Les Rythmes Digitales (, literally "The Digital ...
and Carli, was released on 11 March 2012.
Universal Republic Republic Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Based in New York City, it was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially ...
issued a
7-inch vinyl In music, a single is a type of release of a song recording of fewer tracks than an album ( LP), typically one or two tracks. A single can be released for sale to the public in a variety of physical or digital formats. Singles may be standal ...
subtitled ''The Remixes'' on 26 March 2012, containing the original track and the Gartner remix. "Paddling Out" was sent to
alternative radio Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college and commercial rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music. ...
in the United States on 27 March 2012. Prior to their digital release, the Lu Cont and Gartner remixes premiered online on 10 and 27 February 2012, respectively. Josiah Hughes of ''
Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly ''Exclaim!'' print magazine publishes seven ...
'' viewed Lu Cont's remix as an "exciting fist-pumper", writing that it "quite possibly surpass s the original.
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
's Sam Lansky described Gartner's uptempo take as "aggressive", and noted the addition of handclaps and "grimy" synthesizers, which the writer believed fit well with Wyatt's vocals. A writer for ''
Pigeons & Planes Complex Networks is an American media and entertainment company for youth culture, based in New York City. It was founded as a bi-monthly magazine, ''Complex'', by fashion designer Marc Eckō. Complex Networks reports on popular and emerging tr ...
'' wrote that Gartner "flips the tune with some heavy bass, some heart-wrenching build-ups, and hard-hitting thumps". The remixes by Gartner, Lu Cont and Carli also appear on the Jackalope Edition of ''Happy to You''. A remix produced by
Penguin Prison Penguin Prison (born 1983) is an electropop project composed solely of New York City singer, musician, producer and remixer Chris Glover.RCRD LBL RCRD LBL was a website for free, curated, and legal MP3 downloads from emergent artists. RCRD LBL was launched in 2007 by Josh Deutsch, Peter Rojas Peter Rojas (born March 18, 1975) is the co-founder of technology blogs Gizmodo and Engadget, a ...
on 10 April 2012. In March 2013, Sarah Polonsky of ''
Vibe Vibe, alternatively '' vibes,'' is short for ''vibration''. A "vibe" is an emotional reaction to the aura or energy felt to belong to a person, place or thing. Vibe may also refer to: People * DJ Vibe (born 1968), Portuguese DJ * Lasse Vibe (b ...
'' named it one of the DJ's best remixes.


Critical reception

"Paddling Out" was met with 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 ...
. A writer for ''Pigeons & Planes'' opined that the song sees the band in their "most comfortable spot of creative, catchy pop music that's instantly likable and only more gratifying with each listen". ''
PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...
'' critic Evan Sawdey regarded it the best track on ''Happy to You'', while also deeming it the best Miike Snow song yet. Naming it "absolutely jaw-dropping", Sawdey went on to appoint it as "one of the best dance tracks that's not being played right now". Caroline Sullivan of ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' applauded its catchiness, and Allison Stewart of ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' described it as a "gem". Both
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 ...
's Jason Lymangrover and ''
Metro Metro may refer to: Geography * Metro City (Indonesia), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urban area with high ...
'' Arwa Haider deemed it a highlight on the album. ''
The New Zealand Herald ''The New Zealand Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Auckland, New Zealand, owned by New Zealand Media and Entertainment, and considered a newspaper of record for New Zealand. It has the largest newspaper circulation in New Zealand, ...
'' Chris Schulz said that "Paddling Out", along with two other ''Happy to You'' tracks, "will swirl around in your head for days and demand repeat plays". Moayeri of ''Under the Radar'' noted the band's "blatant acknowledgement of rave-y influences" on the track, and perceived it as a stand-out on the album. Andy Baber, writing for ''
musicOMH ''MusicOMH'' (stylized as ''musicOMH'') is a London-based online music magazine which publishes independent reviews, features and interviews from across all genres including classical, metal, rock and R&B. History ''MusicOMH'' was founded an ...
'', felt the single showcased the band at "their electropop best", arguing its synthesizer instrumentation would make it "certain to be a dance-floor favourite". Similarly, ''
Las Vegas Sun The ''Las Vegas Sun'' is one of the Las Vegas Valley's two daily subscription newspapers. It is owned by the Greenspun family and is affiliated with Greenspun Media Group. The paper published afternoons on weekdays from 1990 to 2005 and is now ...
'' writer
Annie Zaleski Annie Zaleski is a ''New York Times'' best-selling author and music historian. Career Zaleski is a regular writer for mainstream media outlets such as The Guardian and NPR Music, and a columnist at ''Salon''. She is based in Cleveland, Ohio w ...
viewed the song as "kicky disco" and felt it was made for the dance floor, hailing it as one of the best tracks on ''Happy to You''. Jonathan Donaldson of '' The Phoenix'' called the song an "upbeat dance number" and complimented the beat production, which he felt "most pop bands could get behind". George Bass of '' Drowned in Sound'' commented that while the single "doesn't break any barriers", it is a good workout track.


Chart performance

"Paddling Out" made its first chart appearance on 11 February 2012, on the Dutch
Single Top 100 The Dutch Single Top 100 or Single Top 100 is a Dutch chart, based on official physical single sales, legal downloads and since July 2013 streaming and composed by Dutch Charts. It is one of the three official charts, the other two being the Du ...
chart at number 79, where it remained for a week. Also in the Netherlands, the song peaked at number 32 on the
Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 () is a weekly music chart compiled by ''Stichting Nederlandse Top 40''. It started as a radio program titled "Veronica Top 40", on the offshore radio, offshore station Radio Veronica in 1965. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" ...
. In Belgium, the song debuted at number 71 on the Flemish
Ultratip Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium. Ultratop is a non-profit organization, created in 1995 on the initiative of the Belgian Entertainment Association (BEA), the Belgian member organiza ...
chart on 18 February 2012. It ascended steadily on the chart in the coming weeks, and achieved its peak position of number nine on 7 April 2012. The song spent a total of eight weeks on the chart. In the United Kingdom, "Paddling Out" entered the UK Singles Chart on the week ending 24 March 2012 at number 90. The following week, it descended to number 100, and fell off the chart thereafter. The single reached number 17 on the
UK Dance Chart The Dance Singles Chart and the Dance Albums Chart are music charts compiled in the United Kingdom by the Official Charts Company from sales of songs in the electronic dance music, dance music genre (e.g. house music, house, trance music, trance, ...
, where it was listed for two weeks. "Paddling Out" also entered the singles chart in Scotland, where it debuted and peaked at number 99.


Music video

Andreas Nilsson directed the accompanying
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
for "Paddling Out". Miike Snow met with Nilsson to discuss the concept for the video. In an interview for '' Creators'', Nilsson revealed the concept was created after long discussions with the band about
genetic engineering Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification or genetic manipulation, is the modification and manipulation of an organism's genes using technology. It is a set of Genetic engineering techniques, technologies used to change the genet ...
in contemporary science as they share a mutual interest in the medical scene. Wyatt told ''Digital Spy'' that Nilsson's images "go together in a way that feels truthful" to the band's work. He said, "I think that's one of the strengths of his work because ... you can read into it in different ways." When asked about the concept of the video, Wyatt told ''
Gigwise ''Gigwise'' is a British online music news site featuring music news, photos, album reviews, music festivals, concert tickets and video content. Founded in June 2001, the site is based in London, England. History Gigwise was launched in 2001 in ...
'' that "It's a pretty obscure story and I don't think we should explain too much. So we will leave that for people to piece together the puzzle". Wyatt stated that the final product was mostly Nilsson's idea, noting that surveillance by companies such as
Google Google LLC (, ) is an American multinational corporation and technology company focusing on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial ...
and genetic engineering were key inspirations for the clip. A teaser clip of the video entitled "Birth to Death" was released on the band's promotional website ''The Tiimes'' in January 2012. The full video then premiered on the website on 3 February 2012. The following month, Wyatt revealed to ''Digital Spy'' that the visual is the first in a series of music videos. The Nilsson-directed video for ''Happy to You'' second single, " The Wave", premiered in March 2012 and continues the story established in the clip. The final installment in the trilogy, the visual for the album's third single "Pretender", arrived in September 2012. It was directed by Vern Moen, who Nilsson gave creative freedom to do "what he felt right in the moment". The "Paddling Out" video begins as a man awakens on the floor of his house. After drinking milk in the kitchen, a pair of shoes atop a pedestal suddenly appears in the bedroom. The man puts on the shoes and begins to dance. As he looks out the window, it is revealed he is in outer space aboard a house-shaped spaceship. Two
Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...
-dressed children twins (played by the actresses Francesca and Therese Kortesmaki) then appear, attacking him with laser guns. The man is then given plastic surgery by the childlike aliens. He is transformed into a "Perfect Human" called Jean Noel, which includes a big nose, strong chin, erect nipples, "massive cock", shirtless upper body and leather pants. Terrified of his new appearance, he starts to dance in the hallways of the spaceship, where he runs into a group of other specimens looking exactly like him. The spaceship then crashes to Earth as Jean Noel screams in horror.


Live performances

Miike Snow performed a live rendition of "Paddling Out" and a cover version of
Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and later became the lead singer of the rock band Genesis (band), Genesis and had a successful solo career, ac ...
' " Two Hearts" (1988) at
Maida Vale Studios Maida Vale Studios is a complex of seven BBC sound studios, of which five are in regular use, in Delaware Road, Maida Vale, west London. It has been used to record thousands of classical music, popular music and drama sessions for BBC Radio 1, ...
for BBC Radio 1 on 14 March 2012. The following month, the band appeared on ''
Late Show with David Letterman ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production com ...
'' on 27 April 2012 to perform "Paddling Out". Miike Snow also included the song on the set list for their 2012 tour in support of ''Happy to You''. It was later performed on the iii World Tour throughout 2016, promoting their third studio album '' iii'' (2016). The set list mainly consisted of tracks from the band's debut album and ''iii'', while "Paddling Out" was the only song included from ''Happy to You''. During rehearsals, the band "rediscovered" its older work and felt it connected more naturally with the new material on ''iii''; Winnberg commented that it was "a little more fun" to play songs from the debut album than ''Happy to You''.


Formats and track listing

*7" #"Paddling Out"3:41 #"Paddling Out" (
Wolfgang Gartner Joseph Thomas Youngman (born March 17, 1982), better known by his stage name Wolfgang Gartner, is an Americans, American DJ and music producer. Much of his music prior to 2010 was released through his own record label, Kindergarten, but he signe ...
remix)6:07 *Digital download #"Paddling Out"3:41 *Digital download (remix) #"Paddling Out" (
Penguin Prison Penguin Prison (born 1983) is an electropop project composed solely of New York City singer, musician, producer and remixer Chris Glover. #"Paddling Out"3:41 #"Paddling Out" (Wolfgang Gartner remix)6:07 #"Paddling Out" (
Jacques Lu Cont Stuart David Price (born 9 September 1977) is an English electronic musician, DJ, songwriter, and record producer. His acts include his own band Zoot Woman (with Adam Blake and Johnny Blake), Les Rythmes Digitales (, literally "The Digital ...
remix)5:45 #"Paddling Out" (Carli remix)6:02 *Promo CD #"Paddling Out"3:42 #"Paddling Out" (instrumental)3:38


Credits and personnel

Credits are adapted from the ''Happy to You'' liner notes. * Christian Karlsson,
Pontus Winnberg Bloodshy & Avant are a Swedish songwriting and production duo consisting of Christian "Bloodshy" Karlsson and Pontus "Avant" Winnberg. They have worked with many prominent artists, including Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, Ms. Dynamite, Madonna, ...
,
Andrew Wyatt Andrew Wyatt Blakemore (born May 15, 1971) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. Born and raised in Manhattan, New York, he began his career playing in New York bands such as The A.M. and Black Beetle. He gained wider ...
songwriting *
Miike Snow Miike Snow ( ) is a Swedish indie pop band formed in 2007. The band consists of producing team Bloodshy & Avant and American singer Andrew Wyatt. The band is often represented by a silhouette image of a jackalope. In their career, the band has re ...
vocals, production, arrangement, programming, instruments, recording *Nille Pernedadditional recording *Thomas Hedlunddrums *Niklas Flycktmixing *
Ted Jensen Ted Jensen (born September 19, 1954) is an American mastering engineer, known for having mastered many recordings, including the Eagles' '' Hotel California'', Green Day's '' American Idiot'' and Norah Jones' ''Come Away with Me''. Early life ...
mastering


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* {{Miike Snow 2012 songs 2012 singles Columbia Records singles Downtown Records singles Miike Snow songs House music songs Songs written by Christian Karlsson (DJ) Songs written by Pontus Winnberg Songs written by Andrew Wyatt Music videos directed by Andreas Nilsson