electronic music
Electronic music is a Music genre, genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or electronics, circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromech ...
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 ...
featuring vocals from
Noel Gallagher
Noel Thomas David Gallagher (born 29 May 1967) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. He was the chief songwriter, lead guitarist, and co-lead vocalist of the rock band Oasis until their split in 2009. After leaving Oasis, he formed ...
of
Britpop
Britpop was a mid-1990s British-based music culture movement that emphasised Britishness. It produced brighter, catchier alternative rock, partly in reaction to the popularity of the darker lyrical themes of the US-led grunge music and to the ...
band
Oasis
In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environmentDig Your Own Hole
''Dig Your Own Hole'' is the second studio album by the English electronic music duo the Chemical Brothers. It was released on 7 April 1997 in the United Kingdom by Freestyle Dust and Virgin Records and in the United States by Astralwerks. It w ...
'' (1997). Despite receiving little airplay in the United Kingdom, it sold 99,000 copies during its first week of release and debuted at number one 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 ...
in October 1996. American magazine ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...
'' included "Setting Sun" in their list of the "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time" in 2022.
Composition
Gallagher used an old
Oasis
In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environmentBeatles' '' Revolver'' track "
Tomorrow Never Knows
"Tomorrow Never Knows" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written primarily by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released in August 1966 as the final track on their album '' Revolver'', although it was the fir ...
".
Critical reception
Upon release, "Setting Sun" was critically acclaimed by music critics. J. D. Considine from ''
The Baltimore Sun
''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries.
Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...
'' complimented the "ear-catching sounds" of "shrieking klaxons and braying trumpets", picking it as one of three best songs from ''
Dig Your Own Hole
''Dig Your Own Hole'' is the second studio album by the English electronic music duo the Chemical Brothers. It was released on 7 April 1997 in the United Kingdom by Freestyle Dust and Virgin Records and in the United States by Astralwerks. It w ...
''. He felt that songs like "Setting Sun" "come on like mini-amusement parks, offering so many sonic thrills that you can't help but want to ride the groove again." Daina Darzin from '' Cash Box'' named it Pick of the Week, adding, "
Techno
Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...
, synthcore, dance, industrial, whatever you wanna call it, this is the single du jour—a downright amazing, explosive, whirling, get-your-feet-moving rush of a thing that you're guaranteed to play, like, 37 times in a row after hearing it for the first time."
Caroline Sullivan from ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper
A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background.
Newspapers can cover a wide ...
'' rated it five out of five, picking it as Single of the Week. She wrote, "The Brothers' disjointed
breakbeat
Breakbeat is a broad type of electronic music that tends to use drum breaks sampled from early recordings of funk, jazz, and R&B. Breakbeats have been used in styles such as hip hop, jungle, drum and bass, big beat, breakbeat hardcore, and ...
s, sirens and trapped-in-a-lift ambiance are glorious foils for Gallagher, who seems to be having an out-of-body experience. It's hallucinatory in the manner of one of
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are c ...
's heaviest moments, where sonic firepower and grubby sexiness induced sensory overload." Sally Stratton from ''
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 ...
'' noted the track's "wails and explosions". David Fricke from ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devi ...
for the song was directed by
Dom and Nic
dom&nic is the working name of directors Nic Goffey and Dominic Hawley. They have been directing music videos and commercials since 1994.
They have won numerous awards for their work, including the Gold Lion at the 1999 Cannes International Adve ...
. It was shot on location at the abandoned
Crystal Palace Subway
A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macrosc ...
station and features artist Lexi Strauss. In the video, it shows the prospect of a
rave party
A rave (from the verb: '' to rave'') is a dance party at a warehouse, club, or other public or private venue, typically featuring performances by DJs playing electronic dance music. The style is most associated with the early 1990s dance mu ...
through the eyes of a bewildered young woman. It can be seen the woman chasing a personification of her nightmare through the party. The video mixes a disturbing psychological confusion with moments of humoristic imagination (for example, the woman sees police dancing
breakdance
Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance originating from the African American and Puerto Rican communities in the United States. While diverse in the amount of variation available in ...
). The Chemical Brothers briefly appear, leaving the party with their record cases.
Impact and legacy
In 2010, ''
Pitchfork
A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves.
The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to ...
'' ranked "Setting Sun" number 43 in their list of the "Top 200 Tracks of the 1990s". In 2020, ''The Guardian'' called it, alongside
Underworld
The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld ...
's " Born Slippy .NUXX", the "most experimental and sonically extreme hit ingleof the 90s" and ranked it number 49 on their list of "The 100 Greatest UK No 1 Singles". In 2022, ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...
'' ranked it number 82 on their list of the "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time".
Track listings
Credits and personnel
Credits are lifted from the ''
Dig Your Own Hole
''Dig Your Own Hole'' is the second studio album by the English electronic music duo the Chemical Brothers. It was released on 7 April 1997 in the United Kingdom by Freestyle Dust and Virgin Records and in the United States by Astralwerks. It w ...
'' album booklet.
Studios
* Recorded at Orinoco Studios (South London, England)
* Mastered at The Exchange (London, England)
Personnel
* The Chemical Brothers – production
** Tom Rowlands – writing
** Ed Simons – writing
*
Noel Gallagher
Noel Thomas David Gallagher (born 29 May 1967) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. He was the chief songwriter, lead guitarist, and co-lead vocalist of the rock band Oasis until their split in 2009. After leaving Oasis, he formed ...
– writing, vocals
* Jon Dee – engineering
* Mike Marsh – mastering