Straight Lines (song)

"Straight Lines"
Single by Silverchair
from the album Young Modern
A-side "Straight Lines"
B-side

"All Across the World"
"Sleep All Day" (demo)

"Don't Wanna Be the One" (live)
Released 20 March 2007 (2007-03-20)
Format Compact Disc, digital download
Recorded April–November 2006, Seedy Underbelly Studios, Los Angeles, California, United States
Genre Art rock, alternative rock
Length 4:18
Label Eleven: A Music Company
Writer(s) Daniel Johns, Julian Hamilton
Producer David Bottrill, Daniel Johns, Nick Launay
Certification 2× Platinum (ARIA)
Silverchair singles chronology
"Across The Night"
(2003)		 "Straight Lines"
(2007)		 "Reflections of a Sound"
(2007)

"Straight Lines" is a song by Silverchair. It was released in Australia on 20 March 2007,[1] and debuted at number one on the ARIA Singles Chart. The single was shortly followed by the release of the band's fifth studio album Young Modern on 31 March 2007. Unlike the songs written during Diorama where Daniel Johns wrote all the tracks himself, "Straight Lines" was co-written by The Presets' Julian Hamilton. On 19 February 2007, it became the band's first Australian number one single since 1997's "Freak". On 2 September 2007, "Straight Lines" was accredited Double Platinum by ARIA, representing combined digital sales and physical shipment of 140,000 singles in Australia, equalling "Tomorrow" as their best selling single. On 28 October 2007, "Straight Lines" won "Best Selling Australian Single" at the ARIA Music Awards of 2007, as well as "Single of the Year". The song was the most played song on Australian radio in 2007.[2] It charted at #2 on the Triple J Hottest 100 for 2007 and missed out on the Number 1 spot by only 13 votes. As of January 2008 the single has remained in the top 50 for over 40 weeks.

Contents

Song meaning

"Straight Lines" is generally a positive and upbeat song. The song is about feeling alone in the world, but making it through tough times and overcoming them. This is illustrated in the lyrics such as "Lately I'm a desperate believer, but I'm walking in a straight line" and "There's no changing yesterday...everything will be fine". The song's meaning appears to be a biographical comment from lead singer Daniel Johns who fought anorexia, clinical depression and reactive arthritis in the late nineties and early millennium, and was able to beat them. It also appears to be about being content with your place in life, thus walking in a straight line.

Music video

Footage for the video, which fans were invited to appear in, was shot in Sydney. The music video for the single appeared on the official website and released to radio on 2 February 2007. The video for the song also premiered on the day. It features a dynamic band performance that was filmed at the Olympic Park railway station, Sydney by directors Paul Goldman and Alice Bell (the pair behind the acclaimed film Suburban Mayhem). The video was awarded "Best Video" at the 2007 ARIA Awards and was a Contender for Best Rock Video at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards.

Track listing

Australian CD Single (ELEVENCD62)
  1. "Straight Lines"
  2. "All Across the World"
  3. "Sleep All Day" (demo)
  4. "Don't Wanna Be the One" (live)
Australian Promo CD (ELEVENCDPRO62)
  1. "Straight Lines" (Audio)
  2. "Straight Lines" (Video)
  • This version comes in DVD-format tin box

Chart performance

Chart (2007) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart[3] 1
Australian Top 40 Digital Tracks Chart[4] 1
New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart[5] 11
U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks[6] 12

Awards and nominations

APRA Award

See also

References

  1. ^ "Siverchair Straight Lines". Amazon.com. http://www.amazon.com/Straight-Lines-Silverchair/dp/B000NIVN82. Retrieved 2007-12-07. 
  2. ^ "Silverchair's Straight Lines rules radio". The West Australian. 2008-01-18. http://www.thewest.com.au/default.aspx?MenuID=25&ContentID=54926. Retrieved 2008-01-25. 
  3. ^ Australian Record Industry Association - ARIA Singles Chart
  4. ^ Australian Record Industry Association - ARIA Top 40 Digital Track Chart
  5. ^ RIANZ Top 40 Singles Chart
  6. ^ Straight Lines - Silverchair - Chart History. Billboard.com.
  7. ^ "Previous Winners Song of the Year". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). http://www.apra-amcos.com.au/APRAAwards/APRASongoftheYear/PreviousWinners.aspx. Retrieved 28 April 2010. 
  8. ^ "2008 Winners - APRA Music Awards". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). http://www.apra-amcos.com.au/apraawards/musicawards/history/2008Winners.aspx. Retrieved 28 April 2010. 
Silverchair
Studio albums
Compilations
Live recordings
Box sets
Singles
"Tomorrow" · "Pure Massacre" · "Israel's Son" · "Shade" · "Findaway" · "Freak" · "Abuse Me" · "Cemetery" · "The Door" · "Anthem for the Year 2000" · "Ana's Song (Open Fire)" · "Miss You Love" · "Paint Pastel Princess" · "The Greatest View" · "Without You" · "Luv Your Life" · "After All These Years" · "Across the Night" · "Straight Lines" · "Reflections of a Sound" · "If You Keep Losing Sleep" · "Mind Reader"
Video releases
Out Takes and Miss Takes · Emotion Pictures · The Best of Volume 1 (DVD) · Across the Night – The Creation of Diorama (DVD) · Great Australian Albums: Silverchair - Diorama (DVD)  · Across the Great Divide Tour (DVD)
Side projects
Related articles
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"Anno Domini 2000"