Panic Station

"Panic Station"
Single by Muse
from the album The 2nd Law
B-side "Panic Station" (Madeon mix)
Released 31 May 2013
(see release history)
Format
Recorded October 2011 – July 2012
Genre
Length 3:06
Label
Writer(s) Matthew Bellamy
Producer(s) Muse
Muse singles chronology
"Supremacy"
(2013)		 "Panic Station"
(2013)		 "Dead Inside"
(2015)
The 2nd Law track listing
Music video
"Panic Station" on YouTube
"Panic Station" (Lyric Video) on Muse.mu

"Panic Station" is a song by English alternative rock band Muse, released as the fifth single from their sixth studio album The 2nd Law on 31 May 2013. The song was written by Matthew Bellamy. It is featured as the third track on the album.

Music video

The music video for "Panic Station" was filmed in January 2013 in Japan, during when the band was appearing in the country's The 2nd Law World Tour. It was released on 22 April 2013.[1] The video is set in Tokyo.[2]

The original video featured the Rising Sun Flag in the intro. This drew the ire of many East Asian listeners, who felt that the flag represented Japanese militarism from World War II. The controversy led the band to apologise through Twitter and re-upload a new version of the video, which replaced the Rising Sun Flag with the Japanese flag.[3][4]

Reception

Most reviewers compared "Panic Station" to other songs. In a review of the album, the BBC's Ian Winwood wrote that the song "borrows from both Queen's "Another One Bites the Dust" and Michael Jackson's "Thriller", without ever attaining the majesty of either tune."[5] The A.V. Club called it the album's "catchiest song" and thought "it’s not hard to imagine Bellamy strutting around the stage like Michael Hutchence, oozing sex with his stunning falsetto backing metal-pop riffs."[6] The reviewer, however, concluded that it "would be a real triumph if it didn’t sound so much like another band."[6] Helen Brown of The Daily Telegraph opined that the single had a "disco feel," with "nods at INXS’s "Suicide Blonde", Queen’s "Another One Bites the Dust", David Bowie’s "Fame" and Prince’s "Kiss" — ends up sounding a bit like a Scissor Sisters number."[7] Billboard noted that the song is "aggressive until it serves up a 70s-sounding falsetto chorus with audacious horns. It's all incredibly self-indulgent in an impressively restrained amount of time, with every Muse hallmark included and every riff a champion."[8]

At the 56th Annual Grammy Awards, the song received a nomination for Best Rock Song.

Track listing

Digital download[9]
No. Title Length
1. "Panic Station"   3:04
2. "Panic Station" (Alternate Version Mixed by Madeon) 2:53
Promotional single[10]
No. Title Length
1. "Panic Station" (Album Version) 3:06
2. "Panic Station" (Clean Version) 3:04
3. "Panic Station" (Alternate Version Mixed by Madeon) (Album Version) 2:55
4. "Panic Station" (Alternate Version Mixed by Madeon) (Clean Version) 2:53

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2012–13) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[11] 19
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[12] 30
Canada Active Rock (America's Music Charts)[13] 17
Canada Alternative Rock (America's Music Charts)[14] 9
France (SNEP)[15] 107
UK Rock and Metal (Official Charts Company)[16] 4
US Hot Rock Songs (Billboard)[17] 27
US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[18] 6
US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[19] 2
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[20] 40

Year-end charts

Chart (2013) Position
US Hot Rock Songs (Billboard)[21] 75
US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[22] 27
US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[23] 16

Release history

Country Date Format Label
United Kingdom 24 September 2012 CD-R (BBC Radio 1 premiere) Warner Music Group
Belgium 25 February 2013 CD-R (Contemporary hit radio) Warner-Benelux
United States CD-R (Modern rock/Alternative radio) Warner Music Group
Worldwide 31 May 2013 Digital download
United Kingdom 3 June 2013[24] CD-R (Contemporary hit radio; BBC Radio 1 rotation)

References

  1. ↑ "MUSE: NEWS – We've Arrived At Panic Station!" (Press release). Muse.mu. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  2. ↑ Rigby, Sam (22 April 2013). "Muse unveil new single 'Panic Station' music video – watch". Digital Spy. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  3. ↑ "MUSE: NEWS – Watch Panic Station Video Online Now". Muse.mu. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  4. ↑ "Muse pull 'Panic Station' video after flag controversy – watch". NME. 23 April 2013. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  5. ↑ Winwood, Ian (2012). "Muse The 2nd Law Review". BBC. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Muse: The 2nd Law". The A.V. Club. 9 October 2012. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  7. ↑ Brown, Helen (28 September 2012). "Muse, The 2nd Law, CD review". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  8. ↑ Dionne, Zach (1 October 2012). "Muse, 'The 2nd Law': Track-By-Track Review". Billboard. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  9. ↑ "Panic Station – Single". iTunes GB. Apple Inc. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  10. ↑ "Muse 4trk Promo CD Panic Station". eBay. 2013-05-06. Retrieved 2013-12-01.
  11. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Muse – Panic Station" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
  12. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Muse – Panic Station" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
  13. ↑ "Canada: Active Rock". America's Music Charts. March 26, 2013. Archived from the original on March 31, 2013. Retrieved December 1, 2013.
  14. ↑ "Canada: Alternative Rock". America's Music Charts. February 26, 2013. Archived from the original on February 27, 2013. Retrieved December 1, 2013.
  15. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Muse – Panic Station" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
  16. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2012-10-13" UK Rock Chart. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  17. ↑ "Muse Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Hot Rock Songs for Muse. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  18. ↑ "Muse Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Rock Airplay for Muse. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  19. ↑ "Muse Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Alternative Songs for Muse. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  20. ↑ "Muse Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs for Muse. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  21. ↑ "Hot Rock Songs: Year End 2013". Billboard. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
  22. ↑ "Rock Airplay Songs: Year End 2013". Billboard. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
  23. ↑ "Alternative Songs: Year End 2013". Billboard. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
  24. ↑ "Muse – Panic Station". Muse Discography. Discogs. Retrieved 29 June 2013.