Propane Nightmares

"Propane Nightmares" is a song by Australian drum and bass band Pendulum, released as the second single from their second album In Silico. It incorporates elements of the song "Million Miles from Home" by German happy hardcore band Dune.[1] It has received significant airplay on BBC Radio 1, being played frequently by DJ Zane Lowe.

"Propane Nightmares"
Single by Pendulum
from the album In Silico
Released12 April 2008 (2008-04-12)
Recorded2007–2008
Genre
Length
  • 5:13 (album version)
  • 4:19 (radio edit)
LabelWarner Music UK
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Rob Swire
Pendulum singles chronology
"Granite"
(2007)		 "Propane Nightmares"
(2008)		 "The Other Side"
(2008)
Music video
Pendulum video – "Propane Nightmares"

The song was released exclusively for download on 12 April 2008 in Australia and New Zealand, where Pendulum were on tour at the time.[2] It was later released globally for download on 21 April, and on physical formats on 28 April.[3] The song reached number sixteen in the UK Singles Chart on April 27 based on downloads alone, and on May 4, the song peaked at number nine. It was also the official theme song of WWE Cyber Sunday 2008 as well as being used as background music for the official video highlights of the 2008 Belgian Grand Prix and the ending credits of The Martian. It is also used as the runout song for Rotherham United football team.

Critical reception

"Propane Nightmares" has received mixed reviews from music critics, mostly as a result of the change in style compared to older tracks produced by Pendulum. Some reviewers praised the new direction that the band had taken, for example Gerard McGarry wrote, in an article for Unreality Music, that Pendulum "have created an epic song that – for our money – fuses their penchant for dance and rock music beautifully".[4] Jo-Ann Greene of Allmusic described the song as "another sizzling single" in her review of In Silico,[5] while Fiona McGlynn wrote that "...Propane Nightmares is a fresh take on a merge of genres that actually works", in her single review for the Manchester Evening News.[6] It was also named 38th in Q magazine's Q50 of April 2008.

The track also received some criticism, mostly derived from Pendulum's migration from drum and bass to a more rock-imbued sound. In his review for AngryApe, Tim Johnson pointed out that "the problem... lies in Pendulum trying to cram too much into one space... almost like two or three different songs being played on top of one another".[7] Simon Catling went further, writing an open letter in the webzine God Is in the TV to Pendulum asking them to "decide whether [they] wish to be a band or a drum n’ bass act" and commenting that "at the moment all [they're] providing us with is a horribly half-baked and shoddy form of neither".[8]

On 22 July 2008, it was announced that "Propane Nightmares" had been nominated for Best Single at the Kerrang! Awards 2008 ceremony, alongside singles from four other rock bands.[9] The ceremony was held on 21 August, and Pendulum lost to Thirty Seconds to Mars who took Best Single with their song "From Yesterday".[10]

Music video
Members of a cult congregating in an isolated building in the "Propane Nightmares" music video.

A music video was also produced themed around a religious cult closely resembling Heaven's Gate, in particular depicting the mass suicide of members of a cult by poison after first drinking citric juices. Several scenes of Pendulum performing before the cult are intercut in the middle of the video, which otherwise focuses primarily on two members who attempt to flee during the mass suicides. It features English actor Marc Baylis, who later became famous for his role as Rob Donovan in Coronation Street.

The video was originally uploaded to the band's YouTube channel as early as 27 March 2008 to help promote the single.[11] It was later released for download in May, most notably through the digital media delivery service Xbox Live, which allowed all users to download the video freely.[12] It was also included on the special edition and iTunes bonus tracks versions of In Silico, the album from which the song was originally taken.

Chart performance

"Propane Nightmares" entered the UK Singles Chart on 27 April 2008 at number sixteen based on downloads alone. After the release of physical formats during the following week, the song peaked at number nine on 4 May,[13] becoming their first UK top 10 single. It also entered the Billboard European Hot 100 chart, peaking on 17 May at number 32 and remaining in the chart for a total of ten weeks.[14] "Propane Nightmares" was also the band's first charting single in the United States, reaching number 38 on the Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart in December 2008.[15] It was also featured on Now 70, the first of the band's songs to be featured in a Now! album.

Track listing

These are the major formats and associated track listings of single releases of "Propane Nightmares", which was written by Rob Swire, Bernd Burhoff, Oliver Froning and Jens Oettrich.[16]

Personnel

The following people contributed to "Propane Nightmares".[21]

  • Rob Swire – vocals, synthesiser, mixing
  • Peredur ap Gwynedd – guitar
  • Paul Kodish – drums
  • Gareth McGrillen – bass, secondary vocals
  • Andy Wood – trombone
  • Andy Greenwood – trumpet
  • Craig Wild – trumpet
  • Simon Askew – mixing
  • John Davis – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts
Chart (2008) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart[13] 9
US Billboard European Hot 100[14] 32
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[22] 38

Year-end charts
Chart (2008) Position
UK Singles Chart[23] 80

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[24] Gold 400,000

sales+streaming figures based on certification alone

Release history
Region Release date Format Catalogue
  • Australia
  • New Zealand
 12 April 2008 Download single None
18 April 2008 Digital EP
Various 21 April 2008 Download single
Digital EP
United Kingdom 28 April 2008 12-inch single WEA445T
CD single WEA445CD

Cover versions and remixes

The song has been remixed by popular artist Celldweller and Australian electropop group Van She. The Celldweller remix is included in the soundtrack for the video games, including MotorStorm: Arctic Edge and KickBeat.

Chiptune artists Inverse Phase and Kitsune² have released NES cover versions of the song titled "Propane NESmares"[25] and "2A03 Nightmares",[26] respectively.

American musician Grabbitz produced a remix as a featured guest on Pendulum's remix album The Reworks.

Notes
  1. "Propane Nightmares" (12"). Discogs. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  2. "Pendulum - Propane Nightmares - Single". Australian iTunes Store. Retrieved 24 June 2008.
  3. Pendulum Myspace blog. Retrieved July 8, 2008.
  4. McGarry, Gerard. "Propane Nightmares - Single Review" Archived 2008-06-10 at the Wayback Machine. Unreality Music. Retrieved 17 June 2008
  5. Greene, Jo-Ann. "In Silico Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved 17 June 2008.
  6. McGlynn, Fiona (20 April 2008). "Pendulum - Propane Nightmares (WEA)". Manchester Evening News. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 8 July 2008.
  7. Johnson, Tim. "Pendulum - Propane Nightmares [WEA] Archived 2008-07-05 at the Wayback Machine. AngryApe. Retrieved 17 June 2008.
  8. Catling, Simon Jay. "Pendulum - Propane Nightmares" Archived 2008-06-24 at the Wayback Machine. God Is in the TV Zine. Retrieved 17 June 2008.
  9. Lane, Daniel. And the nominees are... Archived 2009-03-05 at the Wayback Machine. Kerrang!. Retrieved 24 July 2008.
  10. Lane, Daniel. Best Single winner Archived 2008-08-28 at the Wayback Machine. Kerrang!. Retrieved 28 August 2008.
  11. Propane Nightmares - Official Video. Pendulum YouTube channel. Retrieved 15 August 2008.
  12. "Xbox Live Presents: Pendulum" Archived 2008-06-17 at the Wayback Machine. Xbox.com. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  13. "Pendulum - Propane Nightmares". acharts.us. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
  14. European Hot 100 Singles – Propane Nightmares. Billboard. Retrieved on 7 March 2009.
  15. Artist Chart History - Pendulum. Billboard. Retrieved on 11 December 2008.
  16. ""Big on Love" at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 28 April 2009.
  17. "Propane Nightmares" (CD, Single). Discogs. Retrieved 24 July 2008.
  18. "Pendulum - Propane Nightmares - EP". UK iTunes Store. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  19. Pendulum - Propane Nightmares MP3 Downloads Archived 2010-06-05 at the Wayback Machine. 7digital. Retrieved 30 July 2008.
  20. "Propane Nightmares" (CDr, Single, Promo). Discogs. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  21. "In Silico" (CD, Album). Discogs. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
  22. "Pendulum Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved September 25, 2015.
  23. "Charts Plus Year end 2008" (PDF). Charts Plus. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
  24. "British single certifications – Pendulum – Propane Nightmares". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 15 November 2019. Select singles in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Propane Nightmares in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  25. http://inversephase.bandcamp.com/track/propane-nesmares
  26. http://lapfox.bandcamp.com/track/2a03-nightmares
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