Hammerhead (song)

Infobox Single
Name =Hammerhead


Caption =
Artist =The Offspring
from Album =Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace
A-side =
B-side =
Released =May 6 2008
Format =Digital Download
Recorded =November 2006-April 2008 in Maui, Hawaii and Orange County, California
Genre =Punk rock Skate punk
Length =4:38 (Album version)
4:13 (Radio edit)
Label =Columbia
Writer =Dexter Holland
Producer =Bob Rock
Certification =
Chart position =
Last single ="Can't Repeat"
(2005)
This single ="Hammerhead"
(2008)
Next single ="You're Gonna Go Far, Kid"
(2008)
Misc ="Hammerhead" was the first single from The Offspring's eighth studio album "Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace". The song was first played at the Summer Sonic Festival in 2007.

The song was originally set to go to radio on May 6. [ [http://www.tunelabmusic.com/2008/03/28/the-offspring-to-release-new-single-in-may/ The Offspring to release new single in May] TuneLab Music article 03-28-2008] [ [http://www.tunelabmusic.com/2008/04/10/the-offspring-announce-album-title-release-date/ The Offspring announce album title; release date] TuneLab Music article 04-10-2008] However, the world premiere of the song took place on May 2 at 6 PM PST on KROQ. On May 5, 2008, The Offspring's official website released a free download of the song mp3 format [ [http://www.offspring.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/Offspring.woa/wa/news?newsID=436353 'Free "Hammerhead" download available now'] Offspring news item 05-05-08] , in much the same style as "Original Prankster" (from 2000's "Conspiracy of One"). To download it, users are required to provide an email address to receive a link to a high-quality mp3 of the track, which comes free of digital rights management.

ong meaning

According to singer/guitarist Dexter Holland, the song is about school shootings. [ [http://img233.imageshack.us/my.php?
] Article by James Cotterell] This is supported by the closing lyrics "and you can all hide behind your desks now/and you can cry teacher come help me". Lead guitarist Kevin 'Noodles' Wasserman elaborated on this, stating that the initial lyrics are from the perspective of a soldier who believes that everything he does is for the greater good - "take a life that others may live". He is affected by a huge force (Hammerhead - "it hammers in my head") in his mind that makes him deluded. [fr icon [http://img397.imageshack.us/img397/5021/img001zz9.jpg'The Grace, The Furor'] , Article by Eric Maggiori] The true nature of the song - that the narrator is actually a school shooter - is only revealed towards the end.

Music video

Video contest

The band created a competition for fans of the band to create their own video for the song with their own original material. [ [http://www.offspring.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/Offspring.woa/wa/news?year=2008&newsID=437018 'Hammerhead Video Contest Announcement'] Offspring news item 05-14-08] A [http://www.youtube.com/group/hammerheadcontest YouTube group] had been set up for this purpose. The band picked their favorite video and the winner received $10,000. The contest was only available to U.S. residents.

Video

The music video was directed by Teqtonik and debuted on IGN's website on June 9th, 11pm UTC. [ [http://www.offspring.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/Offspring.woa/wa/news?newsID=761795 'New album and music video to premiere online'] Offspring news item 06-06-08]

The video is completely made up of CGI and does not feature the band, similar to "Hit That"'s video but more artistic in its appearance. Response to the video has been mixed - it was very negatively received on the band's official forums, [ [http://www.offspring.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32946 'Do you like the "Hammerhead" video?'] Offspring forum thread 06-10-2008] but has had a more positive response on YouTube, though judging by the numerous negative comments (far outweighing the positive) on the video itself, it's difficult to truly discern whether the good rating is in response to the video or the song itself. [ [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HntWZRWQ-mk Hammerhead video on YouTube] Hammerhead video on YouTube]

The video has a anti-war/violence slant represented through symbolism including mechanical animals, such as robotic dogs, pigs and elephants meant to represent politicians, and stealth fighters that later turn into birds flying into a sunset at the song's conclusion. Other events including a soldier being ordered to jump to his death, kids playing catch with a bomb and a spokesman wearing a dunce hat speaking to frenzied reporters. The video has a dark feel, being predominantly tinted in blue and appearing deliberately aged and damaged.

Reception

Reaction to the song has been generally positive. Describing it as a 'good harbinger' to base the album off of, [ [http://consequenceofsound.net/2008/06/09/album-review-rise-and-fall-rage-and-grace/ Album Review: "Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace"] by Michael Roffman, 06-09-2008] Michael Roffman of "Consequence of Sound" also said that the song 'works lyrically', and that 'Holland hasn't sounded quite this sincere since the very best "Americana" had to offer'. Richard Cromelin of the "Los Angeles Times" also claimed that "Hammerhead" had the strongest lyrics of the album, [ [http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/reviews/music/la-et-recordrack17-2008jun17,0,2389270.story New CDs: The Offspring and 2 pistols - Los Angeles Times] by Richard Cromelin 06-17-2008] and "The Dreaded Press" praised the song's 'hard-hitting drums' and Dexter's 'urgent howling' giving a 'surprisingly fresh' result. [ [http://www.rock-metal-music-reviews.com/album-review-the-offspring-rise-and-fall-rage-and-grace/ Album review: The Offspring - "Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace"] by The Editor 06-13-2008] However, Chris Fallon of "AbsolutePunk.net" claimed that it was too long [ [http://www.absolutepunk.net/showthread.php?t=334581 Offspring, The - "Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace" - Album Review] by Chris Fallon, 06-10-2008] and Roffman later commented that 'uninspired riffs' resulted in a lack of enthusiasm from the song.

Chart positions

The song debuted at #5 (based on airplay alone) on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks, making it the first song to debut on the top 5 of the Modern Rock Tracks since "What I've Done" by Linkin Park, and the band's highest debuting Modern Rock single. It also debuted at #18 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks. A week later it moved up to #4 on the Modern Rock chart and #16 on the Mainstream Rock chart.

In popular culture

* The censored version of "Hammerhead" is featured in the soundtrack for the American football videogame "Madden NFL 09".
* "Hammerhead" is featured as downloadable content for the "Rock Band" video game.

Notes

External links

* [http://www.offspring.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/Offspring.woa/wa/news?year=2008&newsID=437018 Lyrics for the song]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HntWZRWQ-mk "Hammerhead" music video]