Cry (The Used song)

Last updated

"Cry"
CryTheUsed.jpg
Single by The Used
from the album Imaginary Enemy
ReleasedJanuary 27, 2014 (2014-01-27)
Recorded2013
Genre Post-hardcore
Length3:26
Label Hopeless
Songwriter(s) Quinn Allman
Producer(s) John Feldmann
The Used singles chronology
"Hands and Faces"
(2012)
"Cry"
(2014)
"Over and Over Again"
(2017)
Music video
"Cry" on YouTube

"Cry" is a song by American rock band the Used, and was released as the first single for their sixth studio album Imaginary Enemy . It was released to radio and music video in January 2014.

Contents

Release

On January 20, 2014, the Used released a sample of "Cry" on their Instagram page. [2] The song was released with an accompanying music video a week later on January 27, 2014. [3]

Background

The Used's lead singer, Bert McCracken, explained that "Cry" was about the fight between love and conflict and that he believed everyone has experienced a loss of control while in a relationship. [4]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AAA MusicStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [5]
Bring the Noise UK7/10 [6]

AAA Music said that while Cry departed from the band's "cry-hard songs" of the 2000s, the lyrics aligned with The Used's image. [5] Similarly, Bringthenoiseuk praised McCracken's alternating vocals by saying they were performed "in a way only veterans of the style can". [6]

Nick Antone, of Mindequalsblown, critiqued McCracken for having a "pop-sounding voice" on the lyrics in comparison to the rawness of The Ocean of the Sky . On the other hand, Antone praised the usage of Auto-Tune to create a Depeche Mode-like track. [7]

Music video

The Used released a music video for "Cry" directed by Gus Black on January 27, 2014. The music video takes place in a post-apocalyptic desert where a heroine, whose face is covered by a gas mask, goes against a villain who burns books. [8]

Bert McCracken, lead singer of The Used, said that the video was to remind people to embrace the present and to avoid the constrictions of the future. In his statement, McCracken quoted Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel's Elements of the Philosophy of Right and said "The owl of Minerva spreads its wings only with the falling of the dusk". [8]

Charts

Chart (2014)Peak
position
US Mainstream Rock ( Billboard ) [9] 38

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References

  1. "ASCAP Repertory entry for this song". ASCAP. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  2. Crane, Matt. "The Used tease new song from 'Imaginary Enemy'". altpress.com. Retrieved November 7, 2016.
  3. Sharp, Tyler. "The Used Release New Song "Cry"". Mind Equals Blown. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  4. "The Used Mix Personal & Political On New Album 'Imaginary Enemy'". fuse.tv. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  5. 1 2 Panasuik, Samantha. "THE USED – Cry". aaamusic.co.uk. Retrieved November 7, 2016.
  6. 1 2 Lasbury, Emily. "ALBUM REVIEW: The Used – Imaginary Enemy". bringthenoiseuk.com. Archived from the original on January 18, 2017. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  7. Antone, Nick. "Single Review: The Used's "Cry"". mindequalsblown.net. Retrieved November 7, 2016.
  8. 1 2 O'Neil, Luke. "The Used Usher In A Pop-Screamo Revival With Their Post-Apocalyptic Video For 'Cry'". mtv.com. Archived from the original on November 7, 2016. Retrieved November 7, 2016.
  9. "The Used Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard.