My Demons

Last updated
"My Demons"
Single by Starset
from the album Transmissions
ReleasedOctober 24, 2013 (2013-10-24)
Recorded2013
Genre
Length4:48
Label Razor & Tie
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Starset singles chronology
"My Demons"
(2013)		"Carnivore"
(2014)

"My Demons" is a single by American rock band Starset, the first off of their debut studio album Transmissions . Initially released in 2013, it peaked at number 5 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart in 2014.

Contents

Composition and themes

The song has been described as an edgy, hard rock song with "boisterous" guitar and bass and a "catchy chorus". [1] AllMusic described the song as having "dramatic style...electronic elements, strings, heavy alternative rock, and more mysterious samples than an entire season of X-Files ." [2] Converse to its layered and complicated studio composition, the band sometimes plays a stripped down acoustic version of the song live as well. [3]

Frontman Dustin Bates described the song's lyrical premise as "downtrodden protagonist superhero gains power from love interest", similar to something seen as in the 2008 and onward Iron Man films between Tony Stark and Pepper Potts. [4] Conversely, the song's music video was inspired and influenced by an account Bates had read on Nikola Tesla, in which Tesla states he encountered an extraterrestrial signal in 1901. [5] It was directed by Denver Cavins. [6]

Reception

Commercially, the song peaked at number 5 on the Billboard US Mainstream Rock Songs chart in 2014. [7] The song also spent 41 weeks on the chart, more than any other song on the chart that year, [7] or in the chart's history, dating back to its beginning in 1981. [8] The song had accumulated over 73,000 downloads as of September 2014. [9] Outside of the traditional music charts, Billboard magazine also specifically noted its strong performance on music streaming websites. The song was an especially successful song on YouTube, with the track receiving 285.4 million views between September 2014 and November 2016. [7] For context, Billboard noted that the most viewed videos of two other extremely popular modern rock bands, "Uprising" by Muse and "The Pretender" by the Foo Fighters, only had 81 million and 143 million views, respectively. [7] The song's performance on Spotify was also noted, with it receiving over 30 million streams as of April 2017. [10]

Personnel

Charts

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil) [14] Gold30,000‡
Canada (Music Canada) [15] Gold40,000‡
United States (RIAA) [16] Platinum1,000,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Losing My Religion</span> 1991 single by R.E.M.

"Losing My Religion" is a song by the American alternative rock band R.E.M., released in February 1991 by Warner Bros. as the first single from their seventh album, Out of Time (1991). It developed from a mandolin riff improvised by the guitarist, Peter Buck, with lyrics about unrequited love.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tesla (band)</span> American hard rock band

Tesla is an American rock band from Sacramento, California. In late 1981, bassist Brian Wheat and guitarist Frank Hannon formed a band named City Kidd, which evolved into Tesla. By 1984, vocalist Jeff Keith, guitarist Tommy Skeoch, and drummer Troy Luccketta had joined the band, forming their classic lineup that appeared on all of the albums and live shows during their initial run. The band adopted the Tesla moniker shortly before recording their first album, as another band with a name similar to City Kidd already existed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Breaking Benjamin</span> American rock band

Breaking Benjamin is an American rock band from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, formed in 1999 by lead singer and guitarist Benjamin Burnley and drummer Jeremy Hummel. The first lineup of the band also included guitarist Aaron Fink and bassist Mark James Klepaski. This lineup released two albums, Saturate (2002) and We Are Not Alone (2004), before Hummel was replaced by Chad Szeliga in 2005. The band released two more studio albums, Phobia (2006) and Dear Agony (2009), before entering an extended hiatus in early 2010 due to Burnley's recurring illnesses.

Ra is an American alternative metal band originally from New York City, taking their name from the Egyptian sun god, Ra. The band was formed in 1996, and took off around 2002, when their song "Do You Call My Name" from their album From One was released. Their music was described as "exotic yet familiar, heavy yet funky, direct yet sophisticated, sensual yet soulful, unrelenting yet cathartic."

Post-grunge is an offshoot of grunge that has a less abrasive or intense tone than traditional grunge. Originally, the term was used almost pejoratively to label mid-1990s alternative rock bands such as Bush, Candlebox, Collective Soul, Live, Foo Fighters, and Silverchair, that emulated the original sound of grunge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Down in a Hole</span> 1993 single by Alice in Chains

"Down in a Hole" is a power ballad by Alice in Chains, and the fifth and last single from their album Dirt (1992). It is the twelfth song on most pressings of the album and fourth or eleventh on others. The song was written by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell for his then-girlfriend, Courtney Clarke. The single spent 21 weeks on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Tracks and peaked at No. 10. The song was included on the compilation albums Nothing Safe: Best of the Box (1999) and Music Bank (1999). An acoustic version performed on Alice in Chains' MTV Unplugged in 1996 was released in a live album and DVD.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">No Excuses (Alice in Chains song)</span> 1994 single by Alice in Chains

"No Excuses" is the lead single from American rock band Alice in Chains' third EP, Jar of Flies (1994). Written by guitarist and co-lead vocalist Jerry Cantrell, the song was well received by music critics and was a charting success, becoming the first Alice in Chains song to reach No. 1 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, spending a total of 26 weeks on the chart. It has gone on to become one of the band's most popular songs. The song was included on the compilation albums Nothing Safe: Best of the Box (1999), Music Bank (1999), Greatest Hits (2001), and The Essential Alice in Chains (2006). Alice In Chains performed an acoustic version of "No Excuses" for its appearance on MTV Unplugged in 1996, which marked the last time they performed the song with Layne Staley, and that version was included on the band's Unplugged live album and home video release.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patience (Guns N' Roses song)</span> 1989 single by Guns N Roses

"Patience" is a song by American rock band Guns N' Roses from their second studio album, G N' R Lies (1988), released as a single in March 1989. The song peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song is a ballad, played using three acoustic guitars and was recorded in a single session by producer Mike Clink. A music video of the song was shot and appears on the band's music video DVD, Welcome to the Videos.

<i>Cherry Pie</i> (album) 1990 studio album by Warrant

Cherry Pie is the second studio album by American glam metal band Warrant, released September 11, 1990. The album is the band's best-known and highest-selling release and peaked at number 7 on the Billboard 200. The album featured the top 40 hits "Cherry Pie" and "I Saw Red".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Modern Day Cowboy</span> 1986 single by Tesla

"Modern Day Cowboy" is the debut single by American rock band Tesla, from the band's debut studio album, Mechanical Resonance. The song's lyrics make references to criminals such as Billy the Kid and Al Capone, until the final verse, which references Cold War tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Starset</span> American rock band

Starset is an American rock band from Columbus, Ohio, formed by Dustin Bates in 2013. They released their debut album, Transmissions, in 2014 and their second album, Vessels, on January 20, 2017. The band has found success in expanding the ideas of their concept albums through social media and YouTube, with the band generating over $230,000 in revenue from views from the latter as of November 2016. Their single "My Demons" had accumulated over 280 million YouTube views in the same time period. Their most commercially successful song, "Monster", peaked at number 2 on the US Billboard Mainstream Rock chart in May 2017. A third studio album, Divisions, was released on September 13, 2019, with their fourth studio album, Horizons, released on October 22, 2021.

<i>Transmissions</i> (Starset album) 2014 studio album by Starset

Transmissions is the debut studio album by American rock band Starset, released on July 8, 2014, through Razor & Tie. Three singles were released in support of the album; "My Demons", "Carnivore", and "Halo", all charting in the top 20 of the US Billboard Mainstream Rock chart.

<i>Vessels</i> (Starset album) 2017 studio album by Starset

Vessels is the second studio album by American rock band Starset, released on January 20, 2017 through Razor & Tie.

"Monster" is a single by American rock band Starset, off of their studio album Vessels. It peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart in May 2017, and was the number two song at US Mainstream Rock radio of the year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Sky Is a Neighborhood</span> 2017 single by Foo Fighters

"The Sky Is a Neighborhood" is a song by American rock band Foo Fighters. It was released as the second single from their ninth album Concrete and Gold on August 23, 2017. As of November 2017, the song had peaked at number one on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart and seven on the Alternative Songs chart.

"Carnivore" is a single by American rock band Starset, off of their studio album Transmissions. It peaked at number 16 on the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart in 2014.

"Satellite" is the second single from American rock band Starset's second album, Vessels, after first single "Monster". "Satellite" was released as a single in August 2017, and peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart.

"Halo" is a single by American rock band Starset, off of their studio album Transmissions. It peaked at number 16 on the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart in 2015.

<i>Divisions</i> (album) 2019 studio album by Starset

Divisions is the third studio album by American rock band Starset. It was released on September 13, 2019. It spawned two singles "Manifest" and "Trials", which peaked at number 14 and 8 respectively on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart. Loudwire named it one of the 50 best rock albums of 2019.

"Waiting on the Sky to Change" is a song by American rock band Starset. The song features contributions by American rock band Breaking Benjamin. Written by Dustin Bates (Starset) and Jasen Rauch for Bates' prior band, Downplay in 2011, the song was re-recorded in 2022 and released as a single in August 2022. As of February 2023, the Starset and Breaking Benjamin version peaked at number one on the Mediabase Active Rock chart and number two on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Airplay chart.

References

  1. ↑ "Starset: Band name bears vague scientific message".
  2. ↑ "Transmissions - Starset - Songs, Reviews, Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic.
  3. ↑ "Starset Rock Acoustic Versions of 'My Demons' + 'Space Oddity' at the Banana [VIDEO]". Flint's Rock Radio.
  4. ↑ "Starset Names Movies To Play With Each Track On Their New Album - New Noise Magazine". 18 November 2014.
  5. ↑ "Starset's Dustin Bates Talks 'Transmissions' Album + More". Loudwire.
  6. ↑ "Starset | My Demons (Official Music Video) | Music Video". Archived from the original on 2017-04-10. Retrieved 2017-05-26.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "How Independent Rock Band Starset Found Major Success on YouTube, Without Even Trying". Billboard .
  8. ↑ Hodak, Brittany (19 June 2015). "Starset to Deliver Out-of-This-World Performance at Long Island Planetarium". HuffPost .
  9. ↑ "Motionless in White Roars Onto Top Rock Albums at No. 1". Billboard.
  10. ↑ "Dustin Bates of Starset thinks WAV could become the record player's replacement". 7 April 2017.
  11. ↑ "Starset Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved October 3, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Starset Chart History (Rock Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved September 12, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Hot Rock Songs – Year-End 2014". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  14. ↑ "Brazilian single certifications – Starset – My Demons" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil . Retrieved September 17, 2024.
  15. ↑ "Canadian single certifications – Starset – My Demons". Music Canada . Retrieved September 10, 2021.
  16. ↑ "American single certifications – Starset – My Demons". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved November 15, 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.