Bye Bye Babylon

"Bye Bye Babylon"
Single by Cryoshell
from the album Cryoshell
Released July 19, 2009
Format Digital download
Recorded 2008–2009
Hansen Studios - Ribe, Denmark
Genre
Length 3:41 (single version)
4:37 (album version)
Label Cryoshell I/S
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Jacob Hansen
Cryoshell singles chronology
"Bye Bye Babylon"
(2009)		 "Creeping in My Soul"
(2009)

"Bye Bye Babylon"
(2009)		 "Creeping in My Soul"
(2009)
Music video
"Bye Bye Babylon" on YouTube

"Bye Bye Babylon" is a song by Danish rock band Cryoshell, released as their debut single from their self-titled debut studio album on July 19, 2009. Co-written by all three band members, the song was recorded between late 2008 and early 2009 and produced by Jacob Hansen. It is an alternative rock song that features symphonic rock and Middle Eastern musical elements.

"Bye Bye Babylon" received positive reviews from music critics, who praised its upbeat style in comparison to other Cryoshell songs and Egypt-esque melody. The song was primarily used by toy manufacturer the Lego Group for their Lego Bionicle Glatorian and Glatorian Legends commercials in 2009 and as a licensed soundtrack number for the animated film Bionicle: The Legend Reborn.

Background and recording

"Bye Bye Babylon" was written by Mikkel Maltha, Kasper Søderlund and Christine Lorentzen in late 2008 and recorded at Hansen Studios in Ribe, Denmark with producer Jacob Hansen between late 2008 and early 2009. It was the first song to be produced for the band's debut studio album and was released as their debut single on July 19, 2009.

Four different versions of the song exist. Aside from its release as a single, an extended version is featured on Cryoshell's debut album and the preceding EP Creeping in My Soul, while a "clean" version featuring a lyric tweak was used in the marketing campaign for the Lego Group's Bionicle franchise. An instrumental version also featured as background music on Cryoshell's official website around the time of the single's release.

Promotion and media usage

"Bye Bye Babylon" was prominently used as the musical score in the advertising campaign for Lego Bionicle's Glatorian and Glatorian Legends toy waves, released in the winter and summer periods of 2009, respectively, and featured in commercials and online games promoting the sets. It is the fifth and final Cryoshell song used by the toy line before its 2010 discontinuation.

The song's lyric-tweaked version was released as a free MP3 download from the official Bionicle website on August 27, 2009 and also features in the end credits of the animated film Bionicle: The Legend Reborn (2009). The latter's music video is also included as a bonus feature on the film's DVD release.

Reception

Rocktopia gave the song a positive review, applauding its "cascading riff and textured keys" and "bombastic chorus" and its sound of "an almost Egyptian-esque melody before a verse that drops in density with soft, chiming guitar". They also praised its upbeat-ness and how the listener "[would want to put the track] on full blast and walk around the day job office encouraging everyone to let it rip".[1]

Music video

Two music videos for "Bye Bye Babylon" were directed by Josh Nussbaum and shot at North Copenhagen Harbor on May 14, 2009. The first premiered on Cryoshell's official website in mid-August 2009, while a second version featuring the clean edit of the song was produced for Bionicle and released August 31, 2009.

Synopsis

Original version

The video begins with lead singer Christine Lorentzen, dirt-soaked and rummaging through piles of disused equipment in a industrial wasteland, to which she finds pieces of various musical instruments. As she sings the first verse, she drags an guitar amplifier tied to a piece of rope through the wasteland, later finding a broken guitar from one of the heaps and throwing it into a pool of muddy water. As the first chorus starts, Lorentzen is seen with band-mates Kasper Søderlund and Mikka Maltha, also wearing ripped and dirty clothing, collecting parts to a drum kit. Lorentzen is later shown standing from a girder beam and observing her band-mates below.

As the second verse commences, Lorentzen scavenges the wasteland again and uncovers an object hidden in rubble, unveiled as a guitar, before it is set on fire. The final chorus sees the band, as well as drummer Marcus Busborg, performing with their broken instruments in an arid landscape, while scenes of Lorentzen, Søderlund and Maltha performing on girders is cut in between. The final shot sees the band abandoning their instruments and walking into the distance, as the camera pans up towards the sky and a graphic of the Cryoshell logo is projected.

Bionicle version

The music video produced for Bionicle features the same setting of the disused industrial site and follows a similar narrative to its primal variant. However, it features more alternative scenes and clips from Bionicle: The Legend Reborn.

The video starts with Cryoshell already performing in the arid landscape, followed by Lorentzen singing the first verse from inside a disused boat. The first chorus then sees Lorentzen, Søderlund and Maltha performing on the girder beams, while the last half of the video shows the band performing in an infertile setting, concluding with the members walking away from where they performed.

Track listing

Digital download
  • "Bye Bye Babylon" – 3:41

Credits and personnel

Release history

Region Date Format Label
Worldwide July 19, 2009 Digital download Cryoshell I/S
August 27, 2009 Free MP3 download

References

  1. ↑ "Cryoshell - 'Cryoshell'". Rocktopia. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
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