Ready to Fall

"Ready to Fall"
A simplistic black and white drawing of a fist in front of a heart. Underneath is the text "RISE AGAINST" and "READY TO FALL"
Single by Rise Against
from the album The Sufferer & the Witness
B-side "State of the Union (live)"
Released May 30, 2006
Format
Studio The Blasting Room, Fort Collins, Colorado
Genre
Length 3:48
Label Geffen
Songwriter(s) Rise Against
Producer(s)
Rise Against singles chronology
"Life Less Frightening"
(2005)		 "Ready to Fall"
(2006)		 "Prayer of the Refugee"
(2006)

"Life Less Frightening"
(2005)		 "Ready to Fall"
(2006)		 "Prayer of the Refugee"
(2006)

"Ready to Fall" is the first single by the punk rock band Rise Against from their fourth studio album, The Sufferer & The Witness (2006).

An acoustic version of this song was performed live on the CJZN Radio station in Victoria, British Columbia, on January 18, 2007, before a Billy Talent concert featuring Rise Against, Anti-Flag, and Moneen.

On March 12, 2009, the song became a downloadable song in the video game, Guitar Hero World Tour. It is also featured in Tap Tap Revenge 3 on iPhone and iPod Touch as a downloadable double song pack with "Audience of One".

The song featured in 2009 action movie 12 Rounds.[1]

Background and composition

After establishing mainstream appeal with their 2004 album Siren Song of the Counter Culture, Rise Against attempted to follow-up this success with The Sufferer & The Witness in 2006.[2] A more punk influenced album than the band's previous works, The Sufferer & The Witness produced three single: "Ready to Fall", "Prayer of the Refugee", and "The Good Left Undone".[3] The lyrics for "Ready to Fall" were written by lead vocalist Tim McIlrath, while the music was collectively written by the band. Bill Stevenson and Jason Livermore engineered and produced the song, while Chris Lord-Alge served as the audio mixer. It was recorded at The Blasting Room in Fort Collins, Colorado, and mastered by Ted Jensen.[4]

Like most of the songs from The Sufferer & The Witness, "Ready to Fall" is characterized as hardcore punk and melodic hardcore.[5][6] A midtempo song,[7] "Ready to Fall" features a complex song structure, with controlled verses that lead into an intense chorus and screaming vocals, while a continuous bassline plays in the background.[5][8][9] The vocals and instrumentation are noticeably heavier than most of the songs on the album.[10]

Release and reception

"Ready to Fall" was released on May 30, as the first single from The Sufferer & The Witness.[11] It was released as a CD and 7" single; the B-side features a live performance of "State of the Union", take from the album Siren Song of the Counter Culture.[12][13] Commercially, "Ready to Fall" peaked at number thirteen on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart, the bands' highest charting single at the time.[14]

"Ready to Fall" received positive reviews from critics, several of whom described the chorus as "compelling".[5][8][9] Davey Boy of Sputnikmusic further praised the song for its controlled verses and intense bridge.[9] Scott Heisel of Alternative Press and Corey Apar of AllMusic noted how "Ready to Fall" emulated Rise Against's older style of music.[7][6] Heisel in particular said the song was "guaranteed to start circle pits wherever played".[7] In 2015, WatchMojo.com ranked "Ready to Fall" as the fifth best Rise Against song, commenting: "While it is the lowest charting track from The Sufferer and the Witness, 'Ready to Fall' just screams classic Rise Against".[10]

Music video

Made in 2006, the video is about pollution and its effects on the environment. The video is 3 minutes and 51 seconds long, and cuts between shots of the band playing and shots of animals being saved or dying, if not already dead, from various environmental hazards caused by humans. At the end of the video, lead singer Tim McIlrath says, "Every action has a reaction. We've got one planet, one chance."

As well as the version played on television, there was another, more graphic version created. This was never released officially but is available on certain websites. The video serves a testimony to veganism. Rise Against is an active supporter of PETA, an animal rights organization, and the band members are all active vegetarians.

The video was filmed at Brandywine Falls Provincial Park in British Columbia.

Chart performance

Chart (2006) Peak
position
US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[14] 13

References

  1. ↑ "12 Rounds Soundtracks" imdb.com. Retrieved on November 16, 2009.
  2. ↑ Ryan, Kyle (July 19, 2006). "Rise Against: The Sufferer & The Witness". The A.V. Club. Retrieved December 8, 2012.
  3. ↑ Murfett, Andrew (December 1, 2006). "Politically motivated". The Age. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
  4. ↑ The Sufferer & the Witness (liner notes). Rise Against. Geffen Records. 2006.
  5. 1 2 3 Paul, Aubin (July 4, 2006). "Rise Against - The Sufferer & the Witness". Punknews.org. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  6. 1 2 Apar, Corey. "Rise Against - The Sufferer & The Witness". AllMusic. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  7. 1 2 3 "Circa Survive, more dates added to Thursday/Rise Against tour". Alternative Press. August 16, 2006. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
  8. 1 2 Beringer, Drew (July 3, 2006). "Rise Against - The Sufferer & The Witness". AbsolutePunk. Archived from the original on July 19, 2012. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  9. 1 2 3 Boy, Davey (July 19, 2008). "Rise Against - The Sufferer and the Witness". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  10. 1 2 Stuhr, Brandon. "Top 10 Rise Against Songs". WatchMojo.com. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Ready to Fall (Album Version)". 7digital. Archived from the original on January 31, 2016. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Ready to Fall" (CD single)|format= requires |url= (help) (Media notes). Rise Against. Geffen Records. 2006.
  13. ↑ "Ready to Fall" (7")|format= requires |url= (help) (Media notes). Rise Against. Geffen Records. 2006.
  14. 1 2 "Rise Against Chart History (Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
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