Format CD Label CheekyBMG | Length 3:36 | |
Released 27 November 199514 October 1996 (re-release)September 2005 (re-release) Recorded 1995 in London, England Genre Electronicatrip hopanthem house | ||
"Insomnia" is a song recorded by British dance group Faithless. Released as the band's second single, it became one of their most successful. It was released in 1995 and became a hit in Dance Charts while peaking at number 27 in the UK in 1995 and number three in 1996. It re-entered the UK charts in 2005 at number 17 after the release of their greatest hits compilation Forever Faithless and was certified Platinum by the BPI in 2015. It was voted by Mixmag readers as the fifth greatest dance record of all time. The main refrain of "Insomnia" is a heavy sample of 1989' "Let Me Love You for Tonight" by UK artist Kariya.
Contents
Content
The song features Maxi Jazz singing as an insomniac while he struggles to sleep ("I toss and I turn without cease, like a curse, open my eyes and rise like yeast/At least a couple of weeks since I last slept, kept takin' sleepers, but now I keep myself pepped"). The subject is resonant with fans of dance music, as stimulant use is common in club/rave culture, and insomnia is a common side effect. The insomniac is also rather destitute ("Make my way to the refrigerator/One dry potato inside, no lie, not even bread, jam, when the light above my head went bam..."). This song uses the Roland D-50 custom patch "Stable Master" for its main riff.
Release
The album version is nearly nine minutes long and contains some lyrics not able to be broadcast on the radio edit due to their explicit content. It also contains some bells chiming at the start of the song not generally known by the club-going public as many people know the Monster Mix or the Monster Mix Radio Edit. The Monster Mix was the mix featured on Faithless' greatest hits album Forever Faithless. The song topped the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart. The Moody Mix featured on some of the singles was also on the Reverence / Irreverence release.
The main refrain of "Insomnia" is a heavy sample of 1989' "Let Me Love You for Tonight" by UK artist Kariya. Norwegian electronica artist Biosphere has claimed that Faithless sampled the bassline from his single "Novelty Waves". Faithless have expressed their displeasure with the fact that elements of this song were reused by Sash! for his single "Encore Une Fois".
Music video
The music video of "Insomnia" was directed by Lindy Heymann.
Impact and legacy
DJ Magazine ranked it number 14 in their list of Top 100 Club Tunes in 1998.
MTV Dance placed "Insomnia" at number 22 in their list of The 100 Biggest 90's Dance Anthems Of All Time in November 2011.
It was voted by Mixmag readers as the fifth Greatest Dance Record of All Time.
2005 mix
"Insomnia" was re-mixed and re-released in 2005 after the re-entry of the 1996 single into the UK Singles Chart at number 48. This was partly because of Faithless releasing their greatest hits album. The re-mix was not used on the greatest hits with the Monster Mix being the version which featured on the album. The re-mixed version reached number 17 on the UK Singles Chart.
CD1
- "Insomnia" (Blissy vs. Armand Van Helden 2005 Re-Work) – 03:22
- "Insomnia" (Monster Mix Radio Edit) – 03:36
CD2
- "Insomnia" (Blissy vs. Armand Van Helden 2005 Re-Work) – 03:22
- "Insomnia" (Sasha B.A Remix) – 09:52
- "Insomnia" (Armand's European Vacation Mix) – 08:03
- "Insomnia" (Monster Mix) – 08:35
Version 2.0 by Avicii
In 2015, Swedish DJ and record producer Avicii released a remix titled "Insomnia 2.0 (Avicii Remix)". The track was released on 24 July 2015 and reached the German charts. It was also featured on the Faithless 2.0 release in Avicii extended remix and Avicii radio exit remix formats (as well as the 1995 Monster Mix). "Insomnia 2.0" also went to number one on the US Dance chart.
Mike Candys and Jack Holiday version
In 2009, Swiss DJs Mike Candys and Jack Holiday recorded a remix of the song. It was released in September 2009 as their debut single and charted throughout Europe.
Track listing
- "Insomnia" (Radio Edit) – 3:31
- "Insomnia" (Chris Crime Infinity Remix) – 4:41
- "Insomnia" (Christopher S. Remix) – 4:39