Format Digital download | Recorded 17–18 March 2012 | |
Released 8 May 2012 (2012-05-08) Genre Progressive house, ambient house Length 11:40 (Original Mix)
8:40 (8 Minute Edit)
2:50 (Radio Edit) Label mau5trap
Ultra Records (US/Canada)
EMI (Rest of world) | ||
"The Veldt" is a progressive house song by Canadian electronic music producer deadmau5 (Joel Zimmerman), featuring guest vocals by Chris James.
Contents
The song ranked number 48 on Rolling Stone's list of the 50 best songs of 2012.
Background
"The Veldt" was inspired by the 1950 short story of the same name by Ray Bradbury. The song was initially created during a 22-hour live streaming session in March 2012. The following day, Zimmerman found Chris James, who created his own vocal rendition of the song, via Twitter. Zimmerman was impressed with James' vocals, particularly with the lyrical references to the Ray Bradbury story, and confirmed that the official release of the song would include James' vocals. The song's production was captured on a live streaming session via his official website. The moment Zimmerman hears James' vocals for the first time can be seen here.
Composition
The song is in the key of A major, at a tempo of 128 beats per minute (BPM).
Release
On April 20, 2012, Zimmerman and Ultra Records uploaded the eight minute-plus version of the song onto their YouTube channels, with the radio edit being uploaded onto Ultra Records' channel on May 7, 2012. Both versions of the song were released the following day.
The Veldt EP was released on June 24, 2012, and includes the eleven minute-plus original mix of the song, remixes by Freeform Five and Tommy Trash and an original song called "Failbait" featuring Cypress Hill. The original mix of "The Veldt" features a tribal drum intro.
The song was included on the album Album Title Goes Here released late September 2012, in an again slightly differently mixed eight-minute version. The tribal drum intro of the original mix has been left out in this version. The track "Failbait" from The Veldt EP was included on the album as well.
The song was also used during rallies for Justin Trudeau's campaign to become the Canadian Liberal Party Leader, and eventually Prime Minister of Canada.
Music video
An official music video was posted to Zimmerman's official YouTube page on June 25, 2012. It was produced by Qudos Animations.
As with the song, the video is based on "The Veldt" by Ray Bradbury. It shows two children entering "The Nursery", and running through a savannah landscape with lions and vultures eating bloody dead remains. They stop, and the boy begins to climb up a small mountain. He then suddenly finds his sister standing on the edge of a precipice. He then approaches her and after pushing her off the edge, jumps off. They slide down the ledge and meet at the ground. The video ends with the two children holding hands as a lion walks off in the distance, leaving behind broken glasses and a trail of blood, presumably of their parents. The video is dedicated to Ray Bradbury, who died weeks before the video was published. The video's art style, which makes heavy use of dark silhouettes and puppet-like animation, bears a strong resemblance to the independent video game Limbo.