Aphrodite Under Fire

"Aphrodite Under Fire" is a single by alternative-rock duo Dresden & Bareilles. It is the lead single from their sophomore album "150 dB", and the first release by the band under their own label, Blacklight Records. The single became the band's seventh top 5 when it charted at #3, and it is currently the band's biggest-selling single in the UK. The song hit #1 in America and Australia, their first #1 hit as a group in any territory. They would later score a UK #1 with consecutive chart-toppers "Edward Carnby" and "Intravenous".

Background
"Aphrodite Under Fire" was written by Gabriel Dresden in 2010 about all the ills he saw in the world with great concern in his mind for his children, and what kind of world they would have to grow up in. Gabriel drew from Greek mythology in the writing of the song, with the title referencing Aphrodite, the goddess of love, and Ares, the god of war. The song's sound was an extension of the grandiose gothic sound previous featured on the band's single "Out Of My Mind", with a gothic choir being featured in the bridge alongside an epic string section (also giving Gabriel a reason to play violin on the song). The same theme of a world gone asunder permeated b-side "Hell-A", while second b-side "Schrodinger's Catalyst", which cleverly derived its title from the Schrodinger's Cat experiment, was a less political and context-heavy song.

Reception
The single was critically-acclaimed by critics for its lyrical content and musical direction, offering a more 'epic' sound previously heard from the band on "Out Of My Mind", the lead single from the soundtrack to their movie "Fall From Grace". Public response to the single was overwhelming, declaring that the band was coming back with a vengeance after previous single "Losing My Religion" was a major failure (despite being a top 10 chart hit). The massive appeal of the song and the band's comeback hype helped the song top charts in America and Australia, and while it was surprisingly beaten to the summit in the UK, the song went on to become a major airplay hit and the band's biggest seller to-date. In mid-2011 the band won a URAPS award for promotional artwork related to the single; in celebration of this win, a digital re-release of the song was issued.

Promo CD

 * 1) Aphrodite Under Fire (Rock Mix)
 * 2) Aphrodite Under Fire (Mainstream Mix)

CD1

 * 1) Aphrodite Under Fire
 * 2) Hell-A
 * 3) Schrodinger's Catalyst

CD2

 * 1) Aphrodite Under Fire
 * 2) Prime Sinister (Live Acoustic @ Federation Square)
 * 3) Intravenous (Demo Version)
 * 4) Aphrodite Under Fire (Blue Stahli Remix)
 * 5) Aphrodite Under Fire (Death Of A Goddess Mix)

Digital EP

 * 1) Aphrodite Under Fire
 * 2) Hell-A
 * 3) Intravenous (Demo Version)
 * 4) Aphrodite Under Fire (Diskonnekted Mix)
 * 5) Aphrodite Under Fire (Hyperactive Remix)
 * 6) Aphrodite Under Fire (Phil Ber Blazing Summer Mix)

Digital Re-Release

 * 1) Aphrodite Under Fire (Album Version)
 * 2) Aphrodite Under Fire / Scattered Echoes / Edward Carnby (Live Medley)
 * 3) Aphrodite Under Fire (150 dB Electrock Remix)

Music Video
The video opens to a couple of metal coffins being tossed into the ocean. The men who tossed the boxes in the water walk away, and the camera follows the boxes down into the water. We can see windows in the coffins, and we see Dresden & Bareilles battered and bruised within them; seemingly unconscious. The opening chords of ‘Aphrodite Under Fire’ creep in, and the duo abruptly awaken. We see them inside the coffins, bound in straitjackets and struggling to get loose. They can sense the presence of the evil Aphrodite, who has reached the city limits and is now wandering through the streets. A boat is seen out trawling the ocean where the duo’s coffins have been dropped, and we see them being hoisted out from the sea floor as the main song starts. Meanwhile, Aphrodite is standing on the balcony at some hotel function. She is looking on and smiling at the crowd that has gathered just to see and honour her. Back with the metal coffins, an unidentified person is now using a blowtorch to cut them open and let the band out. We see the hinges being removed from the metal coffins, and the lids being lifted off. While Gabriel and Jean-Luc are being freed from their straitjackets, Aphrodite is addressing the gathered crowd offering them words of peace and love. Her audience appears enraptured with her. Back on the boat and free from their straitjackets, Gabriel and Jean-Luc awaken and climb out of their coffins.

The people who freed Gabriel and Jean-Luc have a car ready for them; Jean-Luc helps the somewhat weaker Gabriel into the car, and then gets behind the wheel himself, and they drive off in search of Aphrodite. The goddess is meanwhile speaking to her captivated audience, drawing them in deeper with her speech. We see her image being broadcast on TV sets around the world, but Aphrodite’s speech is cut short when Gabriel and Jean-Luc enter the hotel foyer from the outside entrance. With the duo and Aphrodite now together in the same place at the same time, we see Aphrodite’s true face – rotten and maggot-infested. As it turns out, Gabriel and Jean-Luc have power over Aphrodite, as their presence sparks a change in the goddess, meaning that not only do we see her true face, but so do the congregated crowd, who panic and run away from the hotel while Gabriel and Jean-Luc are stuck in the middle of all the chaos, watching Aphrodite’s transformation. True face revealed, Aphrodite escapes to the streets; where chaos is happening all around her since she’s been exposed. Gabriel and Jean-Luc aren’t finished with Aphrodite though, as they’ve followed her into the chaos to confront her. Aphrodite isn’t going down without a fight though, using what’s left of her godly strength to send Gabriel flying over the rail of the bridge, landing on the hood of a car below.

Aphrodite picks up an abandoned car from the bridge, lifts it over her head and throws it down on top of Gabriel, who barely manages to move in time before the car he landed on is crushed. The falling car takes a power line with it causing sparks and a miniature explosion when the two cars collide. Aphrodite jumps down to where Gabriel is and approaches him, prepared to strike him while he’s down. Gabriel grabs a couple of broken power lines off the road and shocks Aphrodite, sending her flying backwards. While Aphrodite is distracted, this has given Jean-Luc a chance to catch to them, sneak up behind Aphrodite and punch his fist through Aphrodite’s head. As she is made up of maggots, this kills her. The image pulls back to show the action being played on a TV screen. When the song ends, the TV explodes before the video cuts to black.

Chart Performance
Anticipation was strong for the single after its majorly-positive reception, being seen as a contender for #1. Newcomer and fellow Blacklight act Candi slipped under the radar to snatch #1 instead, and the single entered at #3 instead, with opening sales of 71,838 copies. The song was still a major seller, having great longevity on the chart to become the band's longest-running single and biggest-selling single to date, even beating out the sales of the band's later #1 hits. The song was a major digital seller in the UK as well, and was backed with a later digital re-release that helped the song's digital tally exceed 150k copies sold. The song was a top 5 airplay hit, and became the second-biggest radio hit from the band's sophomore era. In the US and in Australia, the band's comeback hype helped the song sell enough to debut at #1 in both territories, and following the large impact airplay soon caught up with sales, helping the song reach strong airplay peaks as well.

Chart Run
TOTAL: 301,711
 * Week 1: #3 - 71,838
 * Week 2: #4 - 59,391
 * Week 3: #7 - 48,554
 * Week 4: #14 - 25,023
 * Week 5: #16 - 23,444
 * Week 6: #17 - 22,353
 * Week 7: #26 - 10,729
 * Week 8: #36 - 3,214
 * Week 9: #31 - 7,045
 * Week 10: #32 - 7,384
 * Week 11: #38 - 4,727
 * Week 12: #27 - 11,542
 * Week 13: #34 - 6,467