Hoppípolla

"Hoppípolla"
Single by Sigur Rós
from the album Takk...
Released 28 November 2005 (2005-11-28)
Format CD / 12" / 7"
Genre Post-rock, art rock, dream pop, ambient
Length 4:36
Label EMI
CDEM 673 / 0946 3 41757 2 2
(UK, CD, 28 November 2005)
12EM 673 / 0946 3 41757 1 5
(UK, 12", 28 November 2005)
EM 673
(UK, 7", 1 May 2006)
Writer(s) Jón Þór Birgisson, Orri Páll Dýrason, Georg Hólm, Kjartan Sveinsson
Producer(s) Sigur Rós, Ken Thomas
Sigur Rós singles chronology
"Sæglópur"
(2005)		 "Hoppípolla"
(2005)		 "Sæglópur"
(2006)
Takk... track listing
Music video
"Hoppípolla" on YouTube

"Hoppípolla" ([ˈhɔʰpipʰɔtla], "Hopp í polla" is Icelandic for "Hopping into puddles") is a song by Icelandic band Sigur Rós from their 2005 album Takk.... It was released as the album's second single on 28 November 2005. The lyrics are mainly in Icelandic, with some nonsensical phrases, a "language" the band calls Vonlenska ("Hopelandic"). Written with spaces, the song's title would be "Hoppa í polla" (the "—a" in "hoppa" is not pronounced). As with many of the band's songs, it was given a nickname in the early stages of writing. "Hoppípolla" was "The Money Song", as the band was certain they had written a song which would have commercial success.[1] It is the band's most successful single, charting at #24 on the UK Singles Chart in May 2006. It is considered the most well known song within its genre. The single also features "Með blóðnasir", an instrumental coda to "Hoppípolla", which is also featured on Takk...; and a studio remake of "Hafssól", a song previously released on the band's 1997 debut album, Von. The title appears as "Hafsól" on the single.

Use in film and television

"Hoppípolla" was used in 2006 advertisements for the BBC's Planet Earth TV series, giving the band one of its rare exposures to a mainstream audience. When Sir David Attenborough received his National Television lifetime achievement award, the piece was used for the moving anthology of his work, made especially for the occasion. Following this, there has been a high demand for the single, which has led to a re-publishing of the commercial version in May 2006, distributed by EMI. The re-release of the single brought critical acclaim for the band in the mainstream music media, including being named Jungalist Single of the Week on 1 May 2006. The song was used in the closing credits of the BBC's coverage of the 2006 FA Cup final, and BBC News 24 also used it to promote their coverage of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The BBC also used it as background music to a rousing montage of England games during the World Cup and as a trailer for live BBC coverage of further England games. The song was also featured in the Doctor Who Confidential episode "End of an Era". The BBC have also used this song in a Holby city episode China In Your Hands, as Joseph leaves the hospital. Munster Rugby in Ireland also used the song in the closing scenes of their historic win in the 2006 European Rugby Final as part of the "Glory Glory Munster DVD" Besides its repeated use by the BBC, the song was used in the Children of Men and Slumdog Millionaire trailers, for the ending of the film Penelope, and for Oxfam and Viasat advertisements. The song was also used as background music during a Sky Sports interview with F.C. Copenhagen's manager Ståle Solbakken before F.C. Copenhagen played Manchester United in the UEFA Champions League on 1 November 2006. It was also used as background music to interviews with contestants in shows such as The X-Factor, Britain's Got Talent, and I'd Do Anything. In New Zealand, the intro part of the song was used as the soundtrack for a promotional TV advertisement for the All Blacks before the 2006 Bledisloe Cup. The song was covered by We Are Scientists on their B-sides album Crap Attack in 2006. It was also used in Smith's Hill High School's (Australia) Rock Eisteddfod performance in 2006.

In April 2008, a film trailer was released advertising Disneynature's film Earth, with "Hoppípolla" as the background music.

"Hoppípolla" was used as the music when Sir Bobby Charlton received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2008, for helping England win the 1966 FIFA World Cup and helping Manchester United win the European Cup in 1968. The song was also used for when Sir Bobby Robson won the same award the previous year. The song was also used in an informational video on Marks & Spencer p.l.c on their corporate website. In the Slumdog Millionaire trailer,[2] the background music is "Hoppípolla" starting from 1:12 to the end.

The song was used extensively in the BBC documentaries James May on the Moon and James May at the Edge of Space.

The song was also used as the background music to a video entitled "I Am A Craft Brewer," made by the Stone Brewing Company and also a popular video on the video sharing site Vimeo called A SHORT LOVE STORY IN STOP MOTION

Hoppípolla was featured in part as the intro to a Vimeo-hosted short film about the 2010 24 Hours of Nürburgring called "24 Hours in 19500 Frames" by the German production company Stereoscreen.de.

Hoppípolla made an appearance as the background music of a video congratulating tennis star Roger Federer soon after he gained his 15th Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in late June 2009. The video was posted by the ATP committee. The same video has been updated by ATP in 2012 celebrating Roger Federer's 17 Grand Slams.

The song is also added to Discovery Channel's commercial: "Live Life Large".

There have been accusations that the song was plagiarised in the opening music "composed" for the popular Italian song contest held in Sanremo (Festival della canzone Italiana - Feb 2010) and referred to as "Sabiu n.7" during the programme, from the name of Marco Sabiu, director of the RAI orchestra linked with the event. Marco Sabiu has however allegedly declared that the piece of music referred to as Sabiu N.7 by presenter Antonella Clerici was not a plagiarism at all but a cover version of Hoppípolla itself.

The song was used on BBC news for a video compilation of the euphoric rescue of the 33 trapped Chilean Miners at the San Jose Mine on 13 October 2010.

In 2010, it was used in one episode of the popular German RTL-Series "Ich bin ein Star - Holt mich hier raus!"

The film We Bought a Zoo features Hoppípolla during the climax scene and end credits, as well as other music by Jónsi.

The 2012 trailer for the Earth Hour features Hoppípolla as well.

Australia's New Year 2013 Fireworks also included the song as part of the display.

Classic Hits 4fm in Ireland used it as the theme for their 2012 Wish Week

Track listing

CD (CDEM 673) / 12" (12EM 673)
  1. "Hoppípolla" – 4:36
  2. "Með blóðnasir" – 2:24
  3. "Hafsól" (2005 version) – 9:47
7" (EM 673)
  1. "Hoppípolla" – 4:36
  2. "Heysátan" – 4:09

Music video

A promotional music video for "Hoppípolla" was made in November 2005. It was directed by Arni & Kinski and first aired during the week of 21 November 2005.

It depicts two groups of elderly friends strolling around the suburbs of Reykjavík and, just like children, pulling pranks on other people. Near the end of the video, the two groups meet each other in a graveyard to battle with water balloons and wooden swords. When one of them is injured and gets a bloody nose (which is referenced in the lyrics), the opponents run away in fear, while the others celebrate the victory. The video shows several shots of the friends jumping in puddles of water.

The band members are featured in the video: keyboardist Kjartan Sveinsson plays the victim of a Knock, Knock, Ginger trick, guitarist and vocalist Jón Þór Birgisson plays the cashier at a shop where an old man steals and eats some pears, drummer Orri Páll Dýrason can be seen repairing his bicycle, and bassist Georg Hólm can be seen cleaning.[3]

In January 2010, the instrumental was used by CTV British Columbia for a 60-second promotional video to create excitement for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games at Vancouver, Canada in February 2010.

Chart performance

Chart (2005) Peak
position
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)[4] 35
Chart (2006) Peak
position
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)[4] 24

Chicane cover version - "Poppiholla"

"Poppiholla"
Single by Chicane
from the album The Best of Chicane: 1996–2008 and Giants
Released 13 July 2009
Format Digital download, CD single
Genre Dance, progressive trance
Length 3:43 (radio edit)
4:49 (original mix)
Label Modena Records Ltd. / Armada Music
Writer(s) Jón Þór Birgisson, Orri Páll Dýrason, Georg Hólm, Kjartan Sveinsson
Chicane singles chronology
"Bruised Water"
(2008)		 "Poppiholla"
(2009)		 "Hiding All The Stars"
(2009)

In July 2009 Chicane released an instrumental re-work of the song, titled "Poppiholla" (the 'p' and 'h' were switched to create the word "pop") and released it as a five track single EP on 13 July 2009. "Poppiholla" entered the UK Singles Chart at #7 on 19 July 2009, spending three weeks in the top ten as of 2 August 2009. A video to promote the song was made, and Chicane's The Best of Chicane collection was re-released to include the song. The re-released album reached #11 on the UK Album chart, beating the compilation's previous peak of #16 (without "Poppiholla" on it). The song was used in the UK by Sky Sports for their coverage of the Guinness Premiership in 2009/10. It is also used by League Two side Dagenham & Redbridge F.C. as a build-up song just before the players walk out for home matches.

Critical reception

David Balls of Digital Spy gave the song a positive review stating:

Cast your mind back over the summer dance anthems of the past decade and a not insignificant number of them belong to Chicane. With the likes of 'Saltwater', 'Offshore' and Bryan Adams collaboration 'Don't Give Up' still being pumped out at chill-out bars across Ibiza, it might come as a surprise that Nick Bracegirdle - the man behind the Chicane decks - is still resisting early retirement. In fact, he's got another summer dance anthem up his sleeve.

As its title suggests, 'Poppiholla' is essentially a reswizzled version of Sigur Rós's 'Hoppipolla'. The original is an ambient and ethereal little number popular with nature documentary fans, but Chicane has added trancey beats and the hint of a crescendo to please, if you will, those who like a spoonful of sugar with their coffee. It's a simple but effective reworking, but one that's hard to get too excited about. Still, it should ensure that the name Chicane remains a steadfast fixture on any sun worshipper's playlist. The song was awarded a 3 star.[5]

Release history

Region Date Format Label
United Kingdom 13 July 2009 Digital download, CD Single Modena Records

Charts

Chart (2009) Peak
position
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)[6] 7

Year-end charts

Chart (2009) Position
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)[7] 136

References

  1. ↑ Sigur Rós (2007). Heima (DVD (audio commentary)). Event occurs at 01:16:00.
  2. ↑ YouTube - Slumdog Millionaire - Trailer
  3. ↑ YouTube - Hoppipola
  4. 1 2 Chart Stats - Sigur Ros - Hoppipolla
  5. ↑ David Balls (27 July 2009). "Chicane - 'Poppiholla'". Digital Spy. Digital.co.uk.
  6. ↑ Chart Stats - Chicane - Poppiholla
  7. ↑ "Charts Plus Year end 2009" (PDF). Charts Plus. Retrieved 2010-07-19.

External links

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