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"Killer" is a song by British acid house DJ and record producer Adamski. Written by Adamski and British singer-songwriter Seal and produced by Adamski, "Killer" was Adamski's breakthrough single but is now more notable for featuring Seal as a vocalist. A major hit in the United Kingdom, it reached number one on the UK Singles Chart, spending four weeks at the top in May and June 1990. In total, the single sold over 400,000 copies in the UK, earning it a Gold certification from the British Phonographic Industry. The song also peaked at number one in Belgium and Zimbabwe and at number two in West Germany and the Netherlands.
Background
Concerning the origins of "Killer". Adamski recounted that Seal saw him perform in 1989 at an illegal rave called 'Sunrise 5000' at the Santa Pod Raceway. Seal afterwards handed a demo tape to Adamski's MC, Daddy Chester, with which both were impressed. Seal had previously been singing in blues bands but a year spent travelling in Asia had recently changed his view of life and he had since become involved in the rave scene.
Adamski and Seal later happened to meet on New Year's Eve 1989 at a club named Solaris in London, and Seal was invited to work on one of a number of pieces that Adamski was performing at that time. Adamski had an instrumental track he called "The Killer" because he felt that it sounded 'like the soundtrack to a movie murder scene'. According to Adamski, Seal's vocals were recorded against this track on 27 January 1990: coincidentally the same day that 10,000 people gathered in Trafalgar Square (not far from the studio where they were working) for the 'Freedom to Party' demonstration against a government crackdown on rave culture, which Adamski himself attended.
Musically, the song is characterized by a distinctive opening bassline and keyboard melody during the chorus. The track makes use of only two instruments – Ensoniq SQ80 Synthesizer and a Roland TR-909 drum machine – and occupied only eight tracks of a 48-track mixing console.
The relationship between Adamski and Seal later soured due to their record company wanting to promote the record as solely being by Adamski, despite the fact that Seal had both written and sung on the track. The production of the record and subsequent feud was documented in the Britain's Channel 4 programme Top 10: 1990, broadcast ten years after the record was first released.
Release
Both Adamski and Seal recalled that they were in financial trouble at the time of recording. Seal was almost penniless and was living in a squat. Although Adamski had his own following as a DJ and was enjoying success with his previous single "N-R-G", he was on a government scheme which paid his rent and allowed him £40 a week. Both Adamski and Seal were struck by the popularity of "Killer" following its release on 21 March 1990. The song went to the top of the UK charts, reached the top ten in many European countries, and sold strongly across the world. Adamski recounted his surprise at people singing the memorable bassline to him in the street and, in particular, at hearing the track played at a wedding in a hotel at which he stayed following a performance in Cambridge. Seal recalled, "within a week, I went from being a relative nobody – this weird guy at raves, with silver bits in my hair – to a household name."
Lyrics
Seal explained that the words he provided for "Killer" were intended as an exhortation to freedom and overcoming; that "the lyrics are about transcending whatever holds you back". The song's line "Racism in amongst future kids can only lead to no good, besides, all our sons and daughters already know how that feels" was re-used in Seal's 1991 song "Future Love Paradise". The introduction to the Seal version also contains the line "It's the loneliness that's the killer", which does not occur in the Adamski version.
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"Killer" is a song by British acid house DJ and record producer Adamski. Written by Adamski and British singer-songwriter Seal and produced by Adamski, "Killer" was Adamski's breakthrough single but is now more notable for featuring Seal as a vocalist. A major hit in the United Kingdom, it reached number one on the UK Singles Chart, spending four weeks at the top in May and June 1990. In total, the single sold over 400,000 copies in the UK, earning it a Gold certification from the British Phonographic Industry. The song also peaked at number one in Belgium and Zimbabwe and at number two in West Germany and the Netherlands.
Background
Concerning the origins of "Killer". Adamski recounted that Seal saw him perform in 1989 at an illegal rave called 'Sunrise 5000' at the Santa Pod Raceway. Seal afterwards handed a demo tape to Adamski's MC, Daddy Chester, with which both were impressed. Seal had previously been singing in blues bands but a year spent travelling in Asia had recently changed his view of life and he had since become involved in the rave scene.
Adamski and Seal later happened to meet on New Year's Eve 1989 at a club named Solaris in London, and Seal was invited to work on one of a number of pieces that Adamski was performing at that time. Adamski had an instrumental track he called "The Killer" because he felt that it sounded 'like the soundtrack to a movie murder scene'. According to Adamski, Seal's vocals were recorded against this track on 27 January 1990: coincidentally the same day that 10,000 people gathered in Trafalgar Square (not far from the studio where they were working) for the 'Freedom to Party' demonstration against a government crackdown on rave culture, which Adamski himself attended.
Musically, the song is characterized by a distinctive opening bassline and keyboard melody during the chorus. The track makes use of only two instruments – Ensoniq SQ80 Synthesizer and a Roland TR-909 drum machine – and occupied only eight tracks of a 48-track mixing console.
The relationship between Adamski and Seal later soured due to their record company wanting to promote the record as solely being by Adamski, despite the fact that Seal had both written and sung on the track. The production of the record and subsequent feud was documented in the Britain's Channel 4 programme Top 10: 1990, broadcast ten years after the record was first released.
Release
Both Adamski and Seal recalled that they were in financial trouble at the time of recording. Seal was almost penniless and was living in a squat. Although Adamski had his own following as a DJ and was enjoying success with his previous single "N-R-G", he was on a government scheme which paid his rent and allowed him £40 a week. Both Adamski and Seal were struck by the popularity of "Killer" following its release on 21 March 1990. The song went to the top of the UK charts, reached the top ten in many European countries, and sold strongly across the world. Adamski recounted his surprise at people singing the memorable bassline to him in the street and, in particular, at hearing the track played at a wedding in a hotel at which he stayed following a performance in Cambridge. Seal recalled, "within a week, I went from being a relative nobody – this weird guy at raves, with silver bits in my hair – to a household name."
Lyrics
Seal explained that the words he provided for "Killer" were intended as an exhortation to freedom and overcoming; that "the lyrics are about transcending whatever holds you back". The song's line "Racism in amongst future kids can only lead to no good, besides, all our sons and daughters already know how that feels" was re-used in Seal's 1991 song "Future Love Paradise". The introduction to the Seal version also contains the line "It's the loneliness that's the killer", which does not occur in the Adamski version.
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