"Raise Your Weapon" is a song by Canadian electronic music producer Deadmau5 featuring vocals from Faroese singer Greta Svabo Bech.[1] It was released on May 23, 2011 as the fifth and final single from his fifth studio album 4×4=12. The song was written by Deadmau5, Cydney Sheffield and Skrillex.[2] Musically, "Raise Your Weapon" is a progressive house song that begins with a piano melody and Bech's vocals and ends with a dubstep breakdown with the vocals repeated.[2][3] The song received generally positive reviews from music critics, with some highlighting it as a standout track from the album. It reached number 100 on the BillboardHot 100, making it his first song to make an entry on the chart.[4] It also reached number 117 on the UK Singles Chart. The song was nominated at the 54th Grammy Awards for Best Dance Recording, where he also performed the song in a sequence with David Guetta, Chris Brown, Lil Wayne and Foo Fighters, with the other songs being "I Can Only Imagine" and "Rope".[5]
"Raise Your Weapon" received generally positive reviews from music critics. David Jeffries from AllMusic gave the song a positive review, saying, "When the one-two punch of "Raise Your Weapon" and "One Trick Pony" introduce the Mau5's newfound love of dubstep, you've got just enough variety."[6] Will Hermes of Rolling Stone also gave a positive review, "The masterstroke is "Raise Your Weapon," which breaks down into a sick dubstep beat. "How does it feel now, to watch it burn?" asks singer Greta Svabo Bech before the bass hits".[3] Dave Simpson of The Guardian said "Raise Your Weapon – featuring Greta Svabo Bech's soulful vocal – shows he can turn his hand to thoughtful sounds".[7] Alex Denney of BBC Music "Raise Your Weapons lurches suddenly from vocal-led, ambient house into the dentist-drill arsenal of sounds more commonly associated with Benga".[8] Michelangelo Matos of The A.V. Club gave the song a mixed review, calling Bech's verses "half-baked" and the use of dubstep "by-the-numbers".[9]
^4×4=12 (Booklet). Deadmau5. United States: Mau5trap. Ultra Records. 2010. 617465251825.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
