Strobe — deadmau5
Over ten minutes long, built on a slow climb and nearly left unreleased: the story of Strobe, the closing track of deadmau5’s 2009 album For Lack of a Better Name.
- Instrumental by Joel Zimmerman (deadmau5), the closing track of For Lack of a Better Name (2009).
- Released as a single on 3 September 2009 on mau5trap, Ultra and Virgin.
- Original mix over ten minutes long; Billboard Dance named it his best song in 2017.
“Strobe” is the long one. Deadmau5 put it at the end of For Lack of a Better Name in 2009, let it run past ten minutes and almost did not release it at all. Eight years later, Billboard Dance ranked it the best song he had made.
From “Then We Stood Still”
Joel Zimmerman was born in Niagara Falls, Ontario, in 1981, and founded his label mau5trap in 2007. “Strobe” grew out of a track called “Then We Stood Still”, which appeared in a YouTube video he uploaded several months before the release. He was reluctant to put the finished track out; critics and fans praised it once he did.
The closer on For Lack of a Better Name
For Lack of a Better Name came out on 22 September 2009 in the US and Canada on Ultra and mau5trap, and on 5 October internationally on Virgin. It includes “Ghosts ’n’ Stuff” with Rob Swire, “Hi Friend!” with MC Flipside and “Word Problems”. “Strobe” closes it, at 10:37 in the continuous mix. Released on 3 September 2009, it was the album’s sixth and final single. The album went to No. 1 on the UK Dance Albums chart and won Zimmerman a Juno Award.
The single reached No. 13 on the UK Dance chart and No. 6 on Billboard’s Dance Singles Sales chart, but only No. 122 on the UK Singles Chart: a ten-minute instrumental was not made for radio.
Built on the build
Zimmerman’s dance tracks are known for their melodies and long build-ups, and “Strobe” is the clearest case. The original mix takes its time before the beat fully arrives. In a set the full version works as a closer or a reset; the 6:21 club edit is easier to mix in and out.
Remixes and new versions
In 2016 mau5trap marked its 100th release with Strobe (Remixes), featuring Dimension, Feed Me, Com Truise, Lane 8 and Attlas. A live version appeared on the iTunes edition of Album Title Goes Here, and in 2018 Zimmerman recorded an orchestral version with Gregory Reveret for Where’s the Drop?. The track also appears on the compilation 5 Years of Mau5.
For more on the producer, read the deadmau5 page; for more long, melodic progressive builds, try Eric Prydz and “Sun & Moon” by Above & Beyond.
FAQ
What album is Strobe by deadmau5 on?
For Lack of a Better Name (2009). It is the closing track and was the album’s sixth and final single, released on 3 September 2009.
How long is Strobe?
The original mix runs about 10:34 and the album’s continuous-mix version 10:37. There is also a 6:21 club edit and a 3:34 radio edit.
Where did Strobe come from?
It grew out of a track called “Then We Stood Still”, heard in a YouTube video that Joel Zimmerman uploaded several months before the release.
