Swedish House Mafia’s immortal record ‘Save The World’ celebrates 7 years

Only a few songs across electronic music manage to compete with the power of “Save The World“. In retrospect, the truly iconic value of the Grammy nominated, number-one single has become the anthem of a generation and captures the sentiments of what was the newly reborn House music scene. The single was released during the epitome of the Swedish House Mafia’s rise to the limelight and was instrumental in the supergroup being described as “the faces of mainstream progressive house music”.

The record features the vocals of John Martin and creative efforts of  Axwell, Steve Angello, Sebastian Ingrosso, Michel Zitron and Vincent Pontare who all co-wrote the track together. “Save The World” was released in May 2011 as a digital download, and it premiered on BBC Radio 1 in April of 2011 by Pete Tong.  At this point in time it was becoming more apparent that the Swedish House Mafia were creating the aesthetics of modern day house music. During Miami Music Week in 2011, it was one of the most hyped tracks. Every year, it seemed SHM could pioneer a new anthem capable of bedazzling the masses, first “Leave The World Behind”, followed by “One”. The ephemeral rise that began only 3-4 years earlier in the mainstream global consciousness was being orchestrated by the sounds and style of the supergroup. “Save The World” was the next ladder up from number one hits such as “One” and “Miami 2 Ibiza”, and emblematized a gold standard for which “Antidote” and “Don’t You Worry Child” would follow.

All fluff and floweriness aside, the track is adored by fans and is incredibly emotional. Over the years, it can be observed that the track ignites an energy in a crowd that few songs can produce. The lyrical content is strong, evocative, and inspires one to step up to the plate and “never back down”. The three Swedish masterminds became architects of the Progressive House style and paved the way for other progressive, big room artists such as Alesso to explore this new style. The ecstatic sound design and big hands-in-the-air crescendo curated by the record is something many consider to be the hallmark of the genre’s sound. Like most of the groups singles, their is an emphasis on intensifying beats and the tension placed within the rise and release of each drop.

Speaking to the originality and nonpareil sound of “Save The World”, Axwell told MTV in 2011:

‘It’s not the ‘One’ rip-off, it’s not the ‘Miami 2 Ibiza’ rip-off, it’s just something new”

The song received a nomination in the 54th Grammy Awards for Best Dance Recording, and was the group’s second consecutive number-one single following “Miami 2 Ibiza”. It is hard to fathom a main stage headliner or late-night club encore that doesn’t involve “Save The World” for some fans. It was the last song the SHM played during their famous show in 2013 alongside Ax’s “Heart Is King”. Naturally, it was given a glorious rebirth at this years Ultra Music Festival where it was fully outfitted with orchestral elements and sounds.

Let’s celebrate “Save The World” below.

Photo Credits:  Rukes.com