"Raindrops" is a song by British electronic dance music

Electronic dance music

Electronic dance music is electronic music produced primarily for the purposes of use within a nightclub setting, or in an environment that is centered upon dance-based entertainment...

 duo Basement Jaxx

Basement Jaxx

Basement Jaxx are a British electronic dance music duo from London, England consisting of Felix Buxton born 1971 and Simon Ratcliffe born 1 December 1969. They first rose to popularity in the late 1990s...

. It was released on 22 June 2009 as the first single from their fifth studio album

Studio album

A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...

, Scars

Scars (Basement Jaxx album)

Scars is the fifth studio album by British electronic dance music duo Basement Jaxx, released on 21 September 2009. It was preceded by the first single "Raindrops", released on 21 June, while the second single, "Feelings Gone", was also released in the United Kingdom on 21 September...

. The song uses the Auto-Tune

Auto-Tune

Auto-Tune is a proprietary audio processor created by Antares Audio Technologies. Auto-Tune uses a phase vocoder to correct pitch in vocal and instrumental performances. It is used to disguise off-key inaccuracies and mistakes, and has allowed singers to perform apparently perfectly tuned vocal...

 effect, while the male vocals for the song come from the group member Felix Buxton.

Music video

The music video

Music video

A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

 for the song was released on 8 June 2009 and it's filmed partly in a kaleidoscope

Kaleidoscope

A kaleidoscope is a circle of mirrors containing loose, colored objects such as beads or pebbles and bits of glass. As the viewer looks into one end, light entering the other end creates a colorful pattern, due to the reflection off the mirrors...

 style, featuring women dancing provocatively in colourful feathers, masks, and ferns.

Critical reception

The song has been highly praised by critics. BBC

BBC Music

BBC Music is a team working in the department of Audio and Music Interactive at the BBC. Responsible for the BBC Music website - the portal site to music content across the BBC website....

 rated the song whole five stars, describing it as "a slinky, pounding, twinkling, uplifting house juggernaut". Digital Spy

Digital Spy

Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....

 gave the song three stars, saying that it is "warm and uplifting as a summer breeze flurrying under your skirt" and "marks a welcome, if slightly cautious, return". PopMatters

PopMatters

PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...

 rated "Raindrops" eight out of ten stars, praising both the video and the song as "deliciously disco-esque". Pitchfork Media

Pitchfork Media

Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...

 also gave the song 8 stars, and described it as "one of their best songs" as well as "unashamedly psychedelic, without losing its disco heart". Metro.co.uk

Metro (Associated Metro Limited)

Metro is a free daily newspaper in the United Kingdom published by Associated Newspapers Ltd . It is available from Monday to Friday each week on many public transport services across the United Kingdom.-History:The paper was launched in London in 1999, and can now be found in 14 UK urban centres...

 described the single as "an exotic confection laced with rock melodies and a distinctive killer bassline".

Track listings

CD

1. "Raindrops"
2. "Wheel N Stop (feat. Serocee) (Planet 3 version)"

12" vinyl

1. "Raindrops (Original)"
2. "Raindrops (Funk Agenda & Paul Thomas Redux)"

Charts

"Raindrops" made its debut on the UK Singles Chart

UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 on 28 June 2009 at number 21. The song also debuted at number 27 in Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

, and has since climbed to number 20.

Chart (2009)	Peak position
Australian ARIA Singles Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...	88
Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007...	71
Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured...	20
UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...	21

Release history

Region	Date	Label
United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...	22 June 2009	XL Recordings XL Recordings XL Recordings is a British independent record label owned by Richard Russell. It originated as a 1989 offshoot of Beggars Banquet Records.Though only releasing an average of six albums a year, XL Recordings has worked with The Prodigy, Radiohead, The White Stripes, Dizzee Rascal, M.I.A., Vampire...
Australia Australia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...	21 June 2009	XL Recordings
United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...	1 September 2009	Ultra Records Ultra Records Ultra Records is an American independent electronic dance music record label. Ultra was formed in New York City in 1995 by former Polygram and Virgin Records executive Patrick Moxey, who is still currently the owner...