Sky Is Over

"Sky Is Over"
"Sky Is Over"
Single by Serj Tankian
from the album Elect the Dead
Released	January 16, 2008 (Radio); February 2008 (promo CD); March 28, 2008 (Acoustic promo CD); March 31, 2008 (CD)
Recorded	2006–2007
Genre	Acoustic rock; industrial metal;
Length	2:59
Label	Serjical Strike/Reprise
Songwriter(s)	Serj Tankian
Producer(s)	Serj Tankian
Serj Tankian singles chronology

"Sky Is Over" is a song by Serj Tankian. The song was released as the second single from Tankian's debut solo album Elect the Dead. The song charted on both the Modern Rock Tracks and the Mainstream Rock Tracks in the US.

Song meaning

This song is worked around the website [1] which Tankian supports. This means that the song is about pollution and global warming. Tankian said also, about the meaning of the song, in an interview with Roadrunner Records:

I've always thought of the sky as, like, an open canvas. When I was a kid and I looked at the sky, I always remember being able to daydream, just looking at the sky, being creative, being able to design things. What would happen if we had no sky? Where would we be? Well, obviously, scientifically, without an atmosphere, we'd all be dead.
— Serj Tankian, Roadrunner Records^[3]

Music video

Elect the Dead was accompanied by a complete set of videos for each track, September 11, 2007. Tankian was not pleased by the original video and so he and director Tony Petrossian made an official video for "Sky Is Over", released on January 16, 2008.

The music video begins with Tankian playing a white piano in the middle of the street. After establishing the main piano melody, he gets up, walks down the street, and picks up a chalkboard eraser. With the eraser he begins literally "erasing" the sky out with erratic swipes over the wordless chorus, then throws the eraser far away and walks to a black piano to play the last note. The camera pans up to reveal that amid the random eraser swipes he has written civilization is over. The entire video was shot in one take. At the end of the video a web address is shown for the now defunct "Sky Is Over" website, which gave links to various environmental organizations.^[4]

Track listing

All songs written by Tankian.

Radio edit promo single

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Sky Is Over" (Radio edit)	2:59

2 Track promo^[5]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Sky Is Over" (Acoustic)	2:57
2.	"Empty Walls" (Acoustic)	3:46

Official UK CD single

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Sky Is Over"		2:59
2.	"Sky Is Over" (Fawk Yeah Remix)	Tankian	3:38

Digital download single^[6]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Sky Is Over"		2:59
2.	"Sky Is Over" (Fawk Yeah Remix)	Tankian	3:38
3.	"Sky Is Over" (Acoustic)		2:59

Chart positions

Chart (2008)	Peak position
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)^[7]	22
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)^[8]	23

References

^ SERJ TANKIAN Paints Grim Picture With 'Sky Is Over' - Jan. 16, 2008
^ ^a ^b Jurek, Thom. "Serj Tankian – Elect the Dead". AllMusic. Retrieved January 8, 2024. 'The Sky Is Over' melds everything from acoustic rock, industrial metal and Queen-like opera cadences and winds it all into something so addictive it's irresistible.
^ "Interview with Serj Tankian". Roadrunner Records. 2008-01-16. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
^ "Home". Sky Is Over. Archived from the original on 2010-03-13. Retrieved 2019-07-23.
^ "Elect The Dead 2 Track Acoustic Promo". Retrieved 2008-07-14.
^ Sky Is Over – Serj Tankian – Musik Infos – Musicload
^ "Serj Tankian Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
^ "Serj Tankian Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved August 7, 2017.

External links

Serj Tankian's website

[1] SERJ TANKIAN Paints Grim Picture With 'Sky Is Over' - Jan. 16, 2008

[AllMusic-2] Jurek, Thom. "Serj Tankian – Elect the Dead". AllMusic. Retrieved January 8, 2024. 'The Sky Is Over' melds everything from acoustic rock, industrial metal and Queen-like opera cadences and winds it all into something so addictive it's irresistible.

[3] "Interview with Serj Tankian". Roadrunner Records. 2008-01-16. Retrieved 2008-01-16.

[4] "Home". Sky Is Over. Archived from the original on 2010-03-13. Retrieved 2019-07-23.

[5] "Elect The Dead 2 Track Acoustic Promo". Retrieved 2008-07-14.

[6] Sky Is Over – Serj Tankian – Musik Infos – Musicload

[sc_Billboardalternativesongs_Serj_Tankian-7] "Serj Tankian Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved August 7, 2017.

[sc_Billboardmainstreamrock_Serj_Tankian-8] "Serj Tankian Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved August 7, 2017.

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Sky Is Over

Song meaning

Music video