An Honest Mistake

"An Honest Mistake"
Single by The Bravery
from the album The Bravery
B-side	"Hot Pursuit" "Hey Sunshiney Day" "Unconditional"
Released	February 28, 2005
Format	7" CD DVD
Recorded	2004
Genre	Indie rock post-punk revival dance-punk new wave
Length	3:39
Label	Polydor
Writer(s)	Sam Endicott
Producer(s)	Sam Endicott
The Bravery singles chronology
"An Honest Mistake" (2005) "Fearless" (2005)

"An Honest Mistake" is a song by American rock band The Bravery. It was released as their debut single and the lead single from their self-titled studio album on February 28, 2005. The song peaked at number 6 on the Scottish Singles Chart and number 7 on the UK Singles Chart.

"An Honest Mistake" was also featured on the soundtrack of the video games Burnout Revenge (as a remix) and MVP Baseball 2005; in MVP, the song is listed as "Honest Mistake". The song is also featured in the video game True Crime: New York City, in The O.C. season 2 finale "The Dearly Beloved" and in the CSI: NY season 2 episode "Youngblood". The song is playable on the UK version of the game SingStar Rocks!. It was also played in the Heroes episode "Orientation" in Season 4 and was featured in the 2011 film Detention.

Critical reception

AllMusic writer MacKenzie Wilson said that the song "saunters like classic New Order with its dark-hued mechanical energy."^[1] Lost At Sea's Sarah Peters put the track alongside "Public Service Announcement" for showing the band's honed-in musicianship and knowledge of new wave, saying that when they "hit the airwaves, there shouldn't be too many listeners impressed by the band's amount of study - why analyze and appreciate when you could just dance?"^[2] Adam Moerder of Pitchfork Media found the track to be one of the few standouts on the record, calling it "one of the few sassy moments on the album, with Endicott mockingly singing in falsetto "Don't look at me that way/ It was an honest mistake."^[3]

Music video

The video for "An Honest Mistake" was directed by Michael "Mike" Palmieri (Foo Fighters, The Strokes) and features the band performing the song in the middle of a Rube Goldberg machine. The chain start with several strings of dominoes and includes many other objects, such as light bulbs, eggs, and an aquarium. Different parts of the action are shown from multiple views, often showing it one way, switching to another angle, then switching back to the original view. Eventually a flaming arrow shoots toward a target, but the arrow misses to the right.^[4]

Track listings

• 7" 9880264

1. "An Honest Mistake"
2. "Hot Pursuit"

• CD 9880300

1. "An Honest Mistake"
2. "Hey Sunshiney Day"

• CD (AUS) 9881709

1. "An Honest Mistake"
2. "Hey Sunshiney Day"
3. "An Honest Mistake"

• DVD 9880301

1. "An Honest Mistake" (video)
2. "Unconditional" (video)
3. "Unconditional" (making of)

Charts

Chart (2005)	Peak position
Ireland (IRMA)[5]	33
Scotland (Official Charts Company)[6]	6
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[7]	7
US Billboard Hot 100[8]	97
US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[9]	12

References

1. Wilson, MacKenzie. "The Bravery - The Bravery". AllMusic. Retrieved October 28, 2016.
2. Peters, Sarah (April 12, 2005). "The Bravery - The Bravery (Island Records)". Lost At Sea. Retrieved October 28, 2016.
3. Moerder, Adam (April 19, 2005). "The Bravery: The Bravery". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved October 28, 2016.
4. "The Bravery - An Honest Mistake". YouTube. June 16, 2009. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
5. "Chart Track: Week 9, 2005". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
6. "Archive Chart: 2005-03-12". Scottish Singles Top 40. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
7. "Archive Chart: 2005-03-12" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
8. "The Bravery – Chart history" Billboard Hot 100 for The Bravery. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
9. "The Bravery – Chart history" Billboard Alternative Songs for The Bravery. Retrieved August 27, 2016.

External links

• "An Honest Mistake" at Discogs (list of releases)