Likes: 
Faceplams: Doesn't every major artist spark crap?Originally Posted by Jinsai
Van Halen & KISS--Every hairband
Pearl Jam- 7 Mary 3, Creed
Nirvana- Puddle of Mudd
Sinatra- Eddie Fisher
Doors- a million goofy psychedelic bands
Active Member
Doesn't every major artist spark crap?
Van Halen & KISS--Every hairband
Pearl Jam- 7 Mary 3, Creed
Nirvana- Puddle of Mudd
Sinatra- Eddie Fisher
Doors- a million goofy psychedelic bands
Throbbing Member
tempus est umbra in mente
You can definitely blame Pearl Jam for some unfortunate music inspired by their formula... but if we're gonna talk about bad lyrics, can I just ask what the hell this is?
"SON! She said... have I got a little story for you!
What you thought was your dadddy!
Was nothing... but a...
While you were sitting home alone age 13!
Your real daddy was dying
Sorry you didn't see him!
But I'm glad we talked!
Oh oh oh aaaaaayyyyyyyeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! I'm still alive!"
What the FUCK was that?
Active Member
Bravo for punctuation. When I was reading that I could hear Eddie Vedder's voice in my head. And I like that song too.
Throbbing Member
"Bugs" has better lyrics than that.
Bite me
It's actually based on a true story about Eddie Vedder.
Vedder's birth name was Edward Severson III, but he grew up as Edward Mueller. His parents divorced when he was a baby, and his mom remarried and Ed grew up thinking his stepdad was his real dad. Eventually, his mom told him the truth, but his real dad had died by then of some debilitating disease like MS or something, after having been in a wheelchair. Lots of Ed's lyrics are about his stepdad, who he hated. I believe Vedder is Ed's mom's name.
There is an Alive "trilogy," the others being "One" and "Footsteps." The trilogy is fictitious and semi-autobiographical, obviously; the mother, in her grief about the dead dad, commits incest with her son, which leads him to go on a killing spree in "Once," and then he's in prison for it in "Footsteps."
I know way too much about Pearl Jam.
Last edited by allegro; 05-27-2021 at 01:06 PM.
Throbbing Member
Greedy Fly (ugh):
Do you feel the way you hate?
Do you hate the way you feel?
Are inane Bush lyrics the wish.com version of Beck lyrics?
Active Member
Say what you will about bands like Warrant, but at least their lyrics are transparent.
Dirty, rotten, filthy, stinkin'
She's my cherry pie
Cool drink of water, such a sweet surprise
Tastes so good, makes a grown man cry
Sweet Cherry Pie, yeah
Well, swingin' on the front porch, swingin' on the lawn
Swingin' where we want 'cause there ain't nobody home
Swingin' to the left and swingin' to the right
If I think about baseball, I'll swing all night, yeah
Yeah, yeah
Swingin' in the living room, swingin' in the kitchen
Most folks don't 'cause they're too busy bitchin'
Swingin' in there 'cause she wanted me to feed her
So I mixed up the batter and she licked the beater
I scream, you scream, we all scream for her
Don't even try 'cause you can't ignore her
She's my cherry pie
Cool drink of water, such a sweet surprise
Tastes so good, make a grown man cry
Sweet cherry pie, oh yeah
She's my cherry pie
Put a smile on your face, ten miles wide
Looks so good, bring a tear to your eye
Sweet cherry pie, yeah
Swingin' to the drums, swingin' to guitar
Swingin' to the bass in the back of my car
Ain't got money, ain't got no gas
But we'll get where we're goin' if we swing real fast
I scream, you scream, we all scream for her
Don't even try 'cause you can't ignore her
She's my cherry pie
Cool drink of water, such a sweet surprise
Tastes so good, make a grown man cry
Sweet cherry pie, oh yeah
She's my cherry pie
Put a smile on your face, ten miles wide
Looks so good, bring a tear to your eye
Sweet cherry pie, yeah, pie, yeah
Yeah (swing it!)
All night long
(Swing it!)
Like a trained professional
Swingin the bathroom, swingin' on the floor
Swingin' so hard, we forgot to lock the door
In walks her daddy standin' 6 foot 4
He said, "You ain't gonna swing with my daughter no more"
She's my cherry pie
Cool drink of water, such a sweet surprise
Tastes so good, make a grown man cry
Sweet cherry pie, oh yeah
She's my cherry pie
Put a smile on your face, ten miles wide
Looks so good, bring a tear to your eye
Sweet cherry pie
Sweet cherry pie, yeah, huh
Swing it!
tempus est umbra in mente
Ok, I guess maybe the part that bugs me is the "your real daddy was.. nothing but a... WHILE you were sitting home alone..."
That always drove me completely insane. Do I have to dig into this guy's personal life to know what the hell he's talking about here? When I first heard the song I thought it was implying that his biological father might have been a passing john and his mother a prostitute, or that he was a tragic side fling, or... I really don't know. But this gets into that territory I don't like with lyrics; where it's someone's confessional diary entry, and I just don't care.
I really liked Fiona Apple's take on that sort of lyricism. She said she regretted talking so openly about her experiences on Tidal, and that she spelled out too clearly what songs were about, and I think she said it felt like her dirty laundry was up for investigation after the album became a hit. It's partially why I even really dislike clearly earnest stuff, like a song like "Tears in Heaven."
Everyone gets into music/art in different ways though, so maybe some people want to hear someone allude to traumatic real-life experiences in a vague artsy way, but generally I like it more if it's tucked back a bit further I guess. It at least makes it easier to identify with... but who knows, maybe there's someone out there who hates his step dad and that whole Pearl Jam lyric trilogy really spoke to that person and helped them through some hard times, so who am I to say it's "bad" I guess? Even if I don't like it.
Throbbing Member
7 Mary 3 were able to get the "rur" in on a line in the chorus of "Cumbersome." That has to be a record.
Iar herve becororme cumbersorme tahr myr gurrl
Active Member
The best description I read about that song was it sounded like a beer company wanted to use a Pearl Jam song but couldn't, so they hired a bar band instead to write a song in the style of Peal Jam.
tempus est umbra in mente
On this note, have you noticed that the majority of Van Halen's music, especially the Van Hagar period, sounds like early 90s Budweiser commercials where horses are running through the desert?
Maybe that one's just me...
Bite me
First, people here say they don't like lyrics that are too simple and set everything out on a platter.
Then, people say they don't like having to dig through people's personal lives to figure things out.
This isn't 100% biographical.
Ed's real dad was, in real life, gay. But, he's not going to spell that out in a song. In real life, his mom supposedly had problems with a gay guy being "dad" to her kid. But, the 2nd husband ended up being abusive. Ed leaves blanks for people to fill in, themselves. With their own realities or whatever.
I didn't require a secret decoder ring to figure all of this out, either. The narrative seemed pretty simple, to me. Even without Ed's true story. What's the problem? Seriously. If you remove all of your biases, it's easy.
It's like "Jeremy."
Jeremy "spoke in class today."
When I heard it, it wasn't OBVIOUS how Jeremy "spoke" ... UNTIL I SAW THE VIDEO.
And, even when I saw the video, I thought he'd killed himself, NOT EVERYBODY ELSE. I guess that's how my mind saw things in the lyrics, AND THAT'S OKAY, TOO.
If I'm to pick apart a stupid PJ song, it's the much-beloved "Black." THAT is a fucking annoying song.
PJ fans have actually said this to me: "Black isn't only the best PJ song, IT'S THE BEST SONG OF ALL TIME."
WTF.
It's a rambling, insipid, whiny, angry, dumb song for scorned assholes.
Or, hey, try figuring out "Yellow Ledbetter." If you can understand one word he's saying.
Last edited by allegro; 05-27-2021 at 01:18 PM.
Throbbing Member
I will never hear "Right Now" the same way. Damn, even "Humans Being" would fit.
Active Member
I'm not hearing Van Halen, but they do look like people you would see at a Van Halen show, circa 1991/1992, minus the cowboy hats.
Bite me
Trollhunter
My problem with Vedder is not too different than what I said about that dogshit Verve song. It’s actually worse, though, because I’ve heard way more Pearl Jam than Verve. The way Vedder enunciates is nails on a chalkboard to me.
Using the aforementioned “Alive.”
”WHHHAAAAH CAN YEH SEDDY HO A LOW TUH HEEZERDEE.”
The band have good songs (“Yellow Ledbetter,” “Once” and especially “State Of Love And Trust”) but Vedder’s delivery is always just garbled garbage which sucks because sometimes the words are well written.
Last edited by Swykk; 05-27-2021 at 08:02 PM.
Bite me
Dude, you're in a NINE INCH NAILS forum. Trent Reznor has, repeatedly, said that his lyrics reflected journal entries he wrote about in his bedroom about his life.
https://www.npr.org/2011/12/19/14383...-air-interview
Active Member
Lane is probably my favorite songwriter from that whole scene. "Uncle Tom's Cabin" is pretty friggin' great.
Active Member
I sort of feel like every-other rock singer from the 90s did the Vedderism in their singing--Weiland, Rob Thomas, Scott Stapp, etc.
Bite me
Yeah, I didn't get Ed's point of doing that, although he does it a LOT LESS, in more recent stuff. He's from CHICAGO; we don't talk like that, here. It's like some schtick, I dunno what it meant. Maybe it was insecurity, because he thought his lyrics sucked so he was afraid if people understood what he was saying, they might give him some shit. He got much clearer after the first few albums as he gained confidence.
tempus est umbra in mente
It's a difficult thing to spell out with strict guidelines, but I thought about it for a bit, and I guess if I were to break it down, there's three kinds of lyrics for me. Lyrics I like, lyrics I ignore, and lyrics that fuck the song up for me. That third category covers everything for me from Everybody Hurts to Baby Shark. That song Alive is in there too, because the nagging coy lyric dances around confessional stuff that I'm not invested in.Their song Black is worse; I despise that song. But there's some Pearl Jam lyrics I like. I think "This is Not For You" is great. I like Tremor Christ, stuff like that. Where he's getting weird I guess. But really, Pearl Jam is not the biggest offender for me, and it feels weird to even complain about overly emotional or confessional lyrics on what is ostensibly a NIN forum, because really Nine Inch Nails isn't known for lyrical subtlety.
At the same time, outside of a few lines that irk me, I either don't give a shit and am able to ignore the lyrics or I actually like them w/ NIN. Yeah, it's almost constantly on either pissed off or massively depressed mode... and he doesn't really have much range outside of that... but in general the tone comes across as sincere and it doesn't feel disingenuous or overselling itself. Maybe the only NIN track that I really feel gets too dramatic for me is All that Could Have Been. But whatever... The other stuff that I don't actively like I can tune out.
The stuff I can't tune out? Lynyrd Skynyrd singing about how "watergate does not bother me" and while you're at it, get Neil Young's name out of your mouth. Limp Bizkit talking about how they did it all for the nookie and how I should shove a cookie up my ass. Van Halen telling me how to live my life and what's really important. Alanis Morrisette fantasizing about scratching her nails down someone else's back while she hopes I feel it, well can I FEEL IT?! And yes, I'm honestly annoyed that I don't know what Meatloaf won't do for love. It fucking bothers me.
Blah... and the tricky part is I guess most lyrics are coming from a personal place, and well, if you're hiding aspects of that are you being dishonest? Or if you don't, are you being too "on the nose" and blunt. All I know is Watergate bothers me, and I don't have any personal nostalgia for Alabama.
And for some reason Vedder gets a pass, because PJ "invented underbite rock" or something...
Last edited by Jinsai; 05-27-2021 at 02:10 PM.
Bite me
The only NIN lyrics that ever appealed to me, personally, were on Broken. At the time. Now, not so much.
I like the lyrics on TDS because it's a narrative.
Otherwise, I don't pay attention anymore because it ain't my thing.
I don't think many lyrics "irk" me. Except if stuff is sexist or racist or homophobic etc. I also don't listen if it's overly insipid or whiny.
Skynard and Watergate? That song was written in the 1974 in response to "Southern Man." None of the song's writers were from Alabama. Ronnie Van Zandt was from Florida (and he's dead); Gary Rossington was from Florida; Ed King was from California (and he's dead). I'm old, I was around in 1974. I don't give a single fuck about that song.
It's been giving far too much attention for too long.
https://www.countryliving.com/life/e...-song-meaning/
Last edited by allegro; 05-27-2021 at 02:25 PM.
tempus est umbra in mente
Yeah, NIN lyrics resonated w/ me more when I was younger and angstier, but I still like the lyrics on Broken and TDS. I actually think his newer lyrics are getting a lot better. But, now that I think about it, the lyrics on With Teeth were originally what turned me off from that album more than anything else. It took a bit for me to just say fuck it and ignore the words I guess, though there's some exceptions on there. I really like Sunspots and Right Where it Belongs. If anything, the stuff that really bugged me with NIN is the forced rhyming, but that's easy to get over and just overlook. It's not like, well, the lyrics to Big Man With a Gun that have really not aged well for me personally... when I was 14 though, I thought that song was edgy and cool. I guess I'm getting old.
Bite me
They don't bother me, because they fit within the narrative of the album. The protagonist is in search of God-like power, to overcome his feelings of powerlessness. Every song is a study in his search of that God-like power. The album tells a story, and sometimes stories aren't pretty. There are several ugly things on TDS, which ultimately lead to the protagonist's destruction.
The same guy bragging about how he likes having a big 'ol dick and a gun is also the same guy talking about how angels bleed at the tainted touch of his caress.
"I now know the depths I reach are limitless"
Yeah, "With Teeth" is particularly a style of lyrics that is right out of his personal diary. BUT, he also said that some of it was from prior material intended to be something akin to science fiction. So we don't know totally what is what. And we can use our own interpretation as to what is what, by bringing our own experiences. Our own diaries. Which is one of the reasons I like that album. It also has a narrative, but it's not necessarily autobiographical. In this sense, it has an unreliable narrator; therefore, you are free to interpret by bringing your own experiences. So, it's existential but it's also mundane. Depends on how you experience it.
The one that I especially didn't dig was "Year Zero." I'm watching the 4th season of "The Handmaid's Tale," which is based on a book written during the Reagan administration, which I read when it was written in 1985, which covered these same themes. But, way better.
At least "Year Zero" was better than "Kilroy Was Here."
Last edited by allegro; 05-27-2021 at 02:55 PM.
Active Member
It's a good one. Great soundtrack too.
Matador de Froot Loops
I really like "Alive" and Pearl Jam, but yes they (and most Seattle bands) had many clones with varied results:
- Pearl Jam: Creed, Seven Mary Tree, PAW (awesome band, btw)
- Nirvana: Candlebox, Bush, Silverchair, Puddle of Mud
- Alice in Chains: Godsmack
- Soundgarden: Days of the New
I guess like every good genre it became a joke, but i actually like some of the bands listed there and i do prefer them to the bullshit you listen on the radio nowadays.
tempus est umbra in mente
@henryeatscereal Really though, that style of singing is a crutch, and I'm not sure it's fair to really accuse Vedder of being the creator of it, he just went NUTS with that "singing technique." Then the Creed guy came along and acted like he was making fun of it. "KIN YAAAAARRRRR TAAAAAAAAAAKE MER HAYAR!" I will never understand how Creed got so popular. They really are the worst rock band of all time.
Throbbing Member
If a song spells out a story in detail it can be powerful, like Amanda Palmer's The Bed Song or Rise Against's Hero of War - but the replay value is really limited tbh and I tend to skip these songs when listening to the albums (I rarely do this in general).
So I prefer songs that are open to interpretation and not these 'single-serving songs' as I would call them.
tempus est umbra in mente
Yeah, I mean, I can appreciate songs like Bob Dylan's "The Hurricane," but I don't ever need to hear it ever again, and not just because it's like ten minutes long and basically four chords.
Reply With Quote
