“Looking for a Sign of Life”:

A Survey of the Foo Fighters’ Lyrics

Diplomarbeit

zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades

einer Magistra der Philosophie

an der Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz

vorgelegt von

Julia Reiterlehner

Am Institut für Anglistik

Begutachter: Ao. Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr. phil. Hugo Keiper

Graz, 2009

Mama, Papa, Gromu, Daniel – danke für eure Unterstützung bei der Verwirklichung all

meiner Träume. Paul – danke für die Leichtigkeit des Seins, mit der du mein Leben

bereicherst, sowie für die ständige Erweiterung meines musikalischen Horizonts. Martina –

danke für deine Begleitung im wissenschaftlichen wie auch im persönlichen Bereich. Prof.

Hugo Keiper – danke für die Motivation, mich an ein Thema dieser Art heranzuwagen und

auf meine Fähigkeiten zu vertrauen, für die geduldige Betreuung und das laufende

konstruktive Feedback. Und Romina – danke, dass du mich mit dem Foo-Fever angesteckt

hast.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction…………………………………………………………………………...5

2. The Foo Fighters: Formation, Rise, Musical Style and Lyrics………...………...….7

2.1. Out of the Ashes – The Foo Fighters’ Formation and Rise……………......7

2.2. Between the Genres. The Foo Fighters’ Musical Style…………………....9

2.2.1. From Grunge to Post-Grunge………………………...………….9

2.2.2. Rock or Alternative Rock?..........................................................10

2.3. The Foo Fighters’ lyric work from 1995 to 2007. An Overview.........…..11

2.3.1. Foo Fighters…………………...……………………………….11

2.3.2. The Colour and the Shape……………………………………...13

2.3.3. There Is Nothing Left To Lose……………………….…………15

2.3.4. One by One……………………………………………………..18

2.3.5. In Your Honor………………………………………….……….21

2.3.6. Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace…………………………….24

3. “Everlong” – Yearning for a Perfect Moment...……………………………………27

3.1. Physical Union, Mental Connection and The Perfect Moment………..…28

3.2. Singing along with the Audience…..……………..………...……………32

3.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures……………………………...…..34

4. “Learn to Fly” – The Quest for a Sign of Life…….……..………………….………36

4.1. Breaking out of the Average……………………...………………………36

4.2. Universal vs. Personal Addressee…………………………...……………40

4.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures …...…………...………………..42

5. “Aurora” – Nostalgia and Lyric Mysteries....……………...………………………..45

5.1. Indulging in Melancholic Thoughts…………………..……………...…..45

5.2. The Addressee as Mirror…………………...……………………….........50

5.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures…………………...……………..52

6. “Times Like These” – A Rise to One’s Expectations………...……………………...54

6.1. Gaining New Strength from Rough Times…………………………….....54

6.2. From “Me” to “You”....………………...…………………………………58

6.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures………………...………………...60

7. “Best Of You” – A Cry for Emancipation...…………………………………….…..63

7.1. The Overcoming of Difficulties..……………...…………………………63

7.2. The ‘Good’ and the ‘Bad’ Addressee…...……………...……….………..68

7.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures……………………...…………..70

8. “The Pretender” – The Foo Fighters get Political…...………………..……………72

8.1. Resistance against Oppression…………...………………………………72

8.2. The Addressee’s Conscience……………...……………………………...76

8.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures……………………...…………..78

9. Conclusion……..…………………………………………………………………..…..80

10. References…………………………………………………………………………....83

11. Appendix: Lyrics...…………………………………………………………………..87

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1. Introduction

“Looking for a sign of life” has been chosen as the title of this thesis for two reasons. First,

and this is probably a conspicuous aim of every title, it is supposed to catch the potential

reader’s attention. Since it is part of one of the Foo Fighters’ most famous songs “Learn to

Fly”, released in 1999, many people are familiar with that phrase and associate it with the

band, even if they would not consider themselves fans of the Foo Fighters. Second and more

importantly, it seems to me that the quest for a “Sign of Life” pervades numerous of the

band’s songs as a major theme, thus providing an appropriate starting point to immerse

oneself into the depth of songwriter and bandleader Dave Grohl’s lyrics.

I have known and appreciated some of the Foo Fighters’ songs since I was a teenager, but it

was in March 2008 that my enthusiasm for them was truly aroused after having attended one

of their live shows in Montréal, Canada. The live performance and sound of the band

electrified me, and being part of a thrilled audience of 9000 did its part in taking me to a state

of bliss that lasted for a good week. Since that day I have been interested not only in the

band’s tunes, but also in their lyric work. The implications I sensed in the lyrics and the

emotions they triggered in me were manifold, eventually causing me to choose their lyrics as

a topic for my thesis in order to further explore them from an academic perspective.

I will start my thesis with a short overview of the Foo Fighters’ formation and rise, followed

by a brief discussion of their musical style and a chronological overview of all the six studio

albums the band released between 1995 and 2007. That outline is supposed to provide the

reader with some crucial information on the band’s musical and lyrical development by way

of introducing their work. Next, I will go into detail of six songs chosen from the various

albums. In doing so, I will concentrate on the communicative situation between the speaker of

the lyrics and the addressee or implied listener. Dave Grohl seems to be eager to convey

strong messages with his songs, which becomes especially clear at live concerts where he

directly addresses the audience and runs into the crowd on a catwalk rather than staying on

stage. The central aim of my thesis will be to find out what themes and messages, overt or

covert ones, there can possibly be in Grohl’s lyrics, and to try and identify the rhetorical and

poetic patterns and devices that help to create the strong feeling of identification with the

songs that myself and other Foo Fighters devotees I know have experienced. However, it is

almost impossible to discuss a song’s lyrics without also considering its respective tune. Even

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though the words are of utmost importance and will be paid attention to in the first place, I

will sometimes refer to musical aspects as well, since the complete song is a symbiosis and an

interplay between the lyrics and the tune. Both can be regarded as valid pieces of art on their

own, but by interacting they complement one another and have an entirely different, more

powerful effect on the audience.

Whenever I refer to the speaker of a song, I will use only masculine pronouns. I made that

decision not only for the sake of readability and brevity, but also because the lyrics were

written and have been performed ever since by Dave Grohl. Even though it is possible to

imagine a female speaker, the lyrics suggest a male persona and often show autobiographical

traits. Apart from references to the speaker, however, I will opt for the use of feminine as well

as masculine grammatical forms.

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2. The Foo Fighters: Formation, Rise, Musical Style and Lyrics

2.1. Out of the Ashes – The Foo Fighters’ Formation and Rise

Dave Grohl, band leader of the Foo Fighters, is a natural-born musician. Born in 1969 in Ohio

and raised in Springfield, Virginia, his ambitions to drum became visible at an early age.

However, his parents could not afford to buy him a drum set, which led him to use pillows as

drums, record sleeves as cymbals and sticks that were thick as his arms. One would not

necessarily define those as the ideal conditions to learn how to play an instrument, but Grohl

improved nevertheless and, as a side effect of the thick drumsticks, developed his own, very

heavy-handed drumming style. "When I sat down on somebody's drum kit, I'd break

everything," he said in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine. "I'd beat the shit out of it." 1

He joined Nirvana, the band that defined the genre of Grunge, in 1990. When bandleader Kurt

Cobain committed suicide in 1994, the band split up and Dave Grohl booked a studio and

started to record songs he had written while touring with Nirvana. It took him merely one

week to finish what was to become the first album, released under the name Foo Fighters,

even though the band as such did not yet exist. Apart from one guitar part, Grohl played all

the instruments on the album himself and did all the vocal parts as well. The album's, and

later the band's name, derives from the term that American World War II pilots called UFOs

they saw over Germany. 2

Grohl licensed the album to Capitol Records and started to form a band around him in order

to support it. He eventually recruited bass player Nate Mendel, drummer William Goldsmith

and guitarist Pat Smear, who had already served as a touring guitarist for Nirvana. The Foo

Fighters did their first major tour in the spring of 1995, and after a second tour in 1996

entered a studio to produce their first album as a band. However, Grohl was not satisfied with

the result and the Foo Fighters re-recorded almost everything. When Grohl worked on the

album on his own, he replaced some of Goldsmith's drumming by his own. Feeling betrayed,

Goldsmith left the band and Taylor Hawkins joined as the new drummer. The Colour and the

Shape included hits such as “Monkey Wrench”, “My Hero” and “Everlong”, the last of which

1 First-hand information on Grohl’s youth taken from the following interview: Scaggs, Austin. “On an Honor

Roll”. Rolling Stone. <http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/7483596/on_an_honor_roll> [6 Apr, 2009].

2 Cf. George-Warren, Holly, ed. (2001). The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll: Rock & Roll. 3. ed., rev.

and updated for the 21st century, rev. ed. of: New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. A Rolling Stone

Press book. New York, NY [u.a]: Fireside.

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was to become one of the most popular Foo Fighters songs and will be thoroughly analyzed in

the main part of this thesis. The same year, Pat Smear left the band and was replaced by Franz

Stahl, one of Grohl's former Scream bandmates. However, the collaboration between Grohl

and Stahl did not work out, the latter leaving the band in 1998 before the recordings for the

third Foo Fighters album. The three remaining band members, Grohl, Mendel and Hawkins,

produced There is Nothing Left to Lose in Grohl's home studio in Virginia. The album's

singles included Learn to Fly, the Foo Fighters' first song to reach the US Hot 100. After the

release of the album, the band started auditions in order to find a new guitarist and in the end

decided on Chris Shiflett, who at first joined them as a touring guitarist, but was given full-

time status soon after. The band has remained in that formation ever since and started to

record its fourth album, One by One, by the end of 2001. After having worked together with

Queens of the Stone Age, Dave Grohl felt inspired and influenced by that band, and the Foo

Fighters once more re-recorded basically everything. Among the singles was Times Like

These, a song that will be dealt with in the main part as well. Concerning this album, the band

later claimed not to be fully satisfied with the outcome. George Bush, however, apparently

found the song "Times Like These" appropriate for using it in his re-election campaign, not

considering it requisite to ask the band for permission. That action caused Grohl to publicly

support the democratic candidate for presidency, John Kerry, with several acoustic solo acts

and one performance of the whole band at his election campaigns.3

In 2005, the Foo Fighters recorded and released their fifth album, In Your Honor, a double

CD containing one disc of rock and a second one of acoustic tracks. The album's singles were

Best of You, DOA, Resolve, No Way Back, and Miracle. After a short acoustic tour in 2006,

Foo Fighters released their first live album, Skin and Bones. 2007 was the year when they

released their immensely successful album Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, took part in

the charity event Live Earth at Wembley Stadium, London, and started a world tour in order

to promote their new record. In September 2008, the tour being finished and the album having

been awarded two Grammies, Grohl said on a TV show that the Foo Fighters were intending

to take their first long break, asking fans not to hope for any new music for a rather long

period. In February 2009, however, Taylor Hawkins announced that the band had already met

to brainstorm ideas, and that he was expecting that by the summer of 2009 they would "start

getting serious about a record". 3

3 Cf. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foo_Fighters> [3 June, 2009].

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2.2. Between the Genres. The Foo Fighters’ Musical Style

2.2.1. From Grunge to Post-Grunge

Grunge is a musical genre that developed in the late 1980s out of alternative rock, or to be

more exact, as a rebirth of hard-rock from the 1970s. The place of birth and evolution of that

new genre was Washington State in the US, with Seattle all of a sudden finding itself among

the world's centers of rock music. Getting its major influence from hardcore punk, heavy

metal and indie rock, the main characteristics of Grunge were heavily distorted electric guitars,

changes in dynamics within a song, and lyrics that expressed a mixture of indifference and

anguish. In contrast to other rock musicians, grunge artists often did not attach great

importance to their looks and disapproved of histrionic performances. In the late eighties, four

bands laid the foundation stones for Grunge: Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Melvins and

Mudhoney, each of which had its distinct, individual style. Then, in the early 1990s, Nirvana

entered the grunge stage. Their album Nevermind was a major success and turned the genre

into a world-famous, widely popular form of hard rock music. 4

Since Dave Grohl was Nirvana's drummer from 1990 to the dissolution of the band in 1994, it

seems only natural and almost inevitable that Grohl's songwriting has been influenced by a

genre that he himself helped establish and spread. In a 1997 interview with Guitar World,

Grohl said that "Kurt was definitely a big influence and inspiration. […] Through Kurt, I saw

the beauty of minimalism and the importance of music that's stripped down. That's more

powerful, because it's just so... almost desperate.” 5 In the same interview, Grohl stated that

the Foo Fighters’ experiments with dynamics, leading from soft verses to a loud, more

aggressive chorus, also stemmed from his time with Nirvana. However, listening to Nirvana

and the Foo Fighters, it is more than clear that there has been a development, a change that

probably manifests itself in the “poppier” approach of the latter. Major grunge elements have

remained, such as the above-mentioned contrasting dynamics and the distorted guitar, but the

songs are more melodious and the lyrics do not always involve angst or an apathetic attitude

towards life. When asked about the mixture between soft and hard elements in the Foo

Fighters’ sound, Grohl commented, “We all love music, whether it's the Beatles or Queen or

4 Cf. Scaruffi, Piero. A History of Rock Music: 1951 - 2000. New York, NY [u.a.]: iUniverse, 2003, p 446, and

<http en://.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grunge_music> [5 June, 2009].

5 DiPerna, Alan (1997). “Absolutely Foobulous”. Guitar World.

<http://www.fooarchive.com/features/guitarworld.htm>. [5 June, 2009].

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punk rock. I think the lure of punk rock was the energy and immediacy; the need to thrash

stuff around. But at the same time, we're all suckers for a beautiful melody, you know? So it

is just natural."6 Rather than a grunge band then, the Foo Fighters might be labelled a post-

grunge band. However, in order to grasp the full variety of the band's musical achievement,

there are other genres that have to be taken into consideration.

2.2.2. Rock or Alternative Rock?

Alternative rock developed as a subgenre of rock in the 1980s. It included artists that

distinguished themselves from the mainstream concerning their music as well as their way of

performing and promoting themselves. Their style had its roots in punk rock, and the

rebellious attitude of punk as a way of life showed in the fact that they mainly released their

albums on independent labels. Some bands, such as R.E.M. and The Cure, became

commercially successful, but most of them remained in the underground and reached minor

success through word-of-mouth. It was with Nirvana's release of Nevermind that alternative

bands of different rock subgenres began to form part of mainstream music.7 The Foo Fighters

have often been referred to as a band belonging to alternative rock, which is somehow

comprehensible taking into account their history. However, the band itself does not seem to

identify with the term, as drummer Taylor Hawkins clarifies in an interview: "I just think that

'alternative' term is just a bunch of bullshit, period. […] It's more about a haircut than it is a

style of music. You'd have called it 'college music' before Lollapalooza. I don't know who is

'alternative' now, but I wouldn't consider us alternative rock, and I wouldn't have said so at the

start, either. I think it's just rock music."8

The Foo Fighters have managed to distinguish themselves from other rock bands by

developing a very individual style influenced by grunge, hard rock, alternative rock, punk and

even pop. Maybe this is one of the reasons why such a vast number of fans can identify with

their music. The same way the Foo Fighters do not want to be labelled (Grohl once said, "It's

not necessarily blueprinted or calculated. It's just the way we like to play.”), many people do

6 Cf. DiPerna, Alan (1997). “Absolutely Foobulous”. Guitar World.

<http://www.fooarchive.com/features/guitarworld.htm>. [5 June, 2009]. 7 Cf. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_rock> [5 June, 2009].

8 Lawson, Dom (July 2008). “Fighting Talk”. Classic Rock.

<http://www.fooarchive.com/features/classicrock08.htm>. [5 June, 2009].

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not want to attach themselves to a particular musical genre, but rather listen to what suits their

taste and needs at one particular moment.

2.3. The Foo Fighters’ lyric work from 1995 to 2007. An Overview

In this chapter I will give a short overview of the Foo Fighters’, i.e. mainly Dave Grohl’s,

lyric work from 1995 to the present, focusing on their singles. The main purpose of this

section is to provide the reader with a general idea of the band’s literary output. A welcome

side effect will be the detection of differences and similarities between the specific songs and

albums. The overall analysis will allow to state whether there are any recurrent themes and

motives throughout the songs. I will work chronologically, starting with the Foo Fighters’

first, self-titled album from 1995, and finishing off with their most recent record, Echoes,

Silence, Patience and Grace, released in 2007.

2.3.1. Foo Fighters9 (debut album, released on July 4

th, 1995)

Having been recorded shortly after the dissolution of Nirvana, the tunes as well as the lyrics

of what is actually a Grohl solo album will strongly remind the listener of that band. It

features several rather depressive songs recalling the grunge era, but also gives room to wary

optimism in others, thus forming something like a transition piece between Nirvana’s grunge

and the Foo Fighters’ lighter alternative rock.

Exhausted (single, released on June 12th

, 1995)

Grohl once said in an interview that "'Exhausted' is kind of a melancholy thing. It's sad but it

makes you feel good, and it fades out in the end, so in a way it continues in your head."10

There is a speaking voice reflecting on a feeling of exhaustion (“Running exhausted and lost”),

passiveness (“What if the day had stayed in bed”) and disorientation (the adjective “lost”

occurs twice, the verb “stray” once). Consisting of three verses without a chorus, the song

suggests an impression of continuity, maybe even of a vicious circle of someone who is

trapped in lethargy and unable to make a positive change to his/her life.

9 Titles of songs and singles are eponymous.

10 Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides”. <http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/selftitled.htm> [9 June, 2009].

- 12 -

This is a Call (single, released on June 19th

, 1995)

The lyrics of “This is a Call” could suggest that even if a situation is comfortable, it might

still be worth to dare a change. For instance, the second stanza says, “Fingernails are pretty /

Fingernails are good / Seems that all they ever wanted was a marking”. Something good can

even get better or more exciting by taking a step forward. This can mean to start a new job as

well as to end an already-dead relationship. Dave Grohl commented on this song by saying,

"The chorus says 'This is a call to all my past resignations.' It's just sort of like a little wave to

all the people I ever played music with, people I've been friends with, all my relationships, my

family. It's a hello, and in a way a thank you."11

I’ll Stick Around (single, released on September 4th

, 1995)

This is the Foo Fighters’ first single that puts a major stress on the communicative situation

between “I” and “You” in its lyrics. The speaker accuses the addressee of “rehearsed insanity”

and of having “ever-desperate plans”. The chorus merely consists of a repetition of the claim

“I don’t owe you anything”, in the end the speaker promises to “stick around”. The lyrics

have often been claimed to be directed to Kurt Cobain’s wife Courtney Love, with whom

Grohl and former band mate Krist Novoselic were quarrelling over royalties and song rights

after Cobain’s death.12

Grohl, however, kept his comments on the song rather general: "It's

just a very negative song about feeling you were violated or deprived."13

For All the Cows (single, released on November 21st, 1995)

In this song, the speaker shifts from references to himself ("I'm called a cow") to addressing a

"You" ("The cow is you"). The most crucial line is probably "It's funny how money allows /

All to browse and be endowed", expressing that money can buy anybody and that for the right

amount of money most people would commit to adapting themselves to what the speaker calls

a herd of cows, cows being animals that have connotations like "stupid" and "lethargic".

Big Me (single, released on March 25th

, 1996)

The poppy tune of "Big Me" has a high catchy-tune quality and lays the ground for light-

hearted, cheerful lyrics to go along with. However, the story hidden between the lines might

most likely be one of unrequited love. The speaker is afraid of revealing his romantic feelings

11

Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides”. <http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/selftitled.htm> [9 June, 2009]. 12

Cf. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%27ll_Stick_Around> [9 June, 2009]. 13

Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides”. <http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/selftitled.htm> [9 June, 2009].

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to his beloved. In the line "Big Me to talk about it / I could stand to prove" he refers to his

onsciousness, stating that he would need more courage to talk to the girl he has fallen in love

with. He is convinced that "if we can get around it / I know that it's true", i.e. that if they can

talk openly about their relationship, they can be together and will have found true love. In the

end, though, the speaker dryly states, "Well I talked about it / Put it on / Never was it true" -

apparently his beloved does not requite his feelings. "But it's you / I fell into" is the defiant

statement that he loves her nonetheless. The video to the song, a parody of the well-known

Mentos advertising campaign, earned the Foo Fighters the MTV Video Music award in the

category "Best Group Video" in 1996, and caused fans to throw mentos drops at Grohl

whenever the band played the song live.14

2.3.2. The Colour and the Shape (album, released on May 20th

, 1997)

The first album having been recorded only by Dave Grohl, The Colour and the Shape was the

Foo Fighters' debut as a band. Grohl is said to have planned it as a concept album, showing

the course of a romantic relationship from the beginning to its end. It is more than likely that

the album has autobiographical traits, since Grohl's first marriage to photographer Jennifer

Youngblood was divorced while The Colour and the Shape was being recorded.15

Monkey Wrench (single, released on April 28th

, 1997)

A monkey wrench is "a wrench with one fixed and one adjustable jaw at right angles to a

straight handle”. 16

The speaker repeatedly addresses a “you”, claiming “Don’t want to be

your monkey wrench”, probably meaning that he has had enough of being abused as someone

else’s tool. The song most likely refers to the end of Grohl’s marriage, considering the rather

straight-forward phrase “Since I was always caged and now I’m free”.

Everlong (single, released on August 18th

, 1997)

This song has attained cult status among Foo Fighters fans. For me personally, it is an

exceptional song that melds rhythm, melody and lyrics in a way that conveys an impression of

time standing still and a need of remaining in this one particular, intense moment for

"everlong". It is certainly worthwhile to dedicate a more in-depth analysis to the lyrics of

"Everlong" in the next chapter. At this point I would like to draw the reader's attention to two

14

Watch the video on <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzPFx_Bii1Q> [11 June, 2009]. 15

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Colour_and_the_Shape> [11 June,2009]. 16

<http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/monkey+wrench> [11 June, 2009].

- 14 -

remarkable videos that seem to be an appropriate starting point to immerse oneself into the

depths of this song and to get a first glimpse of why it has been such an immense success. The

first one is the official video to the song produced by French film director and screenwriter

Michel Gondry, who blurs the limits between dream and reality in the clip.17

The second

video features Dave Grohl's first acoustic performance of "Everlong", which he decided on

doing spontaneously during a live interview on the Howard Stern radio show.18

The acoustic

version has gained enormous popularity ever since and at most concerts the Foo Fighters

would perform "Everlong" starting with Grohl singing and playing on an acoustic guitar and

the rest of the band joining in almost at the end of the song.

My Hero (single, released on January 19th

, 1998)

The lyrics of "My Hero" have often been claimed to be about Kurt Cobain, especially by

Nirvana fans who think Grohl wanted to pay homage to Cobain. They justify their

assumptions by referring to the first line of the lyrics, "Too alarming now to talk about",

meaning that Grohl does not want to talk about Cobain's death. Furthermore, they interpret the

verse "Kudos my hero / Leaving all the best" as signifying "KUrt DOnald's my hero" (Donald

being Cobain's middle name), leaving a legacy of excellent music after his suicide.19

Dave

Grohl was asked about the meaning of the lyrics on several occasions, and once stated:

"That's my way of saying that when I was young, I didn't have big rock heroes, I didn't want

to grow up and be some big sporting hero. My heroes were ordinary people and the people

that I have a lot of respect for are just solid everyday people - people you can rely on."20

This

explanation makes sense especially if one looks only at the chorus lines “There goes my hero

/ He’s ordinary”. Neither of the two approaches should be considered the one and only, even

if one of them is supported by the lyricist himself. Maybe more than any other Foo Fighters

song, the lyrics allow very subjective interpretations, since almost everybody can name role

models or personal “heroes” who have influenced their lives.

Walking After You (single, released on August 17th

, 1998)

"Walking After You" is an unusually quiet, slow and soft song by the Foo Fighters. Its lyrics

are relatively straight-forward, featuring a speaker addressing a lost love, reflecting on how

17

Watch the video on <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llLWtvpPz7A> [12 June, 2009]. 18

Watch the video on <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0X8udBKO7E&feature=related> [12 June, 2009]. 19

This interpretation was posted, among others, by WereOrdinary in a forum discussion on

<http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/2268/3/ASC/#comment> [12 June, 2009]. 20

Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides” <http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/colourandtheshape.htm> [12 June,

2009].

- 15 -

much he misses her and that he is not able to give up on her, to erase her from his life

("Things just won't do without you, matter of fact […] / If you walk out on me, I'm walking

after you"). He also seems to be looking for a reason why the woman he still loves left him,

asking her whether she was missing anything in their relationship (“Weren’t you adored”).

2.3.3. There Is Nothing Left To Lose (album, released on November 2nd

, 1999)

The third Foo Fighters album has been designated their first record “that sounds like the work

of a unified, muscular band, and the first one that rocks really hard”.21

With guitarist Franz

Stahl having left the band prior to the recordings, the three remaining members recorded the

album on their own. The album was awarded the Grammy for Best Rock Album in 2000.22

Learn to Fly (single, released on October 18, 1999)

“Learn to Fly” has become one of the Foo Fighters’ most successful singles. Its lyrics inspired

the title of this thesis and lend themselves to a detailed analysis in the main part. The chorus

phrase “I’m looking to the sky to save me / Looking for a sign of life” summarizes the theme

of the song, which according to Dave Grohl is “the search for some sort of inspiration, the

search for signs of life that will make you feel alive.”23

The overt speaker seems to be longing

for some kind of change or salvation, which he apparently hopes to achieve with the support

of a higher power. If we take a closer look at the lyrics, we might be tempted to imagine

someone who has led a passive, uneventful life up to this moment, a life full of lies and half-

hearted attempts to achieve something meaningful (“Looking ‘cause I’m tired of lying”, in the

following two repetitions of the chorus becomes “Looking ‘cause I’m tired of trying”). It can

also be revealing to consider the word “lying” as a homonymous pun, with the result that it

can mean either “to speak falsely or utter untruth knowingly, as with intent to deceive” or “to

be in a horizontal […] position, as on a bed or the ground.” 24

This reflects the speaker being

unhappy with his dishonesty as well as with his lethargy and inability of changing his life.

The video the Foo Fighters produced for this song won the Grammy Award for Best Short

Form Music Video in 2001. As usual, the video has little to do with the deeper meaning of the

song itself, but parodies a movie called “Airplane!”. Two airline mechanics hide a drug called

"World Domination brand 'Erotic' Sleeping Powder" in the coffee maker, which causes most

21

Bogdanov, Vladimir, Chris Woodstra, and Stephen Thomas Erlewine. All Music Guide to Rock: The Definitive

Guide to Rock, Pop and Soul / Rock. 3.ed., repr. All Music Guide. San Francisco, CA: Blackbeat Books, 2006. 22

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There_Is_Nothing_Left_to_Lose> [26 June, 2009]. 23

Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides”. <http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/tnltl.htm> [15 June, 2009]. 24

<http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/lie> [16 June, 2009].

- 16 -

of the passengers and the crew to get high. The Foo Fighters, who play themselves and

numerous other roles in the video, have not drunk any coffee and manage to land the plane.25

Stacked Actors (single, released on January 17, 2000)

The song “Stacked Actors” was only released as a single in Australia, even though it was also

played on radio stations in the US.26

Dave Grohl commented on the lyrics in an interview,

saying that “’Stacked Actors’ is a response to living in Hollywood for about a year and a half,

and my disdain and disgust of everything plastic and phony, which is the foundation of that

city. And I just hated it. I had a lot of fun, but I had a lot of fun hating it.” Grohl’s contempt

for Hollywood’s superficiality clearly comes across in the lyrics. The “I-you” level at the

beginning actually seems to contain two distinct speaking voices, one belonging to a

superficial Hollywood celebrity (speaker 1), the other one criticising the former’s shallowness

(speaker 2). With the line “Oh mirror mirror, you’re coming in clear”, speaker 1 alludes to the

fairy tale “Snow White” by the Brothers Grimm, in which the vain queen addresses a magic

mirror, wanting it to tell her she is the fairest of all. “I’m finally somewhere in between”

could be the words of someone who has made it to the elect group of the rich and beautiful of

Hollywood. Speaker 2 then takes over and criticizes speaker 1, asking him/her that “we all

should come clean.” The chorus, lyrically as well as musically, sounds like an angry

accusation against a society that puts being beautiful and popular over being themselves.

“Stack dead actors, stacked to the rafters / Line up the bastards all I want is the truth” – those

verses are a powerful outcry claiming that many actors are dead inside and could be stacked

like pieces of wood, since they are so alike in their looks and behavior that their personalities

do not show any rough edges and can thus be exchanged arbitrarily.

Generator (single, only released in Europe [March 6, 2000], and Australia [April 24, 2000])

In “Generator”, a speaking voice reflects on a relationship, probably one of romantic nature,

with someone he directs his thoughts to. The image of a strong one-sided dependence is given

with the speaker telling his beloved “Wish I could stay sick with you / But there’s too many

egos left to bruise”. He is aware that she does not do him any good, that the relationship

makes him “sick”, but still he wants to be with her. However, she seems to have left him for

someone else and he foresees that she will destroy his ego the same way she has already done

so many times. “Steal me now and forever” could be the speaker’s confession that his lover

25

Source: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learn_to_Fly> [16 June, 2009]. The excellent video can be watched on

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdX-RX5IHAU> [16 June, 2009]. 26

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stacked_Actors> [16 June, 2009].

- 17 -

only takes advantage of him, but that he is willing to bear it because of his feelings for her. In

the third verse he promises her “I’ll hang around with you, till you find someone better”,

readily accepting that she is only abusing him until someone better comes along. The chorus

contains the interesting metaphor of a generator: “I’m the generator, firing whenever you quit

/ Yeah whatever it is, you go out and it’s on”. The speaker compares himself to a generator,

the tertium comparationis being the energy that is produced by both, even though it is two

different kinds of energy. Whenever his beloved is in troubles, the speaker promises, he will

be there to help her. Regardless of all the times she has “bruised his ego”, he is still willing

and able to forgive her and uses all his strength to make her feel better.

Breakout (single, released on September 18, 2000)

The lyrics to this song can be read in two different ways. First, it sounds as if the speaker was

so outraged about someone that he would like to break out and scream out his anger, even

though he feels embarrassed about losing his temper (“You know you make me break out”

[…] “I don’t wanna look like that”). Second, the verb “break out” can also be read in a

medical way - someone can break out in spots or in a rash. Surprisingly, Dave Grohl has

referred to the second meaning on several occasions when performing the song and once said

in an interview, “'Breakout' started off almost as a joke, just a play on the word and taking the

piss out of your typical tortured romance love story. It's supposed to seem kinda ridiculous

because I can't imagine anyone wanting to break off a relationship just because they have

acne, y'know?”27

If read literally, the lyrics get a funny, ironic quality. The speaker complains

that the addressee annoys him so much that he causes him spots, and that he does not want to

look like that (cf. the verses quoted above). Further, the lines “You can see this on my face /

It’s all for you” do not refer to a facial expression of anger like in the first interpretation, but

to the pimples in the speaker’s face. It is an unusual theme for a song, but it fits into the Foo

Fighters’ efforts not to take the music business and themselves too seriously.

Next Year (single, released on December 4, 2000)

Reading only the lyrics of this song, it is rather obvious that the speaker is supposed to leave

home for a long period of time. He addresses someone dear to him and tells them he will “be

coming home next year”. Taken literally, the speaking voice could belong to a pilot or

astronaut (“I’m in the sky tonight”, “Into the sun we climb”). Additional shades of meaning,

27

Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides”. <http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/tnltl.htm> [17 June, 2009].

- 18 -

however, can be discovered if one watches the official video to the song.28

It blends scenes of

the Foo Fighters as Apollo 11 astronauts in space with sequences of Vietnam War protests. In

combination with the video, many of the song’s verse lines gain a whole new meaning, such

as “Into the sun we climb / climbing our wings will burn bright”. In context with the video, it

expresses that the US wanted to distinguish themselves as the greatest world power in the

1960s, to literally climb higher and higher with the ambition to reach the sun. The warning

follows suit as a reference to Icarus from Greek mythology who tried to fly near the sun, even

though his father had warned him not to, and crashed down as his wings melted. The US’s

flight of fancy faced a dampener in the Vietnam War, when they had to accept ten thousands

of casualties after their interference. Another aspect is added in a forum discussion on the

Internet, where one user comments that for him/her the song is “about the use of the space

race to cloud the events that were shaking America at the time, namely Vietnam. ‘Living with

our heads underground’ - ignoring what's really important.”29

The above-mentioned and

quoted approaches can hardly be detected if one looks exclusively at the lyrics, however, they

seem to make much sense if we take the cross-media aspect into consideration.

2.3.4. One by One (album, released on October 22, 2002)

The Foo Fighters’ fourth studio album was rewarded the Grammy for Best Rock Album in

2004. However, Grohl has repeatedly declared that he is not satisfied with the record. "Four of

the songs were good, and the other seven I never played again in my life. We rushed into it,

and we rushed out of it."30

All My Life (single, released on October 7, 2002)

Having read a large number of comments in forum discussions on the Internet, I found it

interesting to see the different interpretative approaches to this song that users have come up

with. Numerous people have claimed the lyrics are about Kurt Cobain’s death, others think

they deal with drug addiction. Still others, actually the majority, believe to see a description of

a cunnilingus experience in the song, probably because Grohl confirmed that meaning of the

lyrics in an interview.31

From my point of view, though, the lyrics of “All My Life” contain

what many of the Foo Fighters’ songs seem to be about, namely the quest for a sign of life

28

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_vdBucj5nM> [17 June, 2009]. 29

This comment was posted by turtonhot on 22 May, 2002, in a forum discussion on

<http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/2281/#comment> [17 June, 2009]. 30

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_by_One> [18 June, 2009]. 31

<http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/3458764513820557895/2/ASC/#comment> ff. [18 June, 2009].

- 19 -

that is mentioned in the title and introduction of this thesis. “All my life I’ve been searching

for somethin’ / Somethin’ never comes, never leads to nothin’”. Those verses feature a

speaker who is looking for something special that will lead him to appreciate the meaning of

his life. However, this “somethin’” never comes, or if he considers himself having found

something or someone special, they do not meet his expectations in the end, they “never

lead[s] to nothin’”. “Nothin’ satisfies” him, but he is “getting close / Closer to the prize at the

end of the rope.” The metaphor in this line is ambiguous, but one way of reading it is that the

rope stands for life and the prize at the end of it for the knowledge we hope to gain when we

die, the final certainty of what happens or if anything happens at all after death. When the

speaker tells an implied listener in the chorus “Hey, don’t let it go to waste”, he could also be

talking about life, stating that he still considers it worth living. “I love it but I hate the taste” –

he loves life but cannot fully enjoy that feeling because something is missing and he hates the

emptiness that is spreading inside of him.

Times Like These (single, released on January 6, 2003)

“Times Like These” is a song full of optimism and energy, which was probably the reason for

George W. Bush to use it in his re-election campaign (cf. chapter 2.1 for a complete version

of that anecdote). Its lyrics seem promising enough to dedicate to them an in-depth analysis in

the main part. Therefore, I will merely provide a short interpretation at this point. “Times Like

These” features a speaker who compares himself to a number of things and concepts without

further explaining why he identifies himself with them. He is “a one-way motorway”, “a road

that drives away and follows you back home”, “a street light” and “a white light”. All the

metaphors from the first verse can be assigned to the semantic field of “traffic”. A one-way

motorway’s distinctive quality is that once you drive on it you cannot turn back easily unless

there is an exit. It does not offer two directions to choose from, but is there for those who

have already decided where they want to go. The speaker sounds self-confident, as if he had

made a choice or decided on a goal in life that he is determined to reach without looking back.

In the second verse, he identifies with a “new day rising” and a “brand new sky”. The dawn

symbolizing a fresh start, the speaker is full of confidence and energy that will make him stay

positive and follow his dream, even though he admits being “a little divided” and having

doubts about whether he should “stay or run away and leave it all behind”. The chorus,

eventually, is a summing-up of everything the speaker feels he has learned from new

challenges that might have made him want to run away in the first place, but that taught him a

- 20 -

lot about life when he faced them. In times like these, he ponders, you learn to live, give and

love again.

Low (single, released on June 23, 2003)

The lyrics of “Low” refer, implicitly as well as explicitly, to a romantic relationship that is

based on physical contact more than on anything else. The communication takes place on a

personal I-you level, with the speaker suggesting to the addressee to “use one another”. There

is no reference whatsoever to faithfulness or mutual interest in the respective partner’s

personality. Instead, it is stated very explicitly that the relationship is of ephemeral quality

when the speaker tells his partner “You’ll be my passerby” and “I’ll be your new one to pass

through”. Within the given context “Screws inside turn so tight”, the most probable meaning

of “screw” is the colloquial one, “to make love”. “Turning on you / I’m hanging on you”

renders the tone even more aggressive. “To turn on someone” means to attack them on the

one hand, while “hanging on you” implies some kind of obsession with the other person. The

love or sympathy between the speaker and the addressee has a dark, even violent character. In

this light, the lines “Don’t go nowhere / I’m right beside you” take a shift in meaning from the

typical romantic promise “Don’t be afraid, I’ll stand by you” to a threat that expresses “Don’t

try to leave me now, I’ll keep you from running away”. It is only at the very end of the song

that the speaker mentions its title. The line “Taking you as low as you go” is repeated several

times, stressing that he is aware of abusing her and not paying her any respect, but he can only

do so because she accepts it and pays him back with the same means.

Have It All (single, released on September 22, 2003)

This song shares the overall theme “abuse” with the above-discussed “Low”. However, “Have

It All” describes an entirely different kind of abuse. Whereas “Low” focuses on the physical

level, the speaker of this song appears to be affected by emotional abuse. “She drains me /

When I’m empty / She fills herself / She takes it all” are his descriptions of how his beloved

asks too much of him, thus taking away all his energy and self-confidence. She is “everything

I’m [i.e. he is] not” and he is “anyone you want [i.e. she wants]”, which results in a mismatch

that the speaker wants to compensate by trying to be someone else. Another comparative

aspect that should be mentioned is that in “Low” the abuse is mutual and agreed upon by both

parties, while in “Have It All” it is only the speaker who is getting abused. He is torn between

his love for his partner and the realization that she does not do him any good. The line

“[You’re] Someone in between the right and wrong” shows that he cannot decide whether he

- 21 -

should end the relationship or give in to her in complete surrender. He says that he has “had

enough”, but in the chorus encourages her to “go on and have it all”.

2.3.5. In Your Honor (album, released on June 14, 2005)

A monumental work of two discs, one aggressive rock record and one with acoustic tracks, In

Your Honor is the album the Foo Fighters would like to be remembered for. “It will surprise

you. It surprises me...it is by far the most ambitious project I have ever had anything to do

with in my entire life”, Dave Grohl said about the record.32

The acoustic disc features softer

tunes than the rock disc as well as numerous special guests, e.g. Norah Jones, Josh Homme of

Queens of the Stone Age and John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin.

Best Of You (single, released on May 30, 2005)

“Best Of You” has become, beside “Everlong”, the Foo Fighters hymn par excellence. Its

lyrics are, according to Grohl, “supposed to inspire strength or hope within some sort of

struggle, whether it’s struggle in love, or struggle in life… It’s supposed to represent that

feeling of breaking through and… of coming out okay.”33

A detailed interpretation of the

lyrics will be provided in chapter seven; at this stage I will present some general reflections

on the meaning of the song. The lyrics are strongly reminiscent of confessional poetry, where

an author uses the speaker of a poem as a medium to give away details of his/her life, often

related to a situation of personal crisis. This assumption is raised by the speaker’s explicit

statement in the first line of the song, “I’ve got another confession to make / I’m your fool”.

He immediately takes the discourse to a universal level by generalizing his own situation and,

in a next step, personalizing it again, this time addressing an implied listener: “Everyone’s got

their chains to break” […] “Were you born to resist or be abused?” The rest of the verses

further elaborate on the dichotomy of being abused and standing up to resist and break free,

with images that I will go into detail about later. In the chorus, the speaker asks the same

question over and over again: “Is someone getting the best of you?” It is left open to

interpretation whether the speaker considers the situation of someone getting the best of

him/you desirable. It could mean that someone is at ease with him/herself to such an extent

that he/she can share their best qualities with someone else. However, it can as well imply that

32

<http://www.sonybmg.com.au/cd/releaseDetails.do?catalogueNo=82876696232> [23 June, 2009]. 33

“MTV Making the Video” on <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPuATqBtpyw> [24 June, 2009].

- 22 -

someone depends on another person who abuses them and takes “the best” of this person for

their own advantage.

DOA (single, released on September 5, 2005)

“DOA” addresses, in a very straightforward way, a theme that is usually a taboo in music or

at least dealt with rather implicitly and with tentative language. The abbreviation “DOA” in

the title stands for the medical term “dead on arrival”.34

The use of that term in the title of the

song is striking, considering the fact that even in everyday language we try to avoid talking

about the inevitable and rather use euphemisms like “pass away” instead of “die”. The lyrics

keep the title’s promise – death is discussed by a speaker in direct, sometimes even sarcastic

words. He addresses a “you”, whom he calls “girl” and “dear”. In the second verse, the

speaker uses a metaphor to describe his perception of life and death – “I went down and I fell,

I fell so fast / Dropping like the grains in an hourglass”. He feels like a grain of sand in an

hourglass, pointing out the insignificance of an individual in the universe and the limited time

span each one of us has at their disposal. He once more reminds the addressee of life’s

ephemeral quality (“Never say forever ‘cause nothing lasts”) before shifting to a macabre tone

– “Dancing with the bones of my buried past”. The chorus has, despite of its somber theme, a

somewhat comical character. “It’s a shame we have to die my dear / No one’s getting out of

here alive”. The expression “It’s a shame” is far too weak for someone who is really

concerned about death – “dreadful”, “appalling” or “terrible” would be more appropriate

choices. The speaker, however, maintains a carefree attitude towards death, his words being

complemented by the happy-go-lucky melody of the chorus. By the end of the song, the

letters “DOA” from the title are mentioned for the first time. The speaker is saying that we are

all “dead on arrival”, i.e. that the moment we are born our lives gain a finite nature we should

face and accept instead of trying to avoid. All in all, we can observe a development towards

more daring themes in “DOA”.

Resolve (single, released on November 21, 2005)

“Resolve” features a speaker who most likely contemplates the death of someone dear to him.

An everyday detail that he does not specify reminds him of his friend or beloved –

“Something that I felt today, something that I heard” […] “I remember watchin’ you, once

upon a time”. It seems like an eternity that she has been gone, as if they had known each other

“in another life”. The chorus expresses the speaker’s need to move on (“A little bit of resolve

34

Cf. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DOA_(song)> [24 June, 2009].

- 23 -

is what I need now”) and he asks the beloved who is still on his mind for help (“Show me

how”). It has “never seemed so hard” for him to find his way, to take a positive outlook on the

future. However, he has made peace with the past. He “would never change a thing” and “all

the songs we [they] used to sing, everything was good”. He has realized that he even if he

could change bad memories to the better, he would not do it, since they make the picture of

their relationship complete. At the end of the song, the inevitable question related to death

comes up – “One more year that you’re not here has gone and passed you by / What happened

to you?” The friend’s death is still on the speaker’s mind, showing that the process of coping

with his grief is not finished yet. Considering the lyrics of “DOA” and “Resolve”, we can

speculate that death might be a recurring theme in the Foo Fighters’ lyrics.

No Way Back (single, released on March 13, 2006)

The lyrics of “No Way Back” feature a speaker who reflects on a new love. He warns himself

and his beloved that “there is no way back from here”, meaning that if they start a serious

relationship, they take the risk of getting hurt in the long run. However, he proceeds by telling

her “But I don’t care”. He has a carpe diem attitude towards life and wants so seize every

moment. Both the speaker and the addressee have been contemplating whether they feel ready

for a relationship, putting off the decision. Those thoughts, however, affect the speaker:

“Lately, I’ve been / Livin’ in my head / The rest of me is dead / I’m dying for truth”. He

yearns for clearing the air and finally acting out his feelings. After too much reasoning, he

feels completely head-ruled and is eager to make a decision that will lead him back to real life.

As in the two above-discussed songs, the fundamental topic of life and death can be observed

in the lyrics of “No Way Back”.

Miracle (single, released on September 18, 2006)

“Miracle” is most likely about a parent who feels enchanted by his new-born child. The

speaker talks about a “blessing in disguise”. It is a spiritual experience for him to look at his

baby, he considers himself blessed and lucky. “Dying behind these tired eyes / I’ve been

losing sleep” could simply be a direct reference to how parents usually do not get a lot of

sleep during the first months after their child is born. In the chorus the speaker expresses his

amazement when he holds the baby in his arms – “I’ve got my hands on a miracle”. Looking

at her makes him ponder. He thinks about what he has already gone through in life

(“Everything that we survived”), feeling that all his problems become pointless now that he

has to care for his child (“It’s gonna be alright / Just lucky we’re alive”). The moment he

- 24 -

shares with her is precious and makes him grasp the meaning of the Big Picture. He admits

that up to now he “has been blind” for what really matters. He has been “searching

everywhere” for a purpose in life, and now it is “right here in my [his] sights”.

2.3.6. Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace (album, released on September 25, 2007)

The Foo Fighters’ latest album to date, Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace, was awarded the

Grammy for Best Rock Album in 2008. It was the last album before the band announced they

were going to take a break of undetermined length from recording and performing.

The Pretender (single, released on September 17, 2007)

“The Pretender” might be the most political Foo Fighters song. It is an outcry against

manipulation of the masses by the powerful and against conformism on the part of individuals.

The intro shows an interesting ambiguity. “Keep you in the dark / You know they all pretend”

– either the personal pronoun “they” has been left out, which would trigger the image of a

government or a dictator trying to keep their people “in the dark”, i.e. ignorant, in order to

pursue their interests. They pretend to care for their followers when all they actually do is to

seek for even more power just for the sake of it. A second way of reading the intro is that the

full phrase is supposed to be “Keep yourself in the dark”, meaning that people prefer to live in

comfortable ignorance rather than stand up to protest against an unjust regime, followed by

the implicit appeal that “you know they all pretend [so get up and do something about it]”. In

a sarcastic call to “send in your skeletons” the speaker reminds a group of individuals that by

accepting oppression they become passive supporters for those in power and can be used as

their puppets. “They need you buried deep” – the less a people knows and cares, the better for

a government. The speaker then goes on to declare that he is “finished making sense / Done

pleading ignorance” and warns a directly addressed “you” in the chorus. He accuses the

addressee of being “the pretender” and warns him/her that he is “not like the others”, “not just

another one of your plays”, and “will never surrender”. At the end of the song, he addresses

the ignorant masses again, provoking them by confronting them with the question “So who

are you?” – pretenders or protesters.

Long Road to Ruin (single, released on December 3, 2007)

“Long Road to Ruin” can also be understood in terms of a political background. Since the end

of George Bush’s second term was coming to an end at the single’s release, the song has been

- 25 -

read as an open letter to the president by some people. “One flag was taken down / To raise

another in its place” is, according to this interpretation, a metaphor for the takeover of a new

president. The speaker reminds the president that it is “a heavy cross you bear” and that “a

stubborn heart remains unchanged”, referring to Bush never having admitted that it was a

mistake to invade Iraq.35

The bridge changes to a more optimistic tone – the lines “But maybe

the season / The colors change in the valley skies” express the hope for a change to the

positive in politics, the colors changing from red to blue as the Republicans’ and the

Democrats’ colors respectively.

Cheer Up, Boys (Your Make Up is Running) (single, released April 7, 2008 in UK only)

What is most remarkable about this song is the title which does not seem to relate to the rest

of the lyrics. It has been claimed that with the title Grohl has a dig at emo culture, asking

them to break with their melancholic attitude towards life and reminding them that their

“make up is running”, a reference to male emoes who put on make up. There have been

attempts to interpret the lyrics according to the title, however, the verses and chorus are rather

about a broken relationship than about a certain group of people. Grohl said in a 2007

interview that “it was a working title that stuck”, implying that the lyrics were written with no

reference whatsoever to emo culture.36

Let It Die (single, released on June 24, 2008)

“Let It Die” features a speaker who bemoans a broken relationship or friendship. He directs

his voice to an addressee, asking him/her why he/she had “to go and let it die”. One cannot

help but think of the addressee as a drug addict who has destroyed himself as well as all the

interpersonal relationships in his life. There are numerous straightforward signs indicating

that. For instance, the lines “Beautiful veins and bloodshot eyes”, as well as “Intravenous”

refer to heroin abuse. “I’ve seen your face in another light” is the speaker’s awareness of his

friend having a completely different personality when under drug influence. “Heart’s gone

cold and hands are tied” can refer either to the addressee, who has become passive and

indifferent because of his addiction, or to the speaker himself, who has come to accept that he

cannot save his friend from ruining himself.

35

User theirony came up with this approach on 14 May, 2008 in a discussion on

<http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/3530822107858684649/#comment> [25 June, 2009]. 36

Anon. (August 2007) “This is our best Record in Years”. Kerrang.

<http://www.fooarchive.com/gpb/kerrangaug07.htm> [29 June, 2009].

- 26 -

The present overview of the Foo Fighters’ work shows that there seem to be a number of

recurring themes in their lyrics, the most conspicuous of which are emotional and physical

abuse, individualism, depression, unrequited love, and death. In the following chapters I will

analyse six selected songs with a focus on their themes, but also discussing their

communicative levels and their rhetorical devices.

- 27 -

3. “Everlong” – Yearning for a Perfect Moment

With “Everlong” I have probably chosen the Foo Fighters’ most powerful song to begin my

in-depth analysis with. Over the years, it has distinguished itself among all the other singles to

attain cult status, resulting in a high sing-along quality at concerts. The Foo Fighters have

ever since responded gratefully to their fans’ appreciation for “Everlong” by making it part of

almost every live concert’s set list. How can one single piece of music, barely four minutes

long, be the object of collective enthusiasm for millions of people? To answer that question it

is inevitable to take a close look at its lyrics. Even though the tune is crucial to the way a song

is perceived, it is the lyrics that make it stick in your head and reflect on it. I will structure my

analysis using the criteria established by Werner Faulstich in 1978, since they appear to be

most helpful and of utmost validity even thirty years after their publication.37

In order to approach some lyrics’ deeper layers of meaning, it appears convenient to start off

by exploring their themes and motives. The theme of a song is an abstract concept such as

love, protest, happiness, nature or society. It is important to consider that determining the

theme often implies some interpretation already, as what is said in the title or refrain can

differ greatly from the actual theme (cf. Faulstich 1978:71). This is certainly true for

“Everlong”, where the overall theme seems to be love, but not just in the traditional way with

a speaker addressing his beloved and praising her beauty or bemoaning the end of their

relationship. The concept of love, as I will try to show in this chapter, is treated here in a

much deeper way and is approached from different angles. A motive is, according to Faulstich

(ibid.), “eine spezifische Formung eines Themenbereichs, z.B. aus dem Themenbereich

‚Liebe’ das Motiv ‚Trennung’. Das Motiv ist stets eine Situation, die häufig zwar typisch ist,

aber doch immer konkret.“ The motive as a specific category of a theme will be relevant to

my interpretation of „Everlong“, as there are several motives that point to the same theme in

the song. Another aspect that will be crucial to the analysis not only of “Everlong”, but of all

the songs I will deal with in the following chapters, is the communicative situation that

underlies the lyrics. Faulstich (1978:81f.) states that a pop song always has to be regarded in

terms of a communicative situation, the basic question being “Who speaks to whom?”. The

most typical “Redesituation” in pop lyrics takes place between a speaking “I” and a “you”,

and is closely related to the most common lyric characters in the realms of music, namely a

man addressing his beloved. However, there are also more complex communicative situations,

37

See Faulstich’s book Rock – Pop – Beat – Folk. Grundlagen der Textmusik-Analyse.

- 28 -

e.g. when the speaker directly addresses the listener by referring to his beloved, or when there

are one or several speakers. Applying Faulstich’s terms and categories, I will find out whether

there is just one or more than one speakers in “Everlong”, who is directly or indirectly

addressed by the speaker and in what constellation the speakers, if more than one, appear in

the lyrics. In addition to themes, motives and communicative situation, a great deal of

attention will be paid to how certain effects and impressions are achieved in the song.

Rhetorical figures and images determine the communicative situation to a great extent (cf.

Faulstich 1978:82f.). Devices such as metaphors, symbols, repetitions and parallelisms will be

traced and investigated with regard to the effects they trigger.

3.1. Physical Union, Mental Connection and The Perfect Moment

The theme of “Everlong” is most probably love, but in a much broader and ambiguous sense

than the usual romantic relationship that is addressed in most pop and rock songs. At first

glance, one cannot help but associate the lyrics with sexual connotations. The speaker greets

his beloved with the phrase “Hello, I’ve waited here for you / Everlong”. The neologism that

forms the title occurs right at the beginning of the song. Although the term “everlong” cannot

be found in dictionaries, its meaning is rather obvious, especially if we consider the lyrics as a

context. It seems to me that “everlong” denotes something that lasts forever, with an

additional focus on the subjective length of that infinite time-span. The underlying word

formation process is simple – “forever” was clipped to become “ever” and joined with “long”

by compounding to form a new term. Coming back to the actual lyrics, the speaker feels as if

he had been waiting forever to see his mistress again. This is a common feature in literature

and a phenomenon that every person who has ever been in love is able to relate to – the strong

urge to be with someone and the impression of time passing by far too slowly when he/she is

not around. The first hint at a sexual encounter is to be found in the third line of the first verse

– “Tonight I throw myself into”. As an idiom, “to throw oneself into something” means “to

engage in [it] with great vigor”38

. The situation that is evoked in the listener’s mind is one of

two lovers who have not seen each other for a while and are now eager to be together. The

speaker tells his beloved that he is determined to please her whatever it may take, that he is

aware of this particular night being special and that he is ready to live for the moment. Then

the female addressee takes over the active part – “And out of the red, out of her head she

38

<http://www.yourdictionary.com/throw> [7 July, 2009].

- 29 -

sang”. It is ambiguous what “out of the red” means in this context. Usually “to get out of the

red” is a financial expression signifying “to get out of debt”, but it is highly unlikely that this

definition applies to the present lyrics. I rather think that Grohl wanted to create a certain

atmosphere and therefore chose the color red with its major connotations “love”, “passion”

and “lust”. A shade of madness is added to that atmosphere, since “out of one’s head” has the

same meaning as “out of one’s mind”. We do not learn what the beloved sings. Instead, the

syllables “Do do do do do do dodo do” are used as a filler, which might be a mere way of

concluding the first verse, but could also be seen as a continuation of what “she sang”. Lovers

often speak to each other using tender, sometimes even childlike words and intonation, a fact

that supports that thought.

The second verse starts off with the speaker inviting his addressee to “come down and waste

away with me / Down with me”. Interestingly enough, he uses a verb that is connoted

negatively. Someone who is wasting away is losing his vitality, thus the use of that verb forms

a sharp contrast with the energetic promise “Tonight, I throw myself into” from the first verse.

The wish to waste away perhaps suggests that the characters of the song intend to spend their

night under the influence of drugs. That deliberate escape into an apparently better world can

be frequently found in grunge lyrics, as Georg Petz confirms in his reflections on the drug

theme in Grunge Rock.

Welche Interpretation bezüglich der Verwendung der Drogenthematik in den Texten des

Grunge Rock darf damit am Ende stehen bleiben? Alles in allem scheint der Drogenkonsum

[…] eine Hilfestellung zur […] Flucht aus der Gesellschaft zu leisten, zum Rückzug ins Innere

und ins Intime, Kleine. (Petz 2003:119)

In the above-mentioned line, there is an interplay between the lyrics and the melody that

deserves to be mentioned, as it reinforces the statement made by the speaker. The words

“Down with me” are sung with three successive falling whole steps, probably a conscious

move by songwriter Dave Grohl that perfectly melds words and tune together. Apart from the

reference to drugs, the line again contains a sexual offer – the speaker wants his beloved to

“come down” with him, to lie down and give herself to him. That reading of the line makes

sense especially if regarded in context with the next one. “Slow how you wanted it to be” is a

very explicit allusion to sexual intercourse in the course of which one of the partners asks the

other to slow down the pace of the act. The speaker is stunned by the way he and his love

connect. The emotions that take possession of him when she is present are beyond his

comprehension, he feels like “I’m over my head”, which means that it is something “more

- 30 -

complex and confusing than one can understand”.39

If we take the lyrics as a hymn to sexual

unification, the chorus constitutes the peak of the speaker’s reflections. He asks himself

whether “When I sing along with you / If everything could ever feel this real forever / If

anything could ever be this good again”. By using the verb “to sing along”, the speaker does

not necessarily mean what he says. It can as well be an image for the sexual union between

him and the addressee, suggesting the harmony they both feel when they are making love.

Those lines also show a strong desire to remain in that particular moment of perfection

forever. Since it feels unlike anything the speaker has experienced before, he cannot imagine

that this moment will ever be outdone by another. In the last lines of the chorus, the speaker

makes a fairly obscure declaration – “The only thing I’ll ever ask of you / You got to promise

not to stop when I say when / She sang”. It is not clear whether the second “when” belongs to

the second or third line of the quotation. Either way, it does not seem to make much sense and

is probably rather used as a filler. Regardless of this, the speaker wants to make his beloved

promise that she will not stop carrying out a not further defined action even if he tells her so.

This might sound awkward, but it can be explained by him being fascinated by and at the

same time scared of the special connection the two of them share. He is afraid that he might

run away if their relationship gets more and more serious, and he is warning her now that in

case he should tell her to give up on him it will just be a self-protective mechanism, not

because his love for her has vanished. The second verse starts with a line that for me

constitutes one of the most beautiful and lyric ones Grohl has ever written. The speaker’s

“Breathe out so I can breathe you in” is a declaration of love and a confession of finding his

beloved sexually extremely attractive. He wants to “hold you [her] in”, i.e. to absorb her looks,

her voice, and – with regard to the preceding line – especially her smell, in order to forever

keep that perfect impression. At the end of the verse, the speaker tells his addressee that he

now knows she has “always been out of your [her] head”. Again, this is an unconventional

declaration of love. In a usual context, you would only accuse someone of being crazy if you

were either kidding or if you wanted to insult them. In this case, however, I think the speaker

is telling his addressee that he accepts and loves her with all her faults and little idiosyncrasies.

He then goes on to admit his own craziness – “Out of my head I sang”, although that phrase

could as well mean that they are both crazy about each other and therefore feeling as if they

were out of their minds.

39

<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/over_one%27s_head> [7 July, 2009].

- 31 -

Apart from the sexual reading of the lyrics, I would also like to suggest another way of

approaching “Everlong”. Even though there are very explicit references to sexual union

throughout the song, it could also be understood in terms of love on a mental level. The

connection between the two lovers is so strong that they desperately want to be together, but

they desire sharing their thoughts more than physical contact. In that light, the lovers’ singing

could merely mean talking to each other, their conversations being passionate (“out of the

red”) and reaching a depth that leads them to almost losing their minds (“I’m over my head”,

“out of her/my head”). The speaker wonders whether any of his potential future relationships

can ever “feel this real forever”, since now that he “sing[s] along with you [her]”, i.e. is

talking to her, he feels something that goes far beyond the ephemeral pleasure of sexual

contact. To know he connects with her makes him wish that moment of union would never

end, which is why he tries to capture it by begging her “not to stop”. He wants to take in every

word she says and is literally hanging on her lips – the line “Breathe out so I can breathe you

in” appears in a whole new light if read like that.

There is no way or justification of telling which of those two approaches is more valid or

convincing. Without any doubt, there are more signs pointing to the sexual reading of the

lyrics, but the mental level can be seen if we read between the lines, focusing on the more

implicit allusions. It might as well be a combination of the two levels, mental and physical,

that the speaker is talking about. Although Dave Grohl has always been careful not to give

away the intended meaning of his lyrics in order to leave room for personal interpretation, he

told Kerrang! in a 2006 interview what his take on “Everlong” was. “That song's about a girl

that I'd fallen in love with and it was basically about being connected to someone so much,

that not only do you love them physically and spiritually, but when you sing along with them

you harmonise perfectly”.40

If “Everlong” is about the feeling of union with a special person,

it is also a deep reflection on the beauty of a particular moment. The emotions that are

conveyed through the lyrics are a mixture of bliss and fear – this moment is perfect but will

“anything […] ever be this good again?” The speaker has been waiting for this instant for

what seems like an eternity, and he points out the unfairness of his own senses. He wants to

be able to control his perception of time and thus make all the chronological units go by

quickly, but then seemingly remain in one perfect moment for “everlong”.

40

Morat (June 2006). “How To Write A Rock Anthem”

<http://www.fooarchive.com/features/kerrangjune06.htm> [9 July, 2009].

- 32 -

3.2. Singing along with the Audience

The communicative situation of “Everlong” is a special one and can, from my point of view,

be regarded on three levels.41

Firstly, there is the traditional “I-you” level, by means of which

a speaker directs his voice to an addressee, in this case most likely a female one. Secondly,

the communication takes place between an “I” and an implied listener, whom the speaker

addresses with reference to a nameless “she”. Thirdly and most interestingly, the

communication even goes beyond the limits of the mere text and works on a whole new level

that happens between the performer of the song and his audience. This cross-media aspect has

to be mentioned since it is most likely one of the reasons why “Everlong” never fails to have

its special effect on the audience at Foo Fighters live shows. In the following, the three levels

and the way they interact will be discussed in detail.

When the speaker starts off with his reflections, it is most likely that he is greeting his beloved

with the words “Hello, I’ve waited here for you”. Hence, the communication would be

working on level 1, the most obvious one. However, at a live concert the dynamics change

completely. When Dave Grohl performs “Everlong” on stage, the audience sees him assuming

the role of the song’s speaker. In literary studies, it is of course potentially problematic to

claim that a poet is at the same time the speaker of his own work, just as the author of a novel

cannot qualify as its narrator, even though they might share important traits. However, when

dealing with rock lyrics or rather lyrics in general, the aspect of performance should always

be taken into account. If Dave Grohl writes a song on a speaker’s very personal thoughts and

feelings, if he records and sells that song so that millions of people can listen to his voice

reciting the lyrics, and if he steps in front of thousands of people at a show to sing it to them,

then the audience inevitably associates Grohl with the speaking voice of the song. At live

concerts, he can give “Everlong” a whole new vitality by interacting with the audience and

thereby making them feel as if he was directing his words to each and every one of them. The

listeners can indulge in those passionate words and take Dave Grohl at his word when he

sings “Tonight, I throw myself into” as a promise to offer them a show that will exceed their

expectations. If level 3 contains the direct communication between Grohl as a speaker and his

audience as addressees, level 2 features a first person voice relating something that “she” does.

It is not further specified who “she” is, but as listeners we would conclude that she who sang

“out of the red” and “out of her head” is the same person as the “you” in the first line.

41

Over the following pages, I will refer to the levels that have just been introduced by naming them level 1, level

2 and level 3, respectively.

- 33 -

Throughout the rest of the song, level 2 reoccurs at the end of every verse and chorus, with

the exception of the third verse, where the speaker says “I sang” instead of “she sang”, and the

last chorus. Level 2, in any case, is the least prevailing and consistently realized

communicative level of the song. The greater part of the lyrics can be read either as a speaker

addressing the woman he loves, or as Dave Grohl addressing his audience. Since level 1 was

already discussed in detail in chapter 3.1, I will focus on level 3 at this point. After having

greeted the audience and promised them an unforgettable show in the first verse, Grohl asks

his fans to “come down and waste away with me [him]”. Especially some female heterosexual

and male homosexual fans who feel attracted to Grohl might experience that line as an

invitation and construct a vivid erotic imagery in their heads. In the state of bliss that a live

concert can induce, it is easy to imagine a personal relationship with the artist. When Dave

Grohl sings “Slow how you wanted it to be”, there will definitely be some sexual tension in

the air. The peak of interaction between the artist and his audience is reached in the chorus,

when Dave Grohl pronounces the words “And I wonder / When I sing along with you / If

everything could ever feel this real forever / If anything could ever be this good again”.

Usually at that point the whole audience sings along and indulges in the impression that Grohl

is addressing those words to them. It makes them forget that the Foo Fighters have played this

song at countless occasions and that therefore Grohl has directed those particular words to

thousands of people before them. This song, and especially the chorus, has the poetic intensity

to capture the audience and take them to this one perfect moment that both they and the band

do not want to pass. Even if the song might not have been written for that effect in the first

place, it is actually quite easy to imagine that Grohl himself feels the same connection with

the audience as they feel with him, considering the fact that thousands of people listen to his

words and respond to them by singing along. When avid fans listen to Dave Grohl singing

“The only thing I’ll ever ask of you / You got to promise not to stop when I say when”, they

can take those words as a plea not to stop supporting the Foo Fighters. The second verse

begins with yet another demand – “Breathe out so I can breathe you in / Hold you in”. In a

stadium crowded with thousands of fans, it is comprehensible that the artist wants to soak up

the atmosphere like a sponge, to take it in with his breath and make it part of his memories.

The impression of unity with the audience is further intensified when Grohl points out that

both he and his fans are “out of their heads”. Up to that point in the lyrics, Grohl usually

stands alone with his guitar on a catwalk in the middle of the audience, thus managing his

words to create an extremely intimate atmosphere. It is only at the very end of the song that

suddenly the whole band joins in and Grohl runs back on stage to repeat the chorus with the

- 34 -

support of the other instruments. Apart from the change in volume and fullness of sound,

Grohl also reminds the audience that he would not be complete without his band mates, and

that they play a major role in him being able to enjoy that perfect moment.

3.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures

Not only does “Everlong” allow for various thematic interpretations, it also features numerous

interesting aspects on the formal level that support and intensify the effect of the content. The

song consists of three verses and a chorus. There is no consistent rhyme scheme, but some

regularities are clearly visible. Each verse comprises four lines. The first verse has the rhyme

scheme abac, whereas the second one introduces a different scheme, picking up one rhyme

word (c) from the first verse: dddc. The third verse equals the second one structure-wise and

once again refers back to the first verse in the last line, eeec. The chorus partly rhymes with

lines from the verses, having faghahc as its rhyme scheme. What I find interesting is that all

parts of the poem, verses and chorus alike, end with the same word, namely “sang”. Also,

there is a strong focus on the addressee, i.e. the “you” of the song.

Songwriter Dave Grohl strongly relied on repetitions in order to emphasize certain statements.

In the first verse, the expression “out of the red” is used and throughout the rest of the song

we find variations of it – “out of her head”, “out of your head” and “out of my head”. Another

recurring phrase is “She sang”, which can be found at the end of each verse and chorus apart

from the third verse, where it is changed to “I sang”, and the last chorus that is identical to the

preceding ones but breaks off before the last line. Moreover, the song features several

anaphoras and epistrophes. Two consecutive lines of the second verse end with the words

“with me”, an epistrophe that underlines the speaker’s desire to be with his beloved. In the

chorus, two phrases have “if” as their first word, forming an anaphora. Eventually, the third

verse contains two lines ending with “you in”, once as in “breathe you in” and once as in

“hold you in”. That epistrophe places special emphasis on the speaker’s need to absorb every

word and impression he can possibly get of the woman he loves.

The last device I would like to point out is the rhetorical question that is posed in the chorus.

The speaker wonders “If everything could ever feel this real forever / If anything could ever

be this good again”. He does not expect his addressee to answer that question, since he

- 35 -

actually knows it anyway. Facing the most perfect moment of his life, he cannot imagine that

anything will beat the feeling of bliss he is enjoying. What is more, he does not even wish for

a better moment to come along, as he would have to let countless average and dull days go by

for that to happen. He rather wishes that this night would never end, and therefore asks his

beloved “not to stop”, i.e. to make it last forever. That idealistic and at the same time

impossible wish is maybe the main reason why the song has met with such positive resonance

among the fans. Most people will probably have experienced a similar situation in which they

wanted to preserve a moment of perfect bliss forever, which is why the message of

“Everlong” sounds strangely familiar to many and makes them able to relate to the song in

their own personal way.

- 36 -

4. “Learn to Fly” – The Quest for a Sign of Life

“Learn to Fly” is a classic example of the phenomenon that a band’s greatest hit is often not a

song the band members themselves particularly like. Grohl admitted in an interview that it

was “actually one of my least favourite songs on the record”.42

Maybe he was afraid that its

rather poppy sound would dilute the band’s usually harder style and make newly-won fans

expect similar songs in the future. Still, the tune has become one of the Foo Fighters’ most

popular ones, and the lyrics are known and sung along with by a large number of fans. A song

that achieves such a high degree of appreciation is normally not only characterized by a

catchy melody, but also features lyrics that offer a certain kind of universality, so that a high

number of listeners can relate to them in some way. I will therefore once more start my

analysis with a thematic interpretation, pointing out recurring motives and how they relate to

each other. Next, I will focus on the communicative situation, which is of special interest

since the speaker of the song seems to direct his words not to a specific addressee, but rather

to a universal “you”. The last part of this chapter will identify and discuss the rhetorical

strategies that are used in the song, with a special emphasis on the puns and metaphors the

speaker plays with.

4.1. Breaking out of the Average

The overall theme of “Learn to Fly” was already addressed in chapter 2.3. As usual, Grohl

kept his interpretation of the song rather vague in order to allow listeners to find their own

personal approach to it. I will briefly quote Grohl’s take on “Learn to Fly” again at this point

to provide a starting point for my thematic interpretation of the song. According to Grohl,

“Learn to Fly” is “about the search for some sort of inspiration, the search for signs of life that

will make you feel alive”.43

However, he has never gone into detail about the intended

meaning of the song. The universal message of “Learn to Fly” is reflected clearly in its lyrics,

especially in the chorus. The speaker “look[s] into the sky to save me / Looking for a shining

light”. He needs some sort of guidance in his life and turns his hopes to a higher power, since

he does not seem to find enough sources of strength and courage in his surroundings. He has

42

Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides” <http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/tnltl.htm> [16 July, 2009]. 43

Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides” <http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/tnltl.htm> [17 July, 2009].

- 37 -

reached a point in his life where he finally wants to “get things right”. We do not learn what

actually bothers him about his life, at least he does not make a specific statement about it, but

there are various hints in the lyrics. The speaker tells someone to “hook me up a new

revolution / ’Cause this one is a lie”. A revolution always implies a radical change from an

established system to a new one; in most cases violence is involved in the transformation

process. Of course the revolutionary idea can be interpreted in manifold ways; however, I

would like to argue for one of them that appears to be the most plausible one to me. As

already mentioned in chapter 2.3, the speaker can be seen as someone who is suffering due to

his own passivity and inability to change his life. He has probably repeatedly tried to fight his

own lethargy alone, but all of his little revolutions have turned out to be half-hearted attempts.

Therefore, when the speaker says “’Cause this one is a lie”, he does not complain about

someone who has lied to him. Instead, he has realized that he is betraying himself by always

resolving to do something about his unfulfilled life only to dismiss his plans afterwards. We

get to know the speaker at a possible turning point; he has accepted that he cannot handle the

situation on his own and is therefore looking for reassurance and help from a higher power.

However, he is still not sure whether to search for support in good or evil powers.

Throughout the song, a dichotomy between heaven and hell can be traced. In the first verse,

the speaker tells an addressee that he/she should “run and tell all of the angels / This could

take all night”. It is possible that the speaker hopes to find strength in faith, and that he

pictures heaven in a rather childlike way, with angels who protect and support people on earth.

However, it might as well be that the speaker has a more down-to-earth approach to faith. For

him, angels do not necessarily have to be invisible beings, but can also appear in the form of

people who he feels comfortable with, people who understand his despair and try to pull him

out of his depression. A parallel image can be found in the very same verse when the speaker

ponders that he might “need a devil to help me get things right”. Here the extent of the

speaker’s despair shows clearly. He does not care whether his life gets a new meaning with

the help of good or evil forces. Again, it remains open to interpretation whether a devil as we

know the concept from Christian religion is addressed, or whether the same function can be

taken by a person from the speaker’s surroundings. The last line of the first verse is once more

ambiguous. The speaker “sat around laughing and watched the last one die”. With the “last

one”, he could be referring to his last revolution, a last attempt on his part that he had to

watch failing. Needless to say, his laughter gets a sarcastic touch if we decide to read the line

like that. Another way of understanding the last words of the first verse is to picture the

- 38 -

speaker in his inability to lead an active life, which implies that he is equally unable to help

other people. When he says that he “watched the last one die”, he could refer to friends who

were in trouble and needed his support, but he decided not to help them and watched them

suffer. The fact that the people around him are in trouble might even have given him the

strength to live on his life so far. Thus, in comparison with others, his own troubled life has

not seemed as bad as it actually is. However, he feels that the satisfaction he gets from

making fun of other people’s problems is ephemeral and only leads to him being lonely in the

end.

The chorus summarizes everything the speaker expects from the new revolution and alludes

to the difficulties he has in dealing with in life. He is “looking to the sky to save me / Looking

for a sign of life”. At this stage, his plea for being rescued is still rather passive and vague.

What is certain, though, is that he has had enough of his monotonous life and wants to feel

more alive. He is “looking for something to help me burn out bright”, something that makes

him feel passionate about life. Even though in itself the phrasal verb “to burn out” has quite

negative connotations, by adding the adjective “bright” it takes a positive touch, describing

someone who throws themselves into something with great enthusiasm. That new passion the

speaker is longing for can arise from a relationship as well as from a cause that he considers

worth fighting for. He clearly needs something to give his life a deeper meaning, as he

expresses with the words “I’m looking for complication”. A life that merely consists of a dull

job and daily routine can lead to questions about the bigger picture and is probably one of the

reasons why the speaker considers his life too simple and boring. An aspect that was already

briefly discussed in the general chapter on the Foo Fighters’ lyrics is the homonymy of the

verb “to lie”. When the speaker confesses that he is “looking ’cause I’m tired of lying”, he

could either refer to his passivity or to his dishonesty. Both meanings fit into my overall

interpretation of the song, since we are dealing with a speaker who wants to change himself

by seizing life more actively as well as his attitude towards the people around him. One of the

most interesting thoughts of the song can probably be found in the last line of the chorus –

“Make my way back home when I learn to fly high”. The speaker’s desire to fly high shows

two aspects. First, he wants to get far away from his old life, leaving it behind on the ground

in order to become a better person. Here we also learn that the speaker decided to trust the

angels, God or other good forces in his life, since heaven is historically and semiotically

related to “up”, “high”, whereas hell is said to be “down” and “low”. Second, the speaker

either disregards the laws of nature when he claims that he is going to learn how to fly, or he

- 39 -

speaks metaphorically. By that he expresses that he will rise to new challenges and realize his

goals once and for all, even though experience tells him that he will not succeed because he

has tried to change his life in vain too often. Furthermore, the speaker feels as if he was on his

way home, which leads me to the assumption that he used to be idealistic and life affirming,

probably as a child, and now feels as if he was rediscovering that side of himself again.

In the second verse, the speaker reaffirms his decisiveness to change his life once and for all.

He is “done nursing patience”, wants to become active and feel more alive after years of

lethargy. If he says that “it can wait one night”, he means that his plan is already developed

enough to be carried out; he is still working on some details, but nothing can stop him any

more from taking positive steps towards a lifestyle that he will be more at ease with than he is

with his present one. For the first time in the song, he then asks an addressee for help,

someone who seems to be neither an angel nor a devil, but merely a person from his

immediate surroundings. The speaker promises her to “give it all away if you give me one last

try”. Maybe he has been unable to be in a working relationship with anyone in the past,

considering the fact that he used to lie and betray other people. The plea to get “one last try”

hints at a former relationship that was dysfunctional and probably ended by his girlfriend. The

speaker still loves that woman and wants their relationship to get the chance of a new start,

but for that to succeed she needs to open up to him and let him show her that he has changed.

In the next line, an example of Dave Grohl’s deep sarcasm shines through. “We’ll live

happily ever trapped if you just save my life” alludes to traditional fairy tales, which almost

always close with the phrase “…and they lived happily ever after”. Grohl breaks that

romantic cliché by presenting a variation of the fairy tale phrase, spiced up with a more

negative cliché related to marriage, namely the feeling of being trapped. This line lends a

comic tone to the song and, deliberately or not, reminds us of the fact that nobody can change

overnight. Even if the speaker is enthusiastic about turning over a new leaf and being a better

person, his backslide to an ironic tone when he is actually trying to declare his love to a

woman shows that things are not as simple as they seemed to him in the first place. However,

a definitely positive step is taken by the speaker when he tells the woman he loves to “run and

tell the angels that everything’s all right”. He has finally realized that it is pointless to cry for

help to heaven and hell. Instead, he concentrates on what is real and looks for strength and

support in the people he loves.

- 40 -

The bridge reveals the speaker’s dependence on the help of a loved one. He asks an addressee

to “fly along with me, I can’t quite make it alone”, admitting that he needs someone to guide

him on his way. Being used to an average life, it is hard for him to find something that makes

him unique, but he wants to “try to make this life my own”, i.e. to distinguish himself from

others.

4.2. Universal vs. Personal Addressee

“Learn to Fly” offers an interesting communicative situation that is characterized by an

interplay between two levels. On the one hand, the speaker directs his words to an addressee

he knows, someone who is dear to him or with whom he is in love. On the other hand, though,

numerous statements that are made in the lyrics can also be read as if they were directed to a

more universal “you”. It therefore appears once more fruitful to take into account the

indermedial aspect of rock lyrics. At several points in the song, the listeners get a chance to

identify with the speaker and to imagine that certain words are directed to them. Obviously,

that effect intensifies at live concerts, where Dave Grohl uses the popularity of the song to

interact with the audience and repeatedly encourages them to sing along.44

The first verse could either be directed to the speaker’s beloved or to an implied listener.

When the speaker tells someone to “run and tell all of the angels / This could take all night”,

the fact that he is actually asking an addressee for help is more important than to whom he

directs his words. It shows that he is still in a rather passive condition at the beginning of the

song and therefore in need of someone who spreads the word of his life-changing plan for him.

The same interpretation can be applied to the speaker’s plea to “hook me up a new

revolution”; again, he does not take responsibility for his own actions, but instead relies on

the addressee to help him get started. By reminding the addressee that this “revolution […] is

a lie”, he not only refers to his own situation, but also encourages the listeners to ponder all

the half-hearted tries they have undertaken to change a situation they were not comfortable

with.

The chorus does without addressing a “you” and instead focuses exclusively on the speaker’s

thoughts on his quest for a sign of life. It is in the second verse that the communicative

44

For an amazing live version of “Learn to Fly”, watch <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75H3k8DsQCk>

[22 July, 2009].

- 41 -

situation caught my attention again. The speaker now gets much more personal than in the

first verse, where it remains unclear whom he addresses. In all likelihood, the communication

takes place between the speaker and his former beloved, whom he tries to urge to give their

relationship another try. At this stage it is hard for the listeners to identify with the addressee,

since the speaker uses very personal words, for instance he claims that he would “give it all

away if you give me one last try”.

A complete shift in perspective takes place in the bridge, where the above-mentioned

universal “you” is addressed. “Fly along with me, I can’t quite make it alone” is a cry for help,

but in the next line each listener is reminded of the song’s core message – “Try to make this

life my own”. This statement implies a question about the meaning of life, and more

specifically about what it is that makes an individual’s life special and unique. It can also

imply that the speaker feels dependent on too many factors or people, or that he simply cares

too much about what others think and say about him. The desire for being special in the eyes

of others is maybe one of humankind’s innermost and most powerful ones, and by raising the

issue in “Learn to Fly” Dave Grohl gave the song its universal character.

Considering the insights we have gained so far into the meaning of “Learn to Fly”, I do not

want to keep the reader from my take on the video to the song. The link to the official video

and a short summary were already provided in chapter 2.3. The new aspect in this chapter is

my attempt to find a connection between the meaning of the lyrics and the video. While I

stated earlier that the video was merely a parody and did not have anything to do with the

deeper meaning of the song, my point of view has now slightly changed after a more in-depth

analysis of the lyrics. The ironic aspect of the video remains the same, being the literal

interpretation of the song’s title and the resulting use of an airplane as a setting. When the Foo

Fighters take over the control of the plane, one of them can even be briefly seen with a

manual in his hand, showing the title “Learn to Fly” in bold letters. However, what struck me

is the fact that the band members are depicted as average guys in the beginning of the video,

only to become heroic life-savers by the end of it. This can be taken as a hint towards the

above-mentioned desire of each individual to make their life special and achieve something

that goes beyond the ordinary. All the band members play various roles in the video, but the

only ones who do not drink any coffee and thus stay sober are the Foo Fighters playing

themselves. Hence, they are the only ones on board who are still able to take control of the

situation. They are not dependent on anyone – the “try to make this life my own” has worked

- 42 -

out for them, since they have stayed calm in a crucial situation, thereby saving their own and

the other passengers’ lives. This is perhaps a rather daring take on a video that the band may

just have wanted to be appreciated for its humorous quality, but I still found it revealing to

mention the interesting parallels to the deeper meaning of the lyrics.

4.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures

Similar to most Foo Fighters songs, “Learn to Fly” does not have a regular rhyme scheme.

The first verse rhymes abbcdd, the chorus efbghi and the second verse jbdfb. The bridge

possesses the simple structure kkkk. At first glance, the rhyme scheme of the song does not

seem of particular interest. However, there are two aspects that strike the eye on closer

inspection. First, the rhyme of the second line of the first verse, here designated as b, recurs

throughout the whole song. The same rhyme can be found once in the chorus and twice in the

second verse. Second, and in connection to the first aspect, there is generally a noteworthy

number of words that contain the letter i, pronounced [ai]45

, in the song. Those are night, right,

lie, die, life, bright, lying, high, try and trying, some of which are constantly repeated. The

reason why Dave Grohl opted for so many words of similar vocal quality might be that he

wanted to make the song sound optimistic and light-hearted. The diphthong /ai/ sounds much

brighter than, for instance, u or o. It is true that Grohl does not pronounce the respective

words with [ai], but rather with [a], since it is a common habit in pop and rock music to

stretch as many vocals as possible to [a]. Still, the choice of the phoneme /ai/ seems deliberate

and supports the general tone of the song.

Another interesting feature of the song is its use of anaphoras and epistrophes. Especially in

the chorus, the first thing that strikes the reader and/or listener is that its first five lines start

with the word “looking”. In two lines the form “I’m” is added in the beginning, but since it

just has the function of a pickup and since from the word “looking” the melody is always the

same, I would include these five lines in the anaphora. The remaining anaphoras and

epistrophes develop from repetitions of parts of the song. For instance, the line “Make my

way back home when I learn to fly high” is repeated at the end of the second, third and fourth

chorus. The last word “high” is left out though, so that only an anaphora is formed. A

45

Symbols according to the International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA.

- 43 -

different situation can be observed in the bridge, where the two lines that form it are repeated

crosswise, each constituting each an anaphora and an epistrophe.

A moot point is the pun used in the chorus. As already mentioned above, the line

“Looking ’cause I’m tired of lying” can be understood in two different ways. The speaker

might be stating that he is fed up with his own dishonesty and wants to confront life and the

people around him with a more candid attitude. If we take the homonymy of the verb “to lie”

into account, he could also be referring to his own passivity and inability to change his life.

However, we do not know whether Grohl was aware of the word’s homonymic quality and

used it deliberately to achieve the double-sided effect. A pun is defined as “a form of word

play that deliberately exploits ambiguity between similar-sounding words for humorous or

rhetorical effect. […] By definition, puns must be deliberate.”46

It is most likely, even if Grohl

used the verb deliberately, that most people would still think of the first meaning, “to be

dishonest”, when listening to the song. The second meaning only occurs to those who take a

closer look at the lyrics and arrive at the same conclusion about their meaning as I did in my

interpretation.

The last aspect I would like to deal with in this chapter is Grohl’s use of metaphors in “Learn

to Fly”. The dominant metaphor is clearly developed from the image-cluster between heaven

and hell. When the speaker wants his addressee to “run and tell the angels” that “this could

take all night” and that “everything’s all right”, he does not only refer to a higher power, but

to all the positive influences he enjoys in life. The fact that he feels able to communicate with

the angels stands in stark contrast with his connection to the evil forces he knows. Still,

“Think I need a devil to help me get things right” is a hardly more than a pondering to change

to the dark side of life and not questioning the integrity of someone who could help him

achieve his goals.

The image of a “new revolution” serves as an illustration of the speaker’s desire to turn the

page and change his life radically. Basically, all the speaker’s plans and wishes are extreme;

he wants to change everything from the bottom, and he allows for the whole process to “take

one night”. The last important metaphor was already mentioned in the thematic interpretation

of “Learn to Fly”. It is the sarcastic variation of the fairytale closing phrase “…and they lived

happily ever after”, changed by Grohl to “We’ll live happily ever trapped / If you just save

46

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pun> [23 July, 2009].

- 44 -

my life”. The image that is produced by that metaphor is certainly connoted negatively, being

one of a marriage or relationship that allows neither of the partners to be free individuals, but

reduces them to being dependent on each other. However, if the overall context of the song is

taken into consideration, it seems as if the speaker would need a stable relationship that keeps

him trapped in a positive way so that he cannot fall back into his old lifestyle. Having his

beloved by his side, he has enough continuity to get his life in order. Additionally, she seems

to be an important companion on his way towards being a better man, as he repeatedly assures

her by asking her to “fly along with me, I can’t quite make it alone”. No matter how we

decide to interpret the trap image, it is the ambiguity of this and of so many of the speaker’s

statements and metaphors that gives a universal quality to the song and allows each listener to

adapt the lyrics to their own life circumstances.

- 45 -

5. “Aurora” – Nostalgia and Lyric Mysteries

“Aurora” made its way into this thesis for reasons that have to do with my personal interest in

the Foo Fighters rather than with its popularity. The song appeared on the band’s third album,

There is Nothing Left to Lose (1999). However, it has never been released as a single and

hence is not very well-known among fans. Since I mainly deal with extremely popular Foo

Fighters songs in my analysis, I wanted to include at least one less-known piece. The main

reason for my choice, though, is Dave Grohl’s great appreciation of that song. He once

commented on “Aurora” with a rare praise, considering the fact that he is usually rather

critical of his own songs.

“Aurora” is definitely one of my favourite songs that we've ever come up with. Lyrically, it's

just kind of a big question mark, but the words sound good and it's a nostalgic look back at

Seattle and the life I once had. That song actually questions the meaning of life, probably. It's

probably the heaviest thing I've ever written.47

Grohl’s statement shows that the Foo Fighters would not necessarily like to be remembered

for songs that are their greatest hits, but rather for those which they feel are their masterpieces

and have true artistic depth. This is why I am going to try and provide one possible approach

of how to read the lyrics of “Aurora”. The structure of this chapter will be similar to the

preceding ones: First, I will carry out a thematic interpretation, focusing on the tension

between melancholic pondering and a more life-affirming attitude that is expressed in the

lyrics. Next, I will concentrate on the communicative situation, which is characterized by a

speaker who strongly identifies with his addressee. In the end there will be a brief discussion

of the rhetorical strategies and the imagery applied in the song.

5.1. Indulging in Melancholic Thoughts

“Aurora” offers an insight into a speaker’s melancholic reflections on the meaning of life and

on death as a possibility to find relief. The first verse raises the question of whether death can

provide a place of comfort to someone who does not come to terms with his/her life. The

speaker presents his thoughts on behalf of an addressee, a special communicative situation

that I will take a closer look at in the next part of this chapter. At this point, I would like to

focus on the basic message that is conveyed in the first lines. The song opens with the words

47

Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides” <http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/tnltl.htm> [24 July, 2009].

- 46 -

“You believe there’s something else / To relieve your emptiness”. Clearly, the speaker is

reflecting whether life ends abruptly and irrevocably with death, or whether there is a chance

of continuation of any kind. He feels empty, does not see any meaning in life and likes the

thought of death offering him the chance to break free. A strange curiosity can be detected in

his words, as if he expected to go to a better place after death. Once again in the first verse,

the speaker presents the addressee’s actions and thoughts, when in fact it is highly probable

that we get to know his own innermost confessions. “And you dream about yourself” is

actually the speaker’s generalization of what he experiences – a struggle of coming to terms

with himself that follows him even into his dreams. One could even try and interpret that line

in terms of an out-of-body experience, where the speaker observes himself from a neutral

perspective and can thus see his own and life’s shortcomings more clearly. It is difficult to tell

whether the subsequent line still belongs to that experience or is merely a state that he

encounters himself in regardless of whether he is awake or dreaming. In any case, however,

he uses rather strong verbs to describe his inner conflict, namely “bleed” and “breathe (the

air)”. Those two words do not form a clear dichotomy, but they can still be put into contrast

with each other. If someone is bleeding, he/she is injured; losing too much blood inevitably

leads to death. If the line is read figuratively, the speaker refers to a harm that has been done

to his soul and emotions, which is why he suffers from anguish. In both cases, bleeding is

usually related to pain and/or death. A stark contrast shows when the speaker mentions the

phrase “breathe the air” literally in the same breath. Breathing is obviously and fundamentally

related to life. By using “bleed” and “breathe” in the same sentence and by even connecting

them through alliteration, the speaker points at his inner struggle and tells us what it is all

about: the feeling of being on the verge between life and death. On the one hand, he seems to

have once been a life-affirming person; on the other hand he appears to be a depressed,

anguished person now.

The image of the speaker’s personal struggle is intensified when we listen to the last line of

the first verse – “And it’s on and on and on and on and on”. There are two diverging ways of

reading that line. First, the slang phrase “It’s on” means “that the topic of conversation is

about to occur or become magnified; often spoken in response to a challenge”.48

Considering

that definition, the speaker feels challenged to tell his addressee or the listeners more about

his condition and implies that he does not impose his problems upon anyone, but just

responds to people’s demands of knowing more about him. However, the line also expresses

48

<http://onlineslangdictionary.com/definition+of/it%27s+on> [27 July, 2009].

- 47 -

the speaker’s awareness that he has had to deal with his inner struggle for a long time already,

and that he feels as if he was part of a vicious circle that he cannot get out of anymore.

The bridge features a change in perspective, since the speaker shifts from the second person to

the first person, thus making his reflections seem all the more personal. He tells his addressee

that “I just kinda died for you”, and complains in the next line that “You just kinda stared at

me”. He might be talking about a sacrifice that he brought to his addressee, a sacrifice that is

so enormous that he considers it worthy of being compared with dying for someone. However,

the addressee does not seem to appreciate that sacrifice enough from the speaker’s point of

view. He/she just “stares” at him instead of showing any kind of gratitude. If we want to

embed that statement in the thematic context of the whole song, we might speculate that the

speaker has finally managed to open up to someone about his depression. He might have been

embarrassed about his condition to an extent that made him want to die the very moment he

told his friend or beloved about it. That would explain his use of the mitigating word

“kinda”49

, by means of which he is trying to express that he is speaking of death in a

figurative, not in a literal way. In the same way, the addressee has not stared at the speaker

literally, but rather shown a lack of empathy. For the speaker, it is hard to understand how

anyone could ponder less than him over the meaning of life and death. He feels

misunderstood and yearns to be taken more seriously. At the same time, though, he knows

that he has consciously chosen a specific person to confide in, and that his only chance for

support is to make him/her see things the way he does. Therefore, he reminds the addressee of

the hard times they have already gone through together, that they have always been there for

each other and that he/she should believe in the strength of their relationship. He tells him/her

that “We will always have the chance / We can do this one more time”. The shift from the

polarizing “I” - “you” formulations to a more cooperative “we” is made deliberately in order

to stress the common features and attitudes of speaker and addressee. It is in the last line of

the bridge that a certain nostalgic atmosphere comes up for the first time in the song, with the

speaker implying that if he and the addressee “can do this one more time”, there must have

been many occasions in the past on which they have proven their loyalty to each other.

The beginning of the chorus already shows that the speaker feels more confident now, since

he introduces his words with the strong and confirmative phrase “Hell yeah”. In the same

breath, he takes a nostalgic look back towards a time where he must have had a positive

49

Colloquial, usually exclusively oral form of “kind of”.

- 48 -

attitude towards life – “I remember aurora” is the core phrase of the song. “Aurora” is a poetic

term for dawn, when the sky turns red and announces a new day. It is of a highly symbolic

value that the speaker remembers aurora and not, for instance, a sunset. A sunrise stands,

needless to say, for a new day, and can therefore be related to such positive connotations as

“renewal”, “revival”, “innocence”, “hope” and “peacefulness”. The speaker seems to think

back to his childhood or youth, a time when he probably had the feeling of his life just having

begun and of having endless possibilities. What is more, he does not mention one specific

dawn, but rather looks back at all the sunrises he experienced as a younger man, and how they

made him feel full of hope and joy. He remembers those special moments “all this time”

when he feels depressed and sees death as the only way to end his mental anguish, and it

seems to help him through those phases, be more confident and affirm life with a convinced

“Hell yeah”.

Next, the speaker encourages his addressee to “take me now, we can spin the sun around /

And the stars will all come out / Then we’ll turn and come back down”. Once he has managed

to grasp the meaning of the bigger picture, he suggests to fly high and feel united with the

cosmos. The speaker’s thoughts at this point strongly remind me of the Transcendentalists’

attitude towards life, which is perfectly summarized in the thesis of Alina Stockinger:

[…] the poets and philosophers of Romanticism […] share one significant ‘spiritual’ feature in

most of their philosophical and poetic writings: the feeling of interconnectedness with the

cosmos. In their writings, they transcend the boundaries of their own bodies to mystically fuse

with the universe and thus create the awareness that a human lifetime is a tiny but essential

part of the evolution of the world which, at the bottom of everything, follows a harmonious

plan. The moment the lyric persona realises his/her being part of this cosmic whole, he/she

usually enjoys happiness in its highest form, freed from doubts and fears of all kinds. […] In

these moments, even death seems to lose its dread since the momentarily experienced joy feels

like an eternity leaving no place for it. It also diminishes the feeling of life’s meaninglessness

since life obtains a new sense of belonging and contributing to the world. (Stockinger 2008:27)

In exactly the same way, the speaker of “Aurora” seems to ignore all physical boundaries to

become part of the cosmos and even merge with it. Collaborating with and underscoring the

lyrics, the tune of the chorus is much more cheerful than that of the verses, emphasizing the

new strength and a new confidence in the meaning of life that the speaker has found. The only

difference to Transcendentalism is probably that the representatives of that philosophy

attached great importance to a lonely lyric I looking for the meaning of life in nature. Here,

the speaker only finds the courage to interconnect with the cosmos by relying on a friend or

beloved who accompanies him on his way. Also, he plans to “turn and come back down” by

the end, i.e. return from his transcendental experience with new strength to succeed in life.

- 49 -

The second verse starts off with a variation of the first one. The speaker shifts back to the

communicative situation of the beginning, telling an addressee that “You believe there’s

somewhere else / Where it’s easier than this”. Again, he questions the meaning of life and

wonders whether death can provide a solution for his depressive condition. In fact, the

speaker shows some features of a suicidal person who is crying for help, even if it is only in

the chorus that they are noticeable. First, he likes to think about death and regard it as one

way of solving his problems. A non-suicidal person would rather avoid letting death occupy

their mind, and look for life-affirming solutions to their problems. Second, the speaker is

searching for some kind of empathy, which is why he uses the second person to talk about his

condition. He wants his addressee to have experienced similar feelings, or at least to try and

understand what he is going through. Then again, he goes on to relate an out-of-body

experience, only in a much more concrete way than in the first verse. This time “you” not

only “dream about yourself”, but “you see outside yourself / And you buy the hole you’ll fill”.

It is hard to tell what the speaker refers to with that last line. Usually, it is said that someone

who dies leaves a gap, because the friends and family of the deceased feel that their loved one

cannot be replaced and will always be missed. Here, however, the speaker talks of filling a

hole rather than of leaving one. This automatically evokes the image of a grave, or rather still

that of a raw hole in the ground that a dead body will “fill”. If we take the lyrics of this line

literally, the speaker imagines buying a grave that will serve as his last resting-place. He is

longing for death, but at the same time he does not seem to be ready to end his life. Instead,

he is looking for someone to understand him, and knows that if he gets the support of a

beloved person, he will manage to break free from his problems.

After a repetition of the chorus, there are two lines that cannot be assigned either to the chorus

or to one of the verses – “On and on and on aurora wait for everyone / Wait till the last one’s

done”. The speaker recalls the spirit of his youth one more time and arrives at the conclusion

that it is a perfectly natural process to reminisce and think back to the “good old days”. He

generalizes his own experience and takes it to a more universal level. Most people, he reflects,

will have a moment in life where they remember “aurora”, or whatever they might call it. The

common tenor is a certain nostalgia, a look back to a time where life seemed to be in order

and full of promising chances. The speaker implies that that retrospection can have a

comforting quality and be a source of strength and courage.

- 50 -

5.2. The Addressee as Mirror

In “Aurora” we encounter a communicative situation that is rather atypical of the Foo Fighters,

which makes it all the more interesting. There are three levels that can be analysed separately.

The first and most prevailing one features the addressee in the function of a mirror for the

speaker, the second one chooses a classic “I”-“you” relationship, and the third one emphasizes

a strong, united “we”. It is exclusively the two verses that work on the first level. At first

glance, the speaker directs his words to an addressee and analyses his/her thoughts. It seems

as if he could read the addressee’s mind; at least he would have to know him/her extremely

well to be able to tell his/her innermost fears and phobias. I, however, consider it much more

likely that the speaker merely uses the addressee as a mirror for his own feelings, since he

finds it too hard to talk about them in the first person. By directing his words to someone, he

wants them to identify with his situation or at least empathize with him. It is a common

strategy that can just as well be found in everyday conversations, where one of the main

purposes is to establish similarities between the participants. In this particular case, one could

read the first verse as if the speaker was asking his addressee questions such as “Do you know

that feeling of inner emptiness? And do you sometimes imagine that there is something else, a

better place where you could be free of all your fears?” By including the addressee into his

thoughts, he does not only achieve his/her empathy. It also makes it much easier for him to

talk about his depressive condition if he does not have to admit that he has a problem right

from the start, but can instead begin the conversation by carefully checking whether his

addressee is even able to understand him.

A second purpose of using that communicative level might be that it offers the listener an

ideal way of identifying with the speaker/singer. “Aurora” will appeal to anyone who listens

to it in a state of nostalgia or sadness, to anyone who is questioning the meaning of life and

wondering about whether death might offer an answer to that question. The effect on the

listener is much stronger if the lyrics are not written in the first, but in the second person.

He/she gets absorbed by the song and automatically asks him/herself whether the state the

speaker describes is familiar to them. What is more, the core questions of the song are the

ones that probably every human being has to deal with sooner or later in their lives – “Why

am I here?” and “Where am I going?” The theme “Aurora” in combination with its use of that

first communicative level makes it a song that addresses each and every one of us.

- 51 -

The bridge of a song is by definition a transition between the verse and the chorus. In

“Aurora”, that transition is also reflected in the communicative situation. For the first time in

the song, the speaker shifts to the traditional “I”-“you” level, juxtaposing one of his own

actions to one of the addressee. The words “I just kinda died for you / You just kinda stared at

me” are basically an appeal to the addressee to take the speaker’s problems seriously. He

finally managed to open up to someone and he wants that trust to be appreciated. The

addressee is probably overwhelmed by the speaker’s revelations, both in the positive and in

the negative sense. On the one hand, he/she feels honoured to be the person the speaker

confides in most; he/she might not have expected that kind of trust. On the other hand, he/she

does not know immediately how to respond to his/her friend’s deep thoughts about the

meaning of life and does not want to say anything inappropriate, which is why he/she answers

by just staring at him in surprise. In the closing lines of the bridge, the speaker shifts towards

the third communicative level that was defined above. He starts both lines with “We”, trying

to convince the addressee that the two of them have always had a common basis of respect

and trust for each other, which will help them to be there for each other even though it might

be hard.

Eventually, the chorus starts off with a nostalgic remark on behalf of the speaker (“Hell yeah,

I remember aurora”) before shifting once more to the “we”-level. The speaker relies on the

addressee’s support and claims that together they can achieve anything they want. They can

even “spin the sun around / And the stars will all come out”. There is a clear difference

between the verses and the chorus, which is also due to the shift in communicative levels. In

the verses, there are traits of the romantic “lonely lyric I”, only that in this case we could

speak of a “lonely lyric you”, since the speaker identifies with the addressee to make his point.

A rather depressed, hopeless atmosphere is created, and death is omnipresent between the

lines. By contrast, the chorus conveys a much more positive message and affirms life with

every line, even though a nostalgic undertone is implied. The speaker feels united with his

addressee by that point, and therefore adopts a cheerful “Yes we can!” attitude. He is now

ready to rise to all the challenges life offers and even beyond them. However, he proposes to

himself to always stay aware and grateful of his friend’s support. That is the reason why he

does not shift back to the first person, but instead reminds himself that “we’ll turn and come

back down”, i.e. that they will not let themselves become high-spirited. Although the speaker

feels more able to succeed in life now, he is still aware of humans’ limited scope to

understand their place in the Bigger Picture.

- 52 -

5.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures

“Aurora” does not have any particular rhyme scheme; there are not even any irregular rhymes.

The song gets its lyric quality rather through anaphoras and repetitions in general. For

instance, three out of five lines in the first verse begin with the word “And”. The bridge

contains an anaphora formed by the use of “We”, while the chorus repeats the phrase “Hell

Yeah” and the word “Then” at the beginning of several lines. In the second verse we find a

structure that is similar to the first one, with an anaphora of “And” in three of the five lines.

The frequent repetition of words at the beginning of lines evokes the impression of an inner

monologue, sometimes even that of the stream-of-consciousness technique. Single thoughts

are placed one after the other, joined only by the conjunction “and”, thus making the lyrics a

mirror for the speaker’s mind. Our minds do not work according to a simple, regular pattern;

especially when we are sad or confused, syllables, words and incomplete sentences race

through our heads. In “Aurora”, that condition is not only reflected in the frequent use of

anaphoras, but also in the seemingly endless repetition of “And it’s on and on and on and on

and on” at the end of each verse. It shows that the speaker’s thoughts keep circling around the

same problems, and once the vicious circle “is on”, the result is that it goes “on and on and on

and on and on”. Furthermore, there is one alliteration in the first verse that reinforces the

message and in some way the dramatic nostalgia of the song – “And you bleed and breathe

the air”. That rhetorical device draws the listener’s attention to the strong contrast between the

two verbs used in the same line, one of them being fundamentally connected to pain and death,

the other to energy and life.

In addition to the conscious use of repetition, songwriter Dave Grohl resorts to metaphoric

language in order to get his message across. In the first verse, we are confronted with the

above-mentioned contrast between “bleed” and “breathe”. In all likelihood, the listener is not

supposed to picture a literally bleeding speaker or addressee here. The verb is rather meant to

illustrate the speaker’s great mental anguish that tortures him as much as physical pain.

Another interesting metaphor can be found in the chorus, where the speaker promises the

addressee that they “can spin the sun around / And the stars will all come out”. Spinning the

sun around is of course something that lies far beyond humans’ capacities. Therefore, the

phrase might be used here in order to emphasize the speaker’s newly-won confidence in the

belief that he can achieve anything he wants. Even though it might seem impossible to him in

the first place, he knows that he will succeed. The “stars” that “will all come out” are symbols

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of the epiphany he had when he realized that he is not doomed to spend the rest of his life

alone and depressed, but that he could open up to someone and accept help from them.

If “Aurora” has not reached the same success that other Foo Fighters songs have, it is

obviously because it has never been released as a single. As the current chapter has hopefully

shown, the song features a high degree of universality and offers most listeners the chance to

identify with its underlying message.

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6. “Times Like These” – A Rise to One’s Expectations

It is by no means by coincidence that “Times Like These” came to form part of my thesis.

First, I consider it one of the most positive, life-affirming Foo Fighters songs that have been

released so far. It does not have the melancholic touch of “Aurora”, nor is its speaker in any

way dependent on outside help like in “Learn to Fly”. “Times Like These” presents a self-

confident speaker with much life experience who has gone through difficult times but has

managed to rise to the occasion. Second, the song accompanied me during a rough period of

my life, and while, obviously, it did not solve anything, it still provided a strong support by

giving me the impression of a speaker who was able to read my mind and understand me.

What is more, I think that “Times Like These” is a song that many people can relate to

because it keeps its message strong yet very general.50

I will go into detail about the nature of

that message in the first part of this chapter. Next, I will focus on the communicative situation,

which offers an interesting contrast between the speaker’s behavior in the verses and his

completely different attitude in the chorus. Eventually, I will again briefly discuss the song’s

rhyme scheme and its use of rhetoric devices.

6.1. Gaining new Strength from Rough Times

“Times Like These” starts off with a first verse full of powerful images that all belong to the

same semantic field. As I already briefly mentioned in chapter 2.3, the speaker compares

himself to things that are all related to traffic. First of all, he tells us that “I’m a one-way

motorway”. The essential quality of such a motorway is that it is supposed to lead you in just

one direction. Someone who is driving on a one-way motorway cannot just make a U-Turn to

change directions; he/she has to wait for the next exit to do so. Here I see the first sign of the

speaker’s great confidence in himself, and of his ability to take responsibility for his actions.

He defines his life, or rather life in general, as a one-way motorway that leads straight ahead

into one direction – the future. It is impossible to turn back time and undo things that one

regrets having done. The implicit message here is to accept the past with all its faults and

negative experiences, and to focus on what is essential, namely staying on the motorway of

life and leading one’s life on the basis of the values that have turned out to work for oneself

50

A great acoustic version of “Times Like These” can be watched on

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVm8jPBhmMU> [30 July, 2009], where Dave Grohl plays the song on

an acoustic guitar and also tries himself at the piano for a change.

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and/or other people. Just like on the road, there are certain rules in life that everybody has to

follow so that society can work. Other rules are up to each individual; they are more personal

and influenced by factors such as education, social background and experience. The next line

remains in the same semantic field, with the speaker telling an addressee that “I’m a road that

drives away and follows you back home”. It is obviously the speaker himself who is driving

away for some reason, since a road is not an active agent that could do so. However, he

identifies himself with a “road that drives away”, maybe from something unpleasant he has

experienced and wants to escape from once and for all. Whatever the reason might be, he has

probably gone through a rough time and finally feels that the moment to overcome his

difficulties is near. There is also a strong wish to go home expressed by the speaker. He might

have been away from home physically for a longer period of time, but he might as well just

have been struggling with his personality. Now he has managed to find a place, a person or

just something inside himself that makes him experience inner peace and the feeling of having

arrived somewhere he can stay.

The next two lines contain images that still belong to the semantic field of traffic, but could

also be regarded separately from the preceding metaphors. “I’m a street light shining” are the

speaker’s words, and he seems to consider it very important that the street light is shining, not

turned off. A shining street light illuminates the way for both drivers and pedestrians. It

makes people feel more secure; one could even go one step further, pointing out that a street

light turns the night into day. The speaker is someone with great self-confidence. Not only has

he managed to overcome his own personal struggle, he also feels strong enough by now to

show others who are in trouble a way of getting out of their depression. If we take a closer

look at the next line, the message is slightly different to the preceding one, or rather, it

specifies how the speaker sees himself. He is “a white light blinding bright and burning off

and on”, a statement that contains more than just a description of himself. It seems as if he

was pronouncing a warning to those who rely too much on outside help, when actually they

are the only ones who can truly pull themselves out of a rough period. It is perfectly all right

to accept the support of someone dear and honest, but the speaker emphasizes that if for one

moment the helping light shines “blinding bright”, the next moment it can already be off.

What the speaker probably wants to express at this point is that the only person you can truly

trust in is yourself. However, he does not regard that fact as anything negative, but rather

reminds the addressee that from that awareness he/she can gain enormous strength and self-

confidence.

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In the chorus, the main theme of the song is clearly established. All the lines begin with the

words “It’s times like these”, but it is not further specified what sort of times the speaker is

talking about, whether he refers to good or bad times, or when such hard times take place.

What we do learn, however, are the speaker’s thoughts about how he and/or the addressee can

profit from “times like these”. First, he states that in times like these “you learn to live again”.

That sentence points to the fact that the speaker actually talks about a rough period of time in

his life. He appears to have overcome some sort of depression or struggle, which has made

him stronger and more self-confident than he used to be. If he was at a point where he did not

want to continue his life any more, he had to “learn to live again”, to accept life with its ups

and downs. A time of trouble can, according to the speaker, lead to a greater appreciation of

life and to being grateful for every good day. Next, the speaker reminds the addressee of the

fact that in the times he refers to “you give and give again”. Another positive aspect of going

through a difficult period of time was that he now cares more about his fellow human beings.

He has become more sensitive towards other people’s well-being and is more willing to help

them than he used to be. Since he was once probably dependent on someone else’s help too,

he knows about the importance of being able to rely on someone who does not want anything

in return for their support. That is the reason why he does not choose the words “give and

take”, but “give and give”. The normal circle would be one of giving and taking on behalf of

both parts, but if someone needs help, the speaker argues, he should not be asked any favours

in return if you support them.

The next line contains one of the song’s core messages – “It’s times like these you learn to

love again”. A time of crisis is usually a time of returning to the most fundamental values in

life. On a global level, that phenomenon can be observed with the current financial crisis,

which has led to a rise in importance of values such as friendship, family and health. A

similar development on the individual level must have happened to the speaker. As long as

everything went well, he did not truly appreciate the meaning of friendships and relationships.

It was only during a time of depression that he became aware of what they really meant to

him and what a great source of strength they offered him. He had already forgotten how to

love truly and passionately, and now that he has learned it again he seems eager to pass his

experience on to someone who is in a similar situation to the one he used to be in. It appears a

bit strange to claim that one can “learn to love again”, but in the final analysis the speaker is

right. Love still is the one thing that gives most people the courage to face life, whether it is

the love of a romantic relationship or the love of a family or friends. Someone like the speaker

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of “Times Like These”, who has experienced the metaphorical weight of the world on his

shoulders, knows that what helped him through in the end was the awareness of being loved

and being able to love in return.

The last line of the chorus could easily be regarded as a mere filler, considering the fact that

the words “It’s times like these, time and time again” do not seem to make much sense on

their own at first glance. However, the frequent repetition of “time” in the very same line

could also be taken as a hint towards the inevitability of the passage of time, which would in

fact fit into the context of the song. “Times Like These” is full of encouragement to take the

chances life offers and rise to the challenges and difficulties a new start always involves. That

life-affirming attitude makes it necessary to be aware of the limited time span each individual

has at their disposal. The speaker reminds the addressee as well as the listeners of that fact

that we often tend to forget in everyday life. His words could be taken as an invitation to live

life to its fullest and act as if each new day could be the last one.

The life-affirming attitude that the speaker introduces in the chorus is further elaborated and

exemplified in the second verse. There are two very powerful images that symbolize the

unique feeling of a fresh start. First of all, the speaker continues the list of comparisons that

he began in the first verse by telling us that he is “a new day rising”. The symbol of the dawn

for a new start is also used in “Aurora” and was discussed at length in the previous chapter.

The speaker is full of hope and joy because of a new challenge he accepts. In the same breath,

he compares himself to “a brand new sky to hang the stars upon tonight”. I find it interesting

that the speaker makes use of such a strong contrast as “day versus night” in order to express

the same feeling. The magic of a new start would certainly be related to a dawn or a sunrise

rather than to a nightly sky full of stars. Still, for the speaker the two concepts seem to bear

the same connotations. After all, he does not describe a sky like we see it every night. First of

all, it is a “brand new sky”, implying that something about this very night is different to all the

average ones before. Second, the sky he is talking about is by no means complete or dull – it

is there “to hang the stars upon tonight”. That gives the sky the character of an unpainted

canvas that needs someone’s creativity and shaping courage to become a work of art. In the

same way, the speaker feels that his own life is about to take a turn into a completely new

direction. He does not know where the change will take him, but he states his openness to

whatever challenge it might entail.

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Within the next two lines we encounter the only moment of doubt and insecurity in the entire

song. The speaker admits that he is “a little divided” and asks himself whether he will “stay or

run away and leave it all behind”. He is at a point that is more a logical step than a sign of

weakness – he admits that he feels overwhelmed by the sheer size of his project and is not

sure whether he is capable of handling the situation. With every new challenge that one has to

face, there is such a point of uncertainty and fear. By including that moment into his

confessions to the addressee and the implied listener, the speaker shows an even greater inner

strength than he would if he did not tell us about his anguish. It makes the almost too perfect

speaker more human and allows a wider range of listeners to identify with him. He has

probably nearly reached the point of no return, the point where he just has to finish his project.

Shortly before taking the decisive step, the speaker thinks about throwing it all away because

of his doubts. He could pretend that his life-affirming attitude and the impression of being up

to the challenge have merely been a flight of fancy, which would lead him exactly to the point

where he used to be. However, the positive imagery clearly outdoes those two lines of doubt

and sets the tone for the song. The following repetitions of the chorus emphasize what the

speaker has been trying to tell his listeners the whole time – that everybody goes through

rough times, but that they should be seen as challenges, offering chances for a fresh start.

6.2. From “Me” to “You”

The communicative situation of “Times Like These” can be analysed on two levels. Firstly,

there are the rather personal statements of the speaker during the verses, and secondly there is

the chorus, where he opens up to an addressee and gives him/her advice. The two levels also

intersect at one point, which I am going to explain later in this chapter.

First of all, I would like to discuss the communicative level that the verses of the song are

exclusively based upon. The first and the second verse may work with different imagery, but

they have one important formal feature in common – except for one, all the verse lines begin

either with the personal pronoun “I” or directly with the form “I’m”, and even in the lines that

start with the personal pronoun only, the next statement begins with “I’m”. That strong focus

on the speaker is rather uncommon for a Foo Fighters song; usually there is a vivid interaction

between the speaker and a “you” that is addressed right from the beginning. What is even

more eye-catching with “Times Like These” is that the speaker does not even try to hide his

- 59 -

seemingly egocentric attitude – he does not start even one single sentence by addressing a

“you”. However, rather than accusing him of being a narcissistic egoist, I would tend to

describe the speaker as someone who thinks before he speaks. He will still give sufficient

advice to the addressee in the chorus, but at this stage of the song he prefers to keep quiet and

reflect on his own history and on the difficult period of time he has managed to overcome.

The past seems to come alive before his inner eye, but he does not let it affect him any more,

but rather concentrates on his current condition of optimism and on his newly-won self-

confidence. Full of pride and joy he begins each of his sentences with an “I”, for he knows

himself by now and can rely on a mature personality. All the images he uses to identify with

are symbols of decisiveness or strength, positive objects and concepts that stand for the

goodness of life. What is more, the speaker does not say “I’m like a one-way motorway / a

road / a street light / a new day rising / a brand new sky”. Instead, he skips the comparative

particle altogether and thus completely puts himself on the same level as the things he relates

to.

The thematic break of the second verse that was discussed in the previous sub-chapter also

reflects on the communicative situation. When the speaker admits that he still sometimes

doubts his abilities, the sentence structure changes. The verse lines do not start any longer

with a definition by the speaker of what he is, but rather with a confession of what he feels

like – “I’m a little divided”. The following line further destroys the image of the perfect

speaker, which clearly shows in the structure of communication. All of a sudden, the speaker

is not self-sufficient anymore, but even throws out a question. He does not direct his self-

doubt or question to a specific addressee, but he is insecure enough to ask himself whether he

should “stay or run away and leave it all behind”.

The second level I was able to discover in “Times Like These” is the one that structures the

chorus. There is a whole different kind of communication happening in the chorus than in the

two verses. The major difference that strikes the reader’s eye or the listener’s ear is the sudden

change from “I” to “you”. The addressee, who has remained covert so far, gets a new role

assigned by the speaker. He is supposed to take the advice the speaker gives him; the

relationship between the two almost appears like one of a parent with his/her child, the former

telling the latter what they can expect life to be like and that it will not always be easy, but at

the same time encouraging them that it is exactly those rough times from which they will

come out stronger and more self-confident. The speaker implies that the happy moments are

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hardly ever as crucial as the bad times, for it is the latter that teach us how to live, or rather it

is ourselves who actively “learn to live […] to give […and] to love again”.

As mentioned in the introductory part of this chapter, there is one moment in the song where

the two levels that have just been described overlap. That moment occurs during the first

verse, when the speaker says “I’m a road that drives away and follows you back home”. It is

the only time in the two verses that the speaker lets us know that there is an addressee. Other

than that, the verses could as well be an inner monologue, a contemplation of an individual

who does not care about other people’s opinions. Why does the addressee appear in that very

line? Why does he/she show up at all in one of the verses if the speaker is so focused on

himself? The answer could lie in the idea of “home” that is addressed in the same line. As

independent and self-sufficient as the speaker might appear, he longs as much for a place he

can call “home” as anybody else. The image of a perfect home is often not tied to a specific

place, but rather depends on whether one’s family, partner or dearest friends are there. This is

why the speaker promises the addressee to always follow him/her back home, even though he

might “drive away” for some time. He has risen to his own expectations and even beyond

them, but he is also aware of the fact that without a “you”, without someone he can turn to in

times of trouble, his happiness would not be real.

6.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures

As with many Foo Fighters songs, one is searching in vain for a regular rhyme scheme in

“Times Like These”. Instead, the song strongly relies on repetitions, rhythmic patterns,

assonances and consonances to convey its message in a more striking, powerful and

convincing way. In the verses there are several lines that do not exactly rhyme, but whose

final words contain similar vowels and/or consonants, which makes them sound almost as if

they rhymed. For instance, the second and the fourth line of the first verse both end with

words that contain the letter <o> as well as the nasals /m/ and /n/, respectively. “Home” and

“on” do not rhyme, but they have the phonetic characteristics in common that were just

explained. A similar case occurs in the second verse, where all four lines end with words that

contain the phoneme /ai/ - “rising”, “tonight”, “divided”, and “behind”. The chorus lines

rhyme naturally, since they all end with “again” and thus form an epistrophe. In fact, the

whole song can be regarded as an accumulation of anaphoras and epistrophes. The first verse

- 61 -

starts its lines with “I”, and the second verse follows suit – it also contains an anaphora made

up of three repetitions of the same personal pronoun. Apart from the above-mentioned

epistrophe, the chorus also features one strong anaphora. Not only do its lines begin with the

same word, they actually start with the same phrase – “It’s times like these…”. In addition,

there are numerous alliterations that give an even higher lyric quality to the song. In the first

verse, the white light that the speaker identifies with is “blinding bright and burning off and

on”. The chorus has an alliteration in every line, namely “learn to live”, “give and give”,

“learn to love” and “time and time”.

“Times Like These” could actually be used as an example in a textbook on how metaphors are

used in pop and rock songs. Both of its verses consist almost exclusively of metaphors, and

they are so obvious that one cannot miss them. The metaphors’ tenor is always the speaker,

only the vehicles that are used differ between the first and the second verse. In the first verse,

all the vehicles can in some way be related to traffic, whereas the second verse works with

images from nature, or rather with the contrast between night and day. Since the metaphors

were already discussed in detail in the thematic interpretation of the song, I will restrict

myself to pointing out similarities and differences between them at this stage of my analysis.

What all the metaphors of the song have in common is a quality of power and strength.

Motorways as well as roads stand for the power to guide people into the right direction and

for making it easier to reach one’s goal. The same characteristic can be attributed to street

lights and white lights – they illuminate dark streets and thus allow people to travel safely. In

the second verse, the imagery changes slightly, since the semantic field shifts from “traffic” to

“night vs. day”. However, the connotation of strength remains, although now it manifests

itself more in the positive atmosphere the metaphors create than in their ability to guide and

protect people. “A new day rising” is a symbol of a fresh start. It conveys the magic of a new

beginning and can give courage to someone who wants to make a change in their life. Even

though the following metaphor is actually a contrasting one, “a brand new sky to hang the

stars upon tonight” can have a similar function to a new day. It creates the mental image of a

blank canvas that can be designed creatively by an artist. As if he was literally able to hang

the stars upon the sky, the speaker feels that he has the possibility of designing his own life

according to his taste and needs.

All in all, “Times Like These” can be described as one of the most positive and life-affirming

Foo Fighters songs. Its speaker seems more mature than the one in “Learn to Fly”, since he

- 62 -

has already found the inspiration the latter is still looking for. In “Learn to Fly”, the speaker

asks various persons and powers for help – the angels, the devil and an unknown addressee.

He is dependent on a “you” to succeed in life, whereas the speaker of “Times Like These”

appears much more self-sufficient and experienced. A clear development can also be observed

if we compare the song of this chapter to “Everlong”. While the speaker of the latter longs to

remain in one moment that seems perfect to him, “Times Like These” presents a speaker who

has a positive attitude towards the future and is eager to experience as many fresh starts as

possible. As far as “Aurora” is concerned, none of its melancholy and nostalgia can be found

in “Times Like These”. At first glance, one could be tempted to look for parallels between the

two songs, since both of them contain the image of a sunrise. However, the motives that are

achieved differ greatly from each other – whereas in “Aurora” the speaker sadly remembers a

time that he cannot experience again, the speaker of “Times Like These” uses the sunrise to

express his joy and curiosity about the future. It has become quite obvious by now that the

speaker in the Foo Fighters’ most important songs has undergone some kind of development.

The next chapter will further explore that newly-discovered aspect and compare the speaker

of “Best of You” to that of the preceding songs.

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7. “Best of You” – A Cry for Emancipation

“Best of You” has come to be one of the anthems that define the Foo Fighters as a band and

Dave Grohl as one of the most talented songwriters of our time. The lyrics are a passionate,

universal outcry against oppression and abuse, or rather against letting oneself be taken

advantage of by others. Dave Grohl sees the purpose of the song on an even more universal

level. According to him, the lyrics are to “inspire strength or hope within some sort of

struggle” (cf. chapter 2 for complete quotation). The official video to the song perfectly

supports that message. It is a collage of scenes that are part of daily life such as playing

children as well as of intense moments like birth and death, thus showing that joy and pain are

closely related and both form part of life. Unfortunately, the video cannot be watched on

youtube anymore due to copyright restrictions. As in the previous chapters, I will start my

analysis of the song by trying to determine its themes and motives. Then I will take a closer

look at the communicative situation, which is especially promising with “Best of You”, for

the speaker challenges and provokes the addressee to an extent that I have not seen in any of

the songs that have been dealt with in this thesis hitherto. Eventually, I will once more focus

on the rhyme scheme and the use of rhetoric devices, before comparing the song as a whole to

the previously analysed ones.

7.1. The Overcoming of Difficulties

As already mentioned in chapter two, the song starts off like a confessional poem, with the

speaker opening up towards an addressee. He admits that “I’ve got another confession to

make / I’m your fool”. That confession could mean that the speaker is willing to do anything

for the addressee, a self-abandonment that is abused by the latter to his/her advantage. The

following lines, however, seem to be directed to a different addressee, someone who is in a

situation similar to that of the speaker. I will explain that change in communicative situation

later on in this chapter, but it is obvious that it takes place for the first time after the first two

lines, when the speaker softly reminds us that “Everyone’s got their chains to break / Holdin’

you”. Those words take the song from the personal to a more general level and give every

listener the chance to find their own situation in the lyrics. What is being addressed here is the

“struggle” Dave Grohl was talking about in the above-mentioned interview. Everybody is or

once was in a situation of feeling restricted or trapped either by a person or by circumstances

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that make life unbearable. The speaker clearly does not want to go into detail about his own

situation; he rather wants to insinuate that he has been through a time of struggle himself, and

can therefore understand and help out others who want to break free from their chains.

The speaker now faces the addressee with a quite provocative question – “Were you born to

resist or be abused?” By that formulation, he implies that it is not always the fault of others

that we feel abused and taken advantage of. It is up to each individual to establish their

personal borders and not to let others use them. The question is of course rather a rhetorical

one – the speaker is of the opinion that we are born to resist the obstacles we encounter in life,

instead of accepting them reluctantly. To make his point, the speaker goes one step further

and asks the addressee, “Is someone getting the best […] of you?” If someone gets the best of

you, it can of course mean that they bring out the best in you because you feel so much at ease

with them. In this context, however, I rather think that the speaker refers to the negative

meaning of the phrase. The addressee should asks him/herself whether someone takes

advantage of them and thus steals the best they have to offer, i.e. their energy and optimism.

At that point, the speaker shifts back to the addressee he directed his words to at the very

beginning of the song. He asks him/her, “Are you gone and onto someone new?”, implying

that the friendship or relationship they had has come to an end. The addressee who used to

take advantage of the speaker has found someone new to play his/her games with, which

makes the speaker realise how much freedom and self-determination he has gained by what at

first seemed like a loss to him.

The second verse follows the first one without a gap and starts off with a powerful image. The

speaker tells the addressee that “I needed somewhere to hang my head / Without your noose”.

A sophisticated case of punning can be found in those two lines. The closest association if one

listens to the first of the two lines is probably of someone who hangs his/her head low in

shame or frustration. With the second line, however, the phrase gets a whole new meaning

and a sarcastic touch. A noose is the loop that is formed out of a rope for a gallows. Now all

of a sudden the speaker’s wish to hang his head can be interpreted differently. He was so fed

up by the addressee’s abuse, one could guess, that he had rather hung himself than remain

with his head in the noose that was the addressee’s possessive way of treating him. That view

of their former relationship is reinforced by the accusation “You gave me something that I

didn’t have / But had no use”. Usually, if a friend or partner can give their counterpart

something they did not have before, it is something positive such as a feeling of being loved

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and accepted, or a new perspective towards life or oneself. By contrast, the speaker states that

what he received by his partner or friend did not enrich his life; it was useless or even harmful

to him. Here he probably alludes to the metaphorical chains that were given to him by the

addressee. Still, instead of breaking out of the vicious circle, he spent a much too long time

suffering in a relationship that made him unhappy. He admits that “I was too weak to give in /

Too strong to lose”. It is hard to tell the deeper meaning of those two seemingly simple

phrases. Someone who is too weak to give in must be extremely weak; I imagine someone

who is weary of life but cannot even make the decision to give in completely, i.e. to commit

suicide. The speaker probably used to be in such a state of apathy, at a point where his

struggle to break free had lasted too long already and he was unable to make any decision at

all. At first sight, being “too strong to lose” is a contradiction in terms, since strength is

usually one of the basic conditions to win a battle or a fight, not to lose them. The phrase has

to be applied to the speaker’s situation in order to make any sense. He mentions early on in

the song that he is the addressee’s “fool”, i.e. that he/she could do anything to him, and he

would still be there for him/her. When he reflects on the past relationship, he realizes that he

should have let gone of that person who caused him so much pain much earlier, but did not

manage to take the step. He was probably struggling with himself, since his voice of reason

was telling him the right thing to do, but his heart was “too strong to lose” – it prevented him

from taking the necessary step because deep down inside he was not ready to stand the loss of

that person yet.

In a next step, the speaker describes the moment when he finally found the courage to break

out of his inner struggle – it was a moment when he felt that “my heart is under arrest again /

But I break loose”. Realizing that he had been arrested and restricted for too long, he finally

threw off all restraints, probably by letting the addressee know that he would not be there for

him/her as unconditionally as he used to be. At the same time, he is aware of his former

dependence towards the addressee and sees himself at a major turning point in his life – he

illustrates that point with the words “My head is giving me life or death / But I can’t choose”.

Just having broken free of the chains that were holding him, he is confused and does not feel

able to cope with the new challenges he will have to face now that he is on his own. A

relationship with a partner who probably made every decision for him is suddenly over and

leaves him with the freedom to do anything he wants, but also with the fear of failing

miserably. Still, he is overjoyed to be finally free and swears that “I’ll never give in / I refuse”.

It sounds almost like an oath he is swearing to himself and to the addressee, an oath that he

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will never let himself get oppressed and used by anyone again. That oath is also directed to

the second addressee that he has been trying to warn all along throughout the song; it is

supposed to encourage him/her to draw strength from his example.

The chorus repeats the speaker’s question from the beginning of the song – “Is someone

getting the best […] of you?” The fourfold repetition of “the best” lends an even more

insistent quality to the question. In addition, the cross-media and the performative aspect

should not be left unmentioned at this point, since it appears to play a major role in the chorus.

At live concerts, Dave Grohl cries out those words as if they were his last ones. By the end of

each chorus, he concludes the phrase with a drawn-out “Oh” that resembles a screaming

sound full of pain. That clearly indicates the climax of the song and intensifies the effect on

the audience. In a next step, the speaker asks the addressee, “Has someone taken your faith?”

He refers to some people’s dreadful ability to make others lose every bit of self-confidence

and faith in themselves. If the song is about a broken relationship, that phrase could also

describe the feeling of having lost one’s faith in love after having been left by one’s partner.

Still, the speaker somehow seems to have indulged in the intensity of his feelings, for he

reminds the addressee, who is in the same situation now as the speaker used to be in, that “It’s

real, the pain you feel”. Even though the current situation might cause the addressee grief,

he/she should, according to the speaker, appreciate those feelings and accept them as being

part of life. It is not perfectly clear to me what the speaker means when he adds the words

“Your trust” to the previous line. He might be telling the addressee that they should try to

regain the trust in themselves that they have lost, since it has been there all along and is as

“real” as “the pain” he referred to shortly before. What seems more obvious is the speaker’s

appeal “You must / Confess” with a smooth transition to the song’s core phrase “Is someone

getting the best […] of you?” In order to make a change and break free from his/her chains,

the speaker suggests, the addressee has to make the same confession that the speaker made at

the beginning of the song – that someone is taking advantage of them. Only if the addressee

realizes his dependence and that he is being used, he/she can actively do something about it

and become as free as the speaker is now.

After an instrumental bridge that does not feature any lyrics apart from several “Ohs”, the

song melds into the second chorus. It starts with a repetition of two lines from the first chorus

before introducing new lyrics. The whole second chorus seems to have been constructed like

a collage, a technique that also the video to the song is based upon. When listening to the song,

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one gets the impression that the terms “faith”, “pain”, “life”, “love”, “hope”, “broken hearts”

and “trust” were the crucial ones that Grohl definitely wanted to include in the chorus. The

other words sound as if they were built around those nouns in order to provide a frame for

them. “The life, the love / You’d die to heal” is an ambiguous statement, since the second

verse line could either refer to “life” or to “love”; however, it is most likely that the speaker

wanted to include both terms in his reflections. His words are at the same time a flashback to

his own past and a reference to the addressee’s current situation. He is painting a picture of a

moment in life where everything seems to be wrong, and where one would do anything to get

out of that consuming struggle with oneself. As far as the love theme is concerned, the

speaker once more alludes to a dysfunctional relationship that the addressee has still not given

up. Although there is a clear mismatch between the two partners, with one of them taking

advantage of the other, the addressee has yet to open his/her eyes and realize that the person

he/she loves so much is actually systematically destroying him/her. He/she would “die to

heal” that broken relationship and still believes that they can overcome their troubles, when in

fact the only trouble is caused by his/her partner. The speaker encourages the addressee to

accept his/her loss and reminds him of “the hope that starts / The broken hearts”. Even though

the addressee might hardly be able to imagine that he/she will ever overcome his/her current

struggle, he/she should rely on the knowledge that hope is the first step for a broken heart to

be healed and to rediscover one’s life-affirming attitude.

At the end of “Best of You” all the instruments except for the lead guitar fall silent, which

makes the words sung by Dave Grohl sink in even more. He quotes the two lines from the

very beginning of the song, but changes them a little, which gives the phrase a whole new

meaning. He sings, “I’ve got another confession my friend / I’m no fool”. First, the speaker

now seems to direct his words to the addressee he considers his friend, not to the person that

used to take advantage of him and to whom he made the confession “I’m your fool” in the

first verse. Second and more importantly, the speaker’s own development becomes evident

when he states “I’m no fool” instead of “I’m your fool”. He has managed to break out of the

relationship that was about to destroy him and is now finally free. He wants his experience to

serve the addressee as useful advice and hopes that he/she will go through the same stages of

development he himself did. Still, he reminds himself, the addressee and the listeners that he

is “getting tired of starting again / Somewhere new”. The speaker sounds like someone who

has had to accept many disappointments in life, but has never lost his faith in love. However,

he would like to believe that he is going to find someone he can truly trust soon, for he is tired

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of constantly investing energy and love in relationships that fall apart in the end. That detail

makes him appear all the more human and completes the image of a round lyric persona.

7.2. The ‘Good’ and the ‘Bad’ Addressee

“Best of You” is again one of the Foo Fighters’ songs with two addressees. One of them is

part of the speaker’s past, someone who used to take advantage of him and broke his heart.

The other one seems to be a dear friend who is experiencing the same unpleasant situation

that the speaker had to deal with in the past. He tries to be careful not to appear supercilious

or patronizing, since that would imply taking the risk of his advice being rejected by the

addressee. Instead, he gives an account of his own experience and occasionally throws in

questions that are supposed to make the addressee reflect on his problem and find a solution

on his own.

The first two lines of “Best of You” are clearly directed to the speaker’s former lover or friend.

It is probable that the speaker flashes back to the past, to a time when he still let his partner

take advantage of him. That flashback perspective is the reason why he talks in the present,

even though the dysfunctional relationship has already come to an end. In the next line,

however, he immediately switches to another communicative level by telling his other

addressee that “everyone’s got their chains to break / Holdin’ you”. With that statement, it is

quite easy for someone who listens to the song to identify with that “good addressee” right

from the beginning. The speaker takes the song’s message to a universal level by referring to

the fact that every human being has possibly experienced some sort of struggle in their lives

that they had to come out of. He applies the same strategy of capturing addressee as well as

listeners when he throws out the question whether “someone […] is getting the best […] of

you”. That question is supposed to make its addressee think about their immediate social

surroundings and ask themselves whether their partner, a friend or a family member

intentionally take more of them than they are willing to give in return. The speaker also asks

them, without expecting an immediate answer, whether they “were […] born to resist or be

abused”, which is quite a provocative question, since probably nobody would consider

themselves born to be abused. At the very end of the first verse, the speaker switches back to

the communicative level of the beginning, asking him/her, “Are you gone and onto someone

new?” He implies that his/her ex-girlfriend or friend coldly calculates to achieve his/her goals,

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and if the person he/she uses as a means to an end tries to break free, he/she simply leaves

them and chooses a new victim.

The entire second verse is directed to the “bad addressee” as well. The speaker explains to

him/her why their relationship was doomed to failure and reproaches him/her with all the

qualities and situations that used to annoy him. It is not entirely clear who ended the

relationship, but if it was the speaker, he apparently feels the urge to justify that step. He tells

the addressee that he “needed somewhere to hang my head / Without your noose”, i.e. without

the constant feeling of being merely someone else’s puppet. He furthermore accuses his

former partner of giving him nothing in return for his love, only things that “had no use” like

the metaphorical chains that he speaks of in the first verse. At the same time, though, he

admits that it was also his fault that their relationship could be of such a dysfunctional nature,

for he was “too weak to give in” and “too strong to lose” and therefore did not manage to take

the necessary step of cutting the cord. Still, in the end he was able to “break loose” and

promises the addressee that he will “never give in”, thus showing him/her that he does not

depend on anybody anymore.

Another shift takes place when the speaker directs his words to the “good addressee” once

again. After having remembered his own past, his advice to the addressee grows even more

insistent. However, he does not tell him/her what to do until the last verse line, when he asks

him to “confess” whether “someone is getting the best […] of you”. Before that appeal, he

merely uses questions and throws out spontaneous thoughts such as “Has someone taken your

faith?” or “It’s real, the pain you feel”, in order not to pressurize his friend, but still reminding

him/her of the fact that he/she is being badly influenced and hurt by someone who is dear to

him/her.

The last verse could be regarded as introducing a third communicative level on which the

speaker directs his thoughts not only to both addressees at the same time, but also to the

implied listener. Even though there is no explicit “you” in the confession “I’m no fool”, it

tells the addressees and the listeners that the speaker is not only proud of his own

development, but also wants to save others from a similar fate. It is a warning not to let

oneself be fooled by anyone in a relationship and to always maintain one’s independence and

self-respect. At the same time, it is a warning by the speaker that one should not throw away a

relationship too carelessly, since he is already “getting tired of starting again / Somewhere

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new” and believes that the same thing could happen to anyone else who gives up on their

partner too easily.

7.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures

There is no regular rhyme scheme that persists throughout the entire song, but contrary to

most Foo Fighters song, there is a high proportion of rhyming verse lines. The first verse

features the rhyme scheme abacdccc. In addition, there is a parallel sentence structure in that

very verse. “I’ve got another confession to make” is quite similar in structure to the line

“Everyone’s got their chains to break”. That parallelism links the two lines to each other and

takes the lyrics from an individual level that only concerns the speaker to a more universal

one. The second verse has the rhyme scheme efgfhfifjfhf. What is striking about that structure

is the constant returning to f. Every second line strictly ends with a word that rhymes with the

“noose” from the first verse line, namely “use”, “lose”, “loose”, “choose”, and “refuse”. To

make the message of the verse sink in even more powerfully, there are three verse lines that

begin with “But” and thus establish a contrast to the respective preceding statements. The

structure is also reflected in the melody of the song, since the contrasting lines, which are at

the same time the ones that rhyme on f, have the same melodic structure. The first chorus does

not have a rhyme scheme; the only words that rhyme can be found within one line – “trust”

and “must”, and “real” and “feel”. In the second chorus, however, there is an addition of verse

lines and thus a rhyme scheme develops, namely klmlnnoo. Apart from that, “Best of You”

does not offer a lot of interesting formal features. The only alliteration is to be found in the

second verse, where the speaker talks about the need to “hang my head”. Strictly speaking,

each chorus contains an anaphora and an epistrophe, since the line “Is someone getting the

best of you?” is repeated several times.

As a matter of fact, the metaphors that are used in “Best of You” were already discussed in

the subchapter that deals with the thematic interpretation of the song. Therefore, what remains

to be given is a brief comparison of “Best of You” with the other songs that have been

discussed in this paper so far. In contrast to “Everlong”, the speaker of “Best of You” is not

an overjoyed lover but a more experienced person who knows that the perfection one feels at

the beginning of a relationship can give way to disenchantment and pain. Somehow

“Everlong” could symbolize a new relationship, whereas “Best of You” describes the end of it.

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While “Learn to Fly” is an account of somebody’s quest for inspiration and meaning, “Best of

You” is more about the never-ending search for true love. If the speaker can be assigned an

age, the one in “Learn to Fly” would appear younger, since he is still full of hope and energy,

whereas “Best of You” features an older, more mature speaker who knows his limits and is

already “getting tired” of continuing his search. Even though the speaker is experienced and

has had to face harsh disappointments in life, he does not have the melancholic touch of

“Aurora”. He does not idealize his past, but rather sees it how it truly was and therefore also

remembers the sad moments. Eventually, the optimistic, energetic attitude towards the future

that is expressed in “Times Like These” can also be found in “Best of You”. After all, the

speaker is aware of the fact that he has learned a lot about life by going through rough times.

The final epiphany, “I’m no fool”, shows his development and is similar to the realization that

is made by the speaker of “Times Like These”, namely that it is during the hard times that

“you learn to live again”.

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8. “The Pretender” – The Foo Fighters get Political

“The Pretender” was the first single to become released from the Foo Fighters’ most recent

album Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace. It is without doubt one of the band’s hardest rock

songs and shows their development not only musicwise, but also as far as the lyrics are

concerned. Dave Grohl has never gone into detail about the meaning of the song, but he did

give some hints in a 2007 radio interview with XFM. When interviewer John Kennedy asked

him what “The Pretender” was about, Grohl commented,

Well, that's the thing with lyrics, you never want to give away specifics, because it's nice for

people to have their own idea or interpretation of the song. But, you know, everyone's been

fucked over before and I think a lot of people feel fucked over right now and they're not

getting what they were promised, and so… it has something to do with that.51

According to that statement, it is quite likely that Grohl wrote the lyrics to “The Pretender” in

response to George W. Bush’s politics. However, as I will show in this chapter, the song can

be applied to all kinds of corrupt and self-interested regimes. The video “The Pretender”

shows the band playing the song in front of a big red wall, being faced with an army of riot

police officers. When the police start to attack the Foo Fighters, the wall explodes and covers

the army with a red liquid that prevents them from harming the band.52

In this chapter, I will

first of all analyze the themes and motives that constitute “The Pretender”, focusing on the

political reading of the song. Next, I will analyze the communicative situation, which takes

place on several levels but mainly features a speaker who tries to open an addressee’s eyes to

the games that are being played with him/her by a government. Eventually, I will discuss

some formal features of the song and show how it is related to the other songs that have been

discussed in this paper.

8.1. Resistance against Oppression

The song starts off with the ambiguous phrase “Keep you in the dark / You know they all

pretend”. Most likely, the pronoun “they” is left out in the beginning, which would mean that

there is an unknown force, probably a government that tries to keep its citizens in the dark

about its politics. They pretend to want the best for people, but in fact merely pursue their

own interests. However, the phrase could also mean that someone is keeping themselves in

51

Kennedy, John (September 2007). “Foo Fighters on ‘Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace’”.

<http://www.xfm.co.uk/Article.asp?b=reviews&id=483011> [10 August, 2009]. 52

The video can be watched on <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVboOdX9icA> [10 August, 2009].

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the dark in order not to have to face an unpleasant reality. If a government is corrupt and self-

interested, and in fact most governments are, there are always very few who have everything,

some who can lead an average life and a vast majority of poor, oppressed people. Those who

have enough or more than enough to live often do not criticize the regime, since that would

imply risking their comfortable way of life. Moreover, it is easy to ignore a government’s

faults as long as one is not affected by them, and many people might think that they could not

effect a change on their own. However, if everyone thinks that they are too insignificant to

bring about a change, everything will stay the same, the speaker argues. “And so it all began”,

he ponders, alluding to the conformist tendencies that people have and that form the roots of

totalitarian regimes. Up to that point, the sound of the song is rather quiet, but when the

introductory bridge ends and the first verse begins, the tune and the rhythm become more

aggressive, and so do the lyrics. The speaker sarcastically asks an addressee to “send in your

skeletons” and to “sing as their bones go marching in again”. Those words are probably

directed to someone with a lot of power who disposes of a whole army to pursue his goals.

The speaker calls the members of that army “skeletons” to illustrate their indifference and

unwillingness to think for themselves. They obey their leader unconditionally and carry out

his/her orders relentlessly.

After having addressed the government he despises so much, the speaker tries to open a

different addressee’s eyes by telling him/her that “they need you buried deep / The secrets that

you keep are ever ready”. He warns the addressee that the government will always try to hide

their actions and their true attitudes, since the less people know the better for the regime. At

the same time, he alludes to the concept that George Orwell called “Big Brother is watching

you” in his novel Nineteen Eighty-Four. In contrast to the citizens who are not supposed to

know anything about the government, the latter wants to be informed about the formers’

every step in order to be able to control them more easily. In a surveillance state, an

individual’s secrets are “ever ready” to be disclosed by the government. Therefore, the

speaker directly asks the addressee whether he/she is “ready”, i.e. willing to endure such

miserable conditions. For the speaker himself it is already crystal-clear that he is “finished

making sense” and “done pleading ignorance”. He can see through the lies that he is being

told day after day and he has had enough of conforming to the majority who do not care about

what is going on. Ready for resistance, he is willing to give up “that old defense”, the façade

of pretended ignorance that he used to hide behind.

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The last four lines of the first verse have one motive in common, namely the speaker’s

assumption that history repeats itself in “spinning infinity”. The speaker uses the image of a

spinning wheel in order to illustrate his situation. According to logical and physical laws, it is

the human being who uses the spinning wheel to create a useful product, namely wool.

However, the speaker turns around that relation when he claims that “the wheel is spinning

me”. He feels as if he was part of a process that he has no influence on. The government lies

to him and to the people in general in order to use them to their advantage. A thread of wool

is vanishingly small in comparison with a spinning wheel, in the same way that one individual

is small and weak when it comes to resistance against an unjust regime. However, a thread

can accumulate to a ball of wool, and many individuals can form an army that offers

resistance to those who are in power. That idea can merely be read between the lines though,

since the speaker does not feel that the time for a revolution has come. He sees through the

course of history and knows that “it’s never-ending, never-ending / Same old story”.

The chorus is a defiant statement of an individual who is not willing to conform to others’

opinions and plans without questioning them. The speaker provokes the powerful addressee

by asking him/her, “What if I say I’m not like the others?” He clearly wants to scare those

politicians by letting them know that even though they might think that they are untouchable,

there are still individuals who cannot be deceived by their lies. The speaker goes on by asking,

“What if I say I’m not just another one of your plays?” By saying that he is “not just another

one”, he is insinuating that he is different to most people because he challenges common

assumptions and widely accepted facts. He thinks for himself instead of believing whatever

the media or politicians say, and he often discovers that nothing is as it seems in the first place.

As a logical consequence, he accuses the powerful of dishonesty and hypocrisy by throwing

the phrase “You’re the pretender” at them. What is striking in that phrase is that the speaker

does not use the indefinite article “a”, as one would expect, but the definite one. That is most

likely not a coincidence, but should emphasize the disdain and hate that the speaker feels

against the regime. He exaggerates by implying that the only pretender is the government or

the person at its front. At the end of the chorus, he once more challenges the addressee by

asking him/her, “What if I say I will never surrender?” He declares his readiness to resist the

government, even though that could mean risking his freedom or even his life, since they

might try to bring him down. At the same time, the strength of the chorus is also supposed to

inspire others who feel the same way as the speaker but have not yet had the courage to rebel

against the system.

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In the second verse, the speaker continues his sarcastic reflections on the nature of individuals

under the rule of a corrupt government, and explains how he sees his own role in that system.

He relates that “In time, or so I’m told / I’m just another soul for sale, oh well”. That fact

seems to be what bothers him most – that the government is not concerned about the

wellbeing of its citizens, but regards them as puppets that they can use to achieve their

economic and political goals. It is unclear whether the speaker means it in a positive or a

negative way when he says, “The page is out of print / We are not permanent / We’re

temporary, temporary”. On the one hand, those lines can be read as an allusion to the

transience of life. The speaker appeals to his fellow citizens to be more aware of their

mortality and to make a change as long as they can. Especially with regard to future

generations, they should not accept what is going on and try to make the world a better place

for their children. On the other hand, the speaker’s statement could be applied to the

government itself, which is temporary as well, as long as there is democracy. If Dave Grohl

wrote the lyrics to “The Pretender” referring to the government of the U.S. at that time, he

might have thought of the nearing end of George W. Bush’s term when he wrote those

particular lines, and if so, probably not without a certain feeling of relief. Still, the speaker

repeats the words “Same old story” as a conclusion of the second verse, which shows his fear

of a new government committing the same mistakes as the current one.

Eventually, the bridge is a grim warning to the government, telling them that they should not

be lulled into a false sense of security. The speaker insinuates that he will always stay alert

and protest if he considers that unjust actions have taken place. He tells them that “I’m the

voice inside your head you refuse to hear”, by which he basically slips into the role of the

politicians’ conscience that they ignore so often. Moreover, he sees himself as “the face that

you have to face / Mirrorin’ your stare”. He does not want to tie himself down to a certain

political party or movement; he emphasizes that “I’m what’s left; I’m what’s right” because

he is of the opinion that both political wings can breed good as well as bad governments. In

any case, he considers himself “the enemy”, i.e. someone who fights against injustice and

corruption. He even goes as far as to say that he is “the hand that’ll take you down and bring

you to your knees”. Here it becomes clear that the speaker hopes to get as much support as

possible from like-minded individuals, for he knows that they can succeed if there are enough

of them. In order to gain that support, he directs the question “So, who are you?” to the

addressee and to the implied listeners, challenging them to decide whether they would like to

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keep on conforming to the masses who ignore the injustice that is going on around them, or

whether they will join the speaker in his revolution against it.

8.2. The Addressee’s Conscience

“The Pretender” features in some way a similar communicative situation to that of “Best of

You”, in the sense that there also seem to be two addressees that the speaker treats differently.

First, there is the government, regime or politician that the speaker directs his words to as a

warning and an accusation. He obviously dislikes that addressee and uses every occasion to

call him a pretender. Second, there is an addressee whom the speaker wants to make think

about the system he/she lives in and to challenge it more critically. That second addressee

does not necessarily have to be a friend of the speaker’s, but he definitely has a more well-

meaning attitude towards him/her and tries to open his/her eyes, but always in a provoking,

urging way.

In the introductory lines, the speaker directs his words to the second addressee, asking him to

open his/her eyes and break out of the “dark”, the ignorance that he/she is kept in by the

powerful or that is a consequence of his/her own denial of unpleasant facts. When the first

verse begins, there is a shift to another communicative level – the speaker now appears to

address a political leader or a whole group of people who form the government. That shift is

clearly reflected in the musical structure of the song. Whereas the introductory lines have a

slow rhythm and are merely accompanied by a few guitar notes, the verse features hammering

drums and distorted guitar chords. In addition, the lyrics get a touch of sarcasm when the

speaker asks the government to “send in your skeletons” and to “sing as their bones go

marching in again”. On the one hand he insinuates that he sees through their façade of lies, on

the other hand he tells them that he is not afraid of them and their heartless supporters. In the

same verse, there is yet another shift back to the communicative level of the beginning, on

which the speaker tries to convince an addressee of the regime’s dishonesty. He probably

wants to scare the addressee by not going into detail about the persons that he considers a

threat. Instead, he deliberately uses the personal pronoun “they” in his statement “They need

you buried deep”, which is supposed to make the addressee get the feeling of being threatened

by an unknown force. Reminding him/her of the surveillance state they both live in, the

speaker states that “The secrets that you keep are ever ready”. The speaker clearly tries to gain

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the addressee’s trust, since he hopes for his/her support in his fight against injustice and

corruption. After having confronted him/her with the facts about the government, he hopes to

have convinced the addressee and asks him/her, “Are you ready?”. Apparently, though, the

addressee has not yet grasped the extent of the deceit he/she is subject to. That assumption

can be made because the speaker does not continue his speech by presenting his ideas for

protest or revolution to the speaker. Instead, he keeps on trying to make him/her understand

why he is so upset about the current political situation. However, he changes strategies now

and tells the addressee about his personal impressions and his experience with the system. He

does not appeal to the addressee directly anymore, but opts for the “I”-perspective in order to

bring his message across. It sounds more like an inner monologue when he says, “I’m

finished making sense / Done pleading ignorance”. At that point, the addressee seems to be

faded out in order to give way to the speaker’s reflections on his own development. He is

ready to give up “that old defense” that used to prevent him from expressing his discontent

with a system whose leaders do not bother about the wellbeing of its citizens, but rather try to

pursue their own interests. In the next verse line, the speaker does still not directly appeal to

the addressee, but it is possible that he considers him in his thoughts when he says, “Spinning

infinity, boy”. Although “boy” could also merely be an expression of sorrow, as in the

exclamation “Oh boy”, it is more likely that the speaker sees the addressee as someone who

still has a lot left to learn about life, which is why he addresses him fatherly with “boy”.

In the chorus, the speaker shifts back to the level where he talks to the political leaders he

dislikes, or at least he imagines talking to them. As with the other addressee, he tries to scare

them and thus hopes to achieve a change in their attitude. By using several “What if…?”

questions, he forces them to think about those who do not submit to their games. The

following second verse is not directly addressed to anyone, but implies the politicians as well

as the addressee whom the speaker is trying to teach. The general statement “We are not

permanent / We’re temporary, temporary” is supposed to remind the addressees, but also the

speaker himself, of their mortality, and to make them consider their actions more carefully.

Eventually, the bridge is clearly directed to the government or a political leader. The somber

melody supports the warning tone of the lyrics; the speaker claims to be “the voice inside

your head that you refuse to hear”, “the enemy” and “the hand that will take you down”. The

threat of starting a revolution is imminent and is all the more emphasized by the speaker

asking his “good” addressee to decide on which side he is. “So, who are you?”, is in fact an

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appeal to choose between being an ignorant pretender and taking responsibility to fight for

one’s rights.

8.3. Rhyme Scheme and Rhetorical Figures

Although there is no regular rhyme scheme in “The Pretender”, there are a number of

interesting rhymes and rhyme-like phenomena that shall be mentioned in this chapter. In the

introductory lyrics, the visible rhyme scheme is abac, but through the repetition of vowel

sounds there is an assonance between “pretend” and “began”. What is striking in the first

verse is an accumulation of rhymes between “sense”, “ignorance” and “defense”. Those three

verse lines might have been grouped together deliberately, for they belong to the same issue,

namely the speaker’s thoughts about his own development as an independent-minded

individual. Not only a rhyme, but rather a play with sounds can be found right after in the

lines where it says “Spinning infinity” and “The wheel is spinning me”. Spoken out quickly,

the lines almost sound like a tongue-twister and thus make the reader’s eyes or the listener’s

ears pause at the words and think about them. One last rhyme can be found in the chorus,

where “pretender” rhymes with “surrender”, a pair that emphasizes the speaker’s strong

determination to never give in to the false pretenders who form the government of his country.

Since the most dominant metaphors of the song were already discussed in chapter 8.1, what is

left to mention here is the remarkable number of alliterations, anaphoras and epistrophes that

can be found throughout the lyrics of “The Pretender”. By repeating the line “Keep you in the

dark” in the introductory lyrics, Grohl created an anaphora as well as an epistrophe at the very

beginning of the song. The first verse features two alliterations that function as a substitution

of anaphoras, since they occur at the beginning of the respective verse lines – “Send” and

“Sing” as well as “They” and “The”. Furthermore, the chorus is full of anaphoras that are

formed by the speaker’s provoking “What if…?” questions. In the second verse, there is an

emphasizing effect achieved by the alliteration in “soul for sale” as well as in the “page” that

is “out of print”. Finally, the bridge contains an exceeding number of anaphoras and

epistrophes, since four lines start with “I’m”, four further lines end with “you” and three lines

introduce a question with “Who”.

- 79 -

Before coming to the conclusion that will provide a final overview of the results of my

analysis, I would like to point out some crucial similarities and differences between “The

Pretender” and the other song lyrics that have been dealt with in this paper. First and foremost,

it is striking that “The Pretender” deals with politics in a very ostentatious way. Whereas

many Foo Fighters songs are about an individual’s struggle to define his/her personality and

to find meaning in life, this one shows a speaker’s great dissatisfaction with a certain

government or political leader. The reason for that new political commitment might be a new

awareness on behalf of the band that the more popular they are getting, the more people they

are able reach with their music, which leads to a new sense of responsibility that reflects in

their lyrics. What also distinguishes “The Pretender” from all the other songs that I have

analyzed is an extremely strong speaker who does not doubt his abilities for a second in the

course of the lyrics. He seems much more experienced than the love-blinded speaker of

“Everlong”, and much more mature than the melancholic speaker of “Aurora”. Similar to the

Foo Fighters, who have developed as individuals and as a band over the years – musically as

well as personally – the speakers of their songs have become more thoughtful and mature

with each album. Looking back on my analysis, it seems as if “The Pretender” was a perfectly

logical step in a process that has stretched itself over the last fifteen years and still leaves

room for further development in the future.

- 80 -

9. Conclusion

In the final part of my thesis I will once more take a close look at all the lyrics I have

analyzed, but this time I will try to point out any recurring themes that have caught my

attention during the interpretive process. Furthermore, I will provide a survey of how the role

of the speaker in the Foo Fighters’ songs has developed over the years. Eventually I will

conclude with some thoughts on why the Foo Fighters have managed to move such a massive

number of people with their lyrics. That last part can merely be a personal assumption, but I

dare say that it would be agreed upon by a large number of fans.

In the course of my analysis, several themes have turned out to come up over and over again

in the lyrics, even though they are expressed from different angles. First, the theme of

emotional and sometimes also physical abuse appears in several of Grohl’s lyrics. What

differs from song to song is the way that the speaker deals with that abuse – in some lyrics he

quietly accepts his fate, whereas in others he resists and/or encourages an addressee to resist

being abused. A perfect example of the speaker who lets someone take advantage of him is

“Have It All”, where love prevents the speaker from ending an unhealthy relationship. We

encounter a similar situation in the song “Generator”, which features a speaker who would do

anything for the woman he loves although she merely took advantage of him and left him for

someone else. “I’ll Stick Around” is the first song that shows any signs of resistance on the

part of the speaker, and in “Monkey Wrench” he clearly rejects the addressee who has used

him as a tool for too long. An even stronger resistance is insinuated in “Best of You”, with a

speaker who has broken out of an abusive relationship and now warns others not to fall into

the same trap. Eventually, “Low” can be placed somewhere in between, since the speaker and

the addressee take advantage of each other in a relationship of convenience.

A second theme that pervades Dave Grohl’s lyrics is individualism, or rather a cry for

individualism in a society of conformists. “For All the Cows” advances the view that

everybody would adapt as soon as money is involved, whereas “Stacked Actors” is addressed

to a particular group of people, namely Hollywood’s high society, who would do anything to

fit in and be accepted. “The Pretender” is concerned with a different kind of conformism. It

complains about people’s passivity and indifference towards a political leadership that is

corrupt and self-interested. The speaker sees himself as one of very few who think for

themselves instead of taking over ready-made opinions.

- 81 -

Another important theme that can be found in all kinds of variations in the Foo Fighters’

songs is the feeling of disorientation and depression, and closely related to that the search for

inspiration and meaning in life. One of the most depressive songs is probably “Exhausted”,

since there is no resolution to the speaker’s passiveness and melancholy. A much more

positive approach forms the basis of “Times Like These”, with a speaker who has realized

that the overcoming of periods of struggle has made him stronger and more mature. “All my

Life” is a good example of the speaker’s quest for a sign of life that is mentioned in the title as

well as in various chapters of this thesis. Whereas the speaker of “All my Life” is searching in

vain, those of “Everlong” and “My Hero” have already found inspiration, namely in a special

person that makes them believe in themselves. Eventually, “Learn to Fly” is a special case,

featuring a speaker who has not yet found fulfilment and happiness, but is eager to change his

life to the better and willing to be supported on his way. In general, the Foo Fighters’ lyrics

are characterized by conveying a much more positive attitude than the grunge songs from the

early nineties.

A minor theme that still has to be mentioned in this conclusion is that of unrequited love. In

“Walking After You”, an unusually soft and romantic song for the Foo Fighters, a speaker

expresses his sadness about a broken relationship and promises the woman he still loves that

he will always be there for her, even though she might already have started a new relationship

with someone else. A different situation is featured in “Big Me”, where a romantic

relationship between the speaker and the woman he loves has come true, since she rejects him

after he has confessed his feelings to her.

Eventually, the theme of death is addressed several times in the Foo Fighters’ lyrics. In

“DOA”, the speaker talks about life’s ephemeral quality in a very straightforward way. He is

not afraid of facing the fact that he will have to die one day, and reminds his addressee of it

with a sarcastic, at times even macabre tone. A more contemplative attitude towards death can

be found in “Resolve”, where a speaker moans the death of a loved one. The emotional side is

much stronger than in “DOA”, and even though years have passed, the speaker has still not

been able to deal with his grief.

One of the most interesting aspects that I have discovered in the course of my analysis is the

development that the speaker in the Foo Fighters’ songs has gone through. Since I carried out

a chronological interpretation of the various lyrics, it was almost impossible not to observe

- 82 -

the process of personal maturation. In “Everlong”, we encounter a speaker who still seems to

be quite young. He is idealistic, passionate and fascinated by the woman he loves. However,

he also has the characteristics of a naïve dreamer who is afraid to face life’s challenges and

wishes he could remain forever in that perfect moment he experiences when he is with his

beloved. The speaker of “Learn to Fly” has brought up the courage to face the future and start

looking for an inspiration, but he feels like he cannot succeed on his own and therefore asks

his addressee for support. “Aurora” features a speaker who has clearly gained self-confidence

in comparison with the one in “Learn to Fly”, since he is convinced that with the help of his

friend or beloved he can achieve anything he wants. However, his reminiscing of better times

gives a slightly melancholic touch to the song and makes its speaker appear weaker than he

actually is. A big step in the speaker’s development takes place between “Aurora” and “Times

Like These”. In the latter song, the speaker has found his inner strength, has adopted a life-

affirming attitude and looks back at the past not nostalgically, but with gratitude. What is

more, he does not depend on an addressee’s support anymore, but instead relates his own life

experience to others in order to help them. That giving of advice is continued in “Best of

You”, where a very experienced and mature speaker tries to convince an addressee that he

should not let others take advantage of him/her. Whereas the speaker in “Best of You” still

focuses on interpersonal relationships, that of “The Pretender” declares his thoughts and

opinions concerning politics. Being the most recent Foo Fighters song I have dealt with, it

shows a speaker with a lot of life experience who is mature enough to decide what his values

are. All in all, the speaker seems to become more self-confident and life-affirming with every

song, which could very likely be a reflection of the Foo Fighters’ development as a band and

as individuals.

Finally, I would like to conclude with a personal speculation on why the Foo Fighters’ lyrics

have moved so many people over the last fifteen years. What strikes me most about their

songs in comparison to those by other artists is the strong universal quality that many of them

have. The message of the lyrics is usually kept rather general and thus can be adapted to each

listener’s current situation. Moreover, Dave Grohl deliberately does not go into detail about

the intended meaning of his lyrics, for he wants people to find their own approach towards

them. In my opinion, that is the reason why so many people can relate to the Foo Fighters’

songs and feel supported by them in their quest for a sign of life.

- 83 -

10. References

1. Primary Sources

Foo Fighters (1995). Foo Fighters. Roswell Records / Capitol Records.

(1997). The Colour and the Shape. Roswell Records / Capitol Records.

(1999). There Is Nothing Left to Lose. RCA Records / BMG

(2002). One by One. RCA Records / BMG

(2005) In Your Honor. RCA Records / BMG

(2007) Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace. RCA Records / BMG

2. Secondary Sources

2.1. Printed Literature

Bogdanov, Vladimir, Chris Woodstra, and Stephen Thomas Erlewine (2006). All Music Guide

to Rock: The Definitive Guide to Rock, Pop and Soul / Rock. 3.ed., repr. All Music Guide. San

Francisco, CA: Blackbeat Books.

Buckley, Peter (2003). The Rough Guide to Rock: [The Definitive Guide to more than 1200

Artists and Bands] / Rock. 3., expanded and completely rev. ed. London: Rough Guides.

Faulstich, Werner (1978). Rock, Pop, Beat, Folk: Grundlagen der Textmusik-Analyse.

Literaturwissenschaft im Grundstudium 7. Tübingen: Narr.

George-Warren, Holly, ed. (2001). The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll: Rock &

Roll. 3. ed., rev. and updated for the 21st century, rev. ed. of: New Rolling Stone

Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. A Rolling Stone Press book. New York, NY [u.a]: Fireside.

Petz, Georg (2003). Die Texte des Grunge Rock : Ein Beitrag zur Funktionsgeschichte von

Popmusik. Graz: Univ., Dipl.-Arb.

Scaruffi, Piero (2003). A History of Rock Music: 1951 - 2000. New York, NY [u.a.]:

iUniverse.

Stockinger, Alina (2008). "A Hopeless Romantic?”: Death and Transcendence in the Lyrics

of Conor Oberst. Graz: Univ., Dipl.-Arb.

- 84 -

2.2. Online

2.2.1. Interviews and articles

Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides”. [Online]

<http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/selftitled.htm> [9 June, 2009].

Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides” [Online]

<http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/colourandtheshape.htm> [12 June, 2009].

Anon. “Dave’s Song Guides” [Online] <http://www.fooarchive.com/headwires/tnltl.htm> [24

July, 2009].

Anon. “In Your Honor” [Online]

<http://www.sonybmg.com.au/cd/releaseDetails.do?catalogueNo=82876696232> [23 June,

2009].

Anon. (August 2007) “This is our best Record in Years”. Kerrang. [Online]

<http://www.fooarchive.com/gpb/kerrangaug07.htm> [29 June, 2009].

DiPerna, Alan (1997). “Absolutely Foobulous”. Guitar World. [Online]

<http://www.fooarchive.com/features/guitarworld.htm>. [5 June, 2009].

Kennedy, John (September 2007). “Foo Fighters on ‘Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace’”.

[Online radio interview] <http://www.xfm.co.uk/Article.asp?b=reviews&id=483011> [10

August, 2009].

Lawson, Dom (July 2008). “Fighting Talk”. Classic Rock. [Online]

<http://www.fooarchive.com/features/classicrock08.htm>. [5 June, 2009].

Morat (June 2006). “How To Write A Rock Anthem” [Online]

<http://www.fooarchive.com/features/kerrangjune06.htm> [9 July, 2009].

Scaggs, Austin (28 July, 2005). “On an Honor Roll”. Rolling Stone. [Online]

<http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/7483596/on_an_honor_roll>. [6 April, 2009].

2.2.2. Wikipedia articles and Online dictionary entries

“Alternative Rock” : <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_rock> [5 June, 2009].

“DOA (song)”: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DOA_(song)> [24 June, 2009].

“Foo Fighters”: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foo_Fighters>. [3 June, 2009].

“I’ll Stick Around”: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%27ll_Stick_Around> [9 June, 2009].

“Grunge Music” : <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grunge_music>. [5 June, 2009].

- 85 -

“It’s on”: <http://onlineslangdictionary.com/definition+of/it%27s+on> [27 July, 2009].

“Learn to Fly” : <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learn_to_Fly> [16 June, 2009].

“Lie”: <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/lie> [16 June, 2009].

“Monkey Wrench”: <http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/monkey+wrench> [11

June, 2009].

“One by One”: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_by_One> [18 June, 2009].

“Over one’s head”: <http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/over_one%27s_head> [7 July, 2009].

“Pun”: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pun> [23 July, 2009].

“Stacked Actors”: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stacked_Actors> [16 June, 2009].

“The Colour and the Shape ”: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Colour_and_the_Shape> [11

June,2009].

“There is Nothing Left To Lose” :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There_Is_Nothing_Left_to_Lose> [26 June, 2009].

“Throw”: <http://www.yourdictionary.com/throw> [7 July, 2009].

2.2.3. Youtube videos

“Dave Grohl interview + Everlong acoustic performance”:

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0X8udBKO7E&feature=related> [12 June, 2009].

“Foo Fighters – Best of You – Part 1”: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPuATqBtpyw>

[24 June, 2009].

“Foo.Fighters.-.[Big.Me]”: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzPFx_Bii1Q> [11 June,

2009].

“Foo Fighters – Everlong”: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llLWtvpPz7A> [12 June,

2009].

“foo fighters-learn to fly”: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdX-RX5IHAU> [16 June,

2009].

“Foo Fighters – Learn to Fly (Live @ Wembley Stadium 2008)”:

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75H3k8DsQCk> [22 July, 2009].

“Foo Fighters – Next Year”: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_vdBucj5nM> [16 June,

2009].

- 86 -

“Foo Fighters – The Pretender”: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVboOdX9icA> [10

August, 2009].

“Foo Fighters – Times like these (Acoustic)”:

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVm8jPBhmMU> [30 July, 2009].

2.2.4. Forum discussion

‘theirony’ (14 May, 2008) [Online Posting]

<http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/3530822107858684649/#comment> [25 June,

2009].

‘turtonhot’ (22 May, 2002) [Online Posting]

<http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/2281/#comment> [17 June, 2009].

‘WereOrdinary’ [Online Posting]

<http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/2268/3/ASC/#comment> [12 June, 2009].

Various users

<http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/3458764513820557895/2/ASC/#comment> [18

June, 2009].

- 87 -

11. Appendix: Lyrics Since none of the Foo Fighters’ album booklets provide a complete version of their lyrics, all

songtexts were taken from http://lyricwiki.org, except for “Low” and “Have it All”, which were taken

from http://www.sing365.com. The sequence of songs is according to their release dates.

1. “Exhausted“

I'm not around that much

Running exhausted and lost

If it could be undone

Will it have costed

It's taught and lost

Blowing away we stray, wilted

Insulted, at fault

What if the day had stayed in bed

These baubles we've brought

At fault

After the bliss has long ended

This caution this fault

Give me a breeze that's long winded

Accosted, adult arrested

2. “This is a Call”

Visiting is pretty

Visiting is good

Seems that all they ever wanted was a brother

This can be a secret

We can keep it good

Even all the ever wanting had a problem

This is a call to all my

Past resignations

This is a call to all

Fingernails are pretty

Fingernails are good

Seems that all they ever wanted was a marking

Them balloons are pretty big

And say they should

Ever fall to ground, call the magic marker

This is a call to all my

Past resignations

This is a call to all

This is a call to all my

Past resignations

It's been too long

Minocin is pretty

- 88 -

Minocin is good

Even all the cysts and mollusks tend to barter

Ritalin is easy

Ritalin is good

Even all the ones who watered down the daughter

This is a call to all my

Past resignations

This is a call to all

This is a call to all my

Past resignations

It's been too long

Fingernails are pretty

Fingernails are good

Seems that all they ever wanted was a marking

Them balloons are pretty big

And say they should

Ever fall to ground, call the magic marker

This is a call to all my

Past resignations

This is a call to all

This is a call to all my

Past resignations

It's been too long

3. “I’ll Stick Around”

I thought I knew all it took to bother you

Every word I said was true

That you'll see

How could it be, I'm the only one who sees

Your rehearsed insanity, yeah

I still refuse all the methods you abused

It's alright if you're confused

Let me be

I've been around all the pawns you gagged and bound

They'll come back and knock you down

And I'll be free

I've taken all and I've endured

One day it all will fade, I'm sure

I don't owe you anything

I don't owe you anything

I don't owe you anything

I don't owe you anything

I had no hand in your ever-desperate plan

It returns and when it lands

Words are due

I should have known we were better off alone

- 89 -

I looked in and I was shown

You were too

I've taken all and I've endured

One day it all will fade, I'm sure

I don't owe you anything

I don't owe you anything

I don't owe you anything

I don't owe you anything

I'll stick around, I'll stick around

Learn from all that came from it

I'll stick around, I'll stick around

Learn from all that came from it

I'll stick around, I'll stick around

Learn from all that came from it

I'll stick around, I'll stick around

Learn from all that came from it

4. “For All the Cows”

I'm called a cow

I'm not about to blow it now

For all the cows

For all the cows

It's funny how money allows

All to browse and be endowed

This wish is true

It falls into peaces new

The cow is you, the cow is you

My kind has all run out, as if kinds could blend

Some time if time allows

Everything worn in, everything worn in

Everything worn in like it's a friend

I said you're all a painted doll

And it caused the walls to fall

How far is he?

Impatiently

That's as far as far can be

As far can be

My kind has all run out, as if kinds could blend

Some time if time allows

Everything worn in, everything worn in

Everything worn in like it's a friend

I'm called a cow

I'm not about to blow it now

For all the cows

It's funny how money allows

All to browse and be endowed

- 90 -

And be endowed

My kind has all run out, as if kinds could blend

Some time if time allows

Everything worn in, everything worn in

Everything worn in like it's a friend

5. “Big Me”

When I talk about it

Carries on

Reasons only knew

When I talk about it

Aries or

Treasons all renew

Big me to talk about it

I could stand to prove

If we can get around it

I know that it's true

When I talked about it

Carried on

Reasons only knew

But it's you

I fell into

When I talked about it

Carries on

Reasons only knew

When I talk about it

Aries or

Treasons all renew

Big me to talk about it

I could stand to prove

If we can get around it

I know that it's true

Well I talked about it

Put it on

Never was it true

But it's you

I fell into

Well I talked about it

Put it on

Never was it true

But it's you

I fell into

I fell into

I fell into

- 91 -

6. “Monkey Wrench”

What have we done with innocence

It disappeared with time, it never made much sense

Adolescent resident

Wasting another night on planning my revenge

One in ten

One in ten

One in ten

Don't want to be your monkey wrench

One more indecent accident

I'd rather leave than suffer this

I'll never be a monkey wrench

All this time to make amends

What do you do when all your enemies are friends

Now and then I'll try to bend

Under the pressure wind up snapping in the end

One in ten

One in ten

One in ten

Don't want to be your monkey wrench

One more indecent accident

I'd rather leave than suffer this

I'll never be a monkey wrench

Temper

Temper

Temper

One last thing before I quit

I never wanted any more than I could fit into my head

I still remember every single word you said

And all the shit that somehow came along with it

Still there's one thing that comforts me

Since I was always caged and now I'm free

Don't want to be your monkey wrench

One more indecent accident

I'd rather leave than suffer this

I'll never be your monkey wrench

Don't want to be your monkey wrench

(Fall in, fall out)

Don't want to be your monkey wrench

(Fall in, fall out)

Don't want to be your monkey wrench

(Fall in, fall out)

Don't want to be your monkey wrench

- 92 -

7. “Everlong”

Hello, I've waited here for you

Everlong

Tonight, I throw myself into

And out of the red, out of her head she sang

Come down and waste away with me

Down with me

Slow how you wanted it to be

I'm over my head, out of her head she sang

And I wonder

When I sing along with you

If everything could ever feel this real forever

If anything could ever be this good again

The only thing I'll ever ask of you

You got to promise not to stop when I say when

She sang

Breathe out so I can breathe you in

Hold you in

And now I know you've always been

Out of your head, out of my head I sang

And I wonder

When I sing along with you

If everything could ever feel this real forever

If anything could ever be this good again

The only thing I'll ever ask of you

You got to promise not to stop when I say when

She sang

And I wonder

If everything could ever feel this real forever

If anything could ever be this good again

The only thing I'll ever ask of you

You got to promise not to stop when I say when

8. “My Hero”

Too alarming now to talk about

Take your pictures down and shake it out

Truth or consequence, say it aloud

Use that evidence, race it around

There goes my hero

Watch him as he goes

There goes my hero

He's ordinary

Don't the best of them bleed it out

While the rest of them peter out

Truth or consequence, say it aloud

- 93 -

Use that evidence and race it around

There goes my hero

Watch him as he goes

There goes my hero

He's ordinary

Kudos my hero

Leaving all the best

You know my hero,

The one that's on

There goes my hero

Watch him as he goes

There goes my hero

He's ordinary

There goes my hero

Watch him as he goes

There goes my hero

He's ordinary

9. “Walking After You”

Tonight I'm tangled in my blanket of clouds

Dreaming aloud

Things just won't do without you, matter of fact

I'm on your back, I'm on your back, I'm on your back

If you walk out on me, I'm walking after you

If you walk out on me, I'm walking after you

If you'd accept surrender, give up some more

Weren't you adored

I cannot be without you, matter of fact

Ooh I'm on your back I'm on your back

Ooh I'm on your back

If you walk out on me, I'm walking after you

If you walk out on me, I'm walking after you

Another heart is cracked in two, I'm on your back Ooh

I cannot be without you, matter of fact

Ooh I'm on your back

If you walk out on me, I'm walking after you

If you walk out on me, I'm walking after you

If you walk out on me, I'm walking after you

Another heart is cracked in two, I'm on your back Ooh

- 94 -

10. “Learn to Fly”

Run and tell all of the angels

This could take all night

Think I need a devil to help me get things right

Hook me up a new revolution

'Cause this one is a lie

I sat around laughing and watched the last one die

I'm looking to the sky to save me

Looking for a sign of life

Looking for something to help me burn out bright

I'm looking for complication

Looking 'cause I'm tired of lying

Make my way back home when I learn to fly high

I think I'm done nursing patience

It can wait one night

Give it all away if you give me one last try

We'll live happily ever trapped if you just save my life

Run and tell the angels that everything's all right

I'm looking to the sky to save me

Looking for a sign of life

Looking for something to help me burn out bright

I'm looking for a complication

Looking 'cause I'm tired of trying

Make my way back home when I learn to fly high

Make my way back home when I learn to

Fly along with me, I can't quite make it alone

Try to make this life my own

Fly along with me, I can't quite make it alone

Try to make this life my own

I'm looking to the sky to save me

Looking for a sign of life

Looking for something to help me burn out bright

I'm looking for a complication

Looking 'cause I'm tired of trying

Make my way back home when I learn to

I'm looking to the sky to save me

Looking for a sign of life

Looking for something to help me burn out bright

I'm looking for a complication

Looking 'cause I'm tired of trying

Make my way back home when I learn to fly high

Make my way back home when I learn to fly

Make my way back home when I learn to

- 95 -

11. “Stacked Actors”

Oh mirror mirror, you're coming in clear

I'm finally somewhere in between

I'm impressed, what a beautiful chest

I never meant to make a big scene

Will you resign to the latest design

You look so messy when you dress up in dreams

One more for hire, a wonderful liar

I think it's time we all should come clean

Stack dead actors, stacked to the rafters

Line up the bastards all I want is the truth

Hey, hey now, can you fake it,

Can you make it look like we want

Hey hey now, can you take it

And we cry when they all die blonde

God bless, what a sensitive mess

Yeah, but things aren't always what they seem

Your teary eyes, your famous disguise

Never knowing who to believe

See through, yeah but what do you do

When you're just another aging drag queen

Stack dead actors, stacked to the rafters

Line up the bastards all I want is the truth

Hey, hey now, can you fake it,

Can you make it look like we want

Hey hey now, can you take it

And we cry when they all die blonde

12. “Generator”

Lately I'm getting better

Wish I could stay sick with you

But there's too many egos left to bruise

Call it sin, you can call it whatever,

Eating deep inside of you

Well if it were me it's all I'd ever do

Steal me now and forever

I'll steal something good for you

The criminal in me is no one new

Till you find something better

When there's nothing left to use

And everything starts going down on you

I'm the generator, firing whenever you quit

Yeah whatever it is, you go out and it's on

Yeah can't you hear my motored heart

You're the one that started it

Send me out on a tether

- 96 -

Swing it round I'll spin your noose

You let it down

I'll hang around with you, till you find someone better

When there's no one left to use, and everyone keeps going down

I'm the generator, firing whenever you quit

Yeah whatever it is, you go out and it's on

Yeah can't you hear my motored heart

You're the one that started it

13. “Breakout”

You make me dizzy

Running circles in my head

One of these days I'll chase you down

Well look who's going crazy now

We're face to face my friend

Better get out

Better get out

You know you make me break out

Make me break out

I don’t wanna look like that

I don’t wanna look like that

Know you make me break out

You can see this on my face

It's all for you

The more and more I take I break right through

Therapy still scares me

Putting me on my back again

I may be crazy, little frayed around the ends

One of these days I'll phase you out

Burn it in the blast off

Burn it in the blast off

Watch me crawl away

Try to get out

Try to get out

You know you make me break out

Make me break out

Break out!

Go, go, go

14. “Next Year“

I'm in the sky tonight

There I can keep by your side

Watching the wide world riot and hiding out

I'll be coming home next year

- 97 -

Into the sun we climb

Climbing our wings will burn white

Everyone strapped in tight

We'll ride it out

I'll be coming home next year

Come on get on, get on

Take it till life runs out

No one can find us now

Living with our heads underground

Into the night we shine

Lighting the way we glide by

Catch me if I get too high

When I come down

I'll be coming home next year

I'm in the sky tonight

There I can keep by your side

Watching the whole world wind around and round

I'll be coming home next year

Come on get on, get on

Take it till life runs out

No one can find us now

Living with our heads underground

I'll be coming home next year

I'll be coming home next year

Everything's alright up here

If I come down

I'll be coming home next year

Say goodbye, say goodbye

Say goodbye, say goodbye

I'll be coming home next year

I'll be coming home next year

Everything's alright up here

If I come down

I'll be coming home next year

I'll be coming home next year

15. “Aurora”

You believe there's something else

To relieve your emptiness

And you dream about yourself

And you bleed and breathe the air

And it's on and on and on and on and on

I just kinda died for you

You just kinda stared at me

We will always have the chance

We can do this one more time

- 98 -

Hell yeah, I remember aurora

Hell yeah, I remember aurora

All this time

Hell yeah, I remember aurora

Take me now, we can spin the sun around

And the stars will all come out

Then we'll turn and come back down

Then we'll turn and come back down

You believe there's somewhere else

Where it's easier than this

And you see outside yourself

And you buy the hole you'll fill

And still it's on and on and on and on and on

Hell yeah, I remember aurora

Hell yeah, I remember aurora

All this time

On and on and on aurora wait for everyone

Wait till the last one's done

16. “All My Life”

All my life I've been searching for somethin'

Somethin' never comes, never leads to nothin'

Nothin' satisfies, but I'm getting close

Closer to the prize at the end of the rope

All night long I dream of the day

When it comes around, and it's taken away

Leaves me with the feeling that I feel the most

Feel it come to life when I see your ghost

Come down don't you resist

You've such a delicate wrist

And if I give it a twist

Something to hold when I lose my grip

Will I find something in there

To give me just what I need

Another reason to bleed

One by one hidden up my sleeve, one by one hidden up my sleeve

Hey, don't let it go to waste

I love it but I hate the taste

Weight keeping me down

Hey, don't let it go to waste

I love it but I hate the taste

Weight keeping me down

Will I find a believer?

Another one who believes

Another one to deceive

- 99 -

Over and over down on my knees

If I get any closer

And if you open up wide

And if you let me inside

On and on I got nothing to hide, on and on I got nothing to hide

Hey, don't let it go to waste

I love it but I hate the taste

Weight keeping me down

Hey, don't let it go to waste

I love it but I hate the taste

Weight keeping me down

All my life I've been searching for somethin'

Somethin' never comes, never leads to nothin'

Nothin' satisfies, but I'm getting close

Closer to the prize at the end of the rope

All night long I dream of the day

When it comes around and it's taken away

Leaves me with the feeling that I feel the most

Feel it come to life when I see your ghost

And I'm done, done onto the next one

Done, done and I'm onto the next one

Done, done and I'm onto the next one

Done, done and I'm onto the next one

Done, done and I'm onto the next one

Done, done and I'm onto the next one

Done, done and I'm onto the next one

Done, I'm done and I'm onto the next

Done, done onto the next one!

Done, I'm done and I'm on to the next one!

Done, done onto the next one!

Done, I'm done and I'm on to the next one!

Hey, don't let it go to waste

I love it but I hate the taste

Weight keeping me down

Hey, don't let it go to waste

I love it but I hate the taste

Weight keeping me down

Done, done onto the next one!

Done, I'm done and I'm on to the next

17. “Times Like These”

I, I'm a one-way motorway

I'm a road that drives away and follows you back home

I, I'm a street light shining

I'm a white light blinding bright and burning off and on

- 100 -

Uh huh uh

It's times like these you learn to live again

It's times like these you give and give again

It's times like these you learn to love again

It's times like these, time and time again

I, I'm a new day rising

I'm a brand new sky to hang the stars upon tonight

I, I'm a little divided

Do I stay or run away and leave it all behind?

Uh huh uh

It's times like these you learn to live again

It's times like these you give and give again

It's times like these you learn to love again

It's times like these, time and time again

Ooh...

Uh huh uh

Uh huh uh

It's times like these you learn to live again

It's times like these you give and give again

It's times like these you learn to love again

It's times like these, time and time again

It's times like these you learn to live again

It's times like these you give and give again

It's times like these you learn to love again

It's times like these, time and time again

It's times like these you learn to live again

It's times like these you give and give again

It's times like these you learn to love again

It's times like these, time and time again

18. “Low”

Hey you

Are you in there?

I'm stuck outside you

We could use

One another

Another like you

(Chorus)

You’ll be my passerby

I'll be your new, one to pass through

Screws inside turn so tight

Turning on you

I'm hanging on you

Baby blue

Don't go nowhere

I'm right beside you

Me and you

- 101 -

Going nowhere

I'm right beside you

(Chorus)

Taking you as low as you go

As low as you go

(2x)

(Chorus)

Taking you as low as you go

As low as you go

(4x)

19. “Have It All”

You're my size I need to try you on

Someone in between the right and wrong

Through everything you kept your wings apart

Through everything you stayed the same old art

And when I've had enough

She drains me

When I'm empty

She fills herself

She takes it all

In too deep

She's spilling over me

In too deep

She's spilling over me

Go on and have it all

Winding through this maze you hold me in

Searching all these days to find the end

You're everything, you're everything I'm not

I'm anything I'm anyone you want

And when I've had enough

She drains me

When I'm empty

She fills herself

She takes it all

In too deep

She's spilling over me

In too deep

She's spilling over me

Go on and have it all

Have it all (x2)

You're everything you're everything I'm not

I'm anything I'm anyone you want

She drains me

- 102 -

When I'm empty

She fills herself

She takes it all

In too deep

She's spilling over me

In too deep

She's spilling over me

In too deep

She's spilling over me

In too deep

She's spilling over me

Have it all

20. “Best Of You”

I've got another confession to make

I'm your fool

Everyone's got their chains to break

Holdin' you

Were you born to resist or be abused?

Is someone getting the best, the best, the best, the best of you?

Is someone getting the best, the best, the best, the best of you?

Are you gone and onto someone new?

I needed somewhere to hang my head

Without your noose

You gave me something that I didn't have

But had no use

I was too weak to give in

Too strong to lose

My heart is under arrest again

But I break loose

My head is giving me life or death

But I can't choose

I swear I'll never give in

I refuse

Is someone getting the best, the best, the best, the best of you?

Is someone getting the best, the best, the best, the best of you?

Has someone taken your faith?

It's real, the pain you feel

Your trust, you must

Confess

Is someone getting the best, the best, the best, the best of you?

Oh...

Oh

Oh

Oh

Oh

Has someone taken your faith?

It's real, the pain you feel

The life, the love

- 103 -

You'd die to heal

The hope that starts

The broken hearts

Your trust, you must

Confess

Is someone getting the best, the best, the best, the best of you?

Is someone getting the best, the best, the best, the best of you?

I've got another confession my friend

I'm no fool

I'm getting tired of starting again

Somewhere new

Were you born to resist or be abused?

I swear I'll never give in

I refuse

Is someone getting the best, the best, the best, the best of you?

Is someone getting the best, the best, the best, the best of you?

Has someone taken your faith?

It's real, the pain you feel

Your trust, you must

Confess

Is someone getting the best, the best, the best, the best of you?

Oh...

21. “DOA”

Girl, you know I did it

It's over and I feel fine

Nothing you can say is gonna change my mind

Waited, and I waited the longest night

Nothing like the taste of sweet decline

I went down and I fell, I fell so fast

Dropping like the grains in an hourglass

Never say forever 'cause nothing lasts

Dancing with the bones of my buried past

Never mind there's nothing I could do

Bet your life there's something killing you

It's a shame we have to die my dear

No one's getting out of here alive

This time

What a way to go but have no fear

No one's getting out of here alive

This time

I'm finished, I'm getting you off my chest

Made you come clean in a dirty dress

A promise is a promise you kept in check

Hard to cross a heart that beats its fist

- 104 -

Take a good hard look for the very last time

The very last one in a very long line

Only took a second to say goodbye

Been a pleasure, but the pleasure's been mine all mine

Never mind there's nothing I could do

Never mind there's nothing I could do

Bet your life there's something killing you

It's a shame we have to die my dear

No one's getting out of here alive

This time

What a way to go but have no fear

No one's getting out of here alive

This time

Ain't no way

D.O.A

Ain't no way

D.O.A

Take a good hard look for the very last time

The very last one in a very long line

Only took a second to say goodbye

Been a pleasure, but the pleasure's been mine all mine

Never mind there's nothing I could do

Never mind there's nothing I could do

Bet your life there's something killing you

It's a shame we have to die my dear

No one's getting out of here alive

This time

What a way to go but have no fear

No one's getting out of here alive

This time

It's a shame we have to disappear

No one's getting out of here alive

This time

This time

This time

22. “Resolve”

Something that I felt today, something that I heard

Swingin' from the chandeliers, hanging on your word

I remember watchin' you, once upon a time

Dancing from across the room, in another life

A little bit of resolve is what I need now

Pin me down, show me how

A little bit of resolve is what I need now

Pin me down, show me how

- 105 -

Lookin' back to find my way, never seemed so hard

Yesterday's been laid to rest, change another guard

I would never change a thing, even if I could

All the songs we used to sing, everything was good

A little bit of resolve is what I need now

Pin me down, show me how

A little bit of resolve is what I need now

Pin me down, show me how

One more year that you're not here has gone and passed you by

What happened to you, what happened to you?

One more tear that you won't hear has gone and passed you by

What happened to you, what happened to you?

A little bit of resolve is what I need now

Pin me down, show me how

A little bit of resolve is what I need now

Pin me down, show me how

A little bit of resolve

One more year that you're not here

Has gone and passed you by (A little bit of resolve)

A little bit of resolve

One more year that you're not here

Has gone and passed you by (A little bit of resolve)

23. “No Way Back”

Lately, I've been

Livin' in my head

The rest of me is dead

I'm dying for truth

Make me believe

No more left and right

Come on take my side

I'm fightin' for you

I'm fightin' for you

Pleased to meet you, take my hand

There is no way back from here

Pleased to meet you, say your prayers

There is no way back from here

But I don't care

No way back from here

Wake me, I'm ready

Somethin' don't seem right

I was dreamin'

I was talkin' to you

Memory, mend me

No one's seen my share

Things I can't repair

- 106 -

I'm breakin' to you

I'm breakin' to you

Pleased to meet you, take my hand

There is no way back from here

Pleased to meet you, say your prayers

There is no way back from here

But I don't care

No way back from here, yeah!

Pleased to meet you take my hand

There is no way back from here

Pleased to meet you say your prayers

There is no way back from here

But I don't care

No way back from here, yeah!

24. “Miracle”

Crazy but I'm relieved this time

Begging for sweet relief of blessing in disguise

Dying behind these tired eyes

I've been losing sleep

Please come to me

Tonight

Hands on a miracle

I got my hands on a miracle

Believe it or not, hands on a miracle

And there ain't no way

Let you take it away

Everything that we survived

It's gonna be alright

Just lucky we're alive

Got no vision I've been blind

Searching everywhere you're right here in my sights

Away

25. “The Pretender”

Keep you in the dark

You know they all pretend

Keep you in the dark

And so it all began

Send in your skeletons

Sing as their bones go marching in again

They need you buried deep

The secrets that you keep are ever ready

Are you ready?

I'm finished making sense

- 107 -

Done pleading ignorance

That old defense

Spinning infinity, boy

The wheel is spinning me

It's never-ending, never-ending

Same old story

What if I say I'm not like the others?

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

You're the pretender

What if I say I will never surrender?

What if I say I'm not like the others?

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

You're the pretender

What if I say that I never surrender?

In time, or so I'm told,

I'm just another soul for sale, oh well

The page is out of print

We are not permanent

We're temporary, temporary

Same old story

What if I say I'm not like the others?

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

You're the pretender

What if I say I will never surrender?

What if I say I'm not like the others?

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

You're the pretender

What if I say I will never surrender?

I'm the voice inside your head you refuse to hear

I'm the face that you have to face mirrorin' your stare

I'm what's left; I'm what's right

I'm the enemy; I'm the hand that'll take you down and bring you to your knees

So, who are you?

Yeah, who are you?

Yeah, who are you?

Yeah, who are you?

Keep you in the dark

You know they all pretend

What if I say I'm not like the others?

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

You're the pretender

What if I say I will never surrender?

What if I say I'm not like the others?

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

You're the pretender

What if I say that I'll never surrender?

- 108 -

What if I say I'm not like the others?

(Keep you in the dark)

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

(You know they all)

You're the pretender

(Pretend)

What if I say I will never surrender?

What if I say I'm not like the others?

(Keep you in the dark)

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

(You know they all)

You're the pretender

(Pretend)

What if I say I will never surrender?

So, who are you?

Yeah, who are you?

Yeah, who are you?

26. “Long Road to Ruin”

Here now, don't make a sound

Say, have you heard the news today?

One flag was taken down

To raise another in its place

A heavy cross you bear

A stubborn heart remains unchanged

No harm, no life, no love

No stranger singin' in your name

But maybe the season

The colors change in the valley skies

Dear God, I've sealed my fate

Runnin' through hell, heaven can wait

Long road to ruin there in your eyes

Under the cold streetlights

No tomorrow, no dead end in sight

Let's say we take this town

No king or queen of any state

Get up to shut it down

Open the streets and raise the gates

I know a wall to scale

I know a field without a name

Head on without a care

Before it's way too late

Maybe the season

The colors change in the valley skies

Oh God, I've sealed my fate

- 109 -

Runnin' through hell, heaven can wait

Long road to ruin there in your eyes

Under the cold streetlights

No tomorrow, no dead ends

Long road to ruin there in your eyes

Under the cold streetlights

No tomorrow, no dead end in sight

For every piece to fall in place

Forever gone without a trace

Your horizon takes its shape

No turnin' back, don't turn that page

Come now, I'm leavin' here tonight

Come now, let's leave it all behind

Is that the price you pay

Runnin' through hell, heaven can wait

Long road to ruin there in your eyes

Under the cold streetlights

No tomorrow, no dead ends

Long road to ruin there in your eyes

Under the cold streetlights

No tomorrow, no dead ends

Long road to ruin there in your eyes

Under the cold streetlights

No tomorrow, no dead end in sight

27. “Cheer up, Boys (Your Make Up is Running)

It was meant to be

But all along, it never meant a thing

Never stopped to ask you why

You didn't pass me by

Did you see me in your life

Flash before your eyes?

Was it just that I wasn't hard enough

Hard enough for you?

(Stop, stop, stop...)

Stop using my

Confusion

Wait, wait

There's a world out there (There's a world out there)

Don't you deny me (Don't you deny me)

Give me one last wish (Give me one last wish)

There's a world out there

Elementary, I solved them all

- 110 -

All your mysteries

Settle down and in good time

We can solve all mine

Tell me lies or tell me when

Tear me up again

And I will let you know

When I've had enough

Had enough of you

(Stop, stop, stop...)

Stop using my

Confusion

Wait, wait

There's a world out there (There's a world out there)

Don't you deny me (Don't you deny me)

Give me one last wish (There's a world out there)

There's a world out there (Don't you deny me)

I know you've got your reasons

Hey, let's call it even

Turn out all the lights and go to bed

Still, I get this feeling

No one will believe me

When I let these ghosts outside my head

There's a world out there (There's a world out there)

Don't you deny me (Don't you deny me)

Give me one last wish (Give me one last wish)

Don't you deny me (Don't you deny me)

There's a world out there (There's a world out there)

Don't you deny me (Don't you deny me)

Give me one last wish (There's a world out there)

There's a world out there (Don't you deny me).

28. “Let It Die”

A heart of gold but it lost its pride

Beautiful veins and bloodshot eyes

I've seen your face in another light

Why'd you have to go and let it die

Why'd you have to go and let it die

Why'd you have to go and let it die

In too deep and out of time

Why'd you have to go and let it die

A simple man and his blushing bride

(Why'd you have to go and let it die)

Intravenous, intertwined

(Why'd you have to go and let it die)

Heart's gone cold, your hands were tied

- 111 -

(Why'd you have to go and let it die)

Why'd you have to go and let it die

(Why'd you have to go and let it die)

Why'd you have to go and let it die

Why'd you have to go and let it die

In too deep and out of time

Why'd you have to go and let it die

Do you ever think of me

You're so considerate

Did you ever think of me

Oh, so considerate

In too deep and lost in time

Why'd you have to go and let it die

Beautiful veins and bloodshot eyes

Why'd you have to go and let it die

Heart's gone cold and hands are tied

Why'd you have to go and let it die

Why'd you have to go and let it die

Do you ever think of me

You're so considerate

Did you ever think of me

Oh, so considerate

In too deep and lost in time

Why'd you have to go and let it die

Beautiful veins and bloodshot eyes

Why'd you have to go and let it die

Heart's gone cold and hands are tied

Why'd you have to go and let it die

Why'd you have to go and let this die

Why'd you have to go and let this die

Why'd you have to go and let this die

Why'd you have to go and let this die

Why'd you have to go and let it die