Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2004 4:02 am Posts: 44183 Location: New York Gender: Male
Insignificance vs. World Wide Suicide
Insignificance
All in all,... it's no one's fault... Excuses turn to carbon walls... Blame it all on chemical intercourse.
The swallowed seeds of arrogance... Breeding in the thoughts of ten... Thousand fools that fight irrelevance.
The full moon is dead skin... The one down here's wearing thin... So set up... the ten pins. As the human tide rolls in... Like a ball that's spinning.
Bombs,... dropping down,... Please forgive,..our hometown... In our insignificance
Turn the jukebox up, he said... Dancing in irreverence... Play C-3,... let the song protest.
The plates began to shift... Perfect lefts come rolling in... I was alone,... and far away, hey.. When I heard the band start playin' On the lip...late take off
_________________ "Better the occasional faults of a Government that lives in a spirit of charity than the consistent omissions of a Government frozen in the ice of its own indifference."--FDR
Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2004 4:02 am Posts: 44183 Location: New York Gender: Male
Just to get this out of the way, Army Reserve and Last Solider were not included here as both of those deal with the fear and hardship that come from going off to war, but are not necessarily critical of war itself, and become so only if you read Eddie’s anti-war politics back into the song. These two songs, however, are quite clear in their anti-war message, and both are masterfully written. If these had been given videos (a concept video for WWS instead of that nonsense) they could have been huge
The music in Insignficance fits the subject matter perfectly. It is big, booming, and somehow distant and removed. I think it is supposed to capture bombs falling down—the rolling waves of sound, slightly muffled but still all encompassing. If you watched the footage of ‘shock and awe’ at the start of the second Iraq war you’ll know what I’m talking about.
For the most part Eddie is in cryptic lyrical mode. This is an REM style protest song. Allusions and images that aren’t always quite clear, but are incredibly evocative if you know what to look for. What I really love is the point of view of this song—the innocent victim of someone else’s war. As I watched the start of the Iraq war on TV I had tears in my eyes thinking about how at this moment people are having their lives ripped apart, homes destroyed, and loved ones killed and that this is happening to people both innocent of wrongdoing and utterly powerless to stop it. Please forgive their hometown in their insignificance.
I also like the nod to finding solidarity in music, that it can be used to bridge the gaps between people across political and cultural divides and offer a voice to the voiceless, even in times of war (U2, especially early U2, was very good on this). I was alone and far away when I heard the band start playing is one of my all time favorite lyrics in a PJ song.
Grievance and Insignifance are both fantastic political songs, and so my hopes were really high for Riot Act and the spectacular failure that was Bushleaguer (at least in my view) hit me hard. World Wide Suicide was (for me) bushleaguer’s redemption, showing that Eddie still knew how to write a political song if he wanted to. And this one is a masterpiece. It is much less abstract, much more immediate, than insignificance, and I think that works in its favor. It’s got a snarly urgency that is more empowering than the distant brushstrokes of insignificance which is important for political music. It is supposed to get you both angry AND excited, to not only expose injustice but to want to do something about that, and the WWS music does that (punk music in general understands this aspect of political song writing better than folk music—not that insignificance is a folk song).
Lyrically the song is terrific. Rather than dealing with abstractions it tells a very personal story, one with a sympathetic victim with good cause to be angry, and the way the story is told lets us share her anger. Eddie is smart in his choice of characters too, as it is not some young anti-war protester we are dealing with, but the spouse of someone who VOLUNTARILY enlisted to go fight, and died in a war based on false pretexts and lies. It is a far more compelling message coming from that character, especially because it does not damn the soldier, but the leaders who continue to insist on using war (and the deaths of the innocents) as a political tool, knowing that they are safe from the sacrifices they expect of others.
Both fantastic songs, but World Wide Suicide takes it for me.
_________________ "Better the occasional faults of a Government that lives in a spirit of charity than the consistent omissions of a Government frozen in the ice of its own indifference."--FDR
i love the new album, but insiignificance is off of Binaural. come on this is pretty easy.
In Sig Ni Ficance
_________________ GO LEAFS GO GO LEAFS GO GO LEAFS GO
GO LEAFS GO GO LEAFS GO GO LEAFS GO
GO LEAFS GO GO LEAFS GO GO LEAFS GO
GO LEAFS GO GO LEAFS GO GO LEAFS GO
GO LEAFS GO GO LEAFS GO GO LEAFS GO
Joined: Sat Mar 25, 2006 8:26 pm Posts: 736 Location: Sussex by the sea
I voted for Insignificance because I feel it outshines WWS on all counts. The music and the lyrics are more clever than WWS, plus I am a little tired of WWS at the moment, not too say I dont like it though.
Also I think (I may be wrong here) that Insignificance was a song about the people who work at Boeing in or around Seattle, making killing equipment as the means of earning money to live. The bit
'Bombs,... dropping down,...
Please forgive... our hometown...
In our insignificance'
relates to the workers making the equipment used to kill. It is still an anti war song but coming from a slightly different angle.
_________________ I Am Free - I Am Trapped My LastFM
Reading '06, Katowice '07, Wembley '07, Copenhagen '07, London O2 '09, London '10, Arras '10
Joined: Wed May 24, 2006 5:23 pm Posts: 12793 Location: Tours, FR Gender: Male
Insignificance. The music, like you said, fits perfectly to the music, and I love the lyrics, the "Please forgive our hometown in our insignificance" line kills me, it's so... so true, unfortunately
_________________ There has never been a silence like this before
Joined: Tue Nov 23, 2004 1:36 am Posts: 5458 Location: Left field
Musically I think WWS does a wonderful job of integrating everyone’s instrument into one driving force, which is impressive considering every member is playing an instrument. You don’t come across a rock song very often that has three guitars going at the same time and particularly three guitars that are playing three entirely different, but yet, complimentary chords. That crazy little guitar part that Stone starts grooving with at the close of WWS as Mike and Ed are crunching with power chords is a hell of a way to close a song.
I also can get into the theme of WWS quicker, especially in comparison to Insignificance. The images are clearer and concrete.
_________________ seen it all, not at all can't defend fucked up man take me a for a ride before we leave...
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don't it make you smile? don't it make you smile? when the sun don't shine? (shine at all) don't it make you smile?
Joined: Sun Dec 05, 2004 5:47 am Posts: 27904 Location: Philadelphia Gender: Male
I voted Worldwide Suicide because it's more personal. Ed mixes the sadness of the wartime departed with the anger of war itself. Insignificance doesn't hit me nearly as hard emotionally.
_________________ It's always the fallen ones who think they're always gonna save me.
Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2004 4:02 am Posts: 44183 Location: New York Gender: Male
pb21 wrote:
I voted for Insignificance because I feel it outshines WWS on all counts. The music and the lyrics are more clever than WWS, plus I am a little tired of WWS at the moment, not too say I dont like it though.
Also I think (I may be wrong here) that Insignificance was a song about the people who work at Boeing in or around Seattle, making killing equipment as the means of earning money to live. The bit 'Bombs,... dropping down,... Please forgive... our hometown... In our insignificance' relates to the workers making the equipment used to kill. It is still an anti war song but coming from a slightly different angle.
ohhh, that's good. Can anyone confirm this?
_________________ "Better the occasional faults of a Government that lives in a spirit of charity than the consistent omissions of a Government frozen in the ice of its own indifference."--FDR
Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2004 4:02 am Posts: 44183 Location: New York Gender: Male
conoalias wrote:
i always feel kinda bad just naming the song i voted for and move where as stip writes a whole freakin' essay on this subject.
it is just to get people started. Don't feel bad (although it is usualy more interesting if you explain why you think the way you do)
_________________ "Better the occasional faults of a Government that lives in a spirit of charity than the consistent omissions of a Government frozen in the ice of its own indifference."--FDR
Joined: Sat Mar 25, 2006 8:26 pm Posts: 736 Location: Sussex by the sea
stip wrote:
pb21 wrote:
I voted for Insignificance because I feel it outshines WWS on all counts. The music and the lyrics are more clever than WWS, plus I am a little tired of WWS at the moment, not too say I dont like it though.
Also I think (I may be wrong here) that Insignificance was a song about the people who work at Boeing in or around Seattle, making killing equipment as the means of earning money to live. The bit 'Bombs,... dropping down,... Please forgive... our hometown... In our insignificance' relates to the workers making the equipment used to kill. It is still an anti war song but coming from a slightly different angle.
ohhh, that's good. Can anyone confirm this?
I found where I heard it on 5H concert cronogy
Quote:
02/16/03 - Entertainment Centre: Adelaide, Australia attendance: 10,097 support act: Johnny Marr and The Healers soundcheck: Oceans (partial), In Hiding, Help Help, Gimme Some Truth (x2), Nothingman, Smile, Bushleaguer set: Love Boat Captain, Corduroy, Save You, Hail Hail, Help Help, Even Flow, I Am Mine, Better Man, You Are, Green Disease/Not For You, Thumbing My Way, Given to Fly, Elderly Woman, Insignificance, Go enc 1: Bushleaguer, Do the Evolution, Last Kiss, Black, Crazy Mary, State of Love and Trust enc 2: singalong, Soon Forget, Yellow Ledbetter, Rockin' in the Free World notes: Unusual 'LBC' opener debuts before a capacity Adelaide crowd leading to a stellar 'Corduroy' that gets the crowd going. After 'Hail Hail,' Ed expresses his emotions regarding the 100,000-people turnout at the anti-war protest just hours earlier in Adelaide's Victoria Square: "What a great day! I think this is one of the greatest weekends in my lifetime ... in our lifetimes. This weekend the biggest protest since the Vietnam war went down. You've got maybe 8 million people in over 600 countries coming out to protest the war. That's something to be toasted to and thankful for ... you should be very proud." 'Help Help' makes its debut, similar to the album version but no Stone backing vocals. Again, Ed lets the crowd sing part of the first verse of "Better Man.' 'Not For You' is amazing ("small my table, seats all of us; got so crowded but you we trust"). During the middle part, Mike rolls on the floor and stays there, jamming, joined by Ed soon after! 'GTF' lyrically references a female ("she" and "her") rather than a male persona. Ed sings the first verse of 'Elderly Woman' twice, commenting "Did I fuck it up?" 'Insignificance' is introduced as a song about a small town "near where we come from" with a plant where a lot of people work making planes (Boeing).The Bush mask is again worn by Ed during 'Bushleaguer' and a a blasting 'Do The Evolution' follow. The band turns around for 'Last Kiss,' playing for "... those less privileged people, those people in the back." Ed's wine bottle is passed around the front rows during 'Crazy Mary' and, after constant requests all night, 'State' appears for the first time this tour. Ed returns alone to attempt a crowd singalong of John Lennon's 'Give Peace a Chance.' Ed is wearing a sleeveless shirt with a photo of Bush and John Howard on it. Ed introduces "Luke the Uke" to Adelaide, then struggles with 'Soon Forget' again, but provides Townshend-style windmills and jumps. 'Yellow Ledbetter' sees the house lights on, and, to everyone's amazement, the band jumps straight into 'Rockin In The Free World' (thanks to Stone), the crowd going nuts, Ed jumping on speaker stacks, Mike running around the back and Matt tossing out drumsticks. Very up show with Ed dancing and Stone lively and laughing.
edit: the more I think the more I think that Insignificance is about someone who works in the factory.
'The swallowed seeds of arrogance...
Breeding in the thoughts of ten...
Thousand fools that fight irrelevance.'
The thoughts of ten and the thousand fools are the many that make the planes beliving they are superior than the people killed by them
'The full moon is dead skin...
The one down here's wearing thin...
So set up... the ten pins.
As the human tide rolls in...
Like a ball that's spinning. '
Someone who works in the factory is bowling and enjoying the 'american dream' having a fun night while at the same time the planes and their bombs are being unleashed.
'Feel like resonance of distance...
In the blood...the iron lies
It's instilled... to wanna live. '
There are other lines but I cant think how these would relate in quite the same way.
_________________ I Am Free - I Am Trapped My LastFM
Reading '06, Katowice '07, Wembley '07, Copenhagen '07, London O2 '09, London '10, Arras '10
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