State of love and trust as I busted down the pretext sin still plays and preaches but to have an empty court, uh huh and the signs are passin, grip the wheel can't read it sacrifice receiving the smell that's on my hands...hands yeah and I listen for the voice inside my head nothin', I'll do this one myself
lay her down as priest does should the lord be acountin' will be in my honour, make it pain painfully quick, uh huh promises are whispered in the age of darkness want to be enlightened like I want to be told the end...end, yeah and the barrel shakes aimed directly at my head oh, help me, help me from myself and I listen yeah, from both sides of the bed nothin', I'll do this one myself oh oh oh myself....Myself
and I listen, yeah, for the voice inside my head nothin', I'll do this one myself oh, ah, and the barrel waits, trigger shakes aimed right at my head won't you help me help me from myself
eh oh eh o ehh eh oh eh o ehh
state of love
Luck is a strange thing; it's capricious, floating off if you rely on it, turning up when you least expect it. For this SOTM, I'm going to take a look at a song from the point of view of someone who's pretty sure their luck has run out.
The use of the first line as the title emphasises the importance of these two interconnected concepts, love and trust, and their relationship. This is Pearl Jam's first original song with more than a two word title, and it's an effective choice, sitting out like a sore thumb on Rearview Mirror, where it nestles amongst Once, Alive, Even Flow, Jeremy, Animal, Go and Dissident before the names get longer. While it's easy to see how you could reduce 'Garden of Stone' to 'Garden', it's impossible to imagine SOLAT being called 'State' or 'Love' or 'Trust' and retain the same level of effect. The fullblown title reminds me of another 'State of...', the State of the Union address, and this is how the song translates- a backwards glance in the tortured thoughts of someone driven to the edge by a breakdown of both love and trust.
The lyrics to the rest of the song are fairly simple: quickly flung snippets of despair to match the pace of the music, painting a picture of the narrator with a gun to his head, waiting for someone, either himself or the person who broke his love and trust, to talk him out of it. It's indeed possible they're one and the same; Charlie Kaufman played around with this idea in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind to great effect. (If you haven't seen it, do!), and the line 'from both sides of the bed' implies that there's a connection between the voice in the head and the former lover, although another equally likely intended message was that the lover sent the narrator into a spiral of madness.
Musically, this is the type of song PJ used to do best. Mike's first proper credit as songwriter, it shows off his hard rock background, with technically impressive but understated guitar parts -that first chord nearly knocked me off my feet at Arnhem this year- Jeff's bass work is tasteful, giving the song a lot of body and power a lesser player might not have, and the bass breakdown is one of the those perfect moments. Eddie's vocals are to the point in the verses, getting gradually more and more pained until he explodes with passion at the end, throwing in ad libs, woahs, and so on that perfectly climax the song. The lead work is beautiful as well. Mike's ear for a melody is rarely captured this perfectly, (other examples would be Black and RVM) the simple lick adds a layer of texture and raises the song up another notch for the finish.
I started this post by talking about luck, and that's where I'm going to finish. SOLAT was only available on the Singles soundtrack before RVM was released, and it's very few people who are lucky enough to have a favourite band who have a B-side as one of their greatest, most definitive moments.
Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2004 3:00 pm Posts: 19826 Location: Alone in a corridor
Very nicely written, stu. Love the Eternal Sunshine reference.
This is probably my favourite song from the 1991-1993 era. Love the guitar, love the vocals, adore the lyrics. These lyrics have always attracted me very much. A couple of lines that have gotten different meanings for me over the years. I don't do this a lot, but I think i'll give this one 5 stars!
Joined: Sun Dec 05, 2004 5:47 am Posts: 27904 Location: Philadelphia Gender: Male
Stuart, once again you have written a great synopsis. Nicely done.
However, my interpretation is much different from yours. While I agree the narrator is close to a breakdown, I don't really see this song as a relationship between lovers, but instead between him and God. He is mocking a religion that has failed him due to his misery, and threatens to take his own life in defiance of said religion. God has failed him, so he's gonna give his God the ultimate "fuck you" and kill himself.
For the record, I'll say that the MTV Unplugged version (which wasn't aired) is as good as the original.
One of the few early-era PJ tracks I adore. 5 stars.
_________________ It's always the fallen ones who think they're always gonna save me.
Joined: Wed Oct 05, 2005 2:40 am Posts: 12509 Location: Pittsburgh Gender: Male
LostDog1079 wrote:
BadMusic wrote:
5 stars, everything in this song is great
Great write up, too, bub.
_________________ "i'm the crescent, the sickle, so sharp the blade i'm the flick of the shank that opened your veins i'm the dusk, i'm the frightening calm i'm a hole in the pipeline, i'm a road side bomb..."
Joined: Fri Mar 24, 2006 9:49 pm Posts: 286 Location: Costa Rica
Nice post Stu!
5/5 for me. I don't like the recent live versions as much as I did in the early years...it has lost some of the despair and passion in Eddie's singing...but it's still great, one of my favorites
_________________ I will hold the candle till it burns up my arm
WPB 06/11/08 - Tampa 06/12/08 - Columbia 06/16/08 - V. Beach 06/17/08
Yeah, excellent writeup. I also enjoyed the Eternal Sunshine connection.
I wish Ed would say "The voice inside my head" at more live shows. Still, finally being able to see it at the United Center this year made the show for me. No one song made me lose it more than that. To me, the old lyric makes the song: " I listen for the voice inside my head/ Nothing? I'll do this one myself." It's what happens when we rely on things that aren't even there. Love, or anything else. There's so much defiance when he realizes it's always been him (by himself), and there is no enemy- just himself. I wish I could go on and on, but it's like this song is almost too personal to me. I totally feel it. Right now, this one's #4 on my PJ song list, after Long Road, Black, and Ledbetter.
A resounding 5 out of 5.
_________________ The best that we can hope for is to be laughing when we finally hit the ground
Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2005 3:53 am Posts: 6704 Location: Tasmania, Australia Gender: Male
definately a 5 star song. this song is perfect, the vocals, the lyrics, the music. is so good. one of the best from the ten era, and that is saying something.
_________________
Harmless wrote:
'Isn't this weird? We're looking down on PJ's music, only.... that's not PJ's music. Isn't that weird?'
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 1:02 am Posts: 2560 Location: Dallas/Atlanta/Savannah
good song, dont listen to it much anymore. its kinda a mood song, something you listen to in a certain state of mind to help you through said state of mind.
_________________ "is that a fucking pearl jam shirt?" Courtney Love
Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2004 4:02 am Posts: 44183 Location: New York Gender: Male
dirtyfrank0705 wrote:
Stuart, once again you have written a great synopsis. Nicely done.
However, my interpretation is much different from yours. While I agree the narrator is close to a breakdown, I don't really see this song as a relationship between lovers, but instead between him and God. He is mocking a religion that has failed him due to his misery, and threatens to take his own life in defiance of said religion. God has failed him, so he's gonna give his God the ultimate "fuck you" and kill himself.
For the record, I'll say that the MTV Unplugged version (which wasn't aired) is as good as the original.
One of the few early-era PJ tracks I adore. 5 stars.
I think I'm closer to Frank's take on this.
Lyrically this song suffers from the same problem that a song like Breath does. The lyrics are better, and there are some great moments (especially the chorus) but there are also some clunkly lines that are easy to miss because Eddie's vocal delivery is sooo good.
This is a song I wish they'd retire. They just don't do it justice anymore. I don't quite understand why either. There aren't notes here Eddie should be having trouble hitting. And Bacchus Dukakis--I agree. Sing the voice inside my head line
It's a 4.5 star song for me now, but it used to be 5, so I'll give it that.
Great write up stu. As always, if you want to do a SOTM PLEASE let me know.
_________________ "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
these comments bode well for your team adam
_________________ "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
Stuart, once again you have written a great synopsis. Nicely done.
However, my interpretation is much different from yours. While I agree the narrator is close to a breakdown, I don't really see this song as a relationship between lovers, but instead between him and God. He is mocking a religion that has failed him due to his misery, and threatens to take his own life in defiance of said religion. God has failed him, so he's gonna give his God the ultimate "fuck you" and kill himself.
For the record, I'll say that the MTV Unplugged version (which wasn't aired) is as good as the original.
One of the few early-era PJ tracks I adore. 5 stars.
I think I'm closer to Frank's take on this.
Lyrically this song suffers from the same problem that a song like Breath does. The lyrics are better, and there are some great moments (especially the chorus) but there are also some clunkly lines that are easy to miss because Eddie's vocal delivery is sooo good.
This is a song I wish they'd retire. They just don't do it justice anymore. I don't quite understand why either. There aren't notes here Eddie should be having trouble hitting. And Bacchus Dukakis--I agree. Sing the voice inside my head line
It's a 4.5 star song for me now, but it used to be 5, so I'll give it that.
Great write up stu. As always, if you want to do a SOTM PLEASE let me know.
I agree 100%. I CAN'T stand the way Ed sing the song now. He sing it in such a high tone....is annoying as hell!!!!
Joined: Tue Nov 30, 2004 4:02 am Posts: 44183 Location: New York Gender: Male
there are five pearl jam songs that at one point or another were my favorite. This is one of them.
_________________ "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 Apr 25, 2006 1:43 am Posts: 744 Location: Adelaide, Austraila Gender: Male
5 stars.
Love the music and great lyrics. A very powerful song. I dont mind the live versions lately, i think this song will always be good live and get the crowd pumping.
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