| Alice in Chains – What The Hell Have I Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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A lot of people have been saying this song is about broken relationships, but my take on it is that it's about looking inward. Hell_I_call_my_head pretty much said it. It's about Lane (or perhaps Jerry) looking backward at what a mess they've made of their lives, their regrets, the things that they can't get over, the things that they have to hide from themselves and other people. Listen to this song thinking about what its like to have done something that you can never forgive yourself for, and trying to live with it despite nobody else forcing any guilt over you. When you've experienced complete regret, to the point where you hate yourself inside, that's when this song really makes sense. The two people mentioned aren't two people at all, they're one person and their own view of themselves. It's about someone being confronted by their own personal demons, they're at the end of the road thinking "what the fuck is my life now?" "how am I supposed to live with myself?" "what the hell have I done? What the fuck have I become?" |
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| Alice in Chains – Sludge Factory Lyrics | 10 years ago |
| In one of my earlier comments I said he drifted away after 2006. Unless he was a ghost for 4 years I fucked up with those dates. I meant 1996, after his partner died. | |
| Alice in Chains – Sludge Factory Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Another thing to add. When Layne says that "Endless corporate ignorance lets me control time." it almost sounds to me like he doesn't necessarily like the space that the record label gives him. That having no proper structure in his life gives him little to hope for and makes it hard for him to find direction. I say this because for me when I try to write songs, it's hard to come up with inspiration when you're just in the same place all the time. Sure, you could have all the time in the world to write a great song but without fresh idea's what can you do? To me it feels like that's part of what Layne is saying, like "You just expect me to sit here and write brilliant hits all day?". It could also be about that contained freedom, as in they let him decide his time spent working and leave him to him but he can't just go travel and look for meaning or anything. He doesn't have the pressure of deadlines, so much that the pressure is creating "brilliance" in his music. It kinda feels like he's saying "You're morons, you just leave me here and expect to get you rich? I can't leave here, I've got no real freedom anymore, but I need you and you need me." It's like he's being too polite to tell them to fuck off and change their ways, partly because they're too ignorant and partly because he doesn't want to create any more work for himself. That also goes back to the line "so afraid, you kindly gurgle out a date for me." He's not saying they're afraid of him, physically (I mean duh, he's underweight, under influence of depressant narcotics, he wasn't going to be beating people to death any time soon.) they're afraid of making him walk, but more about the money. He's their source of income too, and if he goes the money goes, simple as. They may pretend to care about him but as far as Layne is concerned it's just professional courtesy, nothing more. Professional courtesy being an aspect of "corporate ignorance". In many ways the Company is responsible for his problems, but again, he respects that professional courtesy enough to keep his mouth shut, and at his own expense. He feels resentment towards them, but not hate, not enough to warrant telling them to do something about it. In the end he's trapped and he knows it. He's been worked into a groove and as far as anyone else sees it fits. He's not happy, but he's making good music and thatá all tat matters to them. They may not be intentionally keeping him unhappy, but he still is unhappy and it's partly their fault. He tries to show them what it's doing to him without burning bridges or anything, but they only see it with disgust, perhaps making him feel more alienated and alone. If I could spend the time to find quotations for all this I would but you know. This is just how I Interpreted it. |
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| Alice in Chains – Sludge Factory Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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I agree with Sliznut and Onelokikitty. The only thing I would add is that when he says "things go well, your eyes dilate, you shake and I'm high." It seems to me like whilst it could still be about the record company, part of it seems like an actual physical visit, probably from another member of the band (he drifted apart from them since 2006 but this may have been a start). "eyes dilate" could be a reference to the fear of the observer, thinking 'oh god, is he actually gonna shoot up?' and then the "shake" is from the disgust and uncomfort of the observer, unable to empathise for Layne, as if he WANTED to suffer from his addiction. |
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| Alice in Chains – Angry Chair Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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@[UseYourNoggin:3130] It's fair enough to say that people really do have to explore that "darkness within themselves" to grasp the full meaning and crushing realism behind this music. Whilst people who flag AIC as just a "grunge band with some easy riffs" their music has always been something more. It's music like this that people overlook. The difference between the simple death-row interpretation and your description is what separates those who understand, and can live the music, from those who only hear it. I don't know as much as you, and I've certainly got a lot of my own darkness left to go through, but everything you've said is true. The lyrics that hit home the most for me are "Loneliness is not a phase, Field of pain is where I graze, serenity is far away." Knowing inside yourself that the darkness isn't going to end soon, accepting that you have to feed off of your own sadness just to get by, just to feel something. "See myself molded in clay. Stares at me, yeah I'm afraid." is another set that really digs deep. Sometimes i would just sit in a room for hours on end, just staring at myself in a piece of glass, confronting that face. Staring through the reflection into the vast emptiness behind my eyes. It's not the same, but the lyrics remind me of this. I could go on a little more but I'm just too drained from everything to delve into it... Never tried heroin, and thanks to the songs from the "dirt" album -among others-, I don't intend to. Song like "Dumb" by Nirvana remind me how tired I am of having to find shortcuts around my own misery just to face daily life, adding drugs to that list wouldn't help and I don't want to give up, not yet... "Serenity is far away" but maybe, just maybe, I can get close... I have to, not just for me, hell maybe not even for me at all. But I have to try... I have to... |
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