Poetic Tragedy Lyrics
I think I have the right interpretation of this song, if not the entire Used album by The Used. However, in order to better understand this song, one must first understand the background of Bert, and how he wrote this album. The Used was once a singer-less band, and when Bert joined, all the instrumental parts for the first album were basically finished. Bert just had to write the lyrics. Bert came from the small town of Orem, Utah. The same town I was born and raised in, where a lot of Mormons live. In fact, every house on just about every block in Orem, Utah has a very active Mormon family. VERY ACTIVE. Everyone devotes so much time and energy to religion and literally go nuts over it. Almost like a Footloose type of town. Bert was one of the few teenagers in the town who decided to go completely against it. Against the organized religion, against the rules, against his parents, against his peers. He was against it all. This is a phase that many teenagers face in his town when they finally decide that maybe being Mormon isn't what they want to be. With this decision comes many negative results for a long time. Many people become quick to place you as dishonest, and make you feel like a complete outcast, because in Utah, religion is what makes the world go round. When people make you feel like an outcast, you begin to rebel even more. Out of spite, rage, and hate. You feel like if you are not against everyone, you are with them, which is a road you have chosen to never follow again. So Bert acted out. He got into drugs, lost everything, even his faith in a higher power. A feeling of worthlessness overcame him. A feeling of being utterly alone. Everyone was telling him he was choosing the wrong, and he didn't know what to believe. This song seems to represent the day that he let it all go. The day that he finally stood up and screamed. He let all the hate out of him. All the hate against his neighbors who talked bad about him, all the hate against the Mormon religion, all the hate against his family and peers, rushed out of him in his screams during his last chorus. My neighbor is good friends with all the members of the used, and he told me that you will never hear Bert talk poorly about his hometown, because he let all his feelings out during the writing of this album, and finally learned to accept his culture for what it is, and move on. That is what this album, and this song is all about. These lyrics are also inaccurate. In the real song, if I am correct, he says "And on that last day he breaks Stood on trial, and he yelled, and he yelled... (Why!) Violent (World!) frustration (Which one!?) Cries out to god or just no one (Again) Is there a point to (Hate You!) this madness (Why world?!) And all that he was is just a tragedy."
If you read the words of this whole song, and quite a few others from this album (not every song, but quite a few of them, for example "Bulimic" and "on my own") you will find that it is all about finding purpose, and not understanding why we exist. At the end of the album, in the track "On My Own" Bert finally come to terms with the fact that he can't know everything. He cannot answer every question about life like he could when he was a Mormon, but he come to terms with it in the line "knowing nothing is better than knowing it all!" This song is about freeing the spirit from the chains and shackles that overly-concentrated organized religion brings to the free spirit. That is why Bert wrote it, and I have learned so much from it. I hope you all can as well.
on the website, it says "...and he takes his life" at the end. i can barely hear it but i'm pretty sure that he screams it in the background. this is the best song on the cd if you ask me. i love it. this song and the secret one at the end are the best ones. "he feels alone his heart in his hand he's alone he feels alone i feel..." thats my favorite part. its kinda sad though, cause hes talking about himself.
Just To let everyone know, they recorded two versions of this song. One was from their very hard to find Untitled album (Titled by fans as "Demos From The Basement") Which is the version that has him yelling "and he takes his life!"
The other version was on their self titled album.
I like the older version more, he has much more emotion, I love the way his voice cracks at the end. It shows so much emotion, you can almost hear him 'crying out to God"
these aren't the exact lyrics, I wish I knew the correct ones because this song is amazing!! so angst ridden and depressing, i love the screaming. I totally feel this song.
they are exact at least to the lyric sheets in the cd. unless those are wrong (which i doubt)
considering the cd doesnt come out till the 25'th im gonna have to say how is that possible, though i can say that the following lines DO NOT match the lyrics above, check them yourself:
a singer, a writer, he's not dreaming now of going nowhere he gave heed to nothing and all that he was, was just a tragedy
then in violent frustration, he cries out to god or just no one is there a point to this madness, and all that he was, was just a tragedy
two words. pre release.
this song rocks.
this song. wow
this song. wow
this is a good song, i love the emotion in it!