Mr. Self Destruct

I read through almost every post on here thinking "man, I can't wait to get my interpretation out there" only to find it got put finely only a week or so ago. The fact that the song has a different meaning to anyone proves it: it's about self-destruction in general, or more specifically, the self-destructive "drive" within the "character" of the album. That becomes apparant in the very first lyric of the song, "I am the voice inside your head."

I always viewed the first and last track on the album as kind of an intro/outro to the album, with the self-titled song being the sort of creative climax where the overall sound and everything perfectly gets the tone of the album, the idea of being "dragged down and used up."

From Piggy to Reptile I always saw those songs as the real "meat" of the album, following the evolution of "the" self destructive person from love, to religion, to sex, to society, and to bringing out the overall dark side of a person. then with "big man with a gun" I always saw it as a run-in with the law, and A Warm Place is the contemplative and introspective state that one enters after those situations. after that state people often try to "erase" their old selves (sometimes even programs like AA/NA), only to relapse, as shown in Reptile.

In conclusion, I basically agree with those who said that this song is like an introduction that shows what is to come. It's probably my favorite off of the album along with Hurt, which I always saw as kind of the epilogue, with the end being most important. "If I could start again, a million miles away, I would keep myself, I would find a way..." and that horrible chord that's played over it expresses much more than any words could have.

...man, I ramble.

This is one of the songs that forced me to confront the ugly reality of my narcissism. My self-love, which is just a mask for my self-hate, has turned me into a largely unaware monster of sorts. Years of seemingly arbitrary fuck-ups, dashed relationships, and eventual desires for self-destruction are the hallmarks of this condition. Leave it to a narcissist to ramble on about his own problems though, eh?

Anyway, I wonder whether the narrator of this song and other songs from The Downward Spiral ever considered himself to be a narcissist. We all have our dark passengers of sorts, but some of us never realize it until it's too late.

I was just reading a book today that said there are such things as bad and good interpetations. Saying this song is just about drugs is like saying Brokeback Mountain is just about gay sex. To me the interpetation of this song is about humanizing a self destructive nature. Some people have already said this. I think to get the meaning you have to remove yourself from the song entirely. I tend to view it from a psychological perspective. Everything in this song seems to point to the ego. The way it controls you and takes you where you want to go. The idea of the ego goes along nicely with this song. The Guy Ritchie film Revolver does a really good job of showing a visual interpetation of how the ego manifests itself. It keeps saying you as in the self and the I is the ego. The lover in your bed is a reflection of the ego. Without it the ego feels hurt and insecure and so you the self does. It controls you. The funny thing is Trent could've had no knowledge of ego and still wrote this song just based of the interpetations of his feelings.

This song acts as the introduction of one of the greatest villains in my opinion, Mr. Self-Destruct/the Ruiner/the distorted voice in his head/whatever you wanna call it. Mr. Self-Destruct is symbolic, the embodiment of all our sins, our dark side if you will. To me, this is general: he exists in ALL of us, not just one person, and we all fight him on a daily basis. Indeed it is tempting to let him take over, everyone wants to embrace their alter-ego in one way or another (you let me do this to you, I am an exit) and when we give in, he gains more control over us. All the verses describe everything he is, essentially, all the elements of the sins he cashes in on. Ultimately, his motivation is to "drag us down and use us up", pretty much run our lives into the ground.

I thought it was about cats...

I think its more about any addiction, though the only thing we ever really think about addiction in relation to is drugs. You could just as easily be addicted to sex or religion or anything else, and the lyrics make just as much sense.

Its a good song. But there is one thign with this site, not every song happens to be about drugs. I mean even fuel by Metallica, which is clearly about James' passion for racing, is slandered as a drug song.

Anyways back to the meaning, i think it's about how he is in a relationship with someone, and she is threatening to break up and his argument is "You cant live without me! i'm all you ever relied apon"

Then again, it might be about drugs, it's whatever the song means to you :P

i think this song is about a person who's subconscience is driving themself crazy...he's self destructing....and the only thing that helps is drug use (you let me do this to you.....i am an exit).

Most folks side on the fact the self-destruction the character is undergoing is a dependance on drugs.

I agree, a drug is causing the grief experienced throughout, but it is no conventional drug.

This character exemplifies the horrors and atrocities associated with testosterone.

When I first heard the song, I had ignored the title, finding the structure of the song itself very violent and stimulating by nature. The "speaker," methinks, is the drug, the testosterone, or, as I have found to be testosterone's manifestation, the Devil, Satan, Ba'al, whatever you call the polarity of God.

In relation to the rest of the album, I think this is the first song where the character is falling away from God, or, falling away from moral purity, and the fortitude morality gives people.

It seems like a description of mankind, the point of time where man found guilt in what he did. It was at this point this infective testosterone, devil, or drug kept him going, destroying others, but at the same time, destroying the host: The man loses his humanity.

I call this being the devil, alongside the whole testosterone idea, partially because of the idea that the character's religiously distancing himself from God, and because the voice, whatever or whoever speaks to the character, is tempting him. The voice continues to assure him that he is and will be everything, that once you have taken to the devil or testosterone, or lack of moral integrity, nothing matters except the source of what makes you feel good.

Stanzas:

First stanza is entirely about testosterone/devil/drugs. The influence induces sex, violence (which is minimalized into hate), and the uncontrollable nature of this "voice" returning constantly.

I take you where you want to go I give you all you need to know (Ignore morals, enjoy the benefits of selfish desire.)

I drag you down I use you up (Testosterone/Drugs is/are bodily consuming.)

I am the truth from which you run (Testosterone is forever, it is man... drugs are addictive.)

I speak religion's message clear (Is religion's message

"AND I CONTROL YOU." (Testosterone is easily aggravated into use, whether it be irritation, sex, auditory stimulus, or violence.)

I found it interesting how the overall beat of the song contributed to its message. It builds up as the song progresses in its early stages and soon sets a new, violent beat that is sustained throughout the rest of it (of course, except for the section where it mellows out). I saw it representing the struggle over power between the "human" side of us and the "mechanical" side. It also reflects what the machine does, it starts out slow, like a snowball effect, but the more power it is allowed, the more it dominates the song, which might be represented as the individual. The section where it does mellow out could symbolize how the human side has such little power, showing up for just a short duration and being drowned out completely by the machine in such a short period. At the end, the beat just takes over the song completely, moving in a new direction with a crazy guitar solo (the machine is just...well g-balling the individual so that he is completely taken over).