Bat Country

General Commentwho sed they were emo? i h8 emo!!! fickin hell

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General Comment...Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas....

The Song is Dedicated to Hunter Thompson, the author of the book...Bat Country is mentioned in the movie as well as the book. As well as any tie ins with the song...its not unlikley. The movie has a lot to do with over uses of drugs..

"To many doses and I'm starting to get an attraction"

Im not saying the song is directly about the book/ movie, but its not out of the question

~Michael

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Song MeaningJust like a number of A7X songs which the Rev wrote/co-wrote, it is much about his opiate addiction, with a number of references to fear and loathing which fit perfectly. Sadly I can tell you from experience, almost every single line of this song can be attributed to it. The funny thing is that you can see that some of the lyrics were written by shadows (who co-wrote it), but the overall direction IMO remained the same. I detailed it out below.

He who makes a beast out of himself
Gets rid of the pain of being a man

-- The main reason for opiate use is to get rid of exactly that - any and all pain that normal people just deal with. When you use opiates, the power you feel makes you feel invincible, but you slowly destroy yours and everyone's lives around you - i.e. making a beast of yourself.

Caught here in a fiery blaze, won't lose my will to stay.
I tried to drive on through the night,
The heat stroke ridden weather, the barren empty sights.
No oasis here to see, the sand is singing deathless words to me.

-- This block is about the building tolerance. When addicted to opiates, it is an extremely deceiving and powerful experience. When you first start, you tell yourself that you will do it only once, ok maybe only weekends, couple times a week, and before you know it you are dosing every day and trying to not end up dosing multiple times per day. this block is a reference to that battle - the fiery blaze is addiction, he explains that he's tried to use it recreationally but by the end of this block, he realizes that it now has him, and you can never get your real relief - your freedom from the drug.There is no oasis since no matter what, you are always worrying about not having your next dose. It is torture.

Can't you help me as I'm startin' to burn (all alone)
--Addiction is growing, and it is a secret.
Too many doses and I'm starting to get an attraction.
--obvious, addiction is growing
My confidence is leaving me on my own (all alone)
--his confidence that he can quit "someday" or 'tomorrow". but it never happens.

No one can save me and you know I don't want the attention.
--Nobody can stop him from taking them, and the last thing an opiate addict wants (especially one who uses secretively at all) is attention on the problem.

As I adjust to my new sights the rarely tired lights.
Will take me to new heights.
My hand is on the trigger and I'm ready to ignite.
Tomorrow might not make it but everything's all right.
Mental fiction follows me; show me what it's like to be set free.

--This block explains the part of the process where you start to make advances from using, and you think it will make you successful - drugs like opiates make you feel on top of the world, and you can do all nighters or whatever you need to make yourself successful. However, by the end of the block, the last line is the most telling - he realizes his mind is lying to him, that while he is having success it is all bound to crash down, and that the fact the drug is "helping" him is obvious fiction.

Sometimes I don't know why we'd rather live than die, we look up towards the sky.
For answers to our lives.
We may get some solutions but most just pass us by, don't want your absolution.
'Cause I can't make it right.
--I think this is just a narrative on life in general - but it is definitely one of the MANY things that opiate users dose to forget about. By the end he is basically saying fuck it, and obviously turned to drugs.

I'll make a beast out of myself, gets rid of all the pain of being a man.
--as I mentioned before


So sorry you're not here I've been sane too long my vision's so unclear.
Now take a trip with me but don't be surprised when things aren't what they seem.
I've known it from the start all these good ideas will tear your brains apart.
Scared but you can follow me, I'm too weird to live but much too rare to die.

--Basically a cautionary tale to any thinking of trying opiates like Oxycodone. The thing about opiate users is that they KNOW that it is going to kill them/ruin their lives - or at least they realize it early enough to stop if they wanted.. But you just CANT stop. Sure, someone out there may.. but too many strong minds have ruined their lives thinking exactly like this - and IMO the Rev captured it perfectly in this song.

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General CommentI like how shadows voice is when he sings

So sorry you're not here I've been sane too long, my vision's unclear
Now take a trip with me but don't be surprised when things aren't what they seem"

Very Spookyish.

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General CommentIt is directly related to Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. The Music video is actually made to resemble the movie. The phrase " Too Weird to Live but to Rare to Die was actually said about Hunter's long friend Oscar Zeta Acosta. If I remember properly this song was released after Hunter S. Thompson killed himself with a single bullet to the skull, hence the "My Hand is on the trigger, I'm ready to ignite". The Phrase at the beginning and closer towards the end "I'll make a beast out of myself, helps get rid of the pain of being a man" comes from Dr.Johnson's quote "He who makes a beast out of himself, gets rid of the pain of being a man". This same quote is at the beginning of both the Book and the Movie. EXTENSIVE RESEARCH FOR THE WIN!

~R.I.P. The Rev~

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General CommentAwesome song. This and seize the day are the best songs off the album

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My InterpretationThis is COMPLETELY based on Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.
"He who makes a beast of himself, gets rid of the pain of being a man."
"We can't stop here, this is Bat Country."
"There he goes [...] Too weird to live, too rare to die."
All taken from the book.

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General CommentI first heard this song and the band on Guitar Hero, and I've loved the band ever since

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General Commenti like shadows voice too, this cd is alot more singing and less screaming, im not sure how much i like it yet, the more i listen to it the more i seem to like it.....not as much as waking the fallen, but more then sounding the seventh trumpet. this is one of the better songs on the new cd

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General CommentI love this song. I love the entire CD. This is my favorite off of the CD though. I can't decide which is my favorite CD though. This has a completely different style than the other two. It'll take a while for me to decide.

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