16 Meanings
Add Yours
Share
Hook in Mouth Lyrics
A cockroach in the concrete, courthouse tan and beady eyes.
A slouch with fallen arches, purging truths into great lies.
A little man with a big eraser, changing history
Procedures that he's programmed to, all he hears and sees.
Altering the facts and figures, events and every issue.
Make a person disappear, and no one will ever miss you.
Rewrites every story, every poem that ever was.
Eliminates incompetence, and those who break the laws.
Follow the instructions of the New Ways' Evil Book of Rules.
Replacing rights with wrongs, the files and records in the schools.
You say you've got the answers, well who asked you anyway?
Ever think maybe it was meant to be this way?
Don't try to fool us, we know the worst is yet to come.
I believe my kingdom will come.
Chorus
F is for fighting, R is for red,
Ancestors' blood in battles they've shed.
E, we elect them, E, we eject them,
In the land of the free, and the home of the brave.
D, for your dying, O, your overture,
M, they will cover your grave with manure.
This spells out freedom, it means nothing to me,
As long as there's a P.M.R.C.
F is for fighting, R is for red,
Ancestors' blood in battles they've shed.
E, we elect them, E, we eject them,
In the land of the free and the home of the brave.
D, for your dying, O, your overture,
M is for money and you know what that cures.
This spells out freedom, it means nothing to me,
As long as there's a P.M.R.C.
Put your hand right up my shirt,
Pull the strings that make me work,
Jaws will part, words fall out,
like a fish with hook in mouth.
Rewrites every story, every poem that ever was.
Eliminates incompetence, and those who break the laws.
Follow the instructions of the New Ways' Evil Book of Rules.
Replacing rights with wrongs, the files and records in the schools.
I'm not a fish
I'm a man
This song is about revisionism and censorship, specifically aimed at the PMRC, the Parents Music Resource Center, which forced the band to put "Parental Advisory/Explicit Lyrics" warnings on both Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? and So Far, So Good... So What!
Several parts of this song are similar to the George Orwell novel, 1984. It must have been the major inspiration for this song. In the book, the government employs and organization called the Ministry of Truth to alter every piece of literature, especially newspaper articles, in order the make the government look good. The book describes people being created and erased, statistics and figures being changed, all to eliminate any negative feelings or opposition towards the government. Many of the workers for this organization are described just as Dave describes them; little, beady-eyed, bug-like men. In "Hook in Mouth," Dave is comparing the PMRC to the Ministry of Truth. Dave obviously feels that the organization oversteps the bounds of the government by putting warning labels on albums or forcing artists to compromise their integrity in any way.
(Taken from the Realms of Deth)
@BadMagick 18 years later and this song proves to be so true. Unbelievable what the people of the USA have allowed to take place over the years by these crooked corrupt cockroaches called Politicians have done. We will soon be the USSA.
@BadMagick 18 years later and this song proves to be so true. Unbelievable what the people of the USA have allowed to take place over the years by these crooked corrupt cockroaches called Politicians have done. We will soon be the USSA.
Censorship FUCKING sucks.
I love this song, presenting the idea that within all this so called "freedom" in the USA there is still not the freedom to create music without censorship. Great chorus, one of my favourite songs.
When this was still fresh in 1989 there was this hook ... a fucking bitch from Cape Cod.
Censorship sucks.
Its about the PMTC "parents blah blah" telling them to put Expliced lyrics/parent advisery stickers on peace sells and killin is my busness
PMRC*
This Song Is Rad, I love The Chorus
I agree with BadMagick. It is an awesome song. I love the guitar part after "As long as there's a PMRC"
I love these lyrics.