Monday, August 5, 2024

Anyone else notice how many 90s songs were about loss?

 Kinda like pre-emptive nostalgia?

 Teen spirit: "a denial," not coincidentally a phase of sociological grief. You can really go deep on this song if you want to.

 Rage against the machine clearly feels the fight is already lost. He's not wrong. The real message is like, "I will not go quietly (but yeah...I'm going....)"

 Although basically teen spirit guy is mad that society hasn't already moved to the wrath phase. Visionary frustrated with the laggardly nature of the masses.


 Normally popular music is terrible but they clearly caught onto something earlier than everyone else. They saw the collapse of Empire and got very excited about it. You can't deny their emotion is genuine. Their shock and betrayal oozes through.
 They saw that the things they needed from society were going away and weren't coming back. Every major virtue was exsanguinated.

 Caught on way faster than pundits, at any rate. But, well, journalists gonna journalism. No wonder they're especially behind the ball. 


 I especially like the comparison to modern music. Quaaludes. Society didn't go to acceptance, they went back to denial. (Speedran depression.) Drink to forget. Gorge on pabulum until there's no room for anything else. Tranquilize yourself and go through life in a daze...because it's not like worrying about it is going to help. Or even noticing it at all, really. There's no grownup virtues, so might as well triple down on the baby food. 


 P.S. You have to go deep on teen spirit because it's not like the lyrics make any fuckin' sense on a plain reading. 

 P.P.S. Some of my posts could be converted to better 90s songs than ever appeared in the 90s. It's such a good idea, not happening is guaranteed by multiplex.

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