Look Around, Chop Suey(ed?)!
56Caution:
The lyrics below explore some dark themes. They are, in affect, no matter how much you'd like not to think, a work of art. They express some of my opinions and I have created this article in an effort to share my poetry with you and to encourage you to make some yourself.
If you decide that my writing is poor, thats understandble. I encourage you to leave me a comment. I wrote this when I was seventeen and all teenagers have a tendancy to use profanity in a liberal fashion.
I mean never to conflict with your beliefs--so take the time to enjoy this as they are. If you don't enjoy them, leave feedback as to why. I have the right to say what I want, and I will never stop doing so. Conversely, you do too . I'll never agree with everyone all the time, but I will always support your right to say it.
So if you're here and intend to rate this Hub down because of my views and opinions, you've been warned. And you'd also be doing me a disservice. I've never rated a Hub poorly because I didn't like its content, only when it was poorly done.
Welcome to the Show...
Apparently people think some of my poetry is good. (HAH!) So I've decided to post a set I wrote in about 2001. Its a suite with thirteen lyrics that deal with a negative worldview. I'm a rather positive person today, and was when I was a child, but had I been born in 1991 and I was still in school today I would have been emo, instead of the gothy rivethead that I am now.
I hope this will satiate anyone who likes my poetry and I hope to give you enough food for thought to help you write your own. We can write letters, paragraphs, books...but poetry is a hard to tackle art. However, you too can do it--and when you do, I'd love for you to show it to me!
This suite of lyrics deals with society, gender, politics, and various other topics. I entitled it "Look Around."
I originally intended to take them down after poetry month was over, but I have perserved my favorites here for you as a reminder of times past. Thank you for looking through them!
Random Useless Photo
Dekonstrukt
What am I talking about here? Well, the "I," the growing inside is not "me" to "you." Its misanthropy. Who is Dylan? His last name is Klebold and he was one of the infamous shooters at the Columbine incident.
Everyone points fingers at everyone else. In affect, we're all no better than each other.
As far as owning "this," it could either mean any physical possession or our emotions.
Look Around 01 "Inside"
(sound: warped record beginning to play)
Look..inside you.
You think you're perfect.
(You know you're perfect.)
We think we own here.
(We know we own this.)
But I believe not,
(For sure, I know it to be not.)
So what does that make me?
I grow inside you, I grow inside you, I take a hold.
(instruments/sample recycles)
Feel..inside you.
We know we're Christian, (we love our Christians.)
You know you're sinless, (You're perfect.)
So everyone else is to blame! (Dylan was possessed!)
(instruments flare up)
I grow inside you, I grow inside you, I take a hold!
Inside I grow,
Inside I mutate,
Inside I mold,
Inside I begin to take shape.
I..know you're worthless, (Yeah, loving..)
I know..you're heartless, (Yeah, loving..)
I know this to be true.
Forget your fake, forget your mask, I've seen past you.
Inside I grow,
Inside I mutate,
Inside I mold,
Inside I begin to take shape.
(sound: male voice, "5, 4, 3--blast off!")
We know we're worthless,
We love the heartless,
We cater to the inane.
Bleeding sins, we die in vain.
Let us shed our fake, let us drop the mask, we've seen past.
Dekonstrukt
This bashes consumerism, our consumption. And also, our children. Not to mention the idea that homosexuality is wrong. As a libertarian I see the value in everyone, and try my best to only recognize people for their good actions. Teenagedom seems like a passage of rite..many kids get away with things they shouldn't because their parents want them to "express" themselves and learn to "be" themselves. Yeah, you're going to know who you are at 15.
Look Around 02
"Diseased Minds"
I am the face of the all American youth now,
A degeneration following the media.
I lust for you to die,
So you'll die now.
I'm a...I'm a...I'm a young adult now,
Got my license-a car is a great weapon,
Run you over-better watch your step.
You breed the disease,
You grow the disease,
You are the diseased.
My culture comes from the mall,
Everyday you forget me so goes another brick in the wall.
I know this, you know this, we regret it.
Don't fret it.
This is the American way.
We breed the disease,
We grow the disease,
We are the diseased.
I mess around in school, over tits I swoon and drool,
I'm a jock, got a buck, 'nuff about school, feel the pull.
This is culture, this is the American way.
I love my music, it feeds me no gain.
I love the idiot's breast, emulation leads to no pain.
I must be heterosexual, I must spread on the viral strain.
I breed the disease,
I grow the disease,
I am the diseased.
Dekonstrukt
The themes here should be readily apparent. We've a lot of technology in our lives today, and yet, more and more people feel like they've no time. We're being pushed constantly to do more everyday in a more productive way.
Yet, many of us are filled with emptiness. I think, as we begin to learn not to utilize a cell phone at the check out counter (and other things) and we remember that we're all good conversationalists, we'll learn once again to slow down and smell the roses. Life isn't going anywhere without you, after all.
Its also an interesting note that even at this age I was foretelling the economy collapsing. All I have left is a credit card sig....I'm not smart, but I realized that bubbles always burst.
Look Around 04
"Live It Up"
Eradicate, eliminate, emulate
(all your peers!).
Wave of the future, compressed horses, revolutions
Occur every minute!
Nasty attack, I don't care.
Got the top down, wind in my hair.
Jamming to a metal band, speakers about to blow.
As soon as it hits red, it's my signal to go!
Live rich, die fast!
On the move, CAR CRASH!
My enemies are my friends,
Friends are none-living faster under the gun.
Every second, I have one less cell to fry.
Go for the faster, fuck the idea of dying.
Live rich, die fast!
On the move, CAR CRASH!
I will never die, (I'm an American!)
I will never run out of cash, (I'm an American!)
And I don't need knowledge, (because...)
I'm an American! (An American god dammit!)
Salvation...
What the hell is that?
The only God you have to fear,
Is my gat.
Holding out on nothing, praying to win,
All I have left, my credit card sig.
Surrender! (Surrender!)
Your time is up!
Surrender! (Surrender!)
Your life is over!
Live rich, die fast!
On the move, CAR CRASH!
Random Useless Video
Dekonstrukt
Its always saddened me how the people who first came to America--on the basis of "freedom," began to become intolerant of those who were here first. Often tribes and Englishmen would negotiate for this or that...but most Native tribes had no concept of ownership.
Indeed, there were even rock quarries where all tribes were allowed to go, warring factions or not...it was a peaceful environment, even if it was to gather material to make new weapons.
Today we bitch about the arctic circle, fear Russia taking it over...why? Whats up there? Do you wanna live there? We're all here on this dirt ball, and we're subverting nature and its often for the worst.
We've scant little time until it becomes irreparable (for several generations, anyway)..until another war is started over something silly like "material" possessions. Really, what do you love? I love communicating with others, personally.
Also, note the whole "Ability to rule...preplanned." That's called Manifest Destiny. And we loved it! We took over from sea to shining sea because God told us to do it. Or actually, a bunch of corrupt clergymen. But, same difference, right?
Some may say here "You're bashing religion!" And you're right, I'm bashing the bad actions of religious people. Manifiest Destiny is a historical fact. I don't identify with any particular religion, and I'm all for what makes people happy.
But too often in our history religion is used for the greater bad, not the greater good.
Wikipedia Article
- Red River War
This lyric is inspired by true events!
Look Around 06
"Red River War of 1874"
Get the fuck off my land,
Our destiny to rule America was preplanned.
I'm sanctioned by God.
I'm supported by the Holy.
You foul beast, I will teach you right!
Away, you will go,
Through the snow,
Through the chilling night,
Through the desert in fright.
Find yourself, a new place
You don't belong here!
Red man don't own this,
Red man can't take this,
Red man must die.
White man has good eye,
For the righteous.
You gave us land,
This you can not understand.
We own this,
There is no spirit within the rocks, the earth, the trees.
Beauty is technology.
Now give way to oppression, fear our misanthropy.
Red man don't own this,
Red man can't take this,
Red man must die.
White man has good eye,
For the righteous.
Savage!
You're a...savage!
Beast!
Filthy, dirty, scum!
We left our land and escaped from ignorance!
And now we have become what we've hated!
But don't let that, ever be stated.
I love you brother.
Now get into your coral so I can number you.
Red man don't own this,
Red man can't take this,
Red man must die.
White man has good eye,
For the righteous.
Lets Get Some Gender Parody
Dekonstrukt
Again, here, I seem to be attacking religion. But can you blame me? I'm pretty sure that numerous religions got stuff wrong just because they cling to a "male dominated" point of view.
God, if it exists, has not a gender. Trust me. Unless there's a Mrs. God. And that would make religion, once again, polytheistic. Its also interesting to note that the story of the garden of Eden first appeared in Sumerian texts...that existed hundreds of thousands of years before Christianity. And their religion was polytheistic. Hey, isn't it funny we call it "mythology?" As if Religious texts today aren't? Again, not attacking religion outright--I've donated to the salvation army, worked in soup kitchens, etc. etc. Religion, like all things in moderation, can be used for the good. I wish it was more often throughout history.
Look Around 09
"The Human"
I am plagued by denial and a self-made belief of superiority.
I have no feelings for others around me.
See only in black and white.
Accept either yes or no.
Don't blame me, I'm only human.
I'm not an animal, they're for us to love-
Our retarded children they are,
Our dinner and our clothes.
I'm plagued by my past,
I think we were touched by something in the sky.
Someone wrote a book about our Father,
He gave us this earth to ruin. This is my escape,
And how I can sleep at night.
And in this book he foretold the evil of woman,
And the sensibility of man. Man came first,
So he has more experience.
Since white man carries the word,
He's the voice everyone should listen to.
Don't blame me, I'm only human.
I'm not an animal, they're for us to love-
Our retarded children they are,
Our dinner and our clothes.
I run about in a life full of meaning,
I create or serve a corporate master.
Life's about serving, not about living.
After all, I'm only human, what good am I but to use or abuse?
Hate is Not Great
Dekonstrukt
I got the idea for this from my sister always hating her fast food job and seeing the infamous mailman on the news when I was younger. (Hey, remember the references to guns throughout this set?) Its always intrigued me how we're basically forcing everyone to become so mechanical. Stamped, numbered, passed down the line.
I think as a society we should come back together as a community, plant communal gardens and all that jazz. Maybe keep communal animals. It sounds crazy, but so many people around the planet don't have the same access to the food we have. And lets not forget we're the fattest nation. Which again, is because as much as we love to talk about religion and all things wholesome...most of us know not of moderation. Also note the line "up-perk" and "smirk." I forget what this is called, but its a most awesome English literature approved way of rhyming.
Look Around 11
"Gasket Worn, Fuse To Blow"
Let me tell you about the shit I must endure everyday,
I don't like it but I take it anyway.
The more to suffer, the more to overcome.
I'm fueled by hope, putting a top on my accomplishments.
I'm afraid that one day everything will be fine,
Without a burden upon my shoulders I'll forget I'm even alive.
[WORN!]And I'm dying
[Fused] in a piss hole
A dark hole,
I'm paying the toll in monotony,
All for money, AND I'M ABOUT TO BLOW!
One more time someone asks me for this or that,
And they're gonna get an eye full of my gat,
With a riddle: the answer? Bullets in their sides.
Do you want fries with that?
Do you want fries with that?
Do you want fries with that?
SUCK ON MY GAT!
[WORN!]And I'm dying
[Fused] in a piss hole
A dark hole,
I'm paying the toll in monotony,
All for money, AND I'M ABOUT TO BLOW!
One more day of every little thing
One more day of every little smirk
And I'm going to up-perk, because I'll be going out with a bang.
I'm hard-pressed to give up today,
If it wasn't for the need to support my beloved family.
Trapped in this efficient death,
In which it has left me bereft
Of all things.
[WORN!]And I'm dying
[Fused] in a piss hole
A dark hole,
I'm paying the toll in monotony,
All for money, AND I'M ABOUT TO BLOW!
All for money, AND I'M ABOUT TO BLOW!
Forgive me RKHenry!
Dekonstrukt
Race, race, race...I find it disgusting that race is still an issue today here in America. But who can blame anyone, really? Hate breeds hate.
Look Around 12
"A
Fake Speedway"
There's a race in the human race; race your race and we're all going into the races, get up to paces with all those hate-injected faces. We're cleansed and well-meaning of mean, so expect the sheen of neglect in our project of disaffect.
Colors and skin tones,
Crush them down into broken bones.
If you don't act like me, don't try to talk to me.
I practice cultural superiority.
You hate me, and I hate you. It's mutual, perpetual, futile.
Bound by the chains of society, striving to make our place in guiltless disgrace as we all clamor for the top.
So don't stop,
Trying to think will make your growth shrink-
Wrap it into plastic ethnology,
Never mind everyone's irrational psychology.
Colors and skin tones,
Crush them down into broken bones.
If you don't act like me, don't try to talk to me.
I practice cultural superiority.
Living-breathing-giving-receiving
Grieving-broken-short sighted.
I cannot believe the world's so small,
I'm white washed and left with a bland taste in my mouth.
What can I do to get more?
Why am I just left at humanity's door?
Can't I step inside, and take a ride,
On the beauty of what we can be?
No! No! No!
You are not of my pigment, you're just a figment
-of my imagination!
I practice cultural superiority!
All those colors and skin tones,
You can crush them down into broken bones.
If you don't act like me, don't try to talk to me.
As I practice cultural superiority...
All those colors and skin tones,
They have caused me lost hopes.
Fading away from the world,
I'm afraid to know anything else,
But my own.
As I practice cultural superiority...blandly.
We're Always Looking for a Few Good Inputs..Loading...
Thank you Rolan. =)
One day I'll show you my first lyric. I guess maybe I have a "raw" talent..but I used to read poetry books and lyric sheets. Still do, actually. So as I have become immersed in the medium I have learned to utilize it well.
Its no longer an art for me, which is why I seldom pen new stuff.
G|M
GeneriqueMedia, I agree with RK about both the side comments and raw talent. For me (and any stabs at writing poetry/verse I take are just breaks from other writing or attempts at doing something kind of different), I don't see poetry as "my art" either. I see it more as "another form of writing" (which is different from "art"). In other words, I look outside, rather than within, for inspiration.
The only reason I mention that approach is that for people who don't see poetry as their art at any point time in, and it can be way to find inspiration (and then take it wherever you want to take it, depending on your own style/personality). Not that your style is at all similar to mine, and not that you even want to write more poetry at this point, but I've found that this "reverse form of inspiration" not only helps build my little collection of material, but is also challenging.
Thank you for your thoughtful comment! I've sprinkled poetry throughout many of my Hubs, its just not in the context "of" poetry. I see what you mean about looking outside for inspiration. Generally speaking, when I write lyrics now its because I plan to record them in my home studio. =)
Sincerely,
G|M
P.S.
Not to plug myself here, but in case anyone wants a taste of what I've done in my ten years of exploring making music through computer software...here's alienUplink's MySpace profile.
http://www.myspace.com/alienuplink
I've taken a bit of Ziggy Stardust--and as a music artist my work talks much about society and politics. But when I've been on stage its been in the mode of "lxxy," an androgynous alien. ;)
I think if I pulled out my sketch writings from when I was 17, there would be some similarities, I don't call it poetry myself but you can see the mind set in which you were going and the direction you've taken which is a continuation of the journey. interesting.
I'm 58 and do recall my days of 17. i felt the same as most do at that age. You were stretcing yourself and learning about the realities of living. Vivid poetry and understandalble. thanks for sharing
Thank you all for your kind comments...I'll be posting more soon. =)
I encourage everyone to try and write poetry!
Lyrics are very difficult to write well (at least that is my opinion and I'm sticking with it!:-) and I think your lyrics have a good flow to them. I could definitely "hear" them. What do you plan on doing with them? Do you still have a band?
GM - I guess most of us felt something like that growing up - but most of us didn't write they way you did about it! Great stuff - and I love the way you ended it: "without dipping into the darkness of life I would have never had a baseline for the light" - a mindblowing thought! Unless you've plumbed the depths, how can you truly appreciate the light?
Thumbs up!
Thanks guys! =) I'll be posting the rest soon..the second part is a lil worse I think, the ending I love..anyway, thanks for pointing that out Shalini--indeed, I think you're completely right. =) Life is all about balance.
And K.D.--I record here and there but its more of a hobby. I've released two albums..the first one when I was 16 via MP3.com (and its now locked up, never to be sold again! ;) and the second was a couple of years ago....I'm working on a new EP, but I'm waiting for my HubPages career to hopefully take off. ;)
Sincerely,
G|M
Nice poetry, nice selection of words! I think your poetry follows rhymes coz it's melodious and light. Great job for a beginner. What I liked here is look around -4-. Good work.
Wow this was different to those I have been reading lately. Some great pointers here. I have a serious poetry fetish LMAO
;) TY.
I love poetry. Reading and writing =D
Awesome poetry. I understood what you were saying and agree with a lot of it. IMHO, I believe that all the crazy stuff that is going on, we have brought upon ourselves. You can't discipline your children, most people don't think about anything or anyone but themselves, it's always someone elses problem or someone else is to blame and the race issue, omg, don't even get me started. Even if you don't believe in God or care for religion, how could anyone think they are better than anyone else just because of the color of skin, I believe we are all created equal, but not everyone has had equal opportunities. Well, better shut up now or I'll rant on about these issues for hours.
Hey love my yorkies, feel free to rant. I do it a lot!
I really am in line with you. It's hard to say society is falling apart, because depending on what medications or colored glasses you're on or have on you may see things in a different light.
However, yes, in short..we're definitely not doing much else here but existing, wanting more, waiting for the next bell to ring.
The ego is a trip for all of us--more so than others.
Thanks for stopping by..you look so familiar. ;)
RKHenry 3 years ago
I'm not much of a problem solver. Maybe that's why I majored in history and dedicated all of my adult life to it. Poetry to me, is another form of a riddle. So I greatly appreciate your little side excerpts explaining matters along the way or I'd be clueless. I'm no expert here, but I do believe you have a raw, natural talent. I'm glad you posted this in the forums. Rolan