title

A little-known Hives gem — my favorite band.

Under-dated because of the title, this gem is a crunchy but cryptic  typical Hives tune — sly winks, insider-isms, and no matter how wild the song may be, it’s laden with deeper meaning about larger corruptions we tolerate.

Here are the lyrics.

Do you know the secret hand shake - you best use it.
Here they come with ringing ears - social misfits.
Someone has got to go
Just thought you should know and so it had to be
The one who held the key.
Check the time T-5 and you’re still looking.
Too good to be true - so what’s the secret.
Someone has got to go
Just thought you should know and so it had to be
The one who held the key

Well, it wasn’t judgement day back then, after all.

But Prince’s little “It’s the end of the world as we know and I feel fine” ditty wasn’t so doom and gloom.

To paraphrase someone else’s smart-alecky advice, when life gives you lemons, get some vodka and throw a party.

The song was all about the fruitlessmess of constantly looking over your shoulder, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

That there is no point of being afraid, even if it is Judgement Day; so to speak.

I think he had the right mindset — what’s the point of spending your last moments running around screaming?

But things are usually not as horrible as they first appear.

People are a pretty tough stock.

We can get through some pretty hellacious times, and come back swinging stronger than ever.

So put that in perspective — but always throw a party like it’s gonna be your last…

I was dreamin’ when I wrote this
Forgive me if it goes astray
But when I woke up this mornin’
Could have sworn it was judgement dayThe sky was all purple
There were people runnin’ everywhere
Tryin’ to run from the destruction
You know I didn’t even care

They say two thousand zero, zero, party over,
Oops, out of time!
So tonight I’m gonna party like it’s 1999!

I was dreamin’ when I wrote this
So sue me if I go too fast
But life is just a party
And parties weren’t meant to last

War is all around us
My mind says prepare to fight
So if I gotta die
I’m gonna listen to my body tonight

They say two thousand zero, zero, party over,
Oops, out of time!
So tonight I’m gonna party like it’s 1999!
1999!

If you didn’t come to party
Don’t bother knockin’ on my door
I got a lion in my pocket
And baby, he’s ready to roar

Yeah, everybody’s got a bomb
We could all die any day
But before I’ll let that happen
I’ll dance my life away

They say two thousand zero, zero, party over,
Oops, out of time!
(We’re runnin’ outta time)
So tonight we’re gonna party like it’s 1999!

Say, say,
Two thousand zero, zero, party over,
Oops, out of time!
So tonight we’re gonna party like it’s 1999!

Alright, it’s 1999!

You say it, 1999!

1999!

1999! Don’t stop, don’t stop, say it 1 more time!

1999!

Oh, so very, very ’80’s.

The Escape Club’s Wild Wild West may at first seem to be one of those mindless but danceable songs about sex.

But it was also a very good summary of that neon colored go-go decade.

So let’s have a little look:

Forty-seven dead beats living in the back street
North east west south all in the same house
Sitting in a back room waiting for the big boom
I’m in a bedroom waiting for my baby

CHORUS

The cowboy theme of the song and the reference to “Ronnie’s got a new gun” are references to former U.S. President and ’80’s icon Ronald Reagan, but it’s also about ’80’s Conservative philosphy in general. From the upbeat references to “handing out Valium” to the never-ending party celebrated in the song to even asking for “safe sex” (a major social concern during the days the world first learned of HIV and AIDS), Wild West West is an interesting look at the facade of the decade, but even so there is an acknowledgement that a change is in the air — they are are “heading for the nineties,” after all. The Escape Club was a British band, and as many British Bands of that did (such as the Eurythmics did in their song “King and Queen of America and lesser known bands such as Flesh For Lulu in “Decline and Fall”), they made a commentary about U.S. culture through their music.  So even the most fun songs can have a deeper meaning. Here, Wild Wild West was a sly commentary about the era of the dying form of conservative politics and policies that made up a large part of that decades culture and mindset…

We are interupting your regular blogcast with a guest blogger.

For those who don’t know me, I’m Alexandra Kitty, and my usual hang-out is Chaser News, but as any good team-up will do, we are having a Cross-over event of sorts.

Since Randy’s theme is Under-Dated songs, I thought I discuss the Eurythmic’s song 1984.

Appropriately enough, I bought the album in 1986 as a young teen in Belgrade in the former Yugoslavia during a family vacation.

A place that knew a thing or two about being a Big Brother state.

A place where people would go missing in the middle of the night and never be seen or heard from again.

But back to 1984.

The song was part of the sound for the film 1984, which in turn, was an adaptation of George Orwell’s dystopian novel of the same name.

In a way, the song is Under-Dated.

In a way, it is very relevent.

In Orwell’s book, Big Brother was always watching.

There was a Ministry of Truth which was anything but truthful.

History was being constantly revised to suit the needs of the regime.

The flow of informtion was always impeded.

And at all times, your every movement was duly noted.

People’s spirits were broken and they learned to love Big Brother.

It’s an interesting novel. And as technology makes it possible to monitor our every move in a way, it seems that there is a Big Brother State and that Orwell might be right.

Except he never took into account the fact that the same technology that monitors us can also free us.

Providing information and viewpoints that differs fromt he mainstream has never been easier.

Finding like-minded people who are facing the same obstacles is no longer a challenge.

We can be more open and honest with our true selves.

It’s not perfect. And not a foregone conclusion — yet.

But Orwell’s dystopia hinges on a gate-keeper who holds all the cards.

But that’s far from the case these days.

So 1984 is an under-dated song. We are far from living in an dystopian world.

And if we plar our cards rights, it could very well be an utopian one.