Baroness - Eula

Settle down
This won't last long
I've been out
And I want back in
So why not completely fade away?

When my bones begin to break
And my head begins to shake
It's my own blood

When my house becomes a cage
And the neighbours turn away
It's my own blood

Settle down
This won't last long
I've been out
And I want back in
So why not completely fade away?

"Where the butcher's hand is home"
Laughs the blade above the throne
"It's my own blood"

"Oh, this apple makes me sick"
Cries the pig upon his stick
"It's my own blood"
[ Lyrics from: http://www.lyricsty.com/baroness-eula-lyrics.html ]
And I can't forget the taste
Can't forget the taste of my own tongue
And I can't forget the taste
Can't forget the taste of my own tongue

And if I had a heart
I'd waste it on you
But it's all together far too long
Since I took you down

Settle down
This won't last long
I've been out
And I want back in
So why not completely fade away?

When we've licked all of the lips
And the salt-stained fingertips
It's our own blood

When our lambs and lions make
Debts and no righteous man can pay
It's our own blood

And I can't forget the taste
Can't forget the taste of my own tongue
And I can't forget the taste
Can't forget the taste of my own tongue...

Sigur Rós - Fjögur Píanó

Beautiful and weird.

The Safety Fire - Floods of Colour

Since I'm on a pop kick today. . .

I'd like to draw some parallels.  Here's some examples of some pop music that can still be dark, titillating, subversive even.  These are some artists I think are doing that little extra something beyond just auto-tuning their vocals and posing for the camera.



Compare that Natalia Kills video to this one:



Yes, one is pop music and the other is extreme metal, but they both have an artistic value, no?  One is using a dark and twisted version of Alice in Wonderland to talk about the disillusionment with relationships and being happy, while the other turns the tables on the meat industry (Cattle Decapitation are known proponents of vegetarianism).

Here's a few others I like:



This is sexy as hell, but also really dark for pop music.  Reminds me a lot of when Portishead first came out.  Nihilism, stoicism, sex and love?  Check.

Now compare to this:



Yes, I've posted this video already, but I like the Lynchian-Lost-Highway/Radiohead-Karma-Police vibe of both videos as a contrast.

Now this:



Lady Gaga is some sort of hybrid between Madonna and Marilyn Manson.  Listen to those lyrics again.  Now think about the imagery used in the video and tell me she doesn't share some creative genetic material with this:



And:



Florence and the Machine are basically worshipping at the altar of Annie Lennox by way of the Lost Boys.  While the video isn't really special, their sound and her lyrics are.  Often full of angst, unrequited love, loss, death and suicide.  Not bad for harmless pop, right?  Since I'm comparing pop to rock/metal, instead of using a Eurthymics video, I'll use another band which is similar (in fact, it'd be kinda cool to see this group cover a Florence and the Machine song like Drumming Song, for instance).

LMFAO - Party Rock Anthem

I'm really late to the party on this because I don't really follow pop music any more, but it's hard not to like this.  The song is fun, but just ok really.  What I like is the video.  I believe it's smarter than people give it credit for.  Redfoo actually has really good comedic timing (combined with his look); for an example, towards the beginning of the video after the dancers assimilate the guy while they watch, there is a great combination of fear and silliness once they realize they have to dance to blend in--that look on Redfoo's face as this begins is priceless.  It's a great riff off of some zombie movie tropes, specifically Shawn of the Dead (and more recently, the Walking Dead); and of course, the video starts off like 28 Days Later.  And SkyBlu looks like Kirk Hammett from Metallica, which is also kind of funny.

Then, there's this, which might be even funnier:

Every Time I Die - I Suck (Blood)

Clutch - Pigtown Blues / Motherless Child

Sugimoto Kousuke - The TV Show

Fiona Apple - Every Single Night

The Atlas Moth - Live at Scion Rock Fest

SpiralArms - Dropping Like Flies