Track This:The Barracudas' Grammar of A Misery

I find myself thinking about the Barracudas's song "Grammar of A Misery" today as I work on lesson plans, abstracts, and the assorted flotsam and jetsam of academic life. The song is lyrically simple, yet holds complex emotional resonance for me. Jeremy Gluck sings in the chorus "Run From yourself for twenty years / Cry yourself a thousand tears /Call for help but no one's listening /At your grammar of misery." The sadness of going through the motions is evident as is the emotional pain of feeling alone in the void. The song makes evident how hard it can be to express our true feelings as we sink into a solipsistic state. Yet the song's propulsive drumming and ringing guitar chords coupled with the sheer energy of the Barracudas attack are hopeful. And check out that guitar solo and playful vocal effects that recall Generation X at their bounciest. However, The Barracudas are generally more complex than Billy Idol's first band. They tend to write surfy, pop punk songs as well as darker, maudlin treatises on human existence. "Grammar of Misery" straddles both of these songwriting tendencies arguably capturing the confounding inability we sometimes have to effectively explain ourselves to others. Perhaps we need a better "Grammar of Misery."

 Listen to the track

Comments

  1. AnonymousJune 14, 2018 at 2:15 PM

    Hey thanks, Jeremy Gluck :) PS It's "Run from yourself for twenty years."

    ReplyDelete

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