Felipe M.
Moving along with the list:
#40. "Cease"-- THE GRAY RACE (1996): First time I heard this song, it was on the live DVD LIVE AT THE PALLADIUM where lead singer Greg Graffin sings a solo version on piano. The same version could be heard on Graffin's 1997 solo album American Lesion. The argument could be made that Greg's version might be better than the band's electric version.
This is yet another song that plays with the theme of inevitable mortality of mankind.
Quote--"What pretension, everlasting peace--everything must cease."
#39. "Doin' Time"-- HOW COULD HELL BE ANY WORSE? (1981): Final song of the original release of their first full length album. Even as young adults, Bad Religion had their ideals intact. Just like "Cease," this song also mocks the idea of man's notion of a higher purpose in tangible life and questions the idea of eternal life.
The real treat of this early 1980s hardcore song is near the end where the bass and guitar solo mesh perfectly with each other and takes the listener to some gritty, underground that brings you chills. All of this climaxes with Greg's voice as he screams "Salvation!"
Quote--"Don't tell me what's wrong or right! You're losing sight. You're just going to die anyway!"
#38. "All There Is"--THE EMPIRE STRIKES FIRST (2004): One of the more popular songs on college radio when the album was released, this song brings back good memories. This song is also played live on LIVE AT THE PALLADIUM and sometimes makes its way on to current live sets.
The song is more question than answers as the song, once again, questions religion and divinity as the end all reason for existence as Graffin is constantly asking "can that be all there is?"
Quote--"The walking wounded in a pageant of contenders who balance on a rail of pain for just a pail of rain."
#37. "Suffer"--SUFFER (1988): This song is still played live as fans go crazy when the introduction is played.
The song is a cry for the power elite of society to look at the suffering they have produced to the rest of "the masses of humanity." No matter what time period in man's history, this song is appropriate how so many people work for the right of a few to remain part of the dominant population.
For prime examples on how this song is appropriate to current events, click here. For a song that explores the same subject matter, listen to Thrice's "Cold Cash and Colder Hearts" which is a first person perspective on how the power elite look at 90% of the Earth's human population. Thrice's "Don't Tell and We Won't Ask" from the same album, THE ARTIST IN THE AMBULANCE, finishes that album with the same plea to the power elite to open up their eyes and see how their actions to get richer affects the rest of the world in a negative way. Thrice and many bands just like them further prove the massive influence that Bad Religion has had on the current punk/hardcore scene.
Quote--"This deformed society is part of the design. It'll never go away, it's in the cards that way..."
#36. "Dearly Beloved"--NEW MAPS OF HELL (2007): This is a difficult song to pinpoint its meaning as it could be decipher in so many ways. However, at its broadest and most vague, perhaps the song is about turning your back on conformity and the resulting consequences it bestows on the individual who wants to follow their own path, such as ridicule and isolation.
Quote--"Dearly Beloved, make no mistake, despite our traits I've seldom seen. I can't relate to you."
About Me:
Current Favorite Show: Catching up on BREAKING BAD. It's been awhile since a drama could move me like this. Regretfully, I wish I could catch up on THE WIRE.
Currently Listening To: CRACK THE SKYE by Mastodon. I didn't really like it. Strange since I recently enjoyed listening to Coheed and Cambria.
Currently Watching: Rockies vs Cardinals--Hoping Fernando Salas gets a chance for the save and get me the 10 points I need to win my fantasy game this week.
Currently Finished Reading: THE POSTMAN by David Brin. Cool story about survival in a post-apocalyptic world, but could be very preachy at times.
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