Neon Loneliness

I don’t remember where I heard this song during my pimply teen years. I couldn’t understand a word of the lyrics accept the chorus bit due to the singer’s incomprehensible accent which I later found out to be Welsh.

“cudge u suds dowers
ai de maslow ting an feeling so smieis
ogenize yesser tidal ball
hurt make u land its life a get to war
itzch dem mi vee idol live
lie so cheaply forever ever ever…”

They might have helped me, my cousins whom were half Welsh, but most of them, having been born in Malaysia, were missing that essential part of their heritage. The idiot box which we were only allowed to watch during recreation time (children at home then were just like prisoners) only spewed Stallone and Cleese English so this left me with a limited range of accents to work with. A few years later, I discovered I was tone-deaf as well. A friend had kindly shared this piece of info when he could no longer bear with my backseat car singing/wailing anymore. That day, I stopped singing in the car, or any public spaces.

Well back to the song, what had grabbed me instantly was the melody on the guitar, the piano, the voice and the raw-ness of it all. It had probably one of the most recognizable guitar hooks in the early nineties for those who were into the brit punk bands.
I liked it so much I bought the cassette. I found a used CD later in the US. Generation Terrorists was one of my favourite albums. I couldn’t understand a damn word on most of the songs but I loved the raw guitar sounds albeit simple chords, screaming vocals and the melodies. They weren’t very fashionable looking though.

This song occasionally makes its rounds on our local radio stations especially on BFM. According to wikipedia, its intended message was “an attack on the hollowness of the consumer lifestyle offered by capitalism, describing how society expects young people to conform.” Yes, it was deep…

For all you readers, I hope the melody sticks in your head just as it did mine. If you hear someone humming it today, they probably read this post as well. ENJOY.

The original sound..

For those of you who love saccharine sweet music that make metal fiends choke…

The lyrics (i don’t think i was too far from it… )

Culture sucks down words
Itemise loathing and feed yourself smiles
Organise your safe tribal war
Hurt maim kill and enslave the ghetto

Each day living out a lie
Life sold cheaply forever, ever, ever

Under neon loneliness motorcycle emptiness
Under neon loneliness motorcycle emptiness

Life lies a slow suicide
Orthodox dreams and symbolic myths
From feudal serf to spender
This wonderful world of purchase power

Just like lungs sucking on air
Survivals natural as sorrow, sorrow, sorrow

Under neon loneliness motorcycle emptiness
Under neon loneliness motorcycle emptiness

All we want from you are the kicks you’ve given us
All we want from you are the kicks you’ve given us
All we want from you are the kicks you’ve given us
All we want from you are the kicks you’ve given us

Under neon loneliness motorcycle emptiness
Under neon loneliness motorcycle emptiness

Drive away and it’s the same
Everywhere death row, everyone’s a victim
Your joys are counterfeit
This happiness corrupt political shit

Living life like a comatose
Ego loaded and swallow, swallow, swallow

Under neon loneliness motorcycle emptiness
Under neon loneliness motorcycle emptiness
Under neon loneliness motorcycle emptiness
Under neon loneliness everlasting nothingness

If you have read this far, the band is Manic Street Preachers.

-post by Cumi