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Thomas
04-13-2006, 07:21 PM
The last one went over really well and I promised to do another one, but I didn't. So, it has been a few months but I finally have the time to do another. Enjoy.


The Complete Analysis of The Offspring's Self-Titled Album

Title: The Offspring; Symbolic of the theme of youth and growing up into adulthood and maturing, a repeated theme throughout the album

Artwork:

Front cover: Faded person in black and white: Represents the faded memories of their youth and how the innocent children they used to be are fading away in their maturity.

Back Cover: Shadows. As seen in the front cover, it represents the faded memories of their youth that can only be barely seen

Sparks flying in the booklet: Represents the change of their person and the welding together of a lifetime of events to create this new person.

The Music:

Jennifer Lost The War: A songs that jumps right into the theme of youth and childhood. It is about how innocent children are punished every day for things that are not their fault and how nobody recognises their innocence.

Elders: A song about a youth's view on their elders. As a kid, they were so impressionable and easily persuaded that any stories they were told were truth. Now that they have grown up, they see how they have lied to them all these years and how they just want the truth.

Out on Patrol: A song about how the young are sent over to fight political and holy wars. It is critical of how leaders send these young people to fight their wars and how they are dying in wars because nobody is doing anything to support them.

Crossroads: This song is about how he has felt left alone and how he can't fill this void in his heart after being left by the one he loves. Heartbreak and dissappointment is a big part of growing up, and this songs explains how one can seem like they are your one true love until you fin out that you were not meant to be together.

Demons (A Mexican Fiesta): Although it somewhat strays from the basic theme of the album, it is still a big part of the album. It is about satanic rituals and could be taken as symbolic of the fears and troubles every little kid faces in their young impressionable years.

Beheaded: A sarcastic song about quite literally chopping everybody's heads off. It could be taken as a person who has grown up to be insane that has an unnatural lust for blood and death.

Tehran: A very powerful political song. It is questioning the reasons and motives of invading the Middle East. It is critical of how the leaders of our country are killing off their own troops and the people of Iran for their own ego boosting and personal benefits.

A Thousand Days: Lyrically, it has a similar meaning to Crossroads, except the story is told from a later point in time. It tells how they have been fighting and abusive to each other, so they could not remain together. While they were together, they were trapped in an unbreakable bond to each other, and it had to be broken to free both of their lives from each other.

Blackball: Some of the most powerful lyrics you'll ever see are in this song. It is about how hate, prejudice, and segregation in the world are pointless. While growing up in this world, you can see the hate and the youth are the only ones that question the ultra-conservative racists and segregators. This infestation of hate in our society was brilliantly referred to as "The new disease."

I'll Be Waiting: The final song in the story from Crossroads and A Thousand Days. This song ties the whole album together in it's meanings. It has two parts to the lyrics. The first part is about how friends can only seem to be supportive of you. When a time comes when you finally need them, you see that their acts of love and caring were only images to cover up the fact that they don't care about what happens to you. The second part of this song is about how a love can slowly fade into non-existence. At the time, they loves each other very much and couldn't get enough of each other, but time went on, they got to know each other more, but yet they couldn't satisfy themselves with being together.

Kill The President: "This song is not about assasination, it is about taking control of our lives..." This song criticizes the corruption and overwhelming power put in the executive office our our countries. It is the leaders of the world that give themselves extravagant and lavish lifestyles while millions are in poverty, starving to death. It is the leaders of the world that get into fights over honor and sacrifice thousands upon thousands of their own fellow citizens to boost their ego and honor. It is about how the big men take control of the little men in the world.

Hux
04-13-2006, 07:30 PM
Nice analysis.

You've captured what the songs are about well.

The artwork has a interesting and valid opinion which I think may actually be true.

Thomas
04-13-2006, 07:32 PM
Thanks! If you couldn't tell, I had a lot of time to think about everything i wanted to put in here.

endlesst0m
04-13-2006, 07:32 PM
Good review. I thought you were going to do an analysis of the music though, not just the lyrics. I think you're right on except for demons and jennifer lost the war.

I think jennifer lost the war is just about society becoming more apathetic and desensitized.

Thomas
04-13-2006, 07:34 PM
Good review. I thought you were going to do an analysis of the music though, not just the lyrics. I think your right on except for demons and jennifer lost the war.

I think jennifer lost the war is just about society becoming more apathetic and desensitized.

Well, an analysis of the music would have just been a review, and those don't require any though whatsoever. And to each his own, I guess. Everything I said there is my own interpretation and should not be taken as fact/truth/gospel.

DeAtHsTaR
04-13-2006, 07:40 PM
You're good at this! Do Smash next!

Thomas
04-13-2006, 07:41 PM
Sorry, but Ignition's next. If you guys are lucky, I might do it this weekend...

JohnnyNemesis
04-13-2006, 07:52 PM
THIS SUCKS!!! READ MY REVIEW INSTEAD!!!

fihgfhgf

Just kiddin' man. I really like how you tie the songs together into the general theme but also show how they stand on their own, and what they do for the album and beyond. Very good analysis, my friend.

Thomas
04-13-2006, 07:58 PM
Aw, man, that hurts. :(

But seriously, thanks a lot.

JohnnyNemesis
04-13-2006, 08:00 PM
GO READ MINE DAMN YOU! THEN YOU'LL REALLY KNOW WHAT PAIN IS!!!

wtyuoetg!

offspring_freak_3
04-13-2006, 08:23 PM
wow thats a lot, i promess you i'll read a small part every day :p jk, i'll read when i get time, im going to bed in a few minutes ¬¬

jacknife737
04-13-2006, 08:29 PM
nice analysis.

ilovellamas
04-13-2006, 08:50 PM
I didn't care much for this review... I think you read WAY too much into the artwork, first of all. Second of all, most of your song reviews were way off. I don't really like how you keep telling people you're going to review an album, as though nobody else should, and how "if you're lucky" kinda thing... It's fine if you want to review the albums, but due to the fact that it's just your opinion, and doesn't really have that much bearing, your ego is way too big about it. I would write my own review of s/t, but you'd probably think I was stepping on your shoes. I don't know... and facts like that you didn't know that Americana was a concept album until I told you also makes your opinions very off... I'm not trying to be rude, or say you shouldn't write album reviews, but I don't like how you're approaching it.

offspring_freak_3
04-13-2006, 08:57 PM
oh admite u r just jealousy :p

ilovellamas
04-13-2006, 09:07 PM
If I was jealous, I wouldn't have given the other guy such a good response ;)

offspring_freak_3
04-13-2006, 09:09 PM
me = owned, but i was just joking ;)

ilovellamas
04-13-2006, 10:20 PM
hehe I know, it's all cool. fatty.

Thomas
04-13-2006, 10:45 PM
I didn't care much for this review... I think you read WAY too much into the artwork, first of all. Second of all, most of your song reviews were way off. I don't really like how you keep telling people you're going to review an album, as though nobody else should, and how "if you're lucky" kinda thing... It's fine if you want to review the albums, but due to the fact that it's just your opinion, and doesn't really have that much bearing, your ego is way too big about it. I would write my own review of s/t, but you'd probably think I was stepping on your shoes. I don't know... and facts like that you didn't know that Americana was a concept album until I told you also makes your opinions very off... I'm not trying to be rude, or say you shouldn't write album reviews, but I don't like how you're approaching it.

This wasn't really a review, just an explanation of how I see this album. I merely gave my own interpretation of it. I never said that it was meant to be accepted as truth, as I stated before. If I really cared if you wrote your own, I would have gotten mad at JohnnyNemesis for his, I mean, even more than I am already mad at him for not being tru punx, that is. :mad:

EDIT: And I was of course being sarcastic when i said "if you are lucky."