By Uncleben
break (v.): from Old English ‘brecan’, meaning (a) to divide solid matter violently into parts or fragments (b) to injure, violate, destroy, curtail (c) to break into, rush into (d) to burst forth, spring out (e) to subdue, tame
Attentive readers will recall that this topic came about as a result of my recent contretemps with a ski slope, in which I came off the worse with three broken ribs. It’s been strangely therapeutic to listen to hundreds of songs about breaking things. Here are just a few of them. The A-list begins with more destructive songs and ends with more liberating ones – the B-list is the other way round.
Fugazi - Break
Washington D.C. post-hardcore legends distil the elemental destructive urge into a taut, angular and precisely calibrated 2 minutes and 11 seconds of sound. “We take apart everything we build. Had it right here but now it’s gone”. Did you know that Fugazi was a Vietnam War slang term for ‘Fucked Up, Got Ambushed, Zipped In [a body bag]’?
A Place to Bury Strangers - Broken
From a February 2022 album that, according to Bandcamp, outpaces even their own firmly blazed path of audio annihilation. Which, as a new initiate to their music, I’ll have to take on trust – but it certainly zips along in a satisfyingly fuzzy, scuzzy fashion. “Looking at my life that you smashed on the floor, I pick up what I can, but I can't take much more ’cause I'm broken.”
Fiona Apple - Window
Apple doesn’t explain what it is the man is droning on about. Maybe explaining the offside rule – or the correct way to load a dishwasher. But she does the honourable thing and takes it out on the window rather than him.
The Radiators from Space - Television Screen
What was it about 70s rock stars and throwing television sets out of hotel windows? Did they regret it a few hours later when they realised they were going to miss that week’s episode of Starsky and Hutch? Didn’t other hotel guests get seriously hurt when TV sets fell on their heads? The Radiators, who (to be fair) seem to have some genuine beef with what is being shown on TV, opt for the slightly safer technique of smashing the screen with a Fender Strat. Arguably the first ever Irish punk single.
Andrew Bird - Eyeoneye
A song whose origins involved Bird having trouble sleeping on tour. Every time he thought about his eyes, they would strain as if they were trying to see themselves. Me, I would have tried some mindfulness exercises at this point. But Bird got thinking (like you do) about feedback loops in nature, including a teratoma – a tumour that copies other cells in the body like hair and teeth, causing your immune system to freak out and attack the good teeth and hair cells. “No one can break your heart, so you break it yourself.” What can it all mean?
Gillian Welch - Wrecking Ball
“Look out boys, ’cause I'm a rollin' stone, that's what I was when I first left home. I took every secret that I'd ever known and headed for the wall - like a wrecking ball.” Beautifully evocative reminiscences of a life that’s gone slightly off the rails, with Dylan’s rolling stone turning into a wrecking ball.
Dropkick Murphys - Smash Shit Up
Is there a song more unashamedly devoted to the simple, unadulterated pleasure of breaking stuff for its own sake? And on a scale of 1-10, how much would you say lead singer Ken Casey is enjoying himself in the video? “I wanna be a rebel, I wanna break some bones. Maybe they'll be yours, they might be my own.” I would give the Dropkick Murphys a wide berth if I ever encountered them on a ski slope.
Ann Peebles - I’m Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down
Is there a song that takes less exultant pleasure from the destruction the singer intends to wreak? Peebles’s delivery is astonishingly world-weary and resigned. The fate that’s coming the way of the playboy in her life is almost Shakespearean in its predestination. A stone cold classic.
Mikey Dread - Break Down the Walls
One of the great reggae innovators, whose initial fame came from his pioneering Jamaican radio show ‘Dread at the Controls’. Here continuing the Rasta crusade to break down those pesky walls of Babylon, accompanied by the mighty Roots Radics and a lovely squelchy Scientist mix.
Erasure - Chains of Love
I wore out the 12” single when it was released in 1988. In a world where the lexicon of love is struggling with the idea of gay couples (“How can I explain when words get broken?”), Andy Bell and Vince Clarke issue a passionate rallying call to break the ties that bind us, all while being hoisted through the air by metal chains.
The Beach Boys - Break Away
On an unapologetically feel-good roll now. The original inspiration for the song is reputed to have been an advertising break in a TV show, but lyricist Wilson senior (credited for no obvious reason as “Reggie Dunbar”) turned the song into an intoxicating celebration of the ability to make a new start. “I can break away from that lonely life and I can do what I want to do. And break away from that empty life and my world is new.”
Kurtis Blow - The Breaks
Kurtis (who I discover is now an ordained minister and founder of the Hip Hop church in Harlem) works his way through multiple meanings of the word “break” – and “brake” for that matter. The first certified gold rap song, though Kurtis preferred the term ‘progressive disco-funk’, and one that has resolutely stood the test of time. Also features some clavinet, for those taking notes. So turn up that boombox, break it up, and break down!
The Annihilation A-List Playlist:
Fugazi - Break
A Place to Bury Strangers - Broken
Fiona Apple - Window
The Radiators from Space - Television Screen
Andrew Bird - Eyeoneye
Gillian Welch - Wrecking Ball
Dropkick Murphys - Smash Shit Up
Ann Peebles - I’m Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down
Mikey Dread - Break Down the Walls
Erasure - Chains of Love
The Beach Boys - Break Away
Kurtis Blow - The Breaks
Breaking Down the B-List Playlist:
Dexys Midnight Runners - Breaking Down the Walls of Heartache
The Bandwagon original is zedded for obstacles, so let’s go with the equally splendid Dexys cover.
Johnny Cash - Rusty Cage
Hard to go wrong with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers as your backing band. The lead guitar breaking in at 1:28 is a Rick Rubin stroke of genius.
Luke Haines - Smash the System
To quote Haines’ own press release for the album of the same name: “think ‘Hunky Dory’ or Sabbath’s eponymous debut played on pixiephones and Moog, Graham Bond Organisation (if they’d been any good) ... or Sunn O))) at the school disco with tunes.... ‘Smash The System’ is a Ritual Magick agit prop call to arms”.
Prince Alla - Stone
“I man saw a stone, just a come to mash down Rome.” The tumultuous King Tubby dub is zedded for songs about doom, but let’s hear it again paired with Alla’s vocal cut.
The Pretenders - Break Up the Concrete
Nice rockabilly vibe to this title track of their 2008 album. If you bought an early edition of the album, you got some handmade seed paper that you could plant and watch sprout.
Julia and Company - Breakin’ Down (Sugar Samba)
Sweet, funky 1980s groove, courtesy of Julia Nixon and David Ylvisaker.
The Special AKA - Break Down the Door
Stan Campbell and Rhoda Dakar on vocals. And a brass section featuring Rico on trombone and Dick Cuthell on flugelhorn. More flugelhorn in popular music, please.
Leo Kottke - Busted Bicycle
We don’t get to find out how the bicycle got broken, this being an instrumental. But it’s a fabulous 12-string workout that I couldn’t resist.
Old Blind Dogs - MacPherson’s Rant/The Winging
MacPherson is about to be hanged and he’s damned if anyone is going to get his fiddle - “before I do part wi' her, I'll brak thro' her the middle.”
Klammer - Broken Dreams in a Crashing Car
Described (it says on their website) as the love child of XTC and Gang of Four. I’m also hearing some early Banshees.
Mitski - The Only Heartbreaker
The fabulous Mitski Miyawaki. “I’ll be the water main that’s burst and flooding. You’ll be by the window, only watching.”
Echo and the Bunnymen - Bring On the Dancing Horses
And more heartbreaking with Ian McCulloch and his fellow bunnies. “First I'm gonna make it, then I'm gonna break it till it falls apart. Hating all the faking and shaking while I'm breaking your brittle heart.”
Guru’s Wildcard Picks:
Singers and Players - Breaking Down the Pressure
If you like this and fancy some Mikey Dread double bubble, check out the DJ version Autobiography.
Alpha Blondy - Apartheid Is Nazism
America, America, America - break the neck of this apartheid.
These playlists were inspired by readers' song nominations from last week's topic: A smashing idea: songs about breaking things. The next topic will launch on Thursday at 1pm UK time.
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