Semi-Charmed Life

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tC1NR7AL_9s

Third Eye Blind’s poppy, vivacious tune is meant to be perceived as such – but the happy melodies and catchy chorus is merely a disguise in which they hid a very strong message. After examination of the lyrics and detaching the cheerful melody from the song, one can come to a conclusion of its true meaning.

I’ve heard this song a multitude of times - I heard it back in the nineties when I was a small fellow in about third grade, and all the way until today. It remains popular because of its captivating air. Now, I’m smart enough to pick apart the lyrics. When I looked them up, what I found was outstanding. Obviously, the song is about drug addiction, sex, and depression. The first lines of the song say, “I’m packed and I’m holding…” – a blatant drug reference. A few measures late, “chopped another line like the Coda with a curse,” – yet another drug allusion. And if the prior drug references weren’t making a clear message to the listener yet, the line, “The sky it was gold, it was rose, I was taking sips of it through my nose” - Sips of whatever drug he is snorting. And lastly, “With a tick tock rhythm and a bump for the drop, And then I bumped up. I took the hit I was given, Then I bumped again, And then I bumped again – “bumping” means to snort a line of cocaine or meth. The song also describes the symptoms of the drug highs, and of course, the drug withdrawals – “I want something else, I'm not listening when you say, Good-bye” – he cannot quit using drugs and doesn’t want to let go because he wants something else to get him through life, and that medium is drugs. Then, “She said she was crashing…” – coming down from a high. And, “But now I'm struggling to survive…” – a reference to the depression experienced while coming down from a high. The song goes on to send a message about teeth grinding, lockjaw, insomnia, aggression, and memory loss. So, there is an establishment of drug addiction within the song, pertaining to either the lead singer, or a character in the song. To me, it sounds like a character, and the song is a story about his life.

The story within the song is about a crystal meth addict who has a girlfriend with whom he partakes in drug use with. He has a sexual relationship with the girl, and intermingling within their relationship is their drug addiction, which is getting in the way of a healthy lifestyle for the both of them. Some of the sexual references: “She comes round and she goes down on me…” – no explanation there. Then, “How do I get back there to, The place where I fell asleep inside you…” This, and the prior drug references, make the song extremely overt and risqué.

The conflict is extremely brazen and obvious; the setting is unspecified, but I imagine that it’s only set in the last few decades, when crystal meth was discovered and cooked up; and some possible resolutions: quit doing meth!

Overall, the song is one that stuck with me after finally realizing its true message. Although it’s shocking and somewhat explicit, it is a powerful and meaningful piece of music.