You may remember back a couple of weeks, I talked about how I linked punk and no so much heavy metal because punk had a sense of humor about itself? Well, today’s song is “Close Your Eyes (And Count to Fuck)” off Run The Jewels 2. And it may be hip hop but it I’d call it punk too because of its combination of anger and humor.
It’s by the band Run the Jewels, which is really just what rappers El-P and Killer Mike call themselves when they work together. In this song, they are joined by Zack de la Rocha.
I haven’t gone over the lyrics of the song carefully. But my take on it is that life is like living in a prison and the powerful people who keep us enslaved are the one constant. If there is justice, it is a temporary justice.
One part of the song references the film And Justice for All. It’s the end of the film where the lawyer enjoys what is at best a Pyrrhic victory. But more likely, it isn’t even that. Most likely, it’s just a moment of hubristic truth-telling that does no good at the cost of everything.
I like this song quite a lot although I’m a little old to want to listen to music that demands so much of my heart and left brain.
Run the Jewels 2 album cover via Amazon under Fair Use.
