Andrew Jackson Jihad was formed after its original drummer, Justin James White, approached Sean Bonnette and Ben Gallaty, who had just left Rodan (not the Rodan of Kentucky fame) and The Sub-Standards. Since then, many significant Arizona musicians have sat in with the remaining duo of Sean and Ben, including John De La Cruz of Fatigo and Asleep In The Sea's Owen Evans. Dylan Cook also plays mandolin regularly with the band.
According to Songfacts, Bonnette, who is also the lyricist of the band (with upright bass player Ben Gallant handling most of the production and some vocals as well) volunteered at a suicide prevention hotline for teenagers for eight years, and worked with homeless men and women in the Phoenix, Arizona area. These experiences gave him a sometimes bleak, but at moments, hopeful outlook on life, often reflected in the band's lyrics.
On Halloween 2005, Andrew Jackson Jihad covered Neutral Milk Hotel's In the Aeroplane Over the Sea album in its entirety at CounterCulture Cafe.
Their biggest performance to date has been in their hometown with Flogging Molly and Authority Zero on St. Patrick's Day 2006.
On April 15, 2006, the band played as part of the 2006 New Times Music Showcase, nominated for Best Americana Band, and won a 2006 Best of Phoenix later that year.
Besides their local shows, where they have become arguably the most prominent representative in Arizona of the DIY ethic, they have also toured in clubs and basements across the Western United States, appearing at such venues as the Knitting Factory in Los Angeles, CA. One show in Kimberly, Idaho saw the band in a cowboy bar and leaving the premises as soon as possible after the show.
Andrew Jackson Jihad also performed at St. Augustine, Florida's second annual Harvest of Hope Festival in 2010. They played a dual set with Bomb the Music Industry!
Bad Bad Things
Andrew Jackson Jihad Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I killed your family
And now I am going to kill you too
I made your brother bleed
I made your father scream
And I made your mother say those things that she said to me
Take my pride, take my life, take my body but don't take the ones that are close to me
Oh, do with me what you want, but please don't hurt my family, don't hurt my family
Take my pride, take my life, take my body but don't take the ones that I love"
And I continued without mercy
So I looked into your eyes
And I saw a reflection
Of a coward that you and I both hate very much
And then I grabbed the knife
And I let the blood out of your throat
And I smashed those tiny mirrors inside of your skull
And I got to thinking
If I don't go to hell when I die I might go to heaven
If I don't go to hell when I die I might go to heaven
If I don't go to hell when I die I might go to heaven
If I don't go to hell when I die I might go to heaven
Might go to heaven, but probably not
The lyrics of Andrew Jackson Jihad's Bad Bad Things describe a violent and disturbing scenario in which the singer has already killed the family of the person he is speaking to, and is now about to kill them too. The singer describes how he made the brother bleed, the father scream, and the mother plead with him not to hurt her loved ones. Despite her pleas, the singer continues without mercy, expressing his satisfaction in seeing the fear in his victim's eyes. The final lines express the singer's contemplation of the possibility of redemption and salvation, despite his horrendous actions.
The song's unsettling imagery is full of violence, sadness, and desperation. It speaks to themes of revenge, the futility of violence, and the struggle to find hope in the face of terrible circumstances. The singer is seemingly trapped in a cycle of violence, unable to break free from the path he has chosen, but also drawn to the possibility of a better life beyond the grave.
Line by Line Meaning
Do you remember me?
The singer is questioning if the person remembers him.
I killed your family
The singer admits to killing the listener's family.
And now I am going to kill you too
The singer threatens to kill the listener as well.
I made your brother bleed
The artist caused harm to the listener's brother.
I made your father scream
The artist caused pain to the listener's father.
And I made your mother say those things that she said to me
The singer influenced the listener's mother to say something regrettable.
She said, "Do with me what you want, but please don't hurt my family, don't hurt my family
The listener's mother pleaded for mercy for the rest of her family.
Take my pride, take my life, take my body but don't take the ones that are close to me
She is willing to give up everything except her loved ones.
Oh, do with me what you want, but please don't hurt my family, don't hurt my family
The listener's mother pleads once again for mercy.
Take my pride, take my life, take my body but don't take the ones that I love"
She reiterates that she is willing to give up everything except her loved ones.
And I continued without mercy
The singer continued their violent actions without showing any mercy.
So I looked into your eyes
The artist makes eye contact with the listener.
And I saw a reflection
The singer sees a reflection of themselves in the listener.
Of a coward that you and I both hate very much
The singer and the listener hate the cowardly part of themselves that they see in each other.
And then I grabbed the knife
The singer picks up a knife intending to use it on the listener.
And I let the blood out of your throat
The artist kills the listener by cutting their throat.
And I smashed those tiny mirrors inside of your skull
The artist metaphorically destroys the parts of the listener that remind them of themselves.
And I got to thinking
The singer takes a moment to reflect on what they've done.
If I don't go to hell when I die I might go to heaven
The singer considers their afterlife, wondering if they will go to heaven.
Might go to heaven, but probably not
The artist admits that they are unlikely to go to heaven based on their actions.
Contributed by Chloe Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@wormings7841
The rabbit is singing.
@chubledoobles4257
and with only four words you managed to make this song ridiculously funny, thank you so much
@wormings7841
@@chubledoobles4257 :)
@cleopreta1854
no, the rabbit is singing Pat The Bunny songs, not AJJ. Andrew Jackson's corpse is singing this.
@zaonth1414
it's probably the one from monty python's the holy grail
@0liv3rrr
I come back to comment everyday and it still makes no sense and so much sense at the same time
@papayadoodlez9994
That dude on the banjo is killing it
@govpancake1126
Dude I know right? I’m learning banjo right now and the stuff he’s doing is fucking insane. Randy’s House is an even crazier song
@firetarrasque4667
Banjo solos are the secret advantage folk punk has over every other kind of punk
@morailiette7868
PERIOD.