After years of recording in relative seclusion in the hills of Los Angeles, Ariel Pink (the first non-Animal Collective member on the Paw Tracks roster) made his official Paw Tracks debut with The Doldrums. Recording at home with a guitar, bass, keyboard, and 8-track (the drum sounds were created with his mouth).
Ariel Pink blends Lite FM and warped lo-fi pop into something by turns beautiful and confusing. Some may find his personal yet detached approach highly addictive, while others may be instantly turned off by the obvious lo-fi production and the vocal drumtracks.
In the summer of 2003, Pink passed a CD-R on to New York based band Animal Collective after being introduced by mutual friend Jimi Hey (of All Night Radio and Beachwood Sparks) at one of their shows. Unbeknownst to Pink, Animal Collective had recently started their own record label, Paw Tracks, and several weeks later they contacted him expressing an interest in releasing his music. Pink became the first musician on the label aside from the members of Animal Collective. The next year, the label reissued The Doldrums, an album which had been originally recorded in 1999. Since then, Paw Tracks (now co-owned by Carpark Records) has released two other reissues of Pink's previous recordings, Worn Copy and House Arrest.
Pink has gradually caught the attention of media sources around the United States as well as internationally. As most of his albums are self-made, many of them have never been heard by fans. Almost all of Pink's albums which have been commercially released come from his yet-unfinished "Haunted Graffiti" series and are thus the best known.
Pink's tours have generally been met with much negativity, primarily because his music was never intended to be performed live for commercial audiences. As he explained to LA Weekly:
“People boo me everywhere...They don't even hide their contempt. I'm used to it now...Hey, I'm giving audiences the real thing...For better or worse, I'm out there, and those are the circumstances. People don't like it when it seems like you don't know what's happening, or I'm getting bummed out with certain aspects and I can't hide it. I think people feel that pain and just think it's bad.”
Initially playing shows alone with pre-recorded music, Pink has since employed the efforts of keyboardist Kenny Gilmore, bassist Tim Koh (White Magic), drummer Jimi Hey, and guitarist Cole M. Greif-Neill (Ethnik Klensr) as Haunted Graffiti. However, even with a backing band unfamiliar audiences are generally hostile towards the unrehearsed nature of the live compositions.
In July, the band embarked on Pink's "Thanks Mom, I'm Dead" tour.
One genre that may interestingly define Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti is one known as Hauntology.
Credit
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
"ah i'm sorry son.."
"..can you just uh give me another one?"
"..no"
the sale is final no rebates
if you're a member you can come and save
so would you help me or give me a break in credit
you read the fine print and you signed
no we're not authorised the card's declined
if you'll just sign here we can change your dimes
in credit
in credit, keep when you use
in credit, all choices by you
in credit, go buy something used
in credit, credit credit credit
the warranties do not suffice
you pay the price
the policy is who you break, you buy some credit
we'll send you coupons in the mail
it's quite a markup so don't buy retail
don't get a load we get for sale in credit
in credit, do what you're told
in credit, we turn when you're old
in credit, dead and old
check it, credit
uh
credit
your driving record is not clean
your mortgage payments remain outstanding
give us your body or we'll dock nineteen in credit
all is fair and fair's a game
the game is buying and you're forced to play
when you're old your kids will trade your brains for credit
credit a lotta credit
for credit you'll always come back
with credit you'll never keep track
do credit it's better than crack
ah credit not turning back
oh got bad credit, woah
credit
what's that
credit
oh it hurts me
credit
makes me so hot
take it back take it back
The song "Credit" by Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti is a satire on the exploitative nature of consumerism in modern society. The lyrics depict a transaction between a dissatisfied customer and a salesperson who refuses to refund or exchange the faulty product. The phrase "the sale is final no rebates" indicates the salesperson's unwillingness to help the customer, even if they are a loyal member of the store. The line "the policy is who you break, you buy some credit" shows how companies may penalize their customers even if they are wrong, and how they use credit to make people dependent on their products.
The chorus "in credit, keep when you use" suggests that credit is a debt that people are bound to, and that they can never escape. It also implies that people do not really own what they buy on credit since they will always have to pay for them in one way or another. The lines "your driving record is not clean, your mortgage payments remain outstanding, give us your body or we'll dock nineteen in credit" represent how corporations can demand payment for debts from the past or threaten to withhold a person's future earnings if they do not comply.
Overall, the song "Credit" is an ironic commentary on the cycle of consumption and debt. It criticizes the way businesses use credit to entice customers into buying things they do not need and then enslave them in a never-ending cycle of debt.
Line by Line Meaning
hi I was in here about 10 minutes ago? i just bought this boombox, it's playing at the totally wrong speed, uh, i don't want a refund, or...
Asking for a new product with the same request with concern for the product's quality, but wanting a credit instead of refund.
ah i'm sorry son..
The shopkeeper acknowledging the customer's request.
..can you just uh give me another one?
The customer insisting on the shopkeeper to provide him with another product.
..no
The shopkeeper denying the customer's request for a new product.
the sale is final no rebates
The sale is final and the customer cannot return it or request money back.
if you're a member you can come and save
Membership for frequent shoppers available to get discount offers.
so would you help me or give me a break in credit
Asking for help in getting an item other than what was previously purchased.
you read the fine print and you signed
The customer has agreed to the terms and conditions of the credit policy before the purchase.
no we're not authorised the card's declined
The card used by the customer for payment does not work.
if you'll just sign here we can change your dimes
The shopkeeper is providing an option to change the existing item for another one.
in credit
The customer opting to take credit for the previous purchase in exchange for another item.
keep when you use
The credit option allows customers to keep the amount for later use.
all choices by you
The customer can use the credit for whichever product they want to buy.
go buy something used
The shopkeeper is providing an option to buy a used product instead of the new one.
credit credit credit
Highlighting the continuous use of credit in the long-term.
the warranties do not suffice
The warranties are not adequate to cover defects or damages.
you pay the price
The customer has to pay the full price for the product, regardless of quality issues.
the policy is who you break, you buy some credit
The shop policy is that if the customer breaks any part of the product or policy, they will have to buy it on credit.
we'll send you coupons in the mail
The shopkeeper is providing discount coupons for future use.
it's quite a markup so don't buy retail
The markup is high when buying from retail, so credit may be a better option.
don't get a load we get for sale in credit
The shopkeeper advising the customer to not rush into buying products offered on credit.
do what you're told
The policy of the shop stating that the customer must conform to their credit policy or face consequences.
we turn when you're old
The shopkeeper will continue to provide credit to the customer, even when they become old.
dead and old
Even after the customer dies, their credit will remain the same.
check it, credit
Highlighting the importance of credit in current times.
uh
An interjection with an uncertain tone.
credit
Emphasizing the importance of credit.
your driving record is not clean
The customer's driving record is not good, and hence the customer must pay in credit.
your mortgage payments remain outstanding
The customer has an outstanding mortgage payment, and hence is required to pay in credit.
give us your body or we'll dock nineteen in credit
The shopkeeper advising the collection of the customer's physical assets, else they will have to pay in credit.
all is fair and fair's a game
The shopkeeper is free to charge the customer, while it's the customer's responsibility to pay the same.
the game is buying and you're forced to play
The act of buying items on credit is a game, where the customer is forced to play it with no other option.
when you're old your kids will trade your brains for credit
In the future, when credit becomes more important than any other possession, the customers' children will inherit the credit instead of other assets.
credit a lotta credit
Emphasizing that one can never have enough credit.
for credit you'll always come back
Customers will always come back to the shop for more credit offers.
with credit you'll never keep track
It's easy to lose track of credit and end up not using it, while it keeps accumulating.
do credit it's better than crack
Credit is a better alternative than getting addicted to drugs like crack.
ah credit not turning back
Emphasizing that there's no going back from taking credit.
oh got bad credit, woah
The shopkeeper questioning the customer's credit score.
what's that
A rhetorical question, given the importance of credit in contemporary society.
oh it hurts me
The customer is in pain due to the burden of paying back credit.
credit
Emphasizing the significance of credit in contemporary society.
makes me so hot
An acknowledgement of being obsessed with credit.
take it back take it back
An urge to take back the decision of purchasing products on credit.
Contributed by Julia B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Helen F. Glover
If this isn't a feel good kind of a song then I don't know what is. Makes me feel good about my bad credit:)
mothsinthecanyonfireinthewood
an ethereal song that is secretly gritty, about a gritty thing that is secretly ethereal
Fukminate Mewziq
at this point ...a gotdamn classic...makes me nostalgic for when this was just a whiff and nothing more...
dialecticalspectacle
how does he get those drums? so nice
Steven Viney
his mouth. it's beatboxed.
Facebucks Token
nice? you sure?
Facebucks Token
great track. pretty sure he wasn't going for "nice" drums
Sean Blair
he's absolutely correct. He would record beatboxed drum tracks at a different speed than the rest of the tracks using a tape portastudio
J. G.
Soundtrack for when everyone gets over the "coronavirus" and come back to reality only to realize that they have to foot the bill for the "bail out".. again
Sean Blair
Anyone else notice the similarities between this song and "Beat It" by Michael Jackson? Listen for it... The cadence is almost exactly the same