Ariel Pink (born Ariel Marcus Rosenberg on June 24, 1978) is a Los Angeles … Read Full Bio ↴Ariel Pink (born Ariel Marcus Rosenberg on June 24, 1978) is a Los Angeles based experimental/pop musician. Pink boasts a cult following and endorsements from more widely known artists such as fellow founding Paw Tracks group Animal Collective.

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.

Jack Off
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Walked over to Reuben's door
Money in, come on get out of the star
Give me honey with the bottom of feet, sugar
I got my money 'cause I'm started I'm sweet, yeah
I was the problemer, you're the moneymaker
You're pressing for I like dollar to need
I got my fingers more think of penis
I get a little still over here

A Coca-Cola with the Pepsy's smile
California but the matter while
I took (?) with catching no man
A holy (?) never to meant
I got it, you (?)
I'm crying (?) but I'm gonna I do
The spirit (?) making more better
(?) easy to kill

Walked over to Reuben's door
Money in, come on, get out of the star
Give me honey with the bottom of feet, sugar
I got my money 'cause I'm started I'm sweet, yeah
I was the problemer, you're the moneymaker
You're pressing for I like dollar to need
I got my fingers more think of penis
I know I'm still over here

Jack off, jack off, jack off, jack off, jack off

Jack off, jack, jack off, jack off, jack off
Jack off, jack off, jack off, jack off

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti's song "Jack Off" are difficult to interpret as they lack straightforward and coherent meaning. However, some possible explanations can be drawn from the context in which they are set. The lyrics are geared towards sexual innuendos, and it seems to depict the singer as being excited and turned on. The first stanza alludes to the singer going to someone's place, who could be a friend of his named Reuben, to exchange money or some other lucrative deal. He might be referring to prostitution or exchange of drugs. He then talks about acquiring "honey with the bottom of feet, sugar," which is a metaphor for sex. He has the money and is ready to indulge in his desires.

The second stanza is a repetition of the first one but with an addition of more explicit sexual references. The lyrics "I got my fingers more think of penis" is a line that sounds absurd but is a symbol for masturbation. He then repeats "Jack off" multiple times to further emphasize his sexual urges.

Overall, the lyrics seem to paint the singer as someone who engages in sexual activities and enjoys pleasure. It is possible that the song is a critique of society's obsession with sex, or it could be an ode to it.

Line by Line Meaning

Walked over to Reuben's door
I went to Reuben's house

Money in, come on get out of the star
I paid to enter and now it's time to leave this place

Give me honey with the bottom of feet, sugar
I want something sweet

I got my money 'cause I'm started I'm sweet, yeah
I have money because I am charming

I was the problemer, you're the moneymaker
I am trouble, you are the person making money from me

You're pressing for I like dollar to need
You are asking for money like it is a necessity

I got my fingers more think of penis
I am sexually aroused

I get a little still over here
I am getting excited

A Coca-Cola with the Pepsy's smile
A drink with a sweet taste

California but the matter while
I am in California but it doesn't matter

I took (?) with catching no man
Not sure what this means