Sell-Out Love
Black Halos Lyrics

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She was lying in bed
With a pain in her head
They called
The Rock'n'Roll explosion

When the radio played it
For a great new wave
All the gears went through

The motions

And all the pretty boys started
To look so cool
And all the ugly girls knew
There was one thing left to do

Sell-Out
Sell-out your loving to me
Sell-out, Sell-out your love

She was standing alone
At the sold-out show
When she made the observation

through the crowd screamed for more
She could not ignore
The band's degeneration

And all the pretty boys started to look so cool
And all the ugly girls knew
There was nothing left to do

Sell-Out
Sell-out your loving to me
Sell-out, Sell-out your love

Sell-out

You're just a sell-out love
You're just a sell-out love

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Black Halos's song "Sell-Out Love" describe a woman who is experiencing a great deal of pain in her head which may symbolize the excruciating pain that we often feel when we recognize that something we revere is being destroyed. The pain may also represent the sense of betrayal and disappointment that the woman feels when she realizes that the rock'n'roll bands that were once her idols are now compromising their music to appeal to a wider audience. The lyrics suggest that the rock'n'roll explosion has led to the homogenization of music and brought it to a point where all that is left to do is to sell out one's love and compromise one’s art for commercial success.

The woman’s experience at the sold-out show illustrates the degeneration of rock’n’roll as a cultural movement. Witnessing the band’s evolution and the crowd screaming for more music even after they have compromised their art, the singer in the song must confront the sad reality that music is now being manufactured to appeal to the masses, rather than being a creative and expressive art form. The lyrics condemn the "pretty boys" who look cool and the "ugly girls" who feel compelled to sell out their love just to fit in.

The song is a poignant commentary on the commodification of art and music and how it is perceived by the masses. It reflects the idea that as the music industry has grown stronger and more commercialized, the music itself has lost its soul and passion. What remains is just a means to make a profit.

Line by Line Meaning

She was lying in bed
She was in bed feeling unwell

With a pain in her head
She had a headache

They called
The news was spreading

The Rock'n'Roll explosion
A new wave of Rock'n'Roll music had emerged

When the radio played it
When the music was aired on the radio

For a great new wave
It was being marketed as a great new wave of music

All the gears went through
Everybody went along with it

The motions
The popular trend

And all the pretty boys started
All the attractive young men began

To look so cool
To appear trendy and fashionable

And all the ugly girls knew
All the unattractive women realized