They were known for their DIY punk ethic, embodied in such actions such as distributing six albums worth of their own material for free on their website, and offering free stencils and paint for fans to create their own T-shirts. They also offered their fans a chance to perform on stage if they learn a song and bring their instrument to the show. Beginning in April 2009, the band would only play all-ages shows with ticket prices of $10 or less. Rosenstock and several other contributors were previously members of The Arrogant Sons of Bitches. As that band was breaking up, Rosenstock recorded the first Bomb The Music Industry! song, "Sweet Home Cananada" using his PowerBook's built-in microphone. "I wrote that song and put it out to see if anybody wanted it. That was how it started, people showed interest and I like recording stuff." Bomb the Music Industry! plays a blend of several musical styles anchored in ska and hardcore punk. The influences go deeper than ska and punk, however, as studio experimentation, synth-pop, and DC hardcore all pop up in the mix. Rosenstock says bands such as Harvey Danger and Neutral Milk Hotel are as much an influence as evidenced by tracks such as "This Graceless Planet" (an adaptation of a song by We Versus The Shark into the musical aesthetic of Bomb the Music Industry!), "Stand There Until You're Sober", and many other songs' meter experiments (which feature, respectively, jarring synth breakouts, backwards looping, and time signatures such as 23/4). In live performances the band has begun using digital technology to create breakdowns that sound like they are lifted from 8-bit video games. Tracks such as "Sweet Home Cananada" and "Future 86" strip down the arrangements to barebones loops and guitar, with the latter (a previously unreleased The Arrogant Sons of Bitches demo) featuring a full brass section but lacking the upstroke rhythms on the guitar, a key element of third-wave ska.
Lyrically, Bomb The Music Industry! songs varied widely from furious rants about corporate rock to ordinary stories about finding a job. They also used a good deal of humor, as in "Can I Pay My Rent In Fun?" and "Sorry, Brooklyn. Dancing Won't Solve Anything." One interviewer described the band as "ska for smart people." Jeff Rosenstock responded, "...you could call us ska music for smart people or indie rock for dumbasses at the same time. That's nice that somebody thinks we're smart." Bomb the Music Industry! has toured as a duo consisting of Rosenstock and Rick Johnson of Rick Johnson Rock And Roll Machine and Mustard Plug. Both carry vocal responsibilities while Rosenstock plays guitar and Johnson plays bass. Both play a variety of instruments as well, such as theremin, tub drum, and saxophone. Additionally, Rosenstock has been known to play keyboard with his feet. Often, this incarnation of the duo performs accompanied by an iPod wired into the venue's PA system that supplies all of the instruments that the duo themselves cannot perform live.
Bomb the Music Industry! has also toured as a duo consisting of Rosenstock and Matt Kurz of The Matt Kurz One. During this tour, Rosenstock fronted the band, playing guitar and saxophone. Kurz sang backup and played bass. As with the Rosenstock/Johnson combo, the rest of the instruments were played through an iPod. Fans were encouraged to join them onstage and play instruments.
In December, 2006, Bomb the Music Industry!, this time as just Rosenstock and Johnson, toured the United Kingdom as part of the Ska Is Dead tour with Mustard Plug and The Planet Smashers. On May 19, 2007, Bomb the Music Industry! headlined Skappleton 2007, the biggest ska fest in Wisconsin. Throughout June 2007, Bomb the Music Industry! embarked on what its website describes as the "Real Bands Tour?". On this tour, the band sidestepped their regular, thrown-together arrangements and opted to perform with a full rock ensemble, consisting not only of Rosenstock as frontman but also of two keyboard players, a bass player, an additional guitarist, and a drummer. The decision to play with this ensemble reflects upon the style of their 2007 album, "Get Warmer", which was recorded with a similar ensemble of live players as opposed to by mainly Rosenstock.
On October 4, 2008 the band entered the studio to record their next album titled "Scrambles", which was released February 15, 2009. The album "Others! Others!" Volume 1 was released on May 7th of 2009, an album of demos, unreleased songs, and bonus tracks. The album "
Adults!!!... Smart!!! Shithammered!!! And Excited By Nothing!!!!!!" was released in early 2010 via their website.
http://www.bombthemusicindustry.com/
http://www.myspace.com/bombthemusicindustry
The band went on an extended hiatus in 2013
Stand There Until You're Sober
Bomb the Music Industry! Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sixty degrees fahrenheit.
We can't see the stars tonight
‘cause apartments generate ambient light
And I'm sorry that we're not already drunk.
Hours later we're getting there
Meters away from the shore
drops away from being kicked
And I don't know what I'm gonna be tomorrow.
When you stayed overnight making out with a stranger
in the bottom of a boat that belonged to a stranger
and you came home at six in the morning
after being caught ass naked by the dude who threw the party
I thought that we'd never grow up.
I thought that we'd never grow up.
Now all my friends rise at eight.
They go to sleep before midnight.
And I just wanna drink 'til three
Embarrassing myself publicly.
And you all used to be just like me
You fuckers used to be just like me.
So now I sit and stew alone.
Everyone's already sleeping.
Everybody's moved away
and can pay their bills on time.
No one else is making a hundred and ten bucks for twenty hours.
God I hate this fucking place.
God I hate what happened to me.
You promised we'd stay best of friends.
But we can't 'cause I just can't grow up.
And it kills me. Yeah it kills me
that I don’t know what I can do.
I can’t breathe correctly and
I can’t sleep or anything and
I can’t think of anything I can’t think of anything.
Now every night is miserable.
So sad I can't even get drunk.
So let's go out just one last time.
Let's finish off a box of wine.
Do shots of yukon jack and lime.
Can we drink 'til I fucking die?
I'll make you party at my funeral
'Cause mourning is for suckers.
I'll rent a ferris wheel and
cotton candy machine and have open bar
with all the Pabst that you can drink
the PA blasting my Clash records.
You'll finally know that life's okay
Even when bad things happen.
So just one more beer, then grow up.
So just one more beer, then grow up.
So just one more beer.
Go to work.
Pay your bills.
Eat a dick.
Just one more beer, then grow up.
The lyrics of Bomb the Music Industry!'s song Stand There Until You're Sober describe the confusion and frustrations of growing up and facing responsibilities. They lament the loss of the freedom and carelessness of youth, where drinking and partying were the only concerns. The song begins by describing the setting of the night, where the singer and their friends are drinking in a place where they can't see the stars and apologizes for not being drunk already. As the night progresses, they ponder about the future, unsure of what they will be tomorrow.
The lyrics then describe a flashback to a wilder, more carefree time where the singer and friends stayed out all night partying, making out with strangers and getting caught naked the morning after. It was a time when growing up seemed unlikely, but now everyone has grown up and left, leaving the singer alone and unhappy with the monotony of adulthood. They hate the place they're in, but they can't leave. The song ends with the singer wanting to drink until they die, and planning their own funeral as a final celebration.
Overall, the song is a poignant reflection of the loss of innocence and freedom that comes with growing up, and the unfulfillment and confusion that can result from trying to navigate adulthood.
Line by Line Meaning
Brown paper bags metal cans.
We're consuming alcohol casually, without sophistication or class.
Sixty degrees fahrenheit.
It is cold out and we are underdressed for the weather.
We can't see the stars tonight
‘cause apartments generate ambient light
The ambient light from the surrounding urban area is so bright that it obscures the natural light of the stars.
And I'm sorry that we're not already drunk.
I feel like we should have been drunk already, but we're not.
Hours later we're getting there
Meters away from the shore
My forty of Corona is just
drops away from being kicked
And I don't know what I'm gonna be tomorrow.
We're making slow but steady progress toward drunkenness. We're on the beach, and I've almost finished my forty of Corona. Despite this progress, I have no idea what the future holds for me.
When you stayed overnight making out with a stranger
in the bottom of a boat that belonged to a stranger
and you came home at six in the morning
after being caught ass naked by the dude who threw the party
I thought that we'd never grow up.
I thought that we'd never grow up.
When you engaged in reckless and irresponsible behavior by hooking up with someone you didn't know and spending the night in their boat, then getting caught naked by the owner of the boat, I felt like we would never mature or learn from our mistakes.
Now all my friends rise at eight.
They go to sleep before midnight.
And I just wanna drink 'til three
Embarrassing myself publicly.
And you all used to be just like me
You fuckers used to be just like me.
Now all of my friends are responsible adults who wake up early and go to bed at reasonable times. I, on the other hand, still want to party until the wee hours of the morning, often making a fool of myself in the process. And, just like me, my friends used to be reckless and carefree in their younger days.
So now I sit and stew alone.
Everyone's already sleeping.
Everybody's moved away
can pay their bills on time.
No one else is making a hundred and ten bucks for twenty hours.
God I hate this fucking place.
God I hate what happened to me.
You promised we'd stay best of friends.
But we can't 'cause I just can't grow up.
Now I'm all alone, feeling sorry for myself while everyone else has already gone to bed. They're all successful adults who have moved on to bigger and better things, while I'm stuck in a low-paying job and a dead-end town. I'm bitter about how my life turned out, and I feel like I can't maintain friendships because I can't grow up and be a responsible adult like everyone else.
And it kills me. Yeah it kills me
that I don’t know what I can do.
I can’t breathe correctly and
I can’t sleep or anything and
I can’t think of anything I can’t think of anything.
I'm filled with despair and hopelessness because I don't know how to turn my life around. I'm struggling to breathe, to sleep, and to think of any solutions to my problems.
Now every night is miserable.
So sad I can't even get drunk.
So let's go out just one last time.
Let's finish off a box of wine.
Do shots of yukon jack and lime.
Can we drink 'til I fucking die?
Every night is a depressing and miserable experience for me. I'm so unhappy that not even drinking can make me feel better. But I'm willing to give it one more try before I give up on the idea of drinking altogether. Let's finish off this box of wine and do shots of Yukon Jack and lime. Can we drink until we succumb to alcohol poisoning?
I'll make you party at my funeral
'Cause mourning is for suckers.
I'll rent a ferris wheel and
cotton candy machine and have open bar
with all the Pabst that you can drink
the PA blasting my Clash records.
You'll finally know that life's okay
Even when bad things happen.
When I die, I want you to have a party and celebrate my life instead of mourning my loss. I'll rent a ferris wheel and a cotton candy machine, and there will be an open bar with as much Pabst beer as you can drink. We'll blast my Clash records over the PA system, and everyone will have a good time. This will show that life is still worth living, even when bad things happen.
So just one more beer, then grow up.
So just one more beer, then grow up.
So just one more beer.
Go to work.
Pay your bills.
Eat a dick.
Just one more beer, then grow up.
I keep telling myself that I'll have just one more drink, then I'll grow up and start being a responsible adult. But in reality, I'm just going through the motions and not making any real changes to my life. I need to go to work, pay my bills, and stop making excuses for myself. I need to grow up, and one more drink isn't going to change that.
Contributed by Emily I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.