The band's origin dates back to the summer of 1989 when Zak Tell and Jocke Skog met while working together at the Rosenlund Hospital somewhere in the vicinity of Stockholm. In 1990 they were joined by the Norwegian guitarists Bård Torstensen and Erlend Ottem who were also working at the same hospital. Soon the four realized their similar interests in music. Bård and Erlend previously played in a band called Theo in their hometown Arendal back in Norway. Their free time was invested in exploring the musical world, composing and writing songs while evolving into a band.
Their original demo comprising three tracks (Waste of Time, Nigger and Profit Preacher) quickly secured them local radio airplay and consequently brought them to the attention of the MVG label. "Nigger" is an anti-racism statement that caused quite a stir and was a massive success; it was also released as a single. By the beginning of the 1990s, Clawfinger self-released their debut Deaf Dumb Blind. This sold in over 600,000 copies worldwide and was critically acclaimed in Swedish press. With the addition of André Skaug and drummer Morten Skaug, Clawfinger went on tour and played at countless European festivals including major support slots with Anthrax and Alice in Chains.
The band received many awards, including two home Grammies at the Swedish Grammy Awards in 1994 for best hard rock band and best music video. After touring, they went straight back in the studio to record their second album, Use Your Brain. After the release of this album they went on yet another touring campaign, most notably participating at Ozzy Osbourne's Monsters of Rock Festival in Brazil and Chile, rocking alongside American metal counterparts like Megadeth, Faith No More, and Alice Cooper. Back in Europe they continued their touring campaign by participating at festivals and countless gigs.
Their self-titled album Clawfinger was released in 1997. The first song on the album is Two Sides, which expanded the band's reach by using female choir vocals and a Middle Eastern sound. The rest of the album continues with the band's typical aggressive voice and socio-political lyrics.
A Whole Lot of Nothing was the fourth album released on 23 July 2001. The music showcases the same aggressive guitars, with more distortion effects and sounds, adding a whole new level of diversification. As for the synthesizers, on this particular album they're more present than on any other of Clawfinger's works.
Zeros & Heroes was released in 2003 and it caused controversy in America because the song Step Aside did not sit well with most American audiences due to the fact it slams George W. Bush and the post 9/11 (and not only) military politics of the US. It offers yet another style change for the ears of the listener. The electronic sound and synthesizers from A Whole Lot of Nothing are gone and replaced by a more complex and melodic guitar riffing.
Hate Yourself With Style was released in 2005. The album continued the path entered on Zeros & Heroes and is characterized by hardrock style melodic speedy guitar riffs. The keyboards which particularly characterized A Whole Lot of Nothing have completely disappeared.
Life Will Kill You was released in 2007. It has spawned three singles: Prisoners, The Price We Pay, and Little Baby.
The band officially disbanded in 23 August 2013.
Current members:
Zak Tell — vocals
Jocke Skog — keyboards
Bard Torstensen — guitar
Henka Johansson — drums
Andre Skaug — bass
Zeros & Heroes
Clawfinger Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You do all of the work, but you don't get no say
You never raise your voice, or try to run the show
You always get there first, you're always last to go
You always take your share, no more no less
And when you've had your turn, there's always something left
For whoever's next, behind you in the line
you work your hands to the bone, but you don't complain
You never push up front, just for your personal gain
This goes out to all the zeros, to my personal heros
All the losers and zeros, you're my personal heroes,
This goes out to all the zeros
You never do no wrong, you never hurt no one
You always tell yourself, the best is yet to come
No matter how things look, How bad it all may seem
You always stand your ground, and live by your means
you work your hands to the bone, but you don't complain
You never push up front, just for your personal gain
[Chorus]
We're all heros, we're all zeros.......
[Chorus]
The lyrics of Clawfinger's song Zeros & Heroes pay tribute to the unsung heroes in our society - the ones who work hard every day, but are not necessarily recognized or rewarded for their efforts. The song talks about a person who has a full-time job but receives minimal pay and has no say in their work environment. Despite this, they work diligently and take only their fair share without complaint. The person always considers others in the line of work and leaves something for whoever is next. Even though they work hard, they do not push themselves to the front for personal gain. This person is hailed as a personal hero, along with all the other zeros and losers out there.
The lyrics of the song appeal to those who are often underestimated and undervalued in society. It is a tribute to everyday people who work hard, do their best, and never give up, even when times are tough. The song seeks to encourage and motivate the individual, telling them that even though no one else notices, their efforts are appreciated, and they are the true heroes.
Overall, Clawfinger's Zeros & Heroes is an uplifting song that celebrates the tireless work of everyday people. It is an inspirational piece that recognizes and acknowledges the contributions of those who are often overlooked.
Line by Line Meaning
You've got a full time job, with a minimal pay
You work hard every day, but your salary barely covers your expenses
You do all of the work, but you don't get no say
You are responsible for most of the work, but you have no say in decision making
You never raise your voice, or try to run the show
You don't assert yourself or try to take control of the situation
You always get there first, you're always last to go
You are always punctual, but you don't leave until the job is done
You always take your share, no more no less
You don't take more than your fair share of work or credit
And when you've had your turn, there's always something left
You make sure to leave something for others who come after you
For whoever's next, behind you in the line
You think of others who will have to follow your lead
When there's work to do, you always spare some time
You make time for extra work, even if it's not required
You never push up front, just for your personal gain
You don't try to advance yourself at the expense of others
This goes out to all the zeros, to my personal heroes
This song is dedicated to all the hardworking, humble people out there
All the losers and zeros, you're my personal heroes
Even if society may label you as a failure, I see you as a hero for your work ethic and values
You never do no wrong, you never hurt no one
You always act with integrity and never purposely harm others
You always tell yourself, the best is yet to come
You stay positive and believe that your hard work will pay off
No matter how things look, How bad it all may seem
Even in difficult situations, you remain committed and hopeful
You always stand your ground, and live by your means
You stay true to your values and lifestyle, even if others may judge you for it
We're all heroes, we're all zeros.......
We are all capable of being hardworking and humble, regardless of our social status or job titles
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BARD SVERRE TORSTENSEN, ERLEND OTTEM, JOCKE SKOG, ZAK NIKOLAS TELL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@MrPapamaci88
I suspect the song just glorifies the so-called "little people" who create the basics for everyone's lives. I think that was the original intention, that it doesn't matter how shitty their job is, without people like them, the system would collapse, so no matter what others think or say their role is the most important in society. The "zeroes" who are in truth the heroes. Every system has it's everyday Janes and Joes carrying the whole shithole on their shoulders, and that is what the song points out, that these people should be thanked, not spat upon.
WARNING! A LONG WRITING COMES AFTER THIS! IF YOU DON'T LIKE LONG READS, IGNORE THE REST!
Just to clerify things "political" people often get wrong.
Socialism (or often wrongly called Communism) as you know is actually Stalinism, which was intended as a temporary powerstructure to deal with the problems Lenin's group faced after their revolution, but after Lenin's death Stalin created the concept of eternal rebellion, which meant the temporary structure (which was planned to be outphased by the original idea of Lenin's socialism) became permanent, so Stalin could create his totalitarian regime.
Socialism was originally intended to have a council leading the state, not a single dictator. Also only big companies, the industry (like major factories, powerplants, the big stuff), and the natural resources would have been the property of the state, privately owned farms, shops, etc could have had a choice to join one of the soviets or remain independant and compete in the private sector. Of course Stalin made everything state property, so the private sector was dead after that, no competition, no driving force behind the economy, and a whole host of other problems followed, you HAD to join the soviets (work collectives, they gave you quotas, you fullfilled them and they gave you a salary for it, but functionally you did your own thing, just not for yourself but for the state) or become an employee somewhere, there was no choice of complete independance.
Socialism today means again something completely different. It means that the given individual or group take the social issues of people as the primary problems, like for example they prioritize health care, the fight against bigotry, education, the protection of personal freedoms, shit like that over issues of the market, economy and so on. In essence it should be called anti-elitism, especially since truly socialist countries actually tax the rich far harder than the general population, they have companies obey sanctions and rules more strictly than elsewhere, while favoring the regular people in almost every issue. Most socialist parties of course mostly just TALK socialism, but they do the same corrupt shit the others do while (trying to) maintain a more human-centric appearance.
Fighting over these terms however is practically pointless, it doesn't matter what system you live in, the problem is with your leaders. If leaders are corrupt, incompetent and/or use philosophy/religion to justify what they are doing, you are essentially screwed. Governing a people should be a service to the people, but more importantly, it's a JOB! If you do everything right, and you keep professionals in the leadership positions, and they do honest good work, your country will be prospering, no matter the social/economic system they employ. If they don't give a fuck, get their salaries for doing barely anything and let everything to rot, only working with issues when they already became crises, well, things will be bad. When they can't fix stuff, they blame usually a group of people, like the nazis blamed for example the Jews, the Cossacks constantly attack the Turkish, and so on. The first example was basically a socialist (stalinistic) government, another is (in theory) a democratic one, even though I think it would be ok to use the term covert dictatorship by now.
Your leaders matter, your voice matters, the issues matter! The type of system, the terminology, those things are secondary. The system either works for most people or it's a stack of shit!
@tunit6458
Cool song
@ubbgn
Still love claw fucking finger, they are really good awesome fucking kick ass band!
@MyZero9999
very very good album :)
@KingDevil
You never do no wrong, you never hurt no one
You always tell yourself, the best is yet to come
No matter how things look, How bad it all may seem
You always stand your ground, and live by your means....
This goes out to all the zeros, to my personal heroes
all the losers & zeros, you're my personal heroes,
this goes out to all the zeros.
@runarantila4973
that riff is relaxing
@darius_13566
i knew i wasnt the only one
@trevorwall5203
the words are good
@renoesch2081
the reason its good is because its true...
@jackoblllllllll
those statues look REALLY evil
@popas7
RIP Clawfinger