Cop Shoot Cop was a rock music group founded in New York, NY in 1987 and di… Read Full Bio ↴Cop Shoot Cop was a rock music group founded in New York, NY in 1987 and disbanded in 1996.

They were frequently classified as industrial rock, but were often quite different from many bands so dubbed. Tod A.'s lyrics were clever, snide and evocative (Art Black and David Sprague suggest that "Black humor beats black metal any day") and their "weirdly catchy" music which drew "on hot jazz and swing as much as clanging rock, emphasizing the group's stand-apart attitude."

The group had little mainstream success (scoring a few hits on college radio), despite tours with Iggy Pop and music videos on MTV's Headbanger's Ball and 120 Minutes (notably $10 Bill, featuring a number of little people). They retain a cult following, however, and their out-of-print releases sometimes sell for large amounts among fans.

Slackjaw
Cop Shoot Cop Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Slackjaw live in the cellar
They let him grind the trash
Clumps of hair and puke and bones
Piles of broken glass
Finds pictures of pretty girls and hangs 'em on the wall
Likes people when he meets 'em
But he just as soon strangle 'em all
Slackjaw sleep on the floor

Of the boiler room
All night long, playin' its song
Clank and hiss and boom!
Sees people on the hall

Smiles and says hello
But sometimes, he wishes
They all had only one throat
Slackjaw he got a worm
That lives inside his head
Tells him things he shouldn't know
Things are better left unsaid
Trash smasher, rat catcher
Piss on your parade
Sometimes he screams all night

To make it all go away
Hey! Slackjaw, hey, hey

Overall Meaning

The song "Slackjaw" by Cop Shoot Cop is a dark and twisted tale of a disturbed individual named Slackjaw who lives in the cellar and works as a trash grinder. He collects clumps of hair, puke, bones, and piles of broken glass, and also collects pictures of pretty girls and hangs them on the wall. While he seems to enjoy meeting people, Slackjaw has a penchant for strangling them. Despite his disturbing tendencies, Slackjaw also seems to have a softer side. He sleeps on the floor of the boiler room and listens to the clank, hiss, and boom of the machines all night long. He often greets people in the hallway with a smile and "hello," but he has a nagging feeling that more efficient killing methods would be better.

The song's lyrics are a vivid and graphic portrayal of a disturbed individual's descent into madness. The trauma and turmoil that have turned Slackjaw into the person he is today are only hinted at, but it's clear that the worm living inside his head has something to do with it. The song's overall mood is heavy and oppressive, like the weight of Slackjaw's own mental illness. Despite its disturbing imagery, the song is a powerful commentary on mental illness and the tragic consequences of untreated mental health.

Line by Line Meaning

Slackjaw live in the cellar
Slackjaw resides in the basement

They let him grind the trash
He is allowed to pulverize garbage

Clumps of hair and puke and bones
Trash consists of chunks of hair, vomit, and bones

Piles of broken glass
The trash includes heaps of shattered glass

Finds pictures of pretty girls and hangs 'em on the wall
He discovers photographs of attractive females and displays them on the wall

Likes people when he meets 'em
Slackjaw enjoys meeting individuals

But he just as soon strangle 'em all
However, he prefers to strangle them all

Slackjaw sleep on the floor
Slackjaw sleeps on the floor

Of the boiler room
Inside the boiler room

All night long, playin' its song
He listens to the song of the boiler all night long

Clank and hiss and boom!
It makes clanging, hissing, and booming noises