Hole was an American alternative rock band formed by singer and guitarist C… Read Full Bio ↴Hole was an American alternative rock band formed by singer and guitarist Courtney Love and lead guitarist Eric Erlandson in Los Angeles, California in 1989. Influenced by Los Angeles' punk rock scene, and produced by Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth, the band's debut album, Pretty on the Inside, attracted critical interest from British and American alternative press. Their second album, Live Through This, released 1994 by DGC Records, which featured less aggressive melodies and more restrained lyrical content, was widely acclaimed and reached platinum status within a year of its release. Their third album, Celebrity Skin, which garnered them four Grammy nominations, marked a notable departure from their earlier punk influences, boasting a more commercially viable, "mature" sound.

The band had a revolving line-up of bassists and drummers, their most prolific being drummer Patty Schemel, and bassists Kristen Pfaff (d. 1994) and Melissa Auf der Maur. In 2002 the group disbanded to pursue other projects. Eight years later in 2010, Hole was reformed by Love with new members, despite Erlandson's claim that the reformation breached a mutual contract he had with Love. The reformed band released the album Nobody's Daughter, which had originally been conceived as Love's second solo album. In 2013, Love retired the Hole name, releasing new material and touring as a solo artist.

Hole has been noted for being one of the most commercially successful female-fronted rock bands of all time, selling over three million records in the United States alone and having a far-reaching influence on contemporary female artists. Music and feminist scholars have also recognized the band as the most high-profile musical group of the 1990s to discuss gender issues in their songs, due to Love's aggressive and violent lyrical content, which often addressed themes of body image, abuse, and sexual exploitation.

Hole went on to become the most commercially successful female-fronted grunge band in history, selling over 3 million records in the United States between 1991 and 2010. In spite of Love's often polarizing reputation in the media, Hole received consistent critical praise for their output, and was often noted for the predominant feminist commentary found in Love's lyrics, which scholars have credited as "articulating a third-wave feminist consciousness". Love's subversive onstage persona and public image coincided with the band's songs, which expressed "pain, sorrow, and anger, but [an] underlying message of survival, particularly survival in the face of overwhelming circumstances." Music journalist Maria Raha expressed a similar sentiment in regard to the band's significance to third-wave feminism, stating, "Whether you love Courtney [Love] or hate her, Hole was the highest-profile female-fronted band of the '90s to openly and directly sing about feminism."

While Rolling Stone compared the effect of Love's marriage to Kurt Cobain on the band to that of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, they noted that "Love's confrontational stage presence, as well as her gut-wrenching vocals and powerful punk-pop songcraft, made her an alternative-rock star in her own right." Author Nick Wise made a similar comparison in discussion of the band's public image, stating, "Not since Yoko Ono's marriage to John Lennon has a woman's personal life and exploits within the rock arena been so analyzed and dissected." The band has been cited as a major influence on several contemporary artists, including indie singer songwriter Scout Niblett, Brody Dalle of the Distillers and Spinnerette, Sky Ferreira, Lana Del Rey, Tove Lo, Tegan and Sara, and the British rock band Nine Black Alps. The band ranked at #77 of VH1's 100 Greatest Hard Rock Artists.

Loser Dust
Hole Lyrics

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You are beautiful, you are glorious
Now you're covered in loser dust
You are fabulous, you are gorgeous
Now you're covered in loser dust

And all the things I used to trust, yeah
All the things I'm about to crush
Your youth is gone, it's turned to rust

It's all covered in loser dust

Hey I loathe every inch of you
You're going down for what you love, hey
Every single particle you're going down for your loser dust
All the things you used to trust you're going down

I'm burnt out, I'm furious and look at you, you're embarrassing us
Descend, descend and go you must
Isolate the prize, give it one big flush
It's indiscreet, omnivorous

We won't call you and don't call us
And all that's sick with gloat and lust
And do call me I'm so serious
It's not an image it's just a way

You're going down for your final crush
Hey, nothing here can stop you with you're going down for your loser dust
Hey, I can't wait to see you go; you're going down for your loser dust
Hey, show me one thing I didn't know, you're going down.

Think fast baby, what is the rush?
The very thing you would never trust
The very thing you would never touch
It's all covered in loser dust

These women all around, obsessive cunts, file under miscellaneous
They're starving and carnivorous
I mustn't touch what I want so much
You, you make me nervous

You make me drunk
Do you have to grovel so very much?
It's so unfair, it's so unjust, it's just another witch-hunt
Broken, shattered, busted, yeah, you're going down for what you love

Hey, all the death it's just good, yeah
You're going down for your loser dust
Hey, oh just die in public babe
You're going down for your loser dust

Hey, in you lays a gutter yeah; you're going down for your loser dust
Hey, we can't wait to see you go, you're going down

Overall Meaning

The song Loser Dust by Hole is a scathing indictment of someone who was once beautiful and accomplished, but has now fallen from grace and is covered in "loser dust." The repeated refrain of "you're going down for your loser dust" is a clear message that this person's downfall is imminent and inevitable. The lyrics suggest that the subject of the song was once someone who was admired and respected ("you are beautiful, you are glorious"), but has now lost that status and is viewed with disdain ("hey, I loathe every inch of you").

The first verse sets the tone for the rest of the song. It opens with praise for the subject's beauty, only to immediately follow it up with the indicting accusation that they are now "covered in loser dust." The second verse takes a more personal turn, with the singer expressing their disgust and impatience with the subject, who they see as a drain on their own life ("do you have to grovel so very much?").

The chorus serves as a sort of rallying cry, with a repeated refrain of "you're going down for your loser dust." It's clear that the subject of the song is seen as a source of negativity and destruction, and the singer is eager to see them taken down.

Overall, Loser Dust is a blistering takedown of someone who has fallen from grace and is viewed as a liability or burden by those around them. The lyrics are filled with anger and disdain, and the repeated refrain of "loser dust" serves as a potent metaphor for the subject's current state.

Line by Line Meaning

You are beautiful, you are glorious Now you're covered in loser dust
Once you were great, but now you've failed terribly.

You are fabulous, you are gorgeous Now you're covered in loser dust
You were amazing before, but now you're a loser.

And all the things I used to trust, yeah All the things I'm about to crush Your youth is gone, it's turned to rust It's all covered in loser dust
You've lost everything that was once important, and now you're defeated.

Hey I loathe every inch of you You're going down for what you love, hey Every single particle you're going down for your loser dust All the things you used to trust you're going down
I hate everything about you and you'll be punished for your mistakes and failure.

I'm burnt out, I'm furious and look at you, you're embarrassing us Descend, descend and go you must Isolate the prize, give it one big flush It's indiscreet, omnivorous
I'm exhausted and angry, and you're humiliating us. You have to leave, and we'll destroy all evidence of you. This process will be ruthless and relentless.

We won't call you and don't call us And all that's sick with gloat and lust And do call me I'm so serious It's not an image it's just a way
We don't want to talk to you, and we don't want you to call us. We take pleasure in our superiority over you. However, if you want to argue, I'm ready to fight back. This isn't just for show; it's our reality.

You're going down for your final crush Hey, nothing here can stop you with you're going down for your loser dust Hey, I can't wait to see you go; you're going down for your loser dust Hey, show me one thing I didn't know, you're going down.
Your downfall is inevitable, and no one can save you. I'm eagerly anticipating your failure, and I challenge you to prove me wrong.

Think fast baby, what is the rush? The very thing you would never trust The very thing you would never touch It's all covered in loser dust
You're in a hurry to achieve something that you've always been wary of. However, your pursuit has resulted in failure and shame.

These women all around, obsessive cunts, file under miscellaneous They're starving and carnivorous I mustn't touch what I want so much You, you make me nervous
There are many needy, greedy women surrounding me, and I need to be careful not to give in to temptation. You, in particular, intimidate me.

You make me drunk Do you have to grovel so very much? It's so unfair, it's so unjust, it's just another witch-hunt Broken, shattered, busted, yeah, you're going down for what you love
You have a hold on me that feels intoxicating. Your subservience is excessive and unnecessary. However, others are unfairly targeting you for punishment, and they'll take you down for your passion.

Hey, all the death it's just good, yeah You're going down for your loser dust Hey, oh just die in public babe You're going down for your loser dust
I take pleasure in your suffering and wish you would die publicly because of your failure.

Hey, in you lays a gutter yeah; you're going down for your loser dust Hey, we can't wait to see you go, you're going down
You're an utterly worthless person, and we're eagerly anticipating your demise.

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: WILLIAM PATRICK CORGAN, COURTNEY M. LOVE

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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