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.

Phone Bill Song
Hole Lyrics

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She's a bimbo playing on the damn phone

I can really fuck you up, yeah
'Cause I'm the demon buttercup
You have to spit to see the shine
I see the carcass in your eyes

Before I go to sleep

Get it away from me

See the demon whore has eyes
Well, everything you look at dies
I gotta run up the phone bill
Cause I'm a loser buttercup, uh-huh

Before I fall in too
Baby, I don't owe you

I could really suck you in
And you'll never see the light again
I gotta run up your phone bill
Cause I'm a loser buttercup, uh-huh

Oh, I just want more
Baby, I just get bored

Overall Meaning

The song "Phone Bill Song" by Hole is a track about a young woman who is addicted to talking on the phone, which ultimately leads to her downfall. The lyrics depict her as a "bimbo" who spends all of her time talking on the phone, completely disconnected from the world around her. The singer, who appears to be a male figure, expresses his desire to "fuck her up" and refers to himself as a "demon buttercup," as if he has some sort of power over her.

The singer describes the woman's eyes as being like a "demon whore," and suggests that everything she looks at dies. He sings about running up her phone bill, indicating that he is enabling her addiction, but suggesting that he is doing so to manipulate her. The woman seems to be completely caught up in her addiction, as the singer describes her as being unable to see anything other than her obsession with the phone.

The song also has a slightly sinister undertone, as the singer expresses his desire to "suck her in" and turn out her "light." The lyrics suggest that the woman is vulnerable and easily manipulated, and that the singer intends to take advantage of this. The song ends with a sense of frustration, as the singer admits that he just gets bored and wants more.

Overall, "Phone Bill Song" is a dark and somewhat haunting track that explores themes of addiction and manipulation. It paints a vivid picture of a woman caught in the grip of her compulsion, and the singer who seems to be playing a dangerous game with her.

Line by Line Meaning

She's a bimbo playing on the damn phone
There is a woman who is shallow and frivolous, always talking on her phone.

I can really fuck you up, yeah
I am capable of causing serious harm to you.

'Cause I'm the demon buttercup
I am a malevolent entity, but I also have a tender side.

You have to spit to see the shine
Sometimes you have to get rid of the bad things to appreciate the good things.

I see the carcass in your eyes
I can see your soul has been damaged and is now lifeless.

Before I go to sleep
Before I rest, or pass away.

Get it away from me
Remove that thing or person from my presence.

See the demon whore has eyes
The woman who embodies evil has discerning eyes.

Well, everything you look at dies
The things you touch or focus on are doomed.

I gotta run up the phone bill
I am going to make many phone calls and incur a large debt.

Cause I'm a loser buttercup, uh-huh
I don't have much going for me and I'm not particularly successful.