As a young musician wanting to make a name for himself, Sweet set off to Athens, Georgia in the mid '80s, to attend college and join the vibrant Athens music scene, most famous as the home base for R.E.M. and The B-52's. Sweet worked with R.E.M. leader Michael Stipe at this time, joining Stipe's sister in a band called Oh-OK and then forming another band, The Buzz of Delight. Before long he was signed to a solo recording contract with Columbia Records.
One album, Inside, was released by Columbia in 1986 to little success.
Sweet was then picked up by A&M Records where he released his second album, Earth (1989), again without commercial success. This period marked a personal and professional low point for Sweet, as A&M lost interest and his marriage failed.
Sweet quickly recovered, and put together a new band including Richard Lloyd, Robert Quine, Greg Leisz, Lloyd Cole, and Fred Maher. The new group spent 1990 putting together Sweet's next work, originally titled Nothing Lasts.
In 1990, A&M released Sweet from his contract, and he signed with rival Zoo Entertainment. The album, still under construction, was retitled Girlfriend and released in October 1991. This album featured a classic set of pop-rock songs, was considered by many to be an artistic breakthrough and quickly garnered impressive U.S. sales (spawning a top-10 single with the title track). The video for the title track was aired on MTV and MuchMusic and features Japanese animation (commonly known as "anime"), of which Sweet is a fan. The animated clips in the video for "Girlfriend" are taken from the movie Space Adventure Cobra, and the video for "I've Been Waiting" uses clips of the show Urusei Yatsura featuring the character Lum, of whom Sweet has a tattoo.
Sweet's follow-up album, 1993's Altered Beast, was borne out of an apparent determination not to become mainstream. A more diverse and less immediately accessible album than Girlfriend, the album divided fans and critics who had mixed reactions to emotionally intense and brooding tracks like "Someone to Pull the Trigger" and "Knowing People."
In 1995, Sweet released, 100% Fun, a darkly ironic title alluding to a quotation from Kurt Cobain's suicide note: "The worst crime I could think of would be to pull people off by faking it, pretending as if I'm having 100% fun." The album mixed bouncy pop style with darker lyrics, including a leadoff track, the self-deprecating "Sick of Myself". The track has frequently been covered live by fellow '90s power poppers The Posies.
Decidedly out of the musical mainstream, Sweet would issue a few more albums in the second half of the decade and maintain a devoted core of fans, but critical acclaim and chart success would be hard to come by.
Sweet's international success had been somewhat limited by his fear of flying; however he gained a significant following in Japan and his most recent album, Kimi Ga Suki * Raifu, was a Japan-only release in 2003.
In 2000, Sweet worked with the Canadian band Delerium, to release the song "Daylight" that appears in their album Poem.
In early 2002 he formed the supergroup The Thorns with Shawn Mullins and Pete Droge.
He released a new album of solo material, Living Things in late 2004, though the material on the album was recorded in 2002.
In April 2006 he partnered with Bangles lead singer Susanna Hoffs to release a collection of 1960's classics, titled Under The Covers. Featuring their take on such widely known '60s hits as "Monday, Monday," and "The Kids Are Alright", the album represented a return to the accessible and melodic approach associated with Sweet's early breakthroughs.
He is featured in the release in November of 2006 of the Activision and Red Octane Play Station 2 game, Guitar Hero 2. His hit song "Girlfriend" is featured on the hit game.
Underground
Matthew Sweet Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Got no time to tell you what we found
People in this world aren't very kind
And love is blind, love is blind
All we want is on our minds
We don't have a map, we don't follow signs
Seems useless for you to look for attack
Me and my girl are going underground
Got no time to tell you what we found
People in this world aren't very kind
And love is blind, love is blind
We are going very far
You can't take a plane, you can't take a car
Seems useless for you to look for attack
No tracking us down and no bringing us back
All we want is on our minds
We don't have a map, we don't follow signs
Seems useless for you to look for attack
No tracking us down and no bringing us back
Me and my girl are going underground
Got no time to tell you what we found
People in this world aren't very kind
And love is blind, love is blind
Me and my girl are going underground
Got no time to tell you what we found
People in this world aren't very kind
And love is blind, love is blind
The song "Underground" by Matthew Sweet is about two people who are escaping from the negative aspects of the world and society. The lyrics suggest that the world is not a kind place, which may refer to the difficulties and challenges people face in their daily lives such as judgment, hate, and discrimination. The two people in the song have decided to "go underground," which means they are leaving society behind to escape its shortcomings. They don't have a plan or a map, but they are confident that they will find what they are looking for. The line "all we want is on our minds" suggests that they have a specific goal in mind, which they will achieve together. They are determined to follow their own path, without any interference from outside sources.
The lyrics also suggest that love is a driving force for these two people. The line "love is blind, love is blind" may suggest that they are willing to overlook any obstacles that may come their way as they journey together. The repeated line "me and my girl are going underground" reinforces the idea that they are united in their quest to escape and find what they are looking for. The lyrics overall suggest a sense of adventure, determination, and rebellion against societal norms.
Line by Line Meaning
Me and my girl are going underground
I am with my girlfriend and we are running away
Got no time to tell you what we found
We have discovered something but don't want to share it with anyone
People in this world aren't very kind
We have encountered unkind individuals
And love is blind, love is blind
Our love for each other makes us overlook the dangers of our situation
All we want is on our minds
We have a singular focus on the goal we want to achieve
We don't have a map, we don't follow signs
We are going on this adventure blindly and without any clear path to follow
Seems useless for you to look for attack
There is no point in anyone trying to attack us
No tracking us down and no bringing us back
We cannot be found and brought back to our previous life
We are going very far
We are travelling a great distance
You can't take a plane, you can't take a car
We are not using conventional methods of transportation
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: MATHEW SWEET, MATTHEW SWEET
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind