Before starting the band Mindless Self Indulgence, James Euringer launched a solo album in 1995, called Mindless Self-Indulgence, which he had produced by himself and was limited to 500 copies. Contrary to popular belief, this was not an album by the band Mindless Self Indulgence, however, Steve Righ? played guitar for the track "Bed of Roses".
Another large influence in the band's music comes from early 1980s culture. Frequently the music contains samples of early 80's hip-hop or rock, as well as Atari-style beeps and tones. Their second album as a band, 1999's Tight, was even allegedly mixed on Atari equipment. Many of Urine's dress styles consist of the juxtaposition of popular 1980s clothing or bastardized versions thereof.
Later in February 2000, MSI launched the album Frankenstein Girls Will Seem Strangely Sexy, featuring 30 tracks that were sorted alphabetically. Kitty (Drummer) designed and ran the official site of MSI when the album came out.
After Frankenstein Girls Will Seem Strangely Sexy , Vanessa YT (Bass player) decided to leave MSI to start a family. Her replacement in the band was Lyn-Z (Bass player).
Mindless Self Indulgence is distinguished from mainstream punk, however, by their incorporating lyrics about being gay and related topics into nearly all of their songs - even titling one of their songs Faggot. Also, Euringer and Steve, Righ? (Guitarist) possess wide vocal ranges, stretching from tenor to high falsetto. The band also has no qualms about using words deemed offensive by some, such as nigga (Jimmy Urine argues that he doesn't say the word out of anger, and often it is more or less used in the sense that it is used in the hip-hop world), and faggot heavily in many of their songs. Many critics have used their word choice to dismiss the band as juvenile.
And although this may be the case, with some songs being of a 'juvenile' subject and tone, they also use clever lyrics and stance to give meaning to songs, such as You'll rebel to anything, which is a song that talks about how punk culture is being exploited by misdirected youths as a way to be unique or get noticed.
In keeping with their confrontational posture, Euringer has been arrested for pulling his penis out of his pants and attempting to set his pubic hair on fire, allegedly succeeding on one such occasion. Other notable stage antics include him drinking his own urine, inviting audience members to punch him in the face and/or throw objects at him, making out with both genders during the show, and roaming through the audience after the set blaring hip-hop music from a boom box perched on his shoulder.
The band's energetic live shows have gained them much recognition. The band is known to stay after the show has finished, signing whatever fans want until not one person is left wanting an autograph. They also take photographs with all desiring fans. They have opened for a number of popular bands, including System of a Down, KoRn, Staind, Sum 41, Mushroomhead, Insane Clown Posse, My Chemical Romance, and Rammstein. They have also played many large musical festivals including Voodoo Music Experience in New Orleans in October of 2003 (and in Memphis, TN after Hurricane Katrina in 2006), as well as headlining the Mojave tent at the 2004 Coachella Festival, and the main stage of 2007's Give It A Name. They also headlined the second stage of the Projekt Revolution tour in Summer 2007.
Their DVD, called Our Pain, Your Gain, was released on September 11, 2007, featuring one of their concerts in New York.
On 29th April 2008, their 4th studio album, If, was released. The standard edition contains 15 tracks, the deluxe edition has the same tracklist and a bonus DVD. The Clean version has 16 tracks, Uncle being the additional track. The International edition (UK version) has 21 tracks; 3S as bonus track and four Never Wanted To Dance remixes.
On 25th October 2012, they began a Kickstarter to crowdfund their next studio album, which reached its goal by December 24th of that year. Digital downloads for their fifth studio album, How I Learned To Stop Giving A Shit And Love Mindless Self Indulgence, were released on 13 March 2013. There are three different versions of the album, with each including the standard 13-song tracklist as well as bonus tracks. The Kickstarter exclusive downloads include the bonus tracks Angel, I Am Not Here to Make Any Friends, and Last Gay Song. The Kickstarter exclusive digipak CD includes the bonus track Sex for Homework. The tour edition CD includes the bonus track Seven Minutes in Heaven. The Metropolis Records released CD includes the bonus cover, The Logical Song (originally by Supertramp).
After the 2014 tour concluded, Mindless Self Indulgence began a hiatus from touring to spend time with their families. On 18 September 2015, the band released the supposed "lost" album Pink, a 19-song album of remastered versions of the "Pink Demos" from 1990-1997, including covers Personal Jesus (originally by Depeche Mode and Girls On Film (originally by Duran Duran). The album includes redone versions of tracks from the self-titled EP from 1995. It’s also known that there are 31 “lost” tracks from 1990-1997 (“Pink Demos” era), and that 15 of those tracks were added onto Pink, then also implying that there are another 16 “lost” tracks that could be released in future, however chances are slim due to recent events.
Lights Out
Mindless Self Indulgence Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Do you ever wanna get up all in your face?
You better take it
And nothin' you can do could make me ever go away
Fake it
Poor baby I'm gonna make it all OK
[Chorus]
Hit the pavement
That's what I call entertainment
Causin' problems makes you famous
All the violence makes a statement
Punch your lights out
Hit the pavement
That's what I call entertainment
Causin' problems makes you famous
All this violence makes a statement
She better get with the club
Who the hell said any of you get a taste stupid?
Do you ever wanna get up all in your face?
You better take it
And nothin' you can do could make me ever go away
Fake it
Poor baby I'm gonna make it all OK
[Chorus]
All this violence makes a statement
Punch your lights out
That's what I call entertainment
Punch your lights out
[Chorus]
All this violence makes a statement
The song "Lights Out" by Mindless Self Indulgence is an aggressive and confrontational piece that expresses the desire to overcome obstacles by using violence and provocation. The opening lines, "Who the hell said any of you get a taste stupid? Do you ever wanna get up all in your face?" indicate a general frustration towards people who try to intervene or challenge the singer's actions. The tone is one of rebellion and defiance, with the singer declaring that nothing anyone can do will make them go away.
The chorus is the most famous part of the song, featuring the repeated phrase "Punch your lights out!" The phrase is a violent one, indicating a desire to physically harm an opponent until they are unconscious or "lights out". The chorus also presents a nihilistic worldview, suggesting that causing problems and violence are the only ways to become famous and make a statement.
The song's lyrics can be interpreted as a commentary on the culture of violence and provocation in popular media and entertainment, with the singer suggesting that this kind of behavior is necessary to be noticed and recognized. However, the song's attitude is more confrontational than reflective, making it more of a call to violent action than a critique of society.
Line by Line Meaning
Who the hell said any of you get a taste stupid?
Who's entitled to your respect and attention?
Do you ever wanna get up all in your face?
Do you ever feel disrespected or bothered by anyone?
You better take it
You better tolerate it and accept it.
And nothin' you can do could make me ever go away
Nothing you could do would scare me off or hurt me.
Fake it
Pretend to care or be interested.
Poor baby I'm gonna make it all OK
Don't worry, I'm going to fix it for you.
[Chorus]
Refrain from the song.
Punch your lights out
Knock you out or hurt you badly.
Hit the pavement
Hit the ground.
That's what I call entertainment
I find it amusing or enjoyable.
Causin' problems makes you famous
Creating trouble can make you popular or known to people.
All the violence makes a statement
The aggression and brutality sends a message.
She better get with the club
She better align with our group or she'll regret it.
All this violence makes a statement
All the brutality and aggression is meant to make a point.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: RONAN HEENAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind