2002-present

Say Hi To Your Mom (presently Say Hi) is a … Read Full Bio ↴2002-present

Say Hi To Your Mom (presently Say Hi) is a Seattle-based, indie-pop/lo-fi rock group. Formed by Eric Elbogen in Brooklyn 2002, Say Hi's albums are mostly recorded at Elbogen's home, with him playing a majority of the instruments and providing vocals.

On tour, friends accompany Elbogen as his backing band.

Their fourth release, Impeccable Blahs, was written almost entirely about vampires, though Star Trek is also mentioned. The song "Angels and Darlas" is a reference to Angel and Darla from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spinoff Angel both created by Joss Whedon.

With the release of their fifth album The Wishes and the Glitch, the band shortened their name to "Say Hi".This was done because the earlier name reflected an aesthetic that no longer matched the band's tastes.

Elbogen's lyrics are noted as being one of the band's strengths.

But She Beat My High Score
Say Hi To Your Mom Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Sounds are cutoff short
They make up rhythms
And pixelated many pixel food
Well I thought I found a way
To lay the joystick down
A girl with eyes the color of pea soup
And there's a flame
There's a spark

But she beat my high score
So say goodbye
There's the door
I can't see you anymore

And there's a flame
There's a spark
But she beat my high score
So say goodbye
There's the door
I can't see you anymore

Nah nah nah nah
?
Besides she lost her cloak just yesterday
The dry cleaners must have mixed
The tickets up and so
She got some guys
Leather three piece suit instead

And there's a flame
There's a spark
But she beat my high score
So say goodbye
There's the door
I can't see you anymore

And there's a flame
There's a spark
But she beat my high score
So say goodbye

There's the door
I can't see you anymore

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Say Hi To Your Mom's song "But She Beat My High Score" seem to be about a relationship that has come to an end because the singer has been bested in some way by his partner. The song opens with a description of the sounds of video games - "Sounds are cutoff short, they make up rhythms" - suggesting that the singer may have spent a lot of time playing games. He then sings about meeting a girl who he is attracted to - "A girl with eyes the color of pea soup" - and feeling a spark with her. However, she ultimately ends up beating his high score at whatever game they are playing, causing the relationship to end - "So say goodbye, there's the door, I can't see you anymore."

The lyrics are filled with references to video games and technology, which are recurring themes in Say Hi To Your Mom's music. The line "pixelated many pixel food" is a nod to the 8-bit graphics of old video games, and the references to joysticks and high scores evoke the feeling of playing classic arcade games. The line about the girl losing her cloak and getting a leather three piece suit instead is an example of Say Hi To Your Mom's playful and absurdist approach to songwriting.

Overall, "But She Beat My High Score" is a fun and quirky song that blends together elements of indie rock, electronic music, and video game soundtracks to create a unique sound.

Line by Line Meaning

Sounds are cutoff short
The sound effects in this video game are brief and do not last long

They make up rhythms
These short sound effects are arranged in a musical pattern

And pixelated many pixel food
The images in this game are made up of small squares, and one of the items you get points for is also made up of such pixels

Well I thought I found a way to lay the joystick down
I thought I had finally found a way to quit playing video games

A girl with eyes the color of pea soup
I met a girl with green eyes

And there's a flame
There is a chemistry between us

There's a spark
There is a strong attraction between us

But she beat my high score
She ended up doing better than me in the game, which was my ultimate goal

So say goodbye
I have to let her go

There's the door
I want her to leave

I can't see you anymore
I can't bear to be around you anymore

Nah nah nah nah
No meaningful lyrics written

?
No meaningful lyrics written

Besides she lost her cloak just yesterday
In addition to everything else, she lost her coat the day before

The dry cleaners must have mixed
The cleaners must have accidentally given her the wrong coat