Forming in 1995 after a chance meeting in New York City club The Knitting Factory, the band's first release was the 1995 Human Pin Cushion EP on Dedicated Records. After some personnel changes the band released an eponymous EP on Motel Records in 1996 that Rolling Stone said "shows how pop culture and high culture can bring everyone to the same place." Original members Steve Calhoon and Rick Lee left the band soon after making this recording, going on to form the band Enon. Soon after their departures, Skeleton Key inked a deal with Capitol Records and put out the critically acclaimed (and Grammy nominated [for artwork]) Fantastic Spikes Through Balloon in 1997. The band then toured the US and Europe with a diverse assortment of acts (Melvins, Girls vs. Boys, Cibo Matto, The Jesus Lizard, They Might Be Giants, Morphine, Brainiac, Primus) before headlining their own US tour. After two gruelling years on the road and a half-finished album recorded, Chris Maxwell departed, leaving the future of Skeleton Key in jeopardy. (From Ipecac Records)
Eventually the band, which had by now been reduced to a lone Erik Sanko, signed with Mike Patton's Ipecac Recordings to release Obtainium in 2002. With a revamped lineup the band hit the road again, playing several successful tours with bands such as Tomahawk, Melvins, Alien Ant Farm and Sleepytime Gorilla Museum. That lineup of Sanko, Craig LeBlang, Ben Clapp and Sean Sankey recorded and released the five song EP The Lyons Quintette on Do Tell Records and a live album (Skeleton Key Live at Metro) which is available exclusively through eMusic.
Sankey amicably left the band at the end of 2006 and new drummer Bob Vacarelli was recruited just days before the band headed out on tour with Chemlab and USSA in late 2007.
Official Website: http://www.skeletonkey.org
One Way My Way
Skeleton Key Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Produced a voice like a blanket of lead
And when he'd start to coment
A thousand thoughts would suffocate
And once there was a man who stood
He nailed his feet into the wood
And when you try to circumscribe
One way, my way
What I say goes
My opinion is fact
And if you react
Then it's going to come to blows
Once there was a man whose fist
Hung from his tongue
Like a hideous cist
And now ideas might conflict
Were beaten up by his retorict
One way, my way
What I say goes
My opinion is fact
And if you react
Then it's going to come to blows
The lyrics in Skeleton Key's song "One Way My Way" paint a picture of three different men, each with a distinct trait that makes it difficult for others to communicate with them. The first man has a heavy voice that suffocates those who try to listen to him. The second man has nailed his feet into the ground, making it impossible to get past his dialogue. The third man's words are like fists, beating up anyone who dares to challenge him.
The phrase "One way, my way" is repeated throughout the chorus, emphasizing the theme of each man's stubbornness and unwillingness to consider other perspectives. Each man believes that their opinions are facts, and they will not tolerate any sort of dissent. The line "if you react / Then it's going to come to blows" suggests that the only way to deal with these men is through physical confrontation.
The song highlights the dangers of close-mindedness and the importance of open communication and understanding. It cautions against blindly accepting one's own opinions as truth and encourages listeners to be more receptive to different viewpoints.
Line by Line Meaning
Once there was a man whose head
There was a man with a heavy mind
Produced a voice like a blanket of lead
Whose voice made people feel weighed down
And when he'd start to coment
Whenever he began to speak
A thousand thoughts would suffocate
People would feel overwhelmed by his words
And once there was a man who stood
There was a man who firmly believed in his views
He nailed his feet into the wood
He was unwavering in his stance
And when you try to circumscribe
And when you try to counter his argument
You can't get past his distribe
You can't get through to him
One way, my way
He had only one approach: his
What I say goes
His ideas were the only ones that mattered
My opinion is fact
His opinions were always presented as irrefutable facts
And if you react
If you dare to disagree
Then it's going to come to blows
It could easily escalate into a physical confrontation
Once there was a man whose fist
There was a man whose aggression was palpable
Hung from his tongue
That he was quick to resort to violence when challenged verbally
Like a hideous cist
And his actions were as ugly and painful as a diseased bump
And now ideas might conflict
If someone dared to contradict him
Were beaten up by his retorict
They would be verbally attacked and silenced
Contributed by Joshua F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.