Landing their first record deal with Twin/Tone in 1984, Soul Asylum recorded a total of four albums for the local label: Say What You Will... Everything Can Happen in 1984 (later reissued as Say What You Will, Clarence... Karl Sold the Truck), Made To Be Broken in 1986, While You Were Out in 1986, and the EP Clam Dip and Other Delights in 1988. The band then switched to A&M, releasing Hang Time in 1988 and And the Horse They Rode In On in 1990 under that label. Although they enjoyed some success as a live band, Soul Asylum suffered from low album sales and considered disbanding.
In 1992, they signed with Columbia Records to produce Grave Dancers Union, a record that would come to transform them from underground college rockers to international superstars. The first two singles off the album, Somebody To Shove and Black Gold, both came in at high positions at the Modern Rock and Album Rock charts, but it was the album's third track and it's video of missing teens that led them to their major breakthrough. Runaway Train peaked at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100, raised album sales to double-platinum level, and won Soul Asylum the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song in 1994.
In 1995, Soul Asylum followed up the success of Grave Dancers Union with Let Your Dim Light Shine, which climbed to #6 on the Billboard 200 and featured the #1 Modern Rock track Misery. After releasing Candy From A Stranger in 1998, the band members took a break from recording and didn't release a new studio album for the better part of seven years. During the interim singer Dave Pirner released a solo album and Dan Murphy toured and recorded with Golden Smog.
They reunited in 2004 to record their ninth full-length album, The Silver Lining, brought together by the news of Mueller being diagnosed with throat cancer. Up until this point, Soul Asylum had always included Murphy, Mueller, and Pirner, despite several line-up changes. This changed on June 17th, 2005, when Mueller passed away after finishing his work on several tracks on the new album. The Silver Lining was released in 2006 and dedicated to Karl Mueller's life and memory, with Murphy expressing that, "For me, this record is Karl."
In late 2005, ex-Replacements bassist (and current Guns N' Roses bassist) Tommy Stinson and former Prince drummer Michael Bland joined Soul Asylum in tribute to the late Karl Mueller. They completed their American tour in support of The Silver Lining in late 2006. In November and December 2006 they opened for Cheap Trick on their American tour. On March 10th, 2007, Soul Asylum joined Cyndi Lauper, Mint Condition, and Lifehouse to hold a concert to benefit Wain McFarlane, the leader of the legendary reggae band Ipso Facto, to help pay for the expenses of a kidney transplant.
http://www.soulasylum.com
Voodoo Doll
Soul Asylum Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tearing out what's been trapped in
My puppet strings, been pulled too tight
I can see the real me's going to be a bloody fight
I'm your Voodoo doll don't you hear my call
Trying so hard to forget, got my bottles, got my pills, got my TV set
I'm imprisoned by my passion, i;m a slave to my trade
I live for love where love's insane, I need to numb to ease the pain
When the end begins again, needles, needles, I'm sticking them in
I'm your Voodoo doll, heed my call
I'm strung out on pretty, pretty girls, I forgot about the rest of the world
Pots and pans and good free sex my wife she is the best
If I get bored of her I'll have a family and get into incest
I live for love where love's insane, I need to numb to ease the pain
When the end begins again, needles, needles, I'm sticking them in
Think your thoughts, confirm your petty doubts,
The spell is cast in broken glass your time is running out
You're just a prisoner, sweet prisoner, you're just imprisoned by your own devices
Come on out and bleed some blood and solve this fucking crisis
I live for love where love's insane, I need to numb to ease the pain
When the end begins again, needles, needles, I'm sticking them in
Voodoo doll, don't you hear my call
The big old world doesn't seem so fucked up when I'm fucked up too
Voodoo doll, don't you hear my call
In this song, Soul Asylum creates a dark and twisted image of a self-destructive person who is hanging by a wire so thin that one wrong move could send them spiraling down into a mental breakdown. The first stanza describes how the persona is tearing out what has been trapped inside them, the things that they have been forced to do or say by those around them. They are a puppet with their strings pulled too tight and can feel that their true self is fighting to come out, but it's not going to be easy. The chorus promises that the persona will be the caller's Voodoo doll, showing that they are ready to be used for whatever purpose the caller sees fit.
The second verse highlights how this persona uses addictive substances like alcohol and pills to try and forget their troubles. They are so passionate about their work that they are enslaved by it, unable to see beyond the profit that is made. Their love life is also dysfunctional, with a focus on numbing the pain through sex and other means. The bridge is a cry for help, urging the listener to break free of their own devices and come out of their self-imposed prison. The final chorus repeats the theme of the Voodoo doll being at the listener's disposal, and ends with the chilling line that the world doesn't seem so bad when they are under the influence.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm hung up on a wire so thin,
I feel like I'm in a precarious position, on the verge of losing control
Tearing out what's been trapped in
I'm trying to break free from my own emotional turmoil
My puppet strings, been pulled too tight
I feel like I'm being controlled by external forces, not of my own choosing
I can see the real me's going to be a bloody fight
I know that facing my true self is going to be a painful and difficult process
I'm your Voodoo doll don't you hear my call
I feel like someone else is in charge of my life, and I need their help to escape
Trying so hard to forget, got my bottles, got my pills, got my TV set
I'm using substance abuse and distraction as a way to avoid dealing with my problems
I'm imprisoned by my passion, i;m a slave to my trade
My work or creative pursuits have become a burden, and I feel trapped by them
How can you be so possessed by the profit that's been made
I don't understand why others are so focused on material success, when it seems meaningless to me
I live for love where love's insane, I need to numb to ease the pain
I seek out intense emotional experiences, even if they are destructive, and try to numb my pain
When the end begins again, needles, needles, I'm sticking them in
As things start to fall apart, I turn to self-harm as a coping mechanism
I'm strung out on pretty, pretty girls, I forgot about the rest of the world
I become obsessed with attractive women, to the point where I neglect everything else in my life
Pots and pans and good free sex my wife she is the best
I'm in a committed relationship, but I'm still tempted by other romantic and sexual opportunities
If I get bored of her I'll have a family and get into incest
I'm using shock value and taboo-breaking as a way to hide my own lack of moral compass
Think your thoughts, confirm your petty doubts,
I'm encouraging others to focus on their own negative emotions and fears
The spell is cast in broken glass your time is running out
I believe that a kind of cosmic justice is coming, and that others will soon face the consequences of their actions
You're just a prisoner, sweet prisoner, you're just imprisoned by your own devices
I think that everyone is trapped in their own psychological cage, and that they are responsible for their own suffering
Come on out and bleed some blood and solve this fucking crisis
I'm urging myself and others to face our problems head-on, no matter how painful it may be
The big old world doesn't seem so fucked up when I'm fucked up too
I find comfort in feeling like the world is just as broken as I am
Voodoo doll, don't you hear my call
I'm reaching out for help, even if it comes from supernatural or mysterious sources
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind