The Bouncing Souls are a punk band, formed in 1987. They are originally fro… Read Full Bio ↴The Bouncing Souls are a punk band, formed in 1987. They are originally from New Brunswick, New Jersey. By the time they were recognized by the national punk scene, they had reignited a "pogo" element to New Jersey punk rock by playing fast light-hearted songs, a model followed by various other local bands (e.g. Blanks 77 and the Bristles). In the early stages of their career, they played a hybrid of punk, funk, metal, and just about anything else they felt like including. They were known for their energetic live shows, albeit with an amateurish element on their recordings at that stage. Soon, they had whittled it down to their own brand of punk, and become one of the most popular bands in the punk scene.

They made a name for themselves by consistently touring over the United States. Rather than signing with a known label, they initially decided to found their own, Chunksaah Records (named after their long-time friend Timmy Chunks), but are now releasing their albums on Epitaph Records.

The Bouncing Souls are one of the best selling and longest lived of the punk bands from New Jersey, following the legacy of previously successful punk bands Adrenalin OD and the Misfits.

DISCOGRAPHY

Studio albums

The Good, The Bad & The Argyle (1994)
Maniacal Laughter (1996)
Bouncing Souls (1997)
Hopeless Romantic (1999)
How I Spent My Summer Vacation (2001)
Anchors Aweigh (2003)
The Gold Record (2006)
Ghosts on the Boardwalk (2010)
Comet (2012)

Live and Compilation albums

The Bad the Worse and the Out of Print (2002)
Live (2005)

Splits

BYO Split Series, Vol. 4 (With Anti-Flag) (2002)

EPs

The Greenball Crew (1993)
Tie One On (1998)
Fight to Live (1999)
Gone (2001)

DVDs

Do You Remember? 15 Years of the Bouncing Souls (2003)
Live at the Glasshouse (2005)

""7" Records"

Ugly Bill (1991) (pressed on black and also transparent green wax)
"The Argyle e.p. (1993) (pressed on black, yellow, green, and red wax, some had green and yellow covers)
"Tales Of Doomed Romance" (1994) (split ep with the band Buglite pressed on red and black wax)
"Neurotic" (1994) (pressed on black and yellow wax)
"Bouncing Souls/Weston split" (1994) (pressed on black and red wax)
"Split EP" (1995) (pressed on black with the bands basic skills, youth gone mad, and the reviled, some have red stamped cover some black)
"Johnny X" (1995) (pressed on black wax)
"Fight to Live" (1999) (pressed on orange wax, distributed by epitaph europe)
"Tales Of Doomed Romance" (2001) (reissued split ep with the band ZeroZero pressed on yellow and black wax)
"Bouncing Souls/Lucky Stiffs Split" (2005) (pressed on splatter wax and 1500 picture disks)

All of This and Nothing
The Bouncing Souls Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

They try to tell you how thing's should be, how to think, what to wear and Revolution on tv that's a bunch of what bands to see. Know your enemy. to be they don't know about shit to me they don't know about you or me. know about you or me no matter what they say you or me the contradictions and Know your enemy. They don't hypocrisy they don't know about you or me.. know your enemy. They don't know about you or me no matter what they say to be they don't know about you or me.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to The Bouncing Souls's song All of This and Nothing are a commentary on the pressure to conform and the struggle to maintain individuality in the face of society's expectations. The song starts with the line "They try to tell you how things should be," criticizing the way mainstream culture imposes its values on individuals. The next line, "how to think, what to wear," refers to the way that society attempts to control personal expression through fashion trends and political correctness.

The next set of lines, "Revolution on TV that's a bunch of what bands to see," appears to critique the way that political movements and cultural icons are sanitized and commodified for mass consumption, reducing their significance and impact. The refrain "Know your enemy" is a call to arms, urging listeners to recognize and fight against the constraints of conformity imposed by mainstream society. The last set of lines repeats the idea that "They don't know about you or me," emphasizing that individuals should be free to form their own values and beliefs, independent of any external influence.

Overall, this song is a powerful statement about the importance of individuality and the struggle to maintain it in the face of societal pressure, a theme that has become increasingly relevant in contemporary society.

Line by Line Meaning

They try to tell you how thing's should be
People try to control your thoughts and actions by telling you how you should behave.

how to think, what to wear
They dictate your thoughts and personal style.

and Revolution on tv that's a bunch of what bands to see.
Revolution on TV is nothing more than a way to promote music groups.

Know your enemy.
You must understand the threats that come from others.

to be they don't know about shit to me
They don't know anything about me.

they don't know about you or me.
They don't know anything about you or me.

know about you or me
They don't comprehend our individuality.

no matter what they say
Their thoughts and opinions about us are irrelevant.

you or me the contradictions and
Inconsistencies exist within the world and the way people think.

Know your enemy.
Understand potential threats.

They don't hypocrisy they don't know about you or me..
They are unaware of their own contradictions and don't understand us.