The Brian Jonestown Massacre was formed in San Francisco in 1990. The band … Read Full Bio ↴The Brian Jonestown Massacre was formed in San Francisco in 1990. The band has had over 40 members since then, but its driving force and main songwriter is Anton Newcombe. Other prominent members have included Matt Hollywood, Dean Taylor, Jeff Davies, Brian Glaze, and Joel Gion. Their sound is heavily influenced by the psychedelic sounds of the 1960s, but also carries influences from shoegaze, jangle pop, garage rock, and lo-fi genres.

Over its decade-long history, the band has undergone a large number of personnel changes. Multi-instrumentalist and main songwriter Anton Newcombe is the only member who has stayed with the Brian Jonestown Massacre since its beginning, when it was founded by Newcombe, tambourine player Joel Gion (who stayed with him the longest), and guitarist/bassist/vocalist Matt Hollywood. There are at least two dozen musicians who have been in the BJM at one point or another.

Ex-members include: guitarist Jeff Davies; Matt Hollywood, a founding member of Portland band The Out Crowd; Peter Hayes, founding member of San Francisco rock trio Black Rebel Motorcycle Club; Joel Gion, a founding member of San Francisco band, The Dilettantes; Rob Campanella, a Los Angeles producer and engineer who has worked with The Tyde, Beachwood Sparks, Dead Meadow, Mia Doi Todd, Frausdots, Scarling., and his band The Quarter After; Bobby Hecksher, founding member of Los Angeles band The Warlocks; solo recording artist Miranda Lee Richards; Matt Tow, founding member of the Australian band The Lovetones.

Current long-term members include Collin Hegna (bass), Frankie Teardrop (guitar,noise,etc), and Dan Allaire (percussion). Long-time guitarist Ricky Rene Maymi was recently replaced by Irina Yaikowsky for a short tour, who was in turn, replaced by Ricky Rene Maymi.

Much has been made of the fact that Newcombe is head strong and has just one vision in mind: his own. However, many of the musicians who quit his band have stayed in his orbit and continue working with him in some capacity. Newcombe was, at one point, a drummer in Hecksher's Warlocks. Campanella produces or engineers many of the records on Newcombe's record label, the Committee to Keep Music Evil and has also been on the last 2 highly successful European tours, playing keyboards and on occasion, guitar. Gion is forever showing back up shaking the tambourine at BJM shows. Even the Dandy Warhols appear to have buried the hatchet with Newcombe, as he joined them onstage at Lollapalooza in July of 2005.

In 2005 the band released the EP We Are the Radio, on Newcombe's record label The Committee to Keep Music Evil.

The band announced the release of a new studio album, tentatively titled My Bloody Underground, which was released in 2008. On September 3, 2007, the band released rough recordings from the album for download from their website. Music videos of the songs on the album have also been released, including a music video compilation DVD entitled 'Book of Days'. Songs from Brian Jonestown Massacre were specially adapted for use in the score to the critically acclaimed independent film, "Four Eyed Monsters."

Monster
The Brian Jonestown Massacre Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

when i looked in your eyes
and i saw my own face
how it seemed out of place
like mans foot steps in space
but were already there

then i felt your breath
see my life in your eyes

and a fate worse than death
as i drew my next breath
did you think i'd survive

uncommon expectations do arise
i make peace with your monsters
and their lies

then i touched your lips
and we started to kiss
having spent my whole life
until this moment arrived
i knew nothing like this

and i looked in your eyes
i saw my own face
how it seemed out of place
like mans foot steps in space
but we're already there

i'm not going to fake this every time

i make peace with the monsters
cause they're mine

Overall Meaning

The Brian Jonestown Massacre's song "Monster" is a poignant love song that explores the complexities and contradictions in the emotions that come with being in love. The song speaks to the idea of looking into the eyes of one's lover and seeing one's own face, while also feeling a sense of discomfort, as though the love is somehow misplaced or wrong. The line, "like mans foot steps in space, but we're already there," suggests that this feeling of disorientation and confusion is universal and ever-present.

As the song progresses, the singer describes the deep love and connection that they feel with their partner, and the sense of peace that comes from accepting the monsters that dwell within their relationship. The final line, "cause they're mine," suggests a willingness to embrace the darker, more complicated aspects of love and relationships as one's own, rather than continue to fear or reject them.

Line by Line Meaning

when i looked in your eyes
The songwriter admires the person's beautiful eyes and sees their own reflection in them.

and i saw my own face
The writer saw their own reflection in the person's eyes because of their connection.

how it seemed out of place
The person's face in the reflection is hard to believe, out of ordinary.

like mans foot steps in space
The reflection being seen feels like humans' first steps on the moon, out of the ordinary.

but were already there
Despite being out of the ordinary, the reflection has already been there.

then i felt your breath
The writer and the person are physically close and their breath can be felt.

see my life in your eyes
Through the person's eyes, the songwriter feels that their life is being reflected.

and a fate worse than death
The songwriter is afraid of losing this connection to the person because it would feel worse than death.

as i drew my next breath
The person's presence is very important, and the songwriter is cherishing each moment with them.

did you think i'd survive
The songwriter is asking the person if they knew how much this connection would mean to them.

uncommon expectations do arise
Sometimes, our expectations of a relationship can be unusual or unexpected.

i make peace with your monsters
The songwriter acknowledges that the person has flaws, but is willing to make peace with them.

and their lies
The songwriter also acknowledges that the person has lied, but is willing to forgive and move on.

then i touched your lips
The songwriter and the person become physically intimate and share a kiss.

and we started to kiss
The physical intimacy between the songwriter and the person intensifies.

having spent my whole life
The songwriter feels that their whole life led up to this moment of intimacy with this person.

until this moment arrived
This moment is the culmination of the writer's life till now.

i knew nothing like this
The intimacy is a whole new experience for the songwriter.

i looked in your eyes
The songwriter looks into the person's eyes again and sees something incomprehensible.

i saw my own face
The songwriter sees their own reflection in the person's eyes again.

how it seemed out of place
The reflection's presence is still hard to believe, even after their intimacy and connection.

like mans foot steps in space
The reflection's continued presence feels out of the ordinary, just like men's first steps on the moon.

but we're already there
Despite feeling out of the ordinary, the reflection is a part of their lives now and feels natural.

i'm not going to fake this every time
The songwriter doesn't want to pretend or fake their connection with the person every time they're together.

i make peace with the monsters
The songwriter is still willing to accept the person's flaws and make peace with them.

cause they're mine
The songwriter accepts the person's flaws and lies because they're a part of who they are and doesn't want to lose this connection.

Contributed by Sarah G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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