4 ms·

Reminds me of ‘Fitter Happier’ by Radiohead. Some loose guide on how to succeed in life, although the Radiohead lyrics are more cynical. Here’s the lyrics: "Fi

Reminds me of ‘Fitter Happier’ by Radiohead. Some loose guide on how to succeed in life, although the Radiohead lyrics are more cynical. Here’s the lyrics: "Fitter Happier" Fitter, happier, more productive Comfortable (Not drinking too much) Regular exercise at the gym (Three days a week) Getting on better with your associate employee contemporaries At ease Eating well (No more microwave dinners and saturated fats) A patient, better driver A safer car (Baby smiling in back seat) Sleeping well (No bad dreams) No paranoia Careful to all animals (Never washing spiders down the plughole) Keep in contact with old friends (Enjoy a drink now and then) Will frequently check credit at (Moral) bank (hole in wall) Favours for favours Fond but not in love Charity standing orders On Sundays ring road supermarket (No killing moths or putting boiling water on the ants) Car wash (Also on Sundays) No longer afraid of the dark Or midday shadows Nothing so ridiculously teenage and desperate Nothing so childish At a better pace Slower and more calculated No chance of escape Now self-employed Concerned (But powerless) An empowered and informed member of society (Pragmatism not idealism) Will not cry in public Less chance of illness Tires that grip in the wet (Shot of baby strapped in back seat) A good memory Still cries at a good film Still kisses with saliva No longer empty and frantic Like a cat Tied to a stick That's driven into Frozen winter shit (The ability to laugh at weakness) Calm Fitter, healthier and more productive A pig In a cage On antibiotics

widdershins 4y ago
Doesn't the final sentence suggest that the list is more than slightly cynical? To me it seems like Radiohead are sneering at this safe middle-road existence.
- lysergia 4y ago
  Yeah I guess you could say this is full blown cynicism
- f38zf5vdt 4y ago
  It is absolutely cynical. There's another song in the album about getting fed up with modern life and committing suicide (No Surprises).
- drewzero1 4y ago
  I've never caught the full lyrics before, but I've never thought it was meant as a guide in any way. Rather, it's a condemnation of mass modern life and complacency, people getting older and more boring and going through their lives like cattle until they die. It's mocking all the life advice our boring parents gave us when we were growing up. This is all delivered in a monotone, almost robotic text-to-speech voice with Radiohead's typical eerie music backing it. (As a longtime fan I'm a bit biased, but I think it's worth a listen to understand the tone: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4SzvsMFaek https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4SzvsMFaek . The rest of the album also adds some context, as others have noted.)
CPLX 4y ago
Noting that a typical middle class lifestyle is comparable to a pig being held in a cage for a meaningless life and eventual slaughter probably does in fact meet the full definition of cynical.
biohax2015 4y ago
I grew up loving Radiohead, and they are still my favorite band. Recently I realized that my life is resembling this song more and more. It was a depressing discovery.
anotheruser092 4y ago
I get the message, and I strongly disagree with it, as someone who hasn't achieved stability yet. When you don't have a stable career, or work for long hours for low pay with family to take care of, you wish you had this life. The message can also be taken in a bad way by young people, who then neglect to develop useful skills early on, and ultimately struggle hard to find work. There is so much messaging against good choices in life, that people overlook why they are good choices anyways. I'd rather be at least middle class with the money and freedom to change my circumstances, than struggling with little freedom due to lack of resources. I don't deny that this is a work of art, and one crafted well, but I just disagree with the sentiment.
- mikkergp 4y ago
  It's very rockstar live fast die young mentality. (at least half of it, the other half I agree with) Assuming they value art, I find in my own life that stability gives me more time to work on and finish art. Drinking less, exercising three times a week etc, for me it allows me to be more deeply transgressive or unconventional, not less so.
collinmanderson 4y ago
Also, right stereo channel: "This is The Panic Office. Section 917 may have been hit. Activate following procedure." https://www.reddit.com/r/radiohead/comments/mhpv3/we_need_to_go_deeper/ https://www.reddit.com/r/radiohead/comments/mhpv3/we_need_to... (You can hear this clearly if you isolate stereo differences with Audacity: Effect -> Vocal Reduction and Isolation -> Remove Center. Strength 100%.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPjQ-I4Tu24 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPjQ-I4Tu24

widdershins 4y ago

Doesn't the final sentence suggest that the list is more than slightly cynical? To me it seems like Radiohead are sneering at this safe middle-road existence.

lysergia 4y ago
Yeah I guess you could say this is full blown cynicism
f38zf5vdt 4y ago
It is absolutely cynical. There's another song in the album about getting fed up with modern life and committing suicide (No Surprises).
drewzero1 4y ago
I've never caught the full lyrics before, but I've never thought it was meant as a guide in any way. Rather, it's a condemnation of mass modern life and complacency, people getting older and more boring and going through their lives like cattle until they die. It's mocking all the life advice our boring parents gave us when we were growing up. This is all delivered in a monotone, almost robotic text-to-speech voice with Radiohead's typical eerie music backing it. (As a longtime fan I'm a bit biased, but I think it's worth a listen to understand the tone: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4SzvsMFaek https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4SzvsMFaek . The rest of the album also adds some context, as others have noted.)

CPLX 4y ago

Noting that a typical middle class lifestyle is comparable to a pig being held in a cage for a meaningless life and eventual slaughter probably does in fact meet the full definition of cynical.

biohax2015 4y ago

I grew up loving Radiohead, and they are still my favorite band. Recently I realized that my life is resembling this song more and more. It was a depressing discovery.

anotheruser092 4y ago

I get the message, and I strongly disagree with it, as someone who hasn't achieved stability yet. When you don't have a stable career, or work for long hours for low pay with family to take care of, you wish you had this life. The message can also be taken in a bad way by young people, who then neglect to develop useful skills early on, and ultimately struggle hard to find work. There is so much messaging against good choices in life, that people overlook why they are good choices anyways. I'd rather be at least middle class with the money and freedom to change my circumstances, than struggling with little freedom due to lack of resources. I don't deny that this is a work of art, and one crafted well, but I just disagree with the sentiment.

mikkergp 4y ago
It's very rockstar live fast die young mentality. (at least half of it, the other half I agree with) Assuming they value art, I find in my own life that stability gives me more time to work on and finish art. Drinking less, exercising three times a week etc, for me it allows me to be more deeply transgressive or unconventional, not less so.

collinmanderson 4y ago

Also, right stereo channel: "This is The Panic Office. Section 917 may have been hit. Activate following procedure." https://www.reddit.com/r/radiohead/comments/mhpv3/we_need_to_go_deeper/ https://www.reddit.com/r/radiohead/comments/mhpv3/we_need_to... (You can hear this clearly if you isolate stereo differences with Audacity: Effect -> Vocal Reduction and Isolation -> Remove Center. Strength 100%.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPjQ-I4Tu24 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPjQ-I4Tu24