12. The Mae Shi - Run to Your Grave

As 33% of the European populace was dropping dead during the Black Plague, giant booze fueled orgies would break out as people simply decided to say fuck it and live it up for one more night.* It's a shame L.A.'s The Mae Shi aren't roughly 700 years older because "Run to Your Grave" would form one hell of a soundtrack for one of these drunken, communal rolls in the hay. This song is all about our tendencies toward self-destruction but isn't some Alice in Chains style ode du Heroin but a rollicking choral sing-a-long more reminiscent of the Polyphonic Spree than some apocalyptic dirge. This sounds like a downright cheery acceptance of the fact that the modern world is about trying to find the thing that will kill us the fastest and the great thing is that they leave the weapon of choice up to the listener... it could be drugs, could be girls, hell, why not global warming? They warn us only that "they're coming for your brain, but they'll leave with your head."

Musically, a simple pre-programmed Casio keyboard line and thunderous drum work that gives the track a single mic in the middle of the studio, Steve Albini-esque sound create a backdrop that compliments the madness of the lyrics. All of it adds up to a song that is like the crazy homeless guy shouting at the moon on the corner suddenly being hired as town spokesman.




*Quite possibly the worst lead in that has ever been written