All Time Top Fives: Songs About The End Of The World
If you’re reading this site, chances are good that you might be a music geek. And if you’re a music geek, chances are you’ve seen the film adaptation of Nick Hornsby’s novel High Fidelity, in which John Cusack, Jack Black and that other guy who never quite got as famous as John Cusack and Jack Black endlessly discuss their “top fives” — top five side one track one songs, top five songs about death, top five songs to have sex to, et cetera et cetera. It’s something you hear quite a lot amongst a certain type of music obsessive…though less so after the film came out; it was too much of a cliche.
Well, damn the torpedoes and bring on the cliches, folks, ’cause I’m gonna re-vive that insti-tution. And since the world is going to hell in a handbasket, I’m gonna kick it off with my all time top five songs about the end of the world.
5. “Wave Of Mutilation (UK Surf Mix)”, The Pixies
Okay, maybe this song isn’t explicitly about the end of the world. But that’s how I’ve always thought of it. I used to sit around and smoke cigarettes in my bedroom in high school and listen to this song and wish I had acid right at that moment. And also a hot alterna-rock girlfriend with oddly-colored hair.
Since then, I’ve had both of these things, and it wasn’t quite everything I thought it could be…but this song still is. And if I ever do find out the world is gonna end, this is what I’m going to be listening to on my iPod.
(This is not the album version, which is uptempo. But it is the superior version, in my humble opinion.)
Buy The Pixies, Complete B-Sides @ Amazon.com
4. “Waiting For The End Of The World”, Elvis Costello
Does it get any better than Elvis Costello’s debut album My Aim Is True? I dunno. You’ve got the biggies — “Alison”, “Watching The Detectives” and “Less Than Zero”. But you’ve also got deep cuts that are equally awesome like “Mystery Dance”, “Miracle Man” and this happy little ditty, which — unlike “Wave Of Mutilation” — is explicitly about the end of the world. Elvis at (almost) his most sneeringly amusing, complete with Phil Spector big beat.
Buy Elvis Costello, My Aim Is True @ Amazon.com
3. “The Earth Died Screaming”, Tom Waits
Is there anybody more generally apocalyptic than Tom Waits? I can’t think of anyone. And this track is the sound of a doomed planet. Amazing percussion (credited on the album as “bones”) and minimalist bass playing from Primus’ Les Claypool.
Buy Tom Waits, Bone Machine @ Amazon.com
2. “It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)”, R.E.M.
This probably seems like an obvious choice for Number One With A Bullet. And maybe it is. It’s a great song, great lyrics if you can understand ‘em. (I do. I can do this song at karaoke almost entirely without looking at the screen. Yep. For reals.) And hey, they namecheck Lester Bangs, which is awesome.
But I can’t quite give it number one, much as I’d like to. There’s another song that’s earned that place.
Buy R.E.M., Document @ Amazon.com
1. “The Man Comes Around”, Johnny Cash
Okay, yeah, it’s almost disqualified by its use in the Dawn Of The Dead remake…even though I personally thought it was used perfectly for the title sequence. But this is the most badass song about the end of the world ever. And it’s entirely due to the fact that Johnny Cash was the baddest man who ever lived. I mean, if you walked by Johnny Cash’s grave right now, and you said a bad word about your momma or Jesus, Johnny would rise out of his grave in his black coat and absolutely kick the shit out of you before returning to his slumber. And damnit, you’d deserve it.
Plus he quotes Nick Cave, which is always awesome.
Buy Johnny Cash, American IV: The Man Comes Around @ Amazon.com
Tags: apocalypse, end of the world, high fidelity, top fives
