10 Essential songs about hating the music industry

Y’know, it’s called the music business for a reason: Whether or not they’ll readily admit it, bands, record labels, managers and everyone else are in it at least partially for the money. That’s not to say art isn’t important, but at the end of the day, it’s tough to justify the amount of time spent on music if you’re not seeing some sort of return. As such, feelings can get hurt. We’re aware there are two sides to every story, and these bands have the benefit of having a platform to air their grievances, so don’t believe everything you hear in a song. Remember, no one held a gun to any of these musicians’ heads to sign on the dotted line.

A DAY TO REMEMBER – “The Document Speaks For Itself”

The ongoing court battle between A Day To Remember and Victory Records has been heavily documented. But just in case you’ve been living under a rock, Jeremy McKinnon refuses to mince words, calling out Victory head Tony Brummel: “How’s living a lie?/You could never face me/And you hide behind fake personalities/Because deep down you’re scared/So weak beyond compare.” (Common Courtesy; self-released, 2013)

AGAINST ME! – “Black Me Out”

It sure seems like Against Me!’s major-label stint didn’t pan out the way Laura Jane Grace probably hoped it would, based on the lyrics to the closing number of her band’s new album: “Black me out/I want to piss on the walls of your house/I want to chop those brass rings off your fat fucking fingers/As if you were a king maker/As if, as if, as if.” (Transgender Dysphoria Blues; Total Treble, 2014)

THE EXPLOSION – “Dotted Lines”

New Jersey punks the Explosion were once the hot young things at the turn of the century, but their early success on Jade Tree found them in legal trouble with Revelation Records, to which bassist Damian Genuardi was previously signed with his old band, In My Eyes. To reportedly avoid a lawsuit, an EP was offered up, resulting in the five-song, nine-minute, oh-so-cleverly titled Steal This. None of the songs are really very good—which is kind of the point. (Steal This EP; Revelation, 2000)

BEN FOLDS – “One Down”

Taken from his live album, Ben Folds’ “One Down” is a very literal number about his struggles to meet a deadline for his publishing company: He was required to write 4.6 songs in order to get paid. “People tell me, ‘Ben, just make up junk and turn it in’/But I never was all right with turning in a bunch of shit,” he sings lackadaisically. A studio version of the song was released as a B-side to a Japan-exclusive single, proving he eventually was sort of okay with it. (Ben Folds Live; Sony, 2002)

GATSBYS AMERICAN DREAM – “The Dragon Of Pendor”

Allegedly inspired by a meeting with Drive-Thru Records kingpin Richard Reines, “The Dragon Of Pendor” is one of Gatsbys American Dream’s finest songs. It’s a prog-pop classic that builds to an epic music industry kiss-off: “The signal is corrupting/The songs are uninspired/’Where’s the fucking chorus?’/Here it is, but you can’t fuck with my integrity.” Man, we sure miss this band. (In The Land Of Lost Monsters EP; LLR, 2004)

THE GET UP KIDS – “Red Letter Day”

When the Get Up Kids were blowing up at the end of the ’90s, every label wanted them—and Doghouse Records didn’t want to let them go without something in return. Thus, the Red Letter Day EP was created, its title track aimed directly at Doghouse majordomo Dirk Hemsath: “If it’s a lie/I don’t want to be the one who signed/I’m not the one who falls down/It’s over now… I trusted misleading promises worth repeating/How could you do this to me?” (Red Letter Day EP; Doghouse, 1999)

INTO IT. OVER IT. – “Contractual Obligation”

One of the first artists to ever work with No Sleep Records, Evan Weiss took his Into It. Over It. project elsewhere for his second proper full-length. Everything seemed copacetic until the final track of Intersections, “Contractual Obligation,” where Weiss opines, “I watched you from down the road/I watched you grow/I watched you disrespect the landscape/Where will you go when the going’s slow/When the well dries up in your parents’ basement?” Burn. (Intersections; Triple Crown, 2013)

MEMPHIS MAY FIRE – “The Victim”

Memphis May Fire’s career trajectory is nothing short of impressive, from wallowing in obscurity on Trustkill Records to becoming a massive force in modern metalcore, thanks in huge part to Rise Records. Frontman Matty Mullins cuts right to the heart of the matter on “The Victim,” howling, “You killed the trust/All of the trust that I put in you/You killed the trust/And I’ll never trust you again.” (The Hollow; Rise, 2011)

SET YOUR GOALS – “The Fallen…”

Set Your Goals exploded onto the scene with 2006’s Mutiny!, and when bigger labels came knocking, Eulogy Recordings didn’t want to let the band go. It took a sizeable chunk of change (we’ve heard amounts ranging from $30,000 to $150,000) to free SYG from their contract. In return, they wrote this: “This is the last time you will have us/You’re lawless and purely dishonest/A scandal that we have funded for you/Make no mistake, this all is about you.” (This Will Be The Death Of Us; Epitaph, 2009)

YOU, ME & EVERYONE WE KNOW – “Shock And Awe”

Pulling liberally from the Max Bemis songbook, Ben Liebsch has certainly never been one to shy away from talking a little shit. The opening track to his band’s first (and currently, only) full-length fires shots at the Dangerous Summer’s Cody Payne and touring with bands “with only half of our pull,” as well as spitting, “This is a fuck-you to Richard Reines/Who told me I should lose some weight.” Of course, the very next song on the album is called “I’m Losing Weight For You.” Mix messages much, Ben? (Some Things Don’t Wash Out; Doghouse, 2010)