SONGS THAT NEED TO BE HEARD: “Violence Out Tonight” by Little Comets
I know you would expect me to talk endlessly about the musical brilliance of Little Comet’s song “Violence Out Tonight,” but I’m not going to do that. I can’t unravel this song with comments about vocal ability and superior arrangement, try as I might. Some songs are purely felt and they refuse to be broken down or dissected. “Violence Out Tonight” is a song that can and should speak for itself.
I heard this UK trio’s song, which is a bravely candid commentary on rape, months ago and I could feel the importance of the song before I even consciously registered just how socially relevant it was. But now, in the wake of the “Blurred Lines” epidemic, I can’t help but wonder why it is that we aren’t talking about this song right now. I mean, my god “Violence Out Tonight” is a heavy one. The lyrics should root deep into everyone’s head because it is a harsh reality of the world we live in. Honestly, Little Comets’s song is probably one of the most poignant social message songs of today, however, it’s not going to get the radio play it deserves. Whenever you hear about songs with social messages blowing up on the charts, they’re all uplifting calls for peace. Yet, the fact is that one not every song with a social message should make you feel better. As I look around and see more and more of the people I love and care about tell me of moments far too similar to the lines of this song, I can only sit here and swallow the fact that it isn’t a matter of if but when it’s going to happen to me. “Violence Out Tonight” holds up a mirror to the world and shows a picture that everyone would rather forget, but we need songs like this because forgetting is dangerous. The world is cold and when you feel that in every note of “Violence Out Tonight,” you can’t help but want things to change.
Without a doubt, this is the song that should have been the number one song all summer instead of “Blurred Lines,” a song that borderline glorifies rape culture (and totally rips off the beat of “Got to Give it Up” by Marvin Gay, don’t think I didn’t notice, Thicke).