[ ]   [ ]   [ ]                        [ ]      [ ]   [ ]
Frida Snell — Bullet With Butterfly Wings
Album: Black Trillium
Avg rating:
5.9

Your rating:
Total ratings: 2329









Released: 2002
Length: 3:57
Plays (last 30 days): 0
The world is a vampire, sent to drain
Secret destroyers, hold you up to the flames
And what do I get, for my pain
Betrayed desires, and a piece of the game

Even though I know
I suppose I'll show
All my cool and cold
Like old Job

Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage
Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage
Then someone will say what is lost can never be saved
Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage

Now I'm naked, nothing but an animal
But can you fake it, for just one more show
And what do you want, I want to change
And what have you got
When you feel the same

Even though I know
I suppose I'll show
All my cool and cold
Like old job

Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage
Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage
Then someone will say what is lost can never be saved
Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage

Tell me I'm the only one
Tell me there's no other one
Jesus was an only son
Tell me I'm the chosen one
Jesus was an only son
For you

Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a
Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a
Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a
Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage

Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage
Comments (408)add comment
NO.
This a comment for all the Aussies out there listening. "Despite my old age, I can still sit through most of RAGE". (For those non-Aussies, RAGE is a late night TV music show, still running on our ABC TV since the 80's)
 yesnojoe wrote:



What the hell are you talking about? This is a well done cover song. Maybe you don't really like eclectic music.

the comment makes perfect sense. A good cover offers some sort of intriguing variation on the original…. Not just some watered down whisper…. This is lame and uninspiring

 timmus wrote:

I'm probably the only Gen X'er to not understand the appeal of Smashing Pumpkins... just sounds like a lot of whiny noise.


Meh (to be clear - ref your comment... -
Still gets a "7" so its on my Favourites <yep!> playlist
Erik Satie says Hello, thanks Frida.
I like it!   Great voice!
I'm probably the only Gen X'er to not understand the appeal of Smashing Pumpkins... just sounds like a lot of whiny noise.
I love covers, but this one doesn't evoke the desperation of the original, or a vibe of its own really. It's OK, just feels like a missed opportunity to my ears.
 SuperWeh wrote:



No, you don't need screaming guitars, but I don't hear a slow boil here, she sings the beginning exactly the same as the end, and the ooh aah background choir doesn't really help either.



So maybe you do your own cover of this and everyone here can tell you what we think about your cover. Or you can hit the skip button.
 TrevorWGoodchild wrote:

It is disappointing when hearing other artists cover classic songs, misread the tone, not have the personal history, emotion and journey as a song writer and musician that created the original work. It is irritating and not helpful to do justice for the classic songs I've heard this happen on, whether it's Leonard Cohen or Pink Floyd. One of the reasons Elton John gets pissed off about music nowadays is because the artistry is replaced with just ghost writers and their puppet performers that lack all soul and genuine connection to the music. 




What the hell are you talking about? This is a well done cover song. Maybe you don't really like eclectic music.
 SuperWeh wrote:



No, you don't need screaming guitars, but I don't hear a slow boil here, she sings the beginning exactly the same as the end, and the ooh aah background choir doesn't really help either.



I get it. You don't like the cover. But instead of appreciate the talent it took to perform the song, you find it lacking. I suggest this approach almost certainly results in a lack of enjoyment in new music.
 MilidelEubanks wrote:

Funny.  So many comments about the her not selling the rage... This actually sounds more outraged than the original to me.  One does not need distorted guitars, yelling or fast playing to communicate rage. There's a  slow boil going on here .




No, you don't need screaming guitars, but I don't hear a slow boil here, she sings the beginning exactly the same as the end, and the ooh aah background choir doesn't really help either.
 MilidelEubanks wrote:

Funny.  So many comments about the her not selling the rage... This actually sounds more outraged than the original to me.  One does not need distorted guitars, yelling or fast playing to communicate rage. There's a  slow boil going on here .


I agree - it's almost like a woman isn't allowed to express her rage in the way that a man can, so it has to be contained in order to be palatable. 

Funny.  So many comments about the her not selling the rage... This actually sounds more outraged than the original to me.  One does not need distorted guitars, yelling or fast playing to communicate rage. There's a  slow boil going on here .
 TrevorWGoodchild wrote:

It is disappointing when hearing other artists cover classic songs, misread the tone, not have the personal history, emotion and journey as a song writer and musician that created the original work. It is irritating and not helpful to do justice for the classic songs I've heard this happen on, whether it's Leonard Cohen or Pink Floyd. One of the reasons Elton John gets pissed off about music nowadays is because the artistry is replaced with just ghost writers and their puppet performers that lack all soul and genuine connection to the music. 



A classic is only classic if it can continue to inspire more art. 

Artistry isn't replaced in the case of this song. it's extended and re-worked with a different emotional perspective. 

Whatever Elton John was actually saying, I doubt he would be dissing someone for a different take on a "classic", whatever that means in rock anyway, if it brought out something genuine from the song that hadn't been shown before. Elton was fine covering Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds, which he re-worked into his own artistic personality. Frida Snell does at least that with her version of this Smashing Pumpkins song. 

I prefer her version, from a feminine voice, for the feeling of sad recognition that she evokes, as opposed to the resigned anger of the original.
I like to sing "Despite by old age ..." :)
 rKokon wrote:
It is generally accepted that the musical treatment should accord with the emotional tone of the music and the lyrics. That is not some subjective weird notion; it is commonly accepted (if we're not staging a Brecht/Weill operetta with the deliberate alienation effect)....

Where is this notion "commonly accepted"?  Are you just making arbitrary rules of what "musical treatment should accord"?  Are you even a musician?  There are creative notions like contrast or deliberate irony; those concepts are not unique to Brecht and Weill, nor should they be.  I don't think this recording is an outstanding performance but the best creative output is often work which avoided or defied "commonly accepted" conventions.
 hikinfiend wrote:

I've known some rage-filled women —- rape and sexual abuse victims, who for one reason or another were powerless against their attackers —- who didn't appear outwardly angry at all: they had internalized their rage (because society doesn't accept angry women), and each continually wore a facade of benign contentment.  To me, this song seems a fair depiction of their predicament: social expectations have trapped them in a cage requiring moderate behavior, but they're still very angry... 




I feel terrible for victims of sexual and other abuse, male or female (and I do suspect that the majority is probably female) and think the perpetrators should be severely punished. At the same time I don't think you can blame society for not liking angry people, humans are probably biologically wired to be wary of other angry humans.
I want to clear my throat for her =/
 prodigy999 wrote:

Pretty Woman, but the Original version Sound netter.


So you think this version sounds norse, then? Close, she's Swedish! *rimshot*
 TerrorGovernor wrote:

The day that music died


 You... think... this is worse than the death of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper? Yeah, no.
Tried to buy this, can't find it
 TrevorWGoodchild wrote:
It is disappointing when hearing other artists cover classic songs, misread the tone, not have the personal history, emotion and journey as a song writer and musician that created the original work. It is irritating and not helpful to do justice for the classic songs I've heard this happen on, whether it's Leonard Cohen or Pink Floyd. One of the reasons Elton John gets pissed off about music nowadays is because the artistry is replaced with just ghost writers and their puppet performers that lack all soul and genuine connection to the music. 
 
I think you're framing two different discussions into one. To your first point I would disagree, while this may be sometimes true, often a cover has had much better legs than the original. Dylan's 'All along the Watchtower' or Hendrix? Nine Inch Nails 'Hurt' or Johnny Cash? 'Mad World' by Tears for Fears or Gary Jules? They are all very good songs but somehow the cover took a new angle and the ownership of the song, (and in all of those cases the author was credited and acknowledged).

I haven't had dinner with Sir Elton John lately, so I can't comment on what actually pisses off Elton. There does seem to be a trend of non artists performing a song as presenters of someone else's work, a committee marketing approach versus the genuine expression of a song crafted by the same artist that presents it... but is that really a recent problem? 

I don't mind this version by Frida, I kind of like it actually. It's gone with a more understated approach that lacks some of the angst of the original, but that doesn't make it a bad version, it just makes it different. Frida can have my 7.
It is disappointing when hearing other artists cover classic songs, misread the tone, not have the personal history, emotion and journey as a song writer and musician that created the original work. It is irritating and not helpful to do justice for the classic songs I've heard this happen on, whether it's Leonard Cohen or Pink Floyd. One of the reasons Elton John gets pissed off about music nowadays is because the artistry is replaced with just ghost writers and their puppet performers that lack all soul and genuine connection to the music. 
Great interpretation!
I get what she's trying to do, but just no. If we're going this route, might as well go full Hellsongs.
she was able to completely rip  the soul of this song
 Piranga wrote:
I usually detest covers, but this is so different I like it.
 
A good cover should be very different, otherwise, what's the point?
I love a good cover, but many go awry... I wholly approve of this one. 
rat cage laboratory free photo
I usually detest covers, but this is so different I like it.
Sounds like a lullaby compared to the original
It's funny how much the ratings are influenced with the familiarity of the original song
It's more of the cage than the rage, but it awesomely depicts the frustration of the fact that immediate rage induced lash out is almost always not a solution and will hurt the situation.
Me likey.
This song has always been an excellent expression of teenage angst and this cover by a woman lends a new dimension to it.
Best with the volume set at zero.
I would prefer more of Kate Bush, parts of this song sounds like its cut right out of Kate's work.
 hikinfiend wrote:

I've known some rage-filled women —- rape and sexual abuse victims, who for one reason or another were powerless against their attackers —- who didn't appear outwardly angry at all: they had internalized their rage (because society doesn't accept angry women), and each continually wore a facade of benign contentment.  To me, this song seems a fair depiction of their predicament: social expectations have trapped them in a cage requiring moderate behavior, but they're still very angry... 

 

This is absolutely on point.  This cover for me speaks of a rage that has to stay under cover and looks/feels more like despair.  As a woman, I totally get it.  
If you ever wondered what this would sound like if someone who could actually sing took the mic, here you go.
The irritating vocals are gone, but the dumb song remains.
Now with a healthy dose of pretentiousness!
Well, that didn't seem like a good use of her time.
I do get the hate... but this isn't that bad. It's a nice version of a good song... it's just not really in keeping with the mood of the lyrics. I've certainly heard a lot worse of late... usually a young lady strumming a ukulele or playing very simple chords on a piano, and talking in tune rather than singing... thus transforming the track into something *really* super. Something folk are bound to want. The worst one was a recent cover of "Rhythm is a Dancer" played slowly with whispery lyrics... don't know who it was, or the advert it was on the in the UK, but... THEY'VE REMOVED THE RHYTHM FROM THE SONG! Absolutely awful!
I like covers....even satin silk covers but you've got to do a little more when covering a song like this
Just not necessary... the original is perfectly fine
The day that music died
Pretty Woman, but the Original version sounds better.
Pretty nice song for a fall day
 aaronm wrote:
I've always had a particular fondness for women singing to piano accompaniments. Not sure why. Anyway, I love this.

 
Well ArronM for you and others who want to know what she really looks like... here she is singing and playing the piano just for you...

 https://youtu.be/75lN73ujgBU?list=PL1__LvpSAlZkbeYtCMgTHY6XM943aVzCk

Copy and paste this link into the URL address of another tab in your browser.

There are some dicks goofing around in the background of this Youtube video but just ignore them while you watch and listen to Frida.
 lizardking wrote:

Agreed!  And now the question is: how the hell does this track get a sub-5 rating with nearly 1000 rates?

 
Because a lot of people seem to really dislike it.  It's no more complicated than that.
Yeah, not hearing the rage so much.
I give this an 8, but I see the ratings distribution!  Holy Cow, is it polarized!  I came here wanting to buy the CD, but there doesn't seem to be one!  Damn! {#Ask}
 ExploitingChaos wrote:
This is soccer mom car music... 
 
LOL. Suburban angst. 
This is soccer mom car music... 
 vanmas wrote:
Very nice! Mutch better voice than Billy!
He sounds like a chainsaw...

 
Way better on the eyes than the Korgan as well. 
All of the 1's seem overly harsh. It doesn't seem that offensive to me. 
Sorry Bill, but with a 5 rating it's not that appreciated. But to each his own.
I've always had a particular fondness for women singing to piano accompaniments. Not sure why. Anyway, I love this.
I really, really enjoy this. And because of all the haters, I'm giving it a 10. 
That's some pretty docile rage you've got there.
I enjoyed it, had to have a look when it came on.
Uh, yeah, NO.
I enjoyed watching Whale Wars, which used the original as the title theme.  Illustrated the point well, I thought.
really annoying and monotone

the piano adapt is nice instead
Asking yourself why it's so low?
It's a cover. A cover of a generation's classic. And it's by a woman
Thanks for bucking against it Bill. I liked it.

 lizardking wrote:
Agreed!  And now the question is: how the hell does this track get a sub-5 rating with nearly 1000 rates? Did Frida do something really bad I don't know about?  Or are there that many SP fans who don't like the rearrangement of this tune? 

Long Live RP!

 
Yep, 4.9 is far too low.
I like this version more, having heard it a few times.
From Sweden.......{#Notworthy}
 On_The_Beach wrote:
Sure, why not?
Nice to hear a cover that is not just a copy of the original.

 
Agreed!  And now the question is: how the hell does this track get a sub-5 rating with nearly 1000 rates? Did Frida do something really bad I don't know about?  Or are there that many SP fans who don't like the rearrangement of this tune? 

Long Live RP!


Sure, why not?
Nice to hear a cover that is not just a copy of the original.
 vanmas wrote:
Very nice! Mutch better voice than Billy!
He sounds like a chainsaw...

 
I love the angry snarl of a chain saw.  And Billy's voice doesn't bother me, either.
 bc wrote:
Twice as good as the original!

It gets a 2. 

 
{#Arrowu} This might do it for me too.
Very nice! Mutch better voice than Billy!
He sounds like a chainsaw...
 ppopp wrote:
So nice to hear these lyrics sung by someone who has a voice which is complimenting the music.

 
I agree {#High-five}
Oh my. This is a mistake. A horrible, awful mistake.

Why? I can't even. I can't even finish that last sentence. 
So nice to hear these lyrics sung by someone who has a voice which is complimenting the music.
Twice as good as the original!

It gets a 2. 
Heard this a few times now....short answer? {#No}
I had to move it from 2 to 1 this time around. Looks like I have plenty of company with this rating. Perhaps it's time to yank this from the rotation. 
Like the original except with 10 times the suck.
Well sir, I don't like it.
This? I've yet to hear Placebo's Running Up That Hill on RP, but you play this? Very uninspired cover. 
Love the original. Love the cover. 
I, too, am so angry that people do things I disapprove of in the entertainment business.
Why should anyone be subject to this?
Repetitive and lacking imagination. A not very successful cover. 
I really dislike Billy Corgan's voice, so I never cared for the original...but I think I realized I really just don't like this song, no matter who sings it. 
Love this version.
Desercration of such great song,this really sucks.Piss off and speak with Simon Cowell.
I'd like to say nice  try but.....
Please... no.
Nah, it just doesn't fit. Please return this stolen property to the Pumpkins.
Sorry, a quick Google revealed that it's an abbreviation for Occupy Wall Street. Here in Southern California we refer to that movement simply as "Occupy." I've never heard anyone use the OWS acronym. 

 
poetista wrote:
BTW, Dana Montroy, what is OWS?
 


BTW, Dana Montroy, what is OWS?

There's something chilling about her girly vocal - I think the comment about female rape/incest victims who maintain an outwardly sweet demeanor really nails it. I work with women/girls with those experiences, and often it turns out they are committing horrific and deeply intimate violence in their personal lives, such as cutting, abuse by partners, extreme paraphilia,  self-administered beatings, and worse. This version hints at that kind of shelled rage.

Maybe that's why so many people feel uncomfortable with it. Keep playing it, RP.
Thanks. 
funny stuff.
 
What the hell, I really like this!  Sorry.
Another one of those "upside down" covers: lets take a full head-on, in-your-face, angry, powerful, brilliant song, and do it with a sweet, cute, mellow, female vocals, with just a piano in the background. simply terrible.
This is awful!
Can I rate this a ZERO!{#Puke}
I'd say this is more of the anthem song for all those OWS dummies.
 hikinfiend wrote:

I've known some rage-filled women —- rape and sexual abuse victims, who for one reason or another were powerless against their attackers —- who didn't appear outwardly angry at all: they had internalized their rage (because society doesn't accept angry women), and each continually wore a facade of benign contentment.  To me, this song seems a fair depiction of their predicament: social expectations have trapped them in a cage requiring moderate behavior, but they're still very angry... 
 
spot on. . . 
 
Had to switch to groovesalad for duration of this song. {#Meditate}
 unclehud wrote:
Like her voice, and this cover is really sweet, but she's not selling the line about "... despite all my rage."
 
I've known some rage-filled women —- rape and sexual abuse victims, who for one reason or another were powerless against their attackers —- who didn't appear outwardly angry at all: they had internalized their rage (because society doesn't accept angry women), and each continually wore a facade of benign contentment.  To me, this song seems a fair depiction of their predicament: social expectations have trapped them in a cage requiring moderate behavior, but they're still very angry... 

 scrubbrush wrote:
Tori Amos called...
  Yeah, I second (or third) that


 scrubbrush wrote:
Tori Amos called...
 
Just thinking the same!
Kinda funny considering how often Tori gets "Kate Bush called..."

Like her voice, and this cover is really sweet, but she's not selling the line about "... despite all my rage."
 scrubbrush wrote:
Tori Amos called...
 

{#Lol}
What.  The.  Hell?
Her voice is better than Corgan's but it doesn't save this interpretation at all.  Not that great.  Too sparse perhaps.
The irony just doesn't work. Time for a new producer.
Rage ??  Where?? Not hearing it......
I give it a 1 cause the original song sucks too. Actually the song is fine, but both versions have sucky singers.
Tori Amos called...
I give it a "2" only because the original song is awesome.

{#Puke}

Sung without the angst, this song is lackluster. Meh.


I must agree, S P version much better.....
 
jadewahoo wrote:
D R E A D F U L
 


D R E A D F U L
 scocam wrote:
A bit lackluster but still so much better than the incessant whining of Billy Corgan.

 
I agree with you wholeheartedly!!

I actually registered today just so I could plead with TPTB to make this song stop.  It needs to be introduced to a strong magnet ASAP and a no resuscitate order entered on its chart.
 Droidac wrote:

That's like saying horse crap is better than cow crap.

 

Horse crap is way better than cow crap. 

But back to the song.  Regardless of whether you like or can't stand Billy Corgan's singing, the original at least had energy and great guitar work.  This has been stripped of emotion to the point where the lyrics are incompatible with the music, making it simply ridiculous.
Frida: "despite all my rage, I still don't pull of my Tori impersonation. Aww...sad face."
A bit lackluster but still so much better than the incessant whining of Billy Corgan.


me liking

(when I don't like a song I just turn the volume down for three to six minutes or so. doesn't hurt. ;-))