We’ve previously explored bands making references to themselves in their music, but what about times bands referenced other bands? From stylistic influences, to direct references, to both at once, here are just three examples of bands making references to other artists.
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[RELATED: 6 Bands Who Use Self-References in Their Songs: Beastie Boys, Green Day, and More]
Pavement — “Range Life”
Released in 1994, “Range Life” appeared on Pavement’s album Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain, ushering in a new, successful sound for the anti-indie darlings. The song longs for a simpler life in adulthood, beyond the messiness and chaos of adolescence. In the third verse Stephen Malkmus sings, “Out on tour with the Smashing Pumpkins” and “Stone Temple Pilots, they’re elegant bachelors.” At the time, this verse caused some controversy with the Smashing Pumpkins, as the next following line is “nature kids, I, they don’t have no function / I don’t understand what they mean / and I could really give a f–k.”
Allegedly, there was no actual beef between Pavement and the Smashing Pumpkins. Rumor spread that Billy Corgan tried to get Pavement kicked out of Lollapalooza, but Corgan insisted that wasn’t true. “I had no problem with Pavement,” said Corgan in 1995. Additionally, Malkmus said of the feud, “A lot of people claim we dissed them. We never did. I only laughed about the band name, because it does sound kinda silly.”
The verse also includes the lines, “The Stone Temple Pilots, they’re elegant bachelors / they’re foxy to me, are they foxy to you / I will agree they deserve absolutely nothing / nothing more than me.” However, as far as it looks, there was no feud with Stone Temple Pilots either.
Arctic Monkeys — “Star Treatment”
If you’re in the Arctic Monkeys fandom, it’s no secret that Alex Turner loves The Strokes. The opening line of “Star Treatment”—itself the opening track of Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino from 2018—reiterates Turner’s penchant for band. Literally he sings, “I just wanted to be one of The Strokes.” The rest of the track gets a little sentimental and slightly petty as he continues, “Now look at the mess you made me make.”
Listening to Arctic Monkeys’ debut album from 2006, it’s clear that The Strokes had a huge influence on the fledgling band. They started out with a nervy, frantic sound that began to establish them as one of the last real rock bands. Additionally, there are a few moments on the debut album where young Alex Turner emulates some of Julian Casablancas’ vocal mannerisms, letting out exclamations, sighs, and groans in the middle of a track.
LCD Soundsystem — “Daft Punk is Playing At My House”
This reference is a little more obvious, as it’s right there in the title. “Daft Punk is Playing At My House” is a cut and dry song about Daft Punk playing a basement show at some kid’s house, inspired by the experiences James Murphy had doing that exact same thing. In an interview for RA, Murphy explained the origins of the song.
“I used to play house parties in punk rock bands,” he began. “You don’t really get paid, but what you do is sell a ton of merchandise, and get a place to sleep. When I got into dancing, taking E and being optimistic, I thought; wouldn’t it be great if some kid wanted Daft Punk to play at his house?”
Murphy continued, “So he rings the agent who says they’ll cost $40,000 and he saves for seven years and finally gets enough money and flies Daft Punk over. And, of course, they’d have no idea where they would be landing, ‘cos the rider includes two first-class tickets on Air France. And the kids would be earnestly trying to meet all the rider requirements, but Daft Punk would still end up playing in the basement next to the washing machine, which we all did. A local hardcore band is supporting, and the PA consists of all the local kids’ amps and stereos taped together. I thought that would be like the best show that anyone would ever see.”
Featured Image by Christopher Polk/Penske Media via Getty Images
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