Walking Contradiction
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Walking Contradiction" | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
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| Single by Green Day | ||
| from the album Insomniac | ||
| Released | 1996 | |
| Format | CD | |
| Recorded | 1995 | |
| Genre | Punk Rock | |
| Length | 2 minutes 30 seconds | |
| Label | Reprise | |
| Producer(s) | Rob Cavallo, Green Day | |
| Green Day singles chronology | ||
| "Brain Stew/Jaded" (1996) |
"Walking Contradiction" (1996) |
"Hitchin' a Ride" (1997) |
"Walking Contradiction" is the fifth and final single taken from Green Day's fourth album Insomniac. It was also on Green Day's greatest hits compilation, International Superhits!.
[edit] Meaning
The song is about being contradictory to yourself and others. This is perhaps best expressed in the chorus "I have no belief; But I believe I'm a walking contradiction..." That phrase is also, in itself, contradictory. Also, this song is about bands selling out once they become big. The song portrays how indecisive bands become once going into the mainstream.
[edit] Music Video
The video, which was directed by Roman Coppola, features the three major members of Green Day going about in a town indirectly causing accidents, explosions, and all kinds of mayhem without realizing what they're doing. Needless to say a big disaster occurs when all three of them meet up at the end of the video.
- Billie throws a stick into the spokes of a man's bike, causing him to to crash. Moments later, a car runs over the bike.
- Tré makes a bread truck roll into some parked cars and one moving van.
- Mike presses a pedestrian crossing sign that says "do not press" and electrocutes an electrician (mere seconds after exchanging pleasantries with him).
- Billie takes a newspaper from a newspaper stand, which causes the whole stand to collapse.
- Billie walks into traffic (due to the malfuntioning traffic signals triggered by Mike's above-mentioned pedestrian crossing button) causing cars swerve to avoid him and crash.
- While looking into a mirror which fell off one of the cars, he blinds a man lifting a piano.
- The man drops the piano, narrowly missing Tré.
- The truck from earlier on crashes into a fire hydrant.
- A police car coming to the scene gets launched into the air after crashing into the stalled traffic. The car spins around in air as it rolls over.
- The boys drive away and a building in the background collapses, probably due to the car's exhaust fume.
The members all did their own stunts, although at first, Billie Joe Armstrong was afraid to do the stunt work required for it. He was about to pull out until Tré Cool talked him into it.
This video is one of few music videos to have colored closed captioning, a practice that is rare in North America. The captioning appears on most modern televisions as green.
