"Los Angeles Is Burning" is a single by the
punk rock band
Bad Religion
Bad Religion is an American punk rock band that formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1980. The band's lyrics cover topics related to religion, politics, society, the media and science. Musically, they are noted for their melodic sensibilitie ...
from their 2004 album ''
The Empire Strikes First
''The Empire Strikes First'' is the thirteenth studio album by American punk rock band Bad Religion, released on June 8, 2004. The album is heavily influenced by the then-current Iraq War (most notably in the songs "Atheist Peace", "Let Them Ea ...
''. "Los Angeles Is Burning" was released to radio on April 27, 2004.
The song reached number 40 on the
Modern Rock Tracks
Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...
in July 2004.
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
/ref>
Meaning and composition
According to bassist Jay Bentley
Jay Dee Bentley (born June 6, 1964) is the bassist and co-founding member of the punk rock group Bad Religion. He has played with the band through its whole existence with a small break between 1983 and 1985. Along with vocalist Greg Graffin, Bent ...
, the lyrics argue that the media is sensationalistic. The music video features men with television cameras replacing their heads firing flame into the animated landscape of Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. Although the song was written at a time when there was a major wildfire nearby, the late 2003 Cedar Fire, Bentley makes clear that the song was using the fire as a metaphor.
Music video
The music video is shot in cut-out animation and depicts a man in shorts and a track singlet with a Crossbuster (Bad Religion's logo which features a black cross with a red prohibition sign over it) on it running through a burning, apocalyptic Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. People with TV news cameras as heads are also shown shooting fire out of their "mouths" (represented by the camera lenses). Frontman Greg Graffin
Gregory Walter Graffin (born November 6, 1964) is an American singer and evolutionary biologist. He is most recognized as the lead vocalist and only constant member of punk rock band Bad Religion, which he co-founded in 1980. He embarked on a s ...
plays a psychotic newsreporter who reads messages like "Panic & Fear Widespread; Retail Up 25%", "Four Horsemen Back In Saddle" and "You are not being brainwashed". Right before the guitar solo, the man shown running through the city burns when the flames catch up to him and the video transitions to the band playing the song among all the chaos in the city, before they burn too. At the end of the video, the entire city goes up in flames moments after Graffin does.
7" Picture Disk Track listing
Charts
References
External links
*
2004 singles
Bad Religion songs
Songs about the media
Songs about Los Angeles
Songs written by Brett Gurewitz
2004 songs
Epitaph Records singles
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