Israel's Son

"Israel's Son" is a song by Australian rock band Silverchair, released on 12 April 1995 as the third single from their debut album, ''Frogstomp'' (1995). It was included on Silverchair's ''The Best Of: Volume 1'' compilation album, released on 13 November 2000. A live video recording of "Israel's Son" at the Sydney Royal Easter Show was included on the bonus DVD with the ''Frogstomp: 20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition'' remaster, released on 27 March 2015.

In April 2022, The Guardian ranked "Israel's Son" at #8 on their "The 25 best Silverchair songs - sorted" list.

Origin

Vocalist and guitarist Daniel Johns said about the song in an interview with ''Request Magazine'' in November 1995:

That ongwas about an execution I saw on tele. I got this video of an execution, and I just saw it, and I was watching it one night, and I had a dream about it, and I woke up and thought, 'Oh yeah, that's pretty cool', and I wrote a song about it.

Music video

A music video, directed by Nigel Dick, was made for the song, with filming taking place at Rancho Maria in Canyon Country, California on 19 December 1995.

1995 concert bottling incident

On 17 September 1995, Johns was hit with a bottle of alcohol while Silverchair performed "Israel's Son" at Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica, California during a U.S. tour; the injury required six stitches around his left eyebrow.

1996 murder trial

In a January 1996 murder case, the defendant counsel for Brian Bassett, 16, and Nicholaus McDonald, 18, of McCleary, Washington, claimed that the pair listened to "Israel's Son", from ''Frogstomp'', which contributed to the murders of Bassett's parents and a younger brother on August 10, 1995. McDonald's lawyer cited the lyrics "'Hate is what I feel for you/I want you to know that I want you dead'" which were "almost a script. They're relevant to everything that happened".

The band's manager, John Watson, was quoted as stating on behalf of Silverchair:

"Silverchair do not, have not, and never would condone violence of any sort. The band is appalled by this horrific crime and they hope that justice will prevail in prosecuting whoever is responsible for it. The band extends its sincere sympathies to the families and friends of the victims in this case. Silverchair absolutely rejects any allegation that their song is in any way responsible for the actions of the alleged murders. It is a matter of public record that the song in question, Israel's Son, was inspired by a television documentary about wartime atrocities. Israel's Son was never intended to provoke violence and cannot be interpreted by any reasonable person as doing so. In fact, the song seeks to criticise violence and war by portraying them in all their horror."

Prosecutors rejected the defence case and convinced the jury that the murder was committed to "steal money and belongings and run off to California."

Track listing

''Israel's Son'' CD/ MC EP (Australian version) (MATTCD012)/(MATTC012)
# "Israel's Son"
# "Blind (Live)"
# "Leave Me Out (Live)"
# "Undecided (Live)"

Charts

Certifications

References

External links

Silverchair FAQs on silverchair.nu

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1995 singles
Silverchair songs
Songs written by Daniel Johns
Song recordings produced by Kevin Shirley
Black-and-white music videos
1995 controversies
Music controversies
1995 controversies in the United States
1995 songs
Murmur (record label) singles