\u201cPumped Up Kicks\u201d is about a troubled teenager fantasising about shooting other young people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The ridiculously catchy one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The contrast between its breezy indie-pop sound and disturbing subject matter is completely intentional.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Foster the People frontman Mark Foster has repeatedly explained that the song does not endorse violence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is written from the perspective of a disturbed character and was intended to draw attention to youth violence rather than celebrate it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The character at the centre of the song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Listeners sometimes assume Robert was based on a real school shooter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That isn’t the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Claims that the character was specifically inspired by Omaha shooter Robert Hawkins were denied by the band’s representatives. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Robert is fictional.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The problem he represents isn’t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Expensive or fashionable trainers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The phrase helps establish a social divide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Robert looks at other kids who appear:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
cooler<\/p>\n\n\n\n
wealthier<\/p>\n\n\n\n
more popular<\/p>\n\n\n\n
and better equipped to belong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Their shoes become a tiny symbol of everything he believes separates them from him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That’s the entire trick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Listen casually and you hear:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
whistling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sunny production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
An easy chorus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Listen carefully and the emotional temperature completely changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Foster has discussed his discomfort at seeing very young listeners happily singing along without understanding what the words were describing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
That contrast made the song powerful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It also made it controversial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It wasn’t universally banned, but broadcasters sometimes removed or censored it, particularly following mass shootings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
MTV and MTVu censored references to weapons in their broadcasts of the video. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Radio stations have also temporarily pulled the track following real-world tragedies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That raises a difficult question:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
does removing a song about violence help?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Or does discussing why the song was written help more?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Foster has consistently argued for the latter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The track first appeared in 2010 and exploded internationally during 2011.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It became one of the defining indie crossover records of that period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The success helped propel Foster the People’s debut album Torches into the mainstream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Indie pop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alternative pop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Indietronica.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It arrived during a period when alternative bands were becoming unexpectedly huge through:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
blogs<\/p>\n\n\n\n
YouTube<\/p>\n\n\n\n
festival culture<\/p>\n\n\n\n
and increasingly digital discovery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
MGMT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Passion Pit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Phoenix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Empire of the Sun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Foster the People.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Different bands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Similar cultural moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Because you didn’t need to understand it to enjoy it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Which is also the problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The bassline is excellent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The chorus is immediate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The whistle is memorable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The production is light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It functions perfectly as background music until you actually pay attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then it becomes deeply uncomfortable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you enjoy this musical contradiction, try:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Smiths \u2013 There Is a Light That Never Goes Out<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Outkast \u2013 Hey Ya!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Third Eye Blind \u2013 Semi-Charmed Life<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 1975 \u2013 It\u2019s Not Living (If It\u2019s Not With You)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Paramore \u2013 Hard Times<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lily Allen \u2013 LDN<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Boomtown Rats \u2013 I Don\u2019t Like Mondays<\/p>\n\n\n\n
MGMT \u2013 Time to Pretend<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Twenty One Pilots \u2013 Semi-Automatic<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Because the subject hasn’t become less relevant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That changes the experience of hearing the song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A fictional story written around youth violence feels different when similar violence repeatedly appears in real headlines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The song therefore never gets the comfortable distance of becoming \u201cjust an old hit\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The catchy music isn’t there to make violence fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It demonstrates how easily something disturbing can hide underneath an attractive surface.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Which may explain why millions of people happily sang the song before realising what they were singing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The discomfort is the point.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cPumped Up Kicks\u201d is about a troubled teenager fantasising about shooting other young people. Yes. That song. The ridiculously catchy one. The contrast between its breezy indie-pop sound and disturbing subject matter is completely intentional. Foster the People frontman Mark Foster has repeatedly explained that the song does not endorse violence. It is written from the perspective of a disturbed character and was intended to draw attention to youth violence rather than celebrate it. Who is Robert? The character at the centre of the song. Listeners sometimes assume Robert was based on a real school shooter. That isn’t the case….<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4683,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2873,2293,827],"coauthors":[2],"class_list":["post-4682","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-foster-the-people","tag-meaning","tag-pumped-up-kicks"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n