This one gets in my head all the time. It was released at a time when I was just starting a sales job. The feeling I was chasing at the time was making sales. I bought the ringtone to remind me of that goal and would play the song after every success I had at the time. The feeling that I chase changes but the feeling this song gives me and lessons in it stay the same.
[Pressure]
She’s young, lithe and homely, wise by no means
Known one guy, she’s for his eyes and only
He’s a lying phony, leaves her crying, lonely
We start with a cautionary tale about a young girl who is devoted to her first boyfriend who isn’t true to her.
Separates the pain by staying high and though she
Might just O.D., high price to go free
She chooses to replace the bad feeling with chemical highs, the fake feeling of drug use. O.D. is short for over-dose. She is risking death rather than give up the relationship.
This ain’t living, listen, it’s dying slowly
This line comes to mind so often. I think that many people don’t ever really live. There are people who never take risks or make decisions for themselves. They go with the flow of society and follow a path laid out for them by others their whole life. I don’t have much experience around drug addicts, but it’s possible to get addicted to the trends and expectations of society. The ultimate price of conforming is to never live fully.
(It’s got a hold on me) she can chase that feeling
(It’s got a hold on me) don’t chase that feeling, like I…
The only time they lead into the chorus with “don’t” chase that feeling. They started with a well-known example of what not to do, but they go on to sing about the feelings they do chase!
[Chorus]
I’ve been looking for
A thing that’s good for the rich
Yeah, the blind and the poor
Things that I’ve been looking for
A thing that’s good for the rich
Yeah, the blind and the poor
This is truly a noble thing to chase. Something that is good for everybody, whether rich, blind, or poor.
[Pressure]
Sometimes I feel we strive for a life of apathy
I think of this line often as well. I am definitely someone who fits this category. Even though all these powerful ideas resonate with me, I often choose a quiet life where I avoid confrontation and scary challenges. These feelings can last for a moment or years. When I have risen above this and got into a project or a new line of work my energy levels rise along with my levels of satisfaction and happiness.
Callous deeds, other mindless acts of greed
Ain’t jack for free, I think they’d try a tax to breathe
It is easy to get upset about taxes in general and at times some taxes don’t feel fair. It’s good to remember that we pay taxes to help the government pay for things that benefit the whole community. Then there is intentional bad behaviour in an attempt to get rich. It is never ok to let greed be the motivation behind action. If money is our only goal, then we are sure to miss out on much of what is good in life.
It’s like we fight to remind us that we bleed
It’s good to take a stand when we see bad behaviour. Standing up to things we think are wrong is an example of living, and only the living bleed when hurt.
I take flight in the night from lack of sleep
‘Cause peace of mind’s the only time that we’re free
Peace of mind is one of the ultimate goals in life. Getting the balance of pursuing ambition and being content and appreciative of everything we have is one path to peace. Pressure feels peace at night working on his dream while others sleep.
(It’s got a hold on me) and I’m a chase that feeling
(It’s got a hold on me) we all chase that feeling
[Suffa]
It’s like they try to build you up to watch it all collapse
You try climb out the pit, they’ll try claw you back
It can feel like the world, or at least the people we believe are running the world, have it in for us. We try and achieve goals only to be met with opposition and negativity. You will come across people who seem to delight in other people’s failures rather than concentrate on achieving their own success. One of our challenges is to stay clear of these people and focus on what we are doing. It is becoming more common for people to seek out ways where everyone involved benefits rather than looking for ways to bring down the “opposition”.
Like, back in the factory packing the shelves
It was hell ‘cause the foreman was always harassing me
Like, “How’s your little old music thing going?”
Now I’m like, “How’s your bitter old loser shit going?”, and I’m right
An example from his own life: Like so many artists, Suffa would have had to work hard at his art; practise his rapping and writing a lot, and have a job at the same time to pay bills. I can imagine his boss, a few years older, picking on his ‘hobby’ in its early days. Suffa writing rhymes in his breaks, rehearsing them to himself while he worked. The boss may have even heard about or gone to a show that no one came to see. But Suffa kept chasing the feeling of writing and performing songs. Now he can look back on his boss at the time with a different response to that sarcastic question!
(it’s got a hold on me) and I’m a chase that feeling
(It’s got a hold on me) I’m a chase that feeling, like I…
[Chorus]
I’ve been looking for
A thing that’s good for the rich
Yeah, the blind and the poor
Things that I’ve been looking for
A thing that’s good for the rich
Yeah, the blind and the poor
And I’m a chase that feeling
Take that pain and replace that feeling
When we feel hurt or defeated, we can flip that around. We can use the energy that comes with feeling hurt and turn it into positive energy. Instead of avoiding a bad feeling, or covering it up like the girl in the first verse, we can actively replace that bad feeling with a good one.
And I’m a take that healing, then
Stand so tall they’ll have to raise that ceiling, man
Wow! Take the bad feeling, use it to fuel a strong, positive feeling which can help heal us and leave us feeling so good, so tall, that the ceiling will need to be raised. Wow!
[Pressure]
From a young age I was making my mark, chasing my start
Forever ain’t enough when you’re state of the art
Big dreams, big goals, take time. These guys were young when they started their journey together. I love the phrase, “chasing my start”. To be chasing a ‘start’ would require already moving! It is impossible to define where anything really begins, but usually big achievements are the culmination of a lot of small things which all needed to be started.
Fuck the haters that had said I’d never make it this far
It’s the pavers that I’d tread to dedicate to my craft
Using the negative experiences of people saying bad things as the stepping stones (pavers) on his path to where he is. Every piece of criticism can come with a gift. It may strengthen our resolve to prove the critic wrong or it might be a sign that we need to change what we’re doing.
I’ve tailored every thread to bear the shape of my heart
This is evident in so many lyrics from the Hilltop Hoods. They put everything into their songs and share all the good and the bad that goes with that.
Treating every breath as my first and day as my last
This is advice you will find from so many sources. For life to be lived fully we need to appreciate and make the most of every moment. A commonly used exercise in personal development is to ask, “If you only had 1 year to live, what would you change?” And then, 6 months, 1 month, and 1 day?
(It’s got a hold on me) I still chase that feeling
(It’s got a hold on me) yeah I still chase that feeling
Now he is “still” chasing that feeling.
[Suffa]
I ride the rails of a vinyl track
Fall into a trance and there ain’t no climbing back
This is the feeling they chase: writing songs. The image of Suffa falling into trance as he rides in the groove of a vinyl record: beautiful.
Sit and lose myself in all the hidden loops
They’re like forbidden fruits, I’m like, “Can I get a bite of that?”
Listening to old music and looking for a sample to use in his own songs for Suffa is like doing something that is wrong but feels good. Adam and Eve ate the original forbidden fruit. It exposed mankind to sin and all the problems that come from that. These problems bring with them the lessons and adversity we now call life.
Gin and juice, I get loose and I write a track
Famous song by Snoop Dogg!
Shivers down my spine, feeling more like a spinal tap
The feeling he gets writing songs is so powerful he has a physical reaction to it. Not just a shiver but something closer to pain and potentially life changing.
(It’s got a hold on me) and I’m a chase that feeling
(It’s got a hold on me) I’m a chase that feeling like I…
[Chorus]
I’ve been looking for
A thing that’s good for the rich
Yeah, the blind and the poor
Things that I’ve been looking for
A thing that’s good for the rich
Yeah, the blind and the poor
And I’m a chase that feeling
Take that pain and replace that feeling
And I’m a take that healing, then
Stand so tall they’ll have to raise that ceiling man
[Outro, Suffa]
At start of the summer
I’m a come to life and have the heart of a hummingbird
The hummingbird is well known for a few things. It’s wings beat so fast you can’t see them. It can fly in all directions; that is, it can face the same way and move, forward, up, down and backwards! It also has one of the fastest heartbeats of any animal.
And I can hear the drummer
She’s so ugly but I’m so in love with her
This line stands out because it just sounds funny. Maybe it’s an extension to the idea that the feeling he is chasing is forbidden fruit. The drummer is probably the music itself and the hold it has on him being a bad thing at times. Not sure!
(Wake up) roll out of bed, throw on some roll-on
Roll up to the studio
(It’s got a hold on me) and I’m a chase that feeling
Chase that feeling
Nice rhyme to leave on!
