I Spent This Weekend Snorting Angel Dust by Faith No More
Yes, there is a song named "Jizzlobber" on the album
Faith No More (previously Faith No Man, before the departure of vocalist Mike Morris) has been the subject of my fascination for a number of months. I have an innate fondness for Mike Patton’s often nonsensical music projects, but FNM is by far my favorite. Their style is highly experimental and likes to push the limits of metal while still retaining a strong foundation and structure, unlike Mr Bungle and Fantômas, Patton’s other bands. FNM has inspired countless other bands since their conception in 1979, including Slipknot, Avenged Sevenfold, and Incubus, to name a few. In spite of entering a “semi-permanent hiatus” in 2024, FNM’s sound and legacy carries on to this day.
Out of all seven albums, their 1992 album Angel Dust is by far their highest grossing, with 2.5 million copies sold worldwide. It combines various genres like metal, funk, and hip-hop to create one of my favorite clusterfucks of all time. Angel Dust is unafraid to push the boundaries of what rock music is, and what it could be. I love the big, theatrical sound this album has; its always struck me as operatic in concept. I believe the best description for Angel Dust is “schizophrenia in musical form.” There’s so much going on at any given moment, which is a turn-off for some but mentally stimulating to me and others.
I’d like to take the time to explore this album in detail, highlighting the ideas and meanings of the individual songs. A majority of this will be rooted in my own opinion, which is objective and infallible. I will also include the working titles of the songs when application as they provide some interesting context. I hope that by the end of this article you will be inspired to listen to it for yourself, or that you’ll listen along while reading. Let’s begin!
Land of Sunshine (Whitney/The Funk Song)
The album starts off strong with a funky bass riff, which makes sense given the temporary title. Mike Patton’s vocal style has shifted to sound more mature, less nasally and high-pitched like in The Real Thing. The overall tone of the album is much darker than their previous releases, but Land of Sunshine starts off bright and inspiring. A few of the lyrics appear to be lines from fortune cookies, with sentiments such as “Life to you is a dashing, bold adventure,” and “You are an angel heading for a land of sunshine.” Such lines are vapid yet disguised as sentimental, a running theme in this song.
More notably is the fact that a few lines are taken directly from the Oxford Capacity Analysis, a personality test created by Ray Kemp and administered by the dreaded Church of Scientology. It features absurd questions meant to gauge one’s traits such as “Do you often sing or whistle just for the fun of it?” and “Does emotional music have quite an effect on you?” But the most pressing question of all, presented by both FNM and Kemp, is “Does life seem worthwhile to you?” It’s a little on-the-nose, but this line has always stuck out to me. I adore the contrast between such a depressing question and vaguely inspirational fortune cookie lines. Land of Sunshine is an excellent choice for an opening track as it sucks you in almost immediately. I was totally blown away the first time I heard it, if not a little confused by the concept. Nowadays I have the lyrics memorized from countless re-listens.
Caffeine (Trip/Caffeine)
One of the more aggressive songs on the album, Caffeine contains a heavier mashup of guitar and bass, plus a moody keyboard part in the background. Mike Patton allegedly wrote this song while enduring a self-imposed sleep deprivation experiment. No drugs required! Actually, caffeine is the only drug Patton does. God knows what kind of nonsense he would make if he took anything besides that.
No official meaning for this song was ever released, with Mike detailing his process in writing the lyrics rather than explaining them. Digging for meaning in Patton’s lyrics is often fruitless, as he’s stated that sometimes he chooses lyrics based more on how they sound than what they actually mean. Coupling this with the fact that he was sleep-deprived during writing, it’s needless to say that maybe Caffeine isn’t “about” anything at all. But this is Strangeland, and I have specific permission to overanalyze lyrics that mean fuck-all.
Personally, I think a lot of the lines revolve around social anxiety or trying to live up to the expectations of others. “The world expects the pose, perfectly natural” speaks to the perfectionist side of me, showcasing a need to be flawless at all times. Solidifying this are the lines “At your weakest, etched in stone / And we're frozen here, peeking.” There are times where I feel like everyone is watching me, and I can’t make a mistake lest they notice my weakness. Caffeine makes me feel understood, despite having nothing understandable about it.
Midlife Crisis (Madonna)
This track is best described by Mike Patton himself:
"The song is based on a lot of observation and a lot of speculation. But in sort of a pointed way its kind of about Madonna... I think it was a particular time where I was being bombarded with her image on TV and in magazines and her whole schtick kind of speaks to me in that way... like she's going through some sort of problem. It seems she's getting a bit desperate."
The song is not to be confused with an actual midlife crisis, as Patton says he doesn’t know what that feels like and therefore can’t empathize with it. This makes a lot of sense as he was only twenty-three when Angel Dust was recorded.
My favorite lines from this song are “You’re perfect, yes, it’s true / But without me you’re only you.” I think they really highlight how mainstream media tries to push an “ideal image” onto people. They’ll feed you feel-good statements about accepting yourself and then in the same breath try to sell you some snake oil skincare, product pushed by a celebrity that certainly doesn’t use it. You’re “perfect,” but you need to try harder to look like the pop stars you see on MTV (using Madonna as an example.) I also love the line “I’m a perfectionist / And perfect is a skinned knee.” What’s one thing pop stars do to become famous that involves getting on their knees? Moving on.
RV (Macaroni and Cheese/Country Western Song)
I have a bit of personal beef with this song. While I adore it as a standalone track and appreciate its satirical nature, it’s a detriment to the flow of the album. It’s slightly jarring to go from Midlife Crisis, a bouncy, upbeat track to a country ballad. But if you think this is bad, I implore you to listen to Mr Bungle. Their pacing and concepts are all over the place, the worst offender being Disco Volante. I love them in spite of this; they’re like a more extreme version of FNM.
RV revolves around your typical white-trash American. Envision a sweat-stained recliner containing a man that should’ve been cast on My 600-lb Life; that’s your main character for this song. A self-loathing, trailer-dwelling man who prattles on about how “nobody speaks English anymore” and how his kids are off “getting pregnant or on drugs or on welfare.” RV is pertinent to me, seeing as a few members of my family fall into this category. Our main character becomes even more pathetic when he cries about wanting to hang himself from a shower curtain rod and get buried in a trash bag. RV is a striking commentary on trailer park America, I just wish it had been placed elsewhere on the track listing.
Smaller and Smaller (Arabic)
Showcasing Patton’s crazy-ass vocal range, Smaller and Smaller is one of the most underrated songs on this album. So much so that they’ve never even played it during a concert, describing it as “too long and too plodding to even consider doing live.” Which is such a shame as it’s easily top three for me. My favorite part is Mike Patton’s incoherent screeching, a staple of his work. You might even recognize his strange noises from Left 4 Dead, as he voices the infected!
I can’t seem to pick out a meaning for this song, but I have some small ideas. I believe it digs into themes of hopelessness and desperation, emphasized by the lines “Someday the rains will come / My blistered hands tell me / Tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow.” It’s like wishing that things will get better, only for that wish to never be fulfilled. Life turns into a perpetual cycle of waiting for the next day, and the day after that, for infinity. The ironic part is the build-up of “Smaller and smaller and smaller / I’ll keep coming back.” I love how the sound is grandiose but the lyrics describe someone or something shrinking away. I haven’t seen anyone talk about the juxtaposition, but it defines the song for me.
Everything’s Ruined (The Carpenters Song)
An official meaning for this song was never stated, but I personally believe that it’s about Patton’s imposter syndrome. He’s no stranger to writing about it, a notable example being Stripsearch off of Album of the Year, where he repeats the line “F for fake.” I also see themes of corporate greed in this track, but I like my next theory the best.
I believe Everything’s Ruined describes the band becoming famous, and the stress and expectations that came with the fame. After the financial success that was The Real Thing, FNM was eager to create another album and expand upon their sound. Unfortunately, when presented with Angel Dust, their record label discouraged them from releasing the album and told them it would be commercial suicide. I think the song could revolve around the stress that the band was enduring at the time, and their desire to push past the constraints that their label placed on them.
Or, get this… It could just be about everything being ruined. Saved you about ten minutes of head-scratching.
Malpractice
My second favorite song on this album, Malpractice is the story of a woman who gets a surgical operation done and becomes addicted to the feeling of the surgeon’s hands inside of her. As a result, she continues to go back and get more operations done in pursuit of the feeling. I’m serious, this is the actual meaning of the song. Stick with me because it only gets weirder from here.
Malpractice is a very dark, heavy song, both in concept and execution. I love the weird creaking noises at the beginning, they give the second a sense of unease before it even starts. It gives me this feeling of dread that is impossible to describe, resonating from within me. The way the main character fetishizes having someone’s gloved hands in her guts is the total opposite of how I feel about the concept, how anyone should feel about it. I also love the sampling of Allegro Molto by Kronos Quartet at around 2:17, the strings accompany the death metal sound beautifully. Overall an incredible song and a great example of what FNM is capable of.
Kindergarten (F Sharp)
Marked by an acute case of Peter Pan Syndrome, Kindergarten revolves around a man who has no desire to grow up. A man who is unable to move on from the past, perpetually stuck in the first grade. The fear and uncertainty of the future is too much to bear, to the point where he thinks of the next grade as “folklore,” not existing at all.
Holding onto the past is something that I find myself guilty of, which is probably why I relate so heavily to this song. It’s easy to get caught up in how things used to be, to turn your mind over to nostalgia, and to forget about the future entirely. Kindergarten is severely underrated, even though it’s one of the catchiest songs on the album. I never see anyone talking about it! It has a fun, groovy sound that vaguely reminds me of Red Hot Chili Peppers. I think that’s because of Patton’s vocal style and Gould’s bass riff. Gould plays his ass off on Angel Dust, defining the album's funk metal sound.
Be Aggressive (I Swallow)
It’s… exactly what you think it’s about. The lyrics were written by the band’s keyboardist Roddy Bottum, who came out as gay in 1993. When asked what the lyrics to Be Aggressive were about, Roddy replied:
"Swallowing. It was a pretty fun thing to write, knowing that Mike was going to have to put himself on the line and go up onstage and sing these vocals."
I adore the crazy mix between the funky bass part and a keyboard that sounds like something you’d hear at a ballpark. I also can’t help but think of Phantom of the Opera when I hear the opening. Be Aggressive is a fun song that doesn’t take itself too seriously, much akin to RV. I like the mix between serious and silly on Angel Dust. FNM up until this point was mostly fun-loving frat boy music, so seeing them mix their old style with a new one is fascinating.
A Small Victory (Japanese)
Another song with an official meaning attached, A Small Victory is about the realization that you can’t win ‘em all. Mike Patton’s father was a coach, and Mike grew up always wanting to win everything, but eventually realized that simply wasn’t possible. Loss is bitter, but sometimes inevitable.
I often find myself thinking of the lyrics “It shouldn’t bother me, but it does” when faced with a situation that grates my nerves. It’s like he’s trying so hard to rationalize his loss, to dispel his feeling of unworthiness, but is ultimately unable to. The meaning and the lyrics to this song are pretty straight-forward, so I don’t have much to say there. Also, don’t ask, I don’t know why the working title was Japanese. It has nothing to do with the actual song.
Crack Hitler (Action Adventure)
According to bassist Billy Gould, this song revolves around a real person that the band came into contact with.
"'Crack Hitler' is about this drug baron who takes crack and compares himself with Hitler, because he commands enough depended people.”
The band apparently had such a laugh about this that they decided to write a song about him. Way to be immortalized in the FNM discography; a dictatorial crackhead.
This is my favorite song off the album for a variety of reasons. The only problem is explaining to people that my favorite song is titled “Crack Hitler.” Gets me a few bewildered looks, but God I love this song. It’s perfect, down to the last minute detail. It’s a weird thing to point out, but I love the noise in the beginning that sounds like brushing your teeth and having your ears plugged at the same time. I’m serious, that’s exactly what it sounds like. Lots of interesting stuff going on with the bass and guitar, too. Crack Hitler is by far the grooviest song on the album; I’ve had it on repeat a shameful number of times. My favorite part? The monologue towards the end:
“In regards to my usage of the drug… It modified my personality to the extent that I was highly irritable! I was like a… Crack Hitler!”
Jizzlobber
I promise this is the last weird song title you’re going to have to contend with. Mike Patton described this song as being about his fear of going to jail, stating that he’s “certain it’ll happen eventually.” I’m sure it’s because of the countless times he’s committed public indecency. Like giving himself an enema and shitting all over a crowd of people. I’m dead serious. Doesn’t that violate the Geneva Convention? It’s biological warfare.
Jizzlobber is the most metal out of the tracks on Angel Dust, with Jim Martin as the driving force on guitar. The lyrics are brutal, too. I love Patton’s screams of “Smiles, bruises” and his rambling apologies towards the end of the song; they’re borderline scary. I would even argue that Jizzlobber is even darker than Malpractice in both sound and lyricism. I love the droning keyboard in the beginning that carries throughout the rest of the song. It almost sounds like something out of a horror film.
Midnight Cowboy (Theme From)
Faith No More seems to have this thing about including at least one cover song on every album, and Midnight Cowboy is a great example of this. It’s the only instrumental track on the album, featuring Patton on melodica. I’m not entirely familiar with the source of this track, as it’s a drama movie from 1969.
Midnight Cowboy sounds quiet and gentle, if not a little somber. I usually don’t care much for instrumental tracks, but this one is memorable and made me visit the original version for comparison. All in all, I prefer the FNM version, but both are great. Midnight Cowboy is a nice way to close out an insane rollercoaster of an album.
Easy (Cover)
Confession: I heard this version of Easy before I ever heard the original by the Commodores, so I’m a little biased. This cover really showcases the versatility of Patton’s vocals. His voice can jump from metal screaming to easy listening with no noticeable gaps or imperfections, and it’s no surprise he’s my favorite artist ever (besides David Bowie, of course.) FNM’s cover of Easy is one of their most popular tracks, and for good reason; I always catch myself humming along when it comes on.
Fun fact, on the deluxe version of Angel Dust, there’s a “cooler version” of Easy. I can’t seem to figure out what’s cooler about it, though. How can you improve on perfection?
I used to be keen on giving albums numerical ratings, but it doesn’t seem fair to reduce a band’s creation to a series of numbers. Instead, I would like to talk about how the album itself made me feel and the influence its had on me since I heard it.
I love strange musicians and bands that aren’t afraid to challenge the idea of “music” as a whole. Faith No More, and more specifically Mike Patton, fit this concept perfectly. Even after being challenged by their record label, FNM still stuck to their guns and had unwavering faith in their work. The result? A timeless classic, something that still sounds fresh to this day. I listen to this album in full a few times a week, and I never find myself growing tired of it.
Angel Dust is an ambitious concept with an excellent execution. Every member of the band is a seasoned musician with novel ideas and brilliant talent and every track is an orchestration of what they’re capable of as a unit. If I were on my deathbed with only fifty-eight minutes and fourty-seven seconds left to live, I would listen to Angel Dust one last time.
In summary? Peak.