"Fuck the Pain Away" | |
---|---|
Song by Peaches | |
from the album The Teaches of Peaches | |
Released | September 5, 2000 |
Recorded | The Rivoli, Toronto, Ontario, July 19, 1999 |
Genre | Electroclash [1] |
Length | 4:08 |
Label | |
Songwriter(s) | Peaches |
Producer(s) | Peaches |
"Fuck the Pain Away" is a song by Canadian singer Peaches from her second studio album, The Teaches of Peaches (2000). It became her breakthrough song and has since remained her signature song. [2] [3] Its widespread licensing in films as well as numerous official and unofficial cover versions has led to a sustained popularity for the song.
The song combines low-fidelity, rumbling bass with snare drums from a Roland TR-909 to make a "clickity-clack" rhythm. [4] [5] [6] Muted yelling sounds can be heard in the background. [5]
The song's lyrics established Peaches' reputation as a sex-positive feminist. [7] She uses euphemisms to present a sexually aggressive image. [8] The lyrics include references to "Call Me" by Blondie and The Pretenders' frontwoman Chrissie Hynde. [9] [10] The line "Stay in school, 'cause it's the best" alludes to Peaches' previous occupation as a teacher. [10] Peaches' vocal performance was described as vampy, lustful, and insouciant. [4] [5] Her bold delivery holds "between self-empowerment and self-destruction." [11]
Peaches never recorded "Fuck the Pain Away" in a studio. The only official version is a live recording from the first time it was ever performed [12] at The Rivoli in Toronto. Peaches has noted the presence of tape hiss and crowd noise on the master, which was taken from a cassette recording of the board mix that was offered to her by the sound engineer after the performance in exchange for $5. Nevertheless, she has stated that "it ain't broke, don't fix [it]. I am never recording this song again." [13]
The Observer Music Monthly listed "Fuck the Pain Away" at 61 on its list of the best songs of the 2000s. [14] Complex magazine named it the seventh greatest slutwave song of all time. [6] Q listed it at #826 on their 1001 Best Songs Ever list. [15] The Guardian included the song on its list of "1000 songs everyone must hear". [10] Rolling Stone included the song on their 2019 list of "25 Essential LGBTQ Pride Songs," noting how the song "sparked a titillating new wave of sleazebag disco". [16]
Notably, there is no official music video for the song, and Peaches called upon fans to create videos and other performance art pieces which utilize it. [17] One parody shows "Fuck the Pain Away" being performed by Miss Piggy. [18] Another version, directed by Erik Huber, takes footage from The Andy Griffith Show and inserts a dancing woman. [17]
Thom Yorke cited "Fuck the Pain Away" as an inspiration in making "15 Step" for Radiohead's 2007 album In Rainbows . [19] A nightclub in Brighton, England, takes its name from the song. [20]
Belgian group 2ManyDJs included the song on their 2002 album As Heard on Radio Soulwax Pt. 2 . It appears on the album's visual mix, accompanied by clips of the Velvet Underground's banana design emerging from Peaches' groin from The Teaches of Peaches. [21] British singer Bat for Lashes has performed a live cover version. [22] On Gorgon City's 2014 album Sirens , Erik Hassle reinterprets the refrain for "FTPA", a song about casual sex. [23] In 2020, American rapper Yung Gravy sampled the song in his single, "Oops!" included on his album Gasanova .
"Fuck the Pain Away" became a popular choice when film and TV soundtracks were in need of a catchy but objectionable song. [24] It was used for a key scene in Sofia Coppola's 2003 film Lost in Translation . [25] In the scene, Bill Murray's character glumly sits in a Japanese strip club as women pole dance to the song. [26] It is used in the 2002 horror film My Little Eye , [27] the 2006 reality film Jackass Number Two , [28] the 2011 romantic comedy Getting That Girl, [29] the 2011 action film Drive Angry , [30] and the 2013 gross out film Wetlands , [31] as well as being sung by Bollo in The Mighty Boosh Live . It also appeared in an episode of the thirteenth season of South Park , "Butters' Bottom Bitch". [32] The 30 Rock episode "Future Husband" shows Tina Fey's character Liz Lemon using the song as a ringtone. [33] The song also appeared in end credits of the True Blood season 6 episode of the same name. [34] The song was also used in The Handmaid's Tale in a 2017 episode, "Nolite Te Bastardes Carborundorum", and in the Canadian show Letterkenny in a 2018 episode, "We Don't Fight at Weddings". A choral version appeared in season 3 of Sex Education . [35] In British television series This Way Up , the song appears on season 2 episode 3 in a striptease scene.[ citation needed ]