Dopamine - Story Behind The Song
She’s leaving town tomorrow
And looking for a rush
You’ll never have to know me
Am I in luck?
Yeah, I’m not feeling down alone
Nympho’s not the right word
More like the perfect drug
We don’t have to be lonely
Don’t call it love
Our violent screams
Dopamine
A lift so free
It’s imprisoning
Yeah, I’m not feeling down alone
. . .
Porn addiction. Sex addiction. Relapses. Scary stuff. Luckily, This song doesn't reflect my personal experiences with such.
Anyway, the idea of “Dopamine” was created by drawing inspiration from dark lyrics and song themes. “Yes,” (Manic Street Preachers) “The Perfect Drug,” (Nine Inch Nails) “Would?” (Alice In Chains) The list could go on forever. I’ve noticed that the key to writing songs like these is to not hold anything back. Write lyrics like no one is going to read them. That’s the point of it, right? To expose yourself out of the primal desire to connect with someone else? I guess that’s more of my purpose at least.
The lyrics were also written in response to a few observations that I made in college about party culture. More specifically - “hookup culture.” We have all been observers of the asshole, egotistical, guy who lands the drop dead gorgeous girl in pursuit of a one night stand. It’s heartbreaking, annoying, cliche, blah blah blah. Back in college, my friends and I would go out to a bar/club called the Library Annex, where these things would happen routinely.
Photo Taken by Evan Exempt: https://imgur.com/mgvoj
Call me cynical, but I would just see it as two drunk, lonely people, rubbing against each other on the dance floor, yearning for companionship. Hookups are a great distraction from unhappiness until you feel like a pawn on someone else’s trophy case of insecurity.
It wasn’t all bad, though. If the Library Annex wasn’t worth going to, we wouldn’t have gone routinely. Lots of great nights were spent there, and many great memories were made. It was usually the go to spot for a fun and eventful night out.
On the other hand, it was also pretty routine for cops to be called due to domestic disturbances involving guns across the street from Library Annex. My friend Filip once had a gun pulled on him right outside of Lannex. Luckily, I never did. So it goes.
There isn’t a specific instance that inspired this song. It was just more of an observation of the desperation of not wanting to be alone. Wanting to connect with someone in order to numb yourself from a sense of loneliness and isolation. Also, the drum solo right before the last chorus - definitely inspired by the drum solo in “Don’t Look Back In Anger” by Oasis.
