Writing and Composition
Although Smash has a dark, punk rock sound, the album is heavily influenced by the emerging pop punk scene. Bands like Green Day and Rancid were gaining popularity, and riding on this wave of popularity, Smash's singles became modern radio rock hits. An example of this was the success of The Offspring's first major single release, "Come Out and Play", which reached #1 on Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and has become one of the band's signature songs. "Come Out and Play" features a Middle Eastern-influenced guitar riff. The lyrics discuss gang violence in high schools.
The second single released from the album, "Self Esteem", became a radio hit, managing to peak at number 4 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. The lyrics are about an abusive relationship in which the girl takes advantage of her boyfriend, as he has "no self-esteem" to stand up to her. Contrary to popular belief, the song is not autobiographical. In an interview Dexter revealed that it is about one of his old friends.
The third single, "Gotta Get Away" was another rock radio hit, although it was not as successful as the previous two singles. The song reached number 6 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. Being the last song written for the album, the lyrics describe a point in Dexter's life when he was suffering from extreme pressure due to the then-upcoming deadline of the album. "What Happened To You" is driven by a Jamaican ska beat.
Read more about this topic: Smash (The Offspring album)
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“When, said Mr. Phillips, he communicated to a New Bedford audience, the other day, his purpose of writing his life, and telling his name, and the name of his master, and the place he ran from, the murmur ran round the room, and was anxiously whispered by the sons of the Pilgrims, “He had better not!” and it was echoed under the shadow of the Concord monument, “He had better not!””
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“When I think of God, when I think of him as existent, and when I believe him to be existent, my idea of him neither increases nor diminishes. But as it is certain there is a great difference betwixt the simple conception of the existence of an object, and the belief of it, and as this difference lies not in the parts or composition of the idea which we conceive; it follows, that it must lie in the manner in which we conceive it.”
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