No your not the first to fall apart
But always the first one to complain
You better get careful or you'll compromise
Everything you are

The world is a drought when out of love
Please come back to us you're all of the above
"I'm making a choice to be out of touch
Leave me be" he said
He said he said
"leave me here in my
Stark raving sick sad little world!"

I've never had unpaid confidants
Its more than I would care to explain
But I have an open door policy when it comes to blame

The world is a joke when out of love
Please come back to us your all of the above
"I'm making a choice to be out of touch
Leave me be" he said
He said he said
"leave me here in my
Stark raving sick sad little world!"



Lyrics submitted by

Track duration: 06:23

"Sick Sad Little World" as written by Ben Kenney, Brandon Boyd, Michael Einziger, Christopher Kilmore, Jose Pasillas Ii

Lyrics © EMI Music Publishing

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Sick Sad Little World song meanings
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  • 0
    General Comment:this is an easy one. I've been deeply depressed for a few years and I am completely convinced I'm right about the meaning of this song

    this song is about the idea that depression is a sickness. It's unbelievably annoying that people believe they need to cure you of you're depression. depression is not a sickness, thus "leave me here in my stark raving sick sad little world." It's talking about how we just want to be left alone and deal with our own problems
    Flag anonymous4on May 01, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:>>> TURBO GEEK...
    Dirk was big into gaming sounds. he left and has since created sountracking and music tracks for the avg joe playing video games...

    -whadya say?
    Flag SummerRomance_n_808on February 10, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i picked up this album upon release. sometimes when i grab a new album, i'll open one track a day, sometimes randomly choosing the order, or from the beginning or the last... savoring each track by celebrating with an entire day of air time; nice. anyhow, randomly i decided to nix a track that time. i decided i wouldn't listen to the longest track until i returned home to HI from the semester of school in the summer. Damn was i missing out...

    it seems to be a 'point and shoot' at Dirk.
    being that i play bass, and i wonder left, right, and under the events that occurred when my fav player, Dirk departed, i wonder why this track was left amiss in my own airtime... i reason the following: BLINDTONES88 makes a good point, i always believed he left b/c of the musical direction of the band, splitting from the funk/slap grooves he initially kicked out with by the time they reached Morning View, material which is ABS nothing to be ashamed of : ) but felt he was not satisfied with his/their future. And the irony that Dirk left taking the wholesomeness with him, and INC releasing SICK SAD LITTLE WORLD at him in return is quite intense. I'm sold, it must be so.

    And whoever previously noted the excellency of the live ver. in Alive At Red Rocks is spot on. the instrumental could carry a lifetime and i wouldn't bore from the passion poured into that.

    it is undeniable :: the best song after Alex's time.

    BUT I DIDN'T ANSWER THE QUESTION: What does this song mean to you?
    idk, but it gives me ample moments and the exact escape, to ponder on - what happened between Dirk & INC.
    Flag SummerRomance_n_808on February 10, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:There are some interesting interpretations here, but I think that the meaning is a little more objective. A Crow Left of the Murder has been acknowledged by Incubus as a more political album. (The album itself kind of says it: A murder is the noun for a collection of crows sort of like a flock, so the crow left of it implies rebellion of sorts). Anyway, back to the meaning: Based on what Incubus has said about the album and their ideas of war being an archaic means to solve probelms, I'm guessing that Sick Sad Little World is saying that we shouldn't shut ourselves into our own little world, but instead open our minds to the bigger picture. Kind of fits with the "out of love" bit also, because without love the world rots... Basically apathy only makes things worse.

    I still think it's more fun to apply the song to a more personal level. The song is really hypnotizing especially when you feel so apathetic about something, but it's kind of funny to fall into it with that perspective seeing as the song's message completely contradicts what you actually feel.
    Flag Devon854on December 17, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:it most definetly is about dirk, it has been said somewhere, that this was just an internal problem...i think brandon might have meant, an internal problem within the band, and he was jsut looking back on how dirk left...but then again, this whole cd was a self-reflection period for brandon and the band, they all did a lot of looking at themselves from the outside, and how they just felt like idiots...just like pointless. So it is either about Dirk(Alex) or about brandon's self reflection
    Flag WWKCD729on October 09, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Dirk Lance clearly fits the bill for being the target for this song. The lyrics actually help me learn about Dirk and how he is "always the first one to complain" and how he was just making a choice to not connect with his former friends. It sounded like Brandon and the rest of the band were trying to reach out and help him but he was wallowing in his self pity and just wanted to feel sorry for himself.

    I also think it's cool how this song, being the best on the album, is directed toward Dirk because one of the reasons he left (from what I collected) was that he was unhappy with the way the band was headed musically after Morning View (his last album) and here they come and produce one of their best songs ever written and its directed at him. A little payback and irony, I guess.
    Flag blindtones88on July 11, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I heard this song back when it first released (duh, bought the CD when it came out) and just listened to it again.

    I thought, "Yeah, obviously, it's about a overly-sensitive and depressed person" and listening to it again, it's still the same but I just noticed the lyrics a bit more this time around.

    I think the key is that the lyrics are out plain and simple yet there are intentions of more than one person speaking in the song. When I hear it (and this may not be new; if so, I just made an ass of myself), I think of it being intended this way:

    "The world is a drought/joke when out of love
    Please come back to us
    You're all of the above"
    "I'm making a choice to be out of touch.
    Leave me be," he said

    This leads me to believe that the first quoted area (again, just my interpretation) is Brandon saying to the depressed person that he's in his depressed state because he no longer believes in anyone caring about him and goes on to say that people (Brandon) really do care and that the "you're all of the above" means that there is a list of reasons and qualities why the person shouldn't be depressed.

    However, the person, being all depressed and all, doesn't care/believe what was said and justifies that it's his choice to cut himself off from the world and to just let him be. Looking back in my life and others who I've known who fell into suicidal depression, I find it very plausible that someone who already believes no one cares wouldn't believe ever his best friend if his best friend told him he was the greatest person in the world.

    I'll stop now. I forgot to even check if any of the lyrics in the other songs on this album included quotations when things are meant to be said by a specific person.
    Flag AesceticHyroon July 10, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I hear everyone talking about Mike during the solo, but what about Jose during the solo? He goes off. If you haven't, you need to listen to that part on headphones, with your eyes closed paying attention to everything that is going on. It is musical genius.
    Flag lestat86on June 12, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I enjoy this song so much. Dirk tore it up the whole 7 whatever minutes it played..now i haven't done a complete look over on the lyrics but when i listen to it ;it reminds me of a couple peopple i know that this year commited suicide. It sounds like the worlds a crazy place and some people just can't deal with the bullshit. but netheer the less it's an amazing song.
    Flag ROI3 SAYSon May 07, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Something i find interesting is the homophones "stark-raving" and "star-craving". I wonder whether it was intentional. It means little to us, of course, as we don't know the friends of Mr. Boyd to whom the song is addressed.
    Flag azkmon May 05, 2007   Link

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