Everything Is Average Nowadays by Kaiser Chiefs Lyrics Meaning – Dissecting Apathy in Modern Mediocrity
Lyrics
Everything is average nowadays
Everything is average nowadays
Everyone would do it if they can
And everything is going down the pan
And everyone is following the craze
And everything is average
Now you say it’s getting better
But I don’t really see the signs
Said it is too different
You thought it would be suicide
Not much to believe in
Left up on a shelf
So get your coats we’re leaving
We’ll just do something else
Ohhhh everything is average nowadays
Everything is average nowadays
And everything is of no consequence
‘Cos everyone is sitting on the fence
And everything will always stay the same
‘Cos everything is average
Now you said you didn’t mean it
You threw away the book of rules
You thought that we should read it
I wouldn’t even know how to
Not much to believe in
Left up on the shelf
So get your coats we’re leaving
We’ll just do something else
All I need is a ball and a wall
Or a sledge and a hill in heavy weather
All I need is a ball and a wall
A sledge and a hill in heavy weather
Oh oh oh oh etc.
Not much to believe in
Left up on the shelf
So get your coats we’re leaving
We’ll just do something else
Sooooooooooooooooooooooo
Everything is average nowadays
Everything is average nowadays
Everyone would do it if they can
And everything is going down the pan
And everyone is following the craze
And everything is average nowadays
In the throes of an era saturated with boundless information and relentless stimulation, the Kaiser Chiefs’ ‘Everything Is Average Nowadays’ emerges not merely as a song, but as a societal critique wrapped in catchy melodies. The track, a sharp jab at the pervasive mediocrity encasing our time, gallivants through the ears with an upbeat tempo that juxtaposes its underlying lament.
Pouring over the lyrics, one senses a relentless struggle with the banality of the normalized, the acceptance of the mediocre as the standard. The anthem becomes a mirror held up to a culture content with ‘average,’ casting shadows on the lackluster landscape of modern ambition, begging the question — where has the extraordinary gone?
The Relentless Quest for Mediocrity
Kaiser Chiefs punctuate the zeitgeist of our times with a deceptively simple chorus, hammering in the message that ‘everything is average nowadays.’ The repetition is hypnotic, numbing — precisely mirroring the societal malaise the song criticizes. The notion that ‘everyone would do it if they can’ reflects a culture of following rather than leading, a herd mentality that culminates in a world bereft of innovation.
Through their lyrics, Kaiser Chiefs don’t just observe the world; they interrogate it. The average is not presented as a mere observation but as a malady. In the submission to the average, they warn of a future ‘going down the pan,’ a downward spiral fed by the unwillingness to pursue anything beyond the ordinary, even if that means losing sight of what truly matters.
The Enigmatic Lament of Lost Passion
The narrative voice in ‘Everything Is Average Nowadays’ resonates with the lack of enthusiasm that paints our daily experiences. By asserting that ‘not much to believe in [is] left up on the shelf,’ the protagonist of the song highlights the desolate landscape of modern convictions. There is no grand cause to rally behind, nor any great passion to follow; our collective shelf is bare.
This emptiness spirals into a call to ‘get your coats we’re leaving,’ suggesting an escape, a search for something more than this pervasive averageness. Yet, the escape leads only to undefined alternatives — ‘we’ll just do something else’ — emphasizing the uncertainty and the absence of a clear path to what is genuinely fulfilling or meaningful in life.
Simple Pleasures in a Complex World
Hidden within the lamenting lyrics is a glimmer of clarity in the form of a simple, yet potent pair of lines: ‘All I need is a ball and a wall / Or a sledge and a hill in heavy weather.’ Here, Kaiser Chiefs invoke the allure of simplicity within a complex world. These lines stand out in their raw desire for unadulterated joy, untainted by the modern world’s complexity.
It’s a stark reminder that sometimes the antidote to the ‘average’ ailment lies not in grandiosity but in the return to the basic joys of life. This harkening to childhood innocence and uncomplicated happiness serves as both a nostalgic nod and a potential prescription for the hollow feeling imparted by the pressures of contemporary existence.
Songs that Hold up a Mirror to Society
Oftentimes, music serves the function of chronicling the zeitgeist, and ‘Everything Is Average Nowadays’ is a commendable exemplar of this tradition. It is not comfortable listening — it’s a musical confrontation that exposes the lackluster mindset overtaking society. Like the best social anthems, it harnesses the power of anthemic hooks to needle at complacency.
The song stands as a stark reminder that although the collective ‘we’ settles for ‘average,’ there was, and perhaps still is, an aspiration for something greater. And within this musical cry lies a beacon, a call to arms for the individual and the masses to wake from their slumber and reclaim the exceptional.
Memorable Lines and their Enduring Echo
‘And everyone is following the craze / And everything is average’ — these lyrics crystallize the cyclical nature of mediocrity as being not just a phase but a persistent ‘craze’ that society is too quick to adopt, as we eschew the exceptional for the comfort of the collective norm.
The Kaiser Chiefs create an indelible and biting commentary with ‘Everything Is Average Nowadays,’ infusing a sardonic wit into the pop-rock format. It’s a song that stops you in your tracks, compelling you to ponder deeply on its resonant message long after the music fades.
