The age of early-2000s grunge angst is behind us, but maybe it’s not totally dead. When “Animal I Have Become” was released it encapsulated a specific time in music, where emo-rock hair was popular and the teens were yelling at their parents that “it’s not just a phase”. This song in particular has grown to emanate the same image that comes from a middle-aged guy who calls himself a “lone wolf” just because he can’t stay away from cheap beer long enough to hold down a girlfriend. Even the music video is a relic of a time that has become dated, not quite to the point of being old-fashioned but definitely obsolete.

Yet, despite all of that, I still love it. Right away, the intro nails the mood. The repeated riff echoes the repetition of someone trapped in a cage, running in mental circles to get out. The chorus follows with an explosion of emotion. I personally don’t think the lyrics are particularly groundbreaking, the songwriter begging for help to restrain himself and “the animal” he has become, but that’s not so important for me. What really impacts me about this song is the emotion. It is one of the few songs that I listen to that gives the me the push I need to get started with my day, to start working something I don’t want to do, get get up and get going. I understand that this probably isn’t the intention of the songwriter, but I appreciate it nonetheless. Even so, sometimes what I need is to address that little bit of residual angst that remains from my own teenage years. Sometimes, even as an adult, I relate a little bit to the “animal” that’s “caged inside”. And, personally, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.

– Kyle