“Knocked Around” is the song that provided veteran alternative rock band Dinosaur Jr. with the name of their eleventh studio album Give a Glimpse of What Yer Not (2016). The track begins on a mellow and contemplative note, as lead vocalist Mascis gently repeats “And I miss you all the time” against a mid-tempo beat:
'Can I look a while?Can I walk a while beside?Will you see me throughTrying but I can't get to youPicked another lovePicked another troubled timeWhen explain so longGives a glimpse of while the timeAnd I miss you all the timeAnd I miss you all the timeI got knocked aroundLet me gather what I foundAnd I'm leaving nowGive a glimpse of what you know'Cause I miss you all the time'Cause I miss you all the timeAnd I miss you all the time'Cause I miss you all the time'
Lyrics: Genius
At the 2:40 mark, the track abruptly switches into a louder and edgier intensity, aided by distorted guitars and gritty anguish in Mascis’ vocals. It culminates in a prolonged guitar solo, which fleshes out the more agonising aspects of separation anxiety:
'Cause I miss youAnd I'm lonelyAnd I've fought enoughFor my loveAnd I read throughYou won't hold meNow that's long enoughCaught upLet's get intoWhat you showed meYou've done everythingExcept our loveI've grown cold hereWhile you hold meYes I've fought enoughIn our love'
The track is accompanied by live footage from the band’s tour, courtesy of a filmmaker known as O:
"This song is one of my favorites […] It is everything amazing about Dinosaur Jr.: soft yet hard with J's awesome sense of vocal melody and a heavy dose of guitar schralping! I shot the entire video live while on the most recent US tour, and in slow-mo and black and white to capture the way I see tour life. This is a very hardworking band - Dinosaur Jr. had no idea I was doing this, so what you see is very honest and all live, shot at many venues across the US with different types of cameras. 'Knocked Around' is my take, and what I get from the song about being far away from family”.
Christopher Roberts, Under the Radar
