https://youtu.be/keMBtyjYUPQ?si=70h1ymwLnG5geFu4
Starset - Perfect Machine
I've already explained how Starset is probably my favourite band, and touched on why Perfect Machine stands out above the rest, but I'll go a little deeper here.
To recap, Starset is a science rock band. In the same way Christian rock bands sing about their faith, these folks sing about technological developments and the duality that comes with it. There's a heavy electronic rock influence throughout that airs on the sci-fi end, and the lyrics are wrought with warnings and commentary about where we might head as a society if left unchecked. They're perfectly placed as technology is progressing faster than ever before.
Buried in Divisions (2019), Perfect Machine wasn't a single, but it probably should've been. It's one of the lighter songs with an intentionally apathetic tone. The vocals are meant to sound somewhat robotic from the perspective of a machine, which is really emphasised with effects in the chorus.
It's the lyrics that stand out to me more than anything. Particularly:
"Show me your insides
Show me your secrets
Show me what you desire
I can fake it
Show what you wanted
So I can be it
And if I bend just right
I can make it"
and
"I'm just a liar
Without deceiving
I'm just a broken clown
Make believing
I should've let you know
You should've ran for cover
I'm just a parlor trick
A two-bit counterfeit"
and
"Lay your heart into my perfect machine
I will show you what you wanted to see
Just a mirror 'til I get what I need
The reverie was not of me
You never saw nothing
Never saw nothing"
On the surface, it's an abusive relationship, with someone conforming and pretending to make something work. There are references to manipulation, and it's clear that, whatever it is, it isn't healthy.
Having worked in privacy and security media when this came out, I had a slightly different interpretation. It's still all the above, but rather than with another person, it's our relationship with technology. Everyone and their dog tries to siphon as much data as possible with the promise of something in return, but what you get is very little. Advertisers will do anything, including bending over backwards to get everything they can, but in the end, you're left feeling increasingly hollow. Considering the Cambridge Analytica scandal surfaced in 2018, just a year before the album came out, and Starset is incredibly lore-based, I believe it's a direct inspiration. It hits home for me like no other song given its timing in my life and how passionate I am about the subject.
