My Own Worst Enemy by Lit

Lit

      By 1999 the grunge era was pretty much over.  The rebellious flannel wearing musical idealists were now in their late 20's and early 30's.  Generally speaking as people mature their focus changes from themselves to career, family, and  stability.  They take time to assess who they are, where they came from, and where they're going.  But this isn't the only reason grunge, as a pure art form, was dying, so were many of it's most prominent and successful performers.  Layne Staley (Alice In Chains), Bradley Nowell (Sublime), Shannon Hoon (Blind Melon), and of course Kurt Cobain (Nirvanna) all passed away at very young ages.  While the fans were shocked and saddened these events led their surviving music industry associates as well as the next generation of musicians to re-assess who they are and what they wanted their future to look like.

Kurt Cobain's life & death influenced
the next generation of musicians

       Dave Grohl, Nirvanna's former drummer, knew he wanted to still make music as did bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers who had lost Hillel Slovak in 1988.  These bands, as well as many others, picked up the pieces, tried to set aside the lifestyle that claimed these young lives, and went on to chase their goal of making music.
       As the grunge era waned the influence it created on the next generation was just starting to bear fruit.  Bands like Matchbox 20, the Foo Fighters, 3 Doors Down, Everclear, & Better Than Ezra started moving grunge forward from it's roots into the future as it became the main stream of rock and roll.
       In 1999 a band calling itself Lit emerged from East LA County and spent 3 months at the top of the charts with their song My Own Worst Enemy.  The song tells the story about a guy who parties and gets so "lit" that he suffers a blackout.  During his black out he manages to tell off his girl friend, drive his car onto the front lawn, break into his own house through a window, and pass out with his clothes on.  The next day he awakens hungover and well aware that he is his own worst enemy but doesn't quite understand why he feels this overwhelming need to keep kicking himself.

Lit performs on Pam Anderson's ass

        Introspection has always been a subject that rock artists have explored.  Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys gave us In My Room and Until I Die, Everclear's Father Of Mine told the story about a guy who will always be lame and weird inside because of the abuse he suffered as a kid.  Sting famously, and quite pretentiously, declared himself the King of Pain.  Off Spring covered this ground in 1994 with their big hit Self Esteem and that is the song most closely related to My Own Worst Enemy.  Many of these artists were telling their audiences that living is what we are supposed to do.  Confronting your inner demons and over coming your past is a necessary albeit painful and sometimes embarrassing part of the process of growing up.
       While Lit might not have broken any new ground with their subject matter they did still manage to present the world with a song with a great guitar hook, strong rhythm, and humorous lyrics.  Anybody that's ever had next day regrets after partying too hard the night before could easily identify with the singer's plight.  Also, like all really great rock and roll the song it's just plain fun.  Please check out Lit performing My Own Worst Enemy.

Lit My Own Worst Enemy (explicit version) at amazon.com