Billie is Broken in “Bury a Friend”

By EMILY PAOLICELLI
Arts Editor

Billie Eilish takes the perspective of the monster under her bed in her newest single, “bury a friend.” The 17 year old phenomenon released the gruesome, yet toe-tapping song on Jan. 30, 2019.

The song itself is extremely dark in terms of both lyrics and composition, and could easily be used in the soundtrack of a supernatural horror film. The use of abrasive, screeching sound effects and furniture-rattling bass makes the song physically uncomfortable to listen to at a high volume, although listening at a high volume may bring about the best experience.

Eilish layers a prismizer-like effect over her vocals, which are sung at a level just north of a whisper. Her quiet, muddled singing and low, grumbling added vocals from Crooks give the listener the impression that she may be hiding from someone or something, likely the monster under her bed. This is the visual theme that Eilish has incorporated into both the lyrics of the song and the music video; in fact, even the album art consists of Eilish sitting in a dark room on a white bed in all white clothing. Her eyes are completely white and she has an unsettling grin on her face, implying that the girl on the bed is not really Eilish, but her monster.

On first listen, the opening lines of the song appear to depict Eilish being interrogated by her monster: “What do you want from me? Why don’t you run from me? What are you wondering? What do you know? Why aren’t you scared of me? Why do you care for me? When we all fall asleep, where do we go?” With enough deliberation, however, it can also be interpreted as a conversation between the two.

Further into the song, we hear lyrics explicitly clueing the listener into the mental state that Eilish is in. A phrase that is repeated throughout the song is “I wanna end me;” other troubling lyrics include “today I’m thinkin’ about the things that are deadly” and “honestly, I thought that I would be dead by now.” Eilish seems to think these feelings are a result of the pressure she feels from fame, as the entirety of the second verse tells us.

Eilish has been releasing tracks that seem to be growing darker as they come, especially in contrast with some of her earlier songs. While her content has never been necessarily happy, her themes and lyrics are becoming less anecdotal and much more personal and psychological.

The music video is also dark, both figuratively and literally, and much like the song itself, would not seem out of place in the middle of a horror film. With demonic, inhuman, and grotesque depictions, we watch Eilish admit that she is actually the monster under her bed. This interpretation brings an added layer to the much repeated lyric “I wanna end me;” it not only means that Eilish may be partaking in self-destructive behaviors, but that she has split herself in two, with one self, the monster, actively hurting and threatening the other. Regardless of the interpretation, Eilish is obviously in a dark place that only seems to be getting darker for her.

Eilish’s album, “WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?” will be released on March 29, 2019.