"The Riff" is a song by Finnish hard rock band Lordi. It is the first and only single from the album To Beast or Not to Beast, released on 8 February 2013.[1] The band has also made a music video for the song.[2] It's also the first Lordi song that has been released also as an official lyrics video.[1]
| "The Riff" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Lordi | ||||
| from the album To Beast or Not to Beast | ||||
| Released | 8 February 2013 | |||
| Genre | Hard rock, heavy metal | |||
| Length | 3:47 | |||
| Label | Sony Music | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Tracy Lipp, Amen, Mr Lordi | |||
| Producer(s) | Michael Wagener | |||
| Lordi singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "The Riff" on YouTube | ||||
Lordi performed "The Riff" in a German television competition Wok WM in 2013.[3] The song is also featured in a Pinball Rocks app game.[4]
Track listing
edit- "The Riff" (3:47)
Music video
editThe music video of "The Riff" was filmed exclusively in Czech Republic, in a local supermarket Albert. The video was filmed by Martin Muller. A Czech playmate Dominika Jandlova is featured in the video. The music video got censored by the label Sony Music; they didn't let Dominika Jandlova appear naked in the video.[5]
The song
editThe lyrics speak figuratively about a near-death experience narrated in the first person. The narrator meets and is offered transport by the grim reaper, which he tries to refuse. The grim reaper insists he "take a peek", referencing visions of the afterlife frequently encountered in near-death experiences. The grim reaper plays a song on guitar and asks the narrator for his honest opinion, to which he uncomfortably replies that "the riff is a killer, but the rest is a throw-away". The grim reaper subsequently dies, and the narrator plagiarises his song, signifying resuscitation and drawing inspiration from the experience.[6]
References
edit- ^ a b "The Riff (2013)". LORDI Army. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
- ^ "Lordi – The Riff video released". Blabbermouth.net. March 2013. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
- ^ "Lordi in TV-shows". LORDI Army. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
- ^ "The Riff on Pinball Rocks app game on the appstore". Lordi.fi. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
- ^ "The Riff music video (2013)". LORDI Army. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
- ^ "Lyrics To Beast or Not to Beast". LORDI Army. Retrieved 2 February 2014.