Really good point about moving Get Hurt further down the track order and opening with Have Mercy. They really shot themselves in the foot making that an Apple-exclusive B-Side
I don't like those first 2 verses or the outro, but I like a few things about it: 1. The instrumental intro, the interplay of the guitar and the drums just works for me 2. I'm always a fan when Brian channels a bit of Chris Cornell in his vocals 3. This verse: And underneath the tyranny of August and her sons Who set fire from their fingertips In the holy vow of a teenage kiss Now we're much too old for this I don't feel those kinds of things So don't you cry for me I used to feel everything
I really don't like the lyrics on that song. Feels very "overwrought teenage poetry" to me. Sorry Brian! Sonically and vocally, I find the whole thing very overwrought in a way the rest of the album isn't, and I just don't think it fits. Everything people complain about "Too Much Blood" being on Handwritten, I think "Stay Paper" is that for Get Hurt.
It's definitely connected to "Too Much Blood" but I always liked that song too. I do see how it doesn't fit with the rest of the album, I just enjoy it on its own. Something about that "August and her sons" line just works for me. As for "Helter Skeleton", I think that one is fine, but to me it sounds like a re-tread of an American Slang-style song with diminishing returns.
I don't mind "Too Much Blood," even though I think it kind of crashes the momentum that album builds up so well over the first five tracks. I could make my peace with "Helter Skeleton," but I think it's just very clearly b-side level Gaslight. I actually like the chorus on that one, but the verses just don't work for me.