ACCELERATE: HOLLOW MAN

  'Hollow Man' is a very short song. Their second single off the album starts slow and then builds from 1st to 5th gear immediately. The idea that you make choices for yourself and then before you know it you're someone you never thought you'd be is rife with potential, but the song always goes by too quickly for me. It's good, but it's never really impacted me one way or another--I've seen some rumblings that many people consider it a great song on a resurgent album. That's totally cool. Like most of Michael's later lyrics, this song can take on many social meanings. Now I think this song is in conversation with a world getting away from binary standards--the character finding themselves behind as the social conventions pass them by. Cool video by Crush Inc below, the opinion on the song above comes from a tangential interview where the designers talk about discussing the meaning of the song with Michael. Love the complicated mess line.





HOLLOW MAN

I've been lost inside my head

Echoes fall off me

I took the prize last night for complicated mess

For saying things I didn't mean and don't believe

Believe in me, believe in nothing

Corner me and make me something

I've become the hollow man, have I become the hollow man I see?

I see this echoing

You had placed your trust in me

I went upside down

I emptied out the room in thirty seconds flat

I can't believe you held your ground

Believe in me, believe in nothing

Corner me and make me something

I've become the hollow man, have I become the hollow man I see?

I'm overwhelmed, I'm on repeat

I'm emptied out, I'm incomplete

You trusted me, I want to show you

I don't want to be the hollow man

Believe in me, believe in nothing

Corner me and make me something

I've become the hollow man, have I become the hollow man I see?

I see

   Not a lot to this song, part of it is piano only and the rest mostly chords and picking. There's a very Peter Buck bridge in there that feels 'Wolves, Lower'-ish which is very cool. Play along with the song to track the couple times he goes to the E chord out of rhythm.


HOLLOW MAN

Intro (Piano)

e|--------------------|

B|-7-5-9---7-5-9-7----|

G|----------------7-6-|

D|--------------------|

A|--------------------|

E|--------------------|

Verse (E-D-A)

e|-0--0--0--0---0--0----------|

B|-0---0--0--0--3---3-2-------|

G|-1-1--1--1--1-2-2----2-2-2--|

D|-2------------0-------2-2---|

A|-2--------------------------|

E|-0--------------------------|

e|-0--0--0--0---0--0--0---|

B|-0---0--0--0--3---3-0---|

G|-1-1--1--1--1-2-2---1---|

D|-2------------0-----2---|

A|-2------------------2---|

E|-0------------------0---|

Chorus

e|-0---0---4---2--|

B|-2---3---5---3--|

G|-2---2---6---4--|

D|-2---0---6---4--|

A|-0-------4---2--|

E|-0-------4---2--|

Bridge Guitar 1

e|--0--0--0---------0--0--0--0---|

B|---0--0--0-----0---7--7--7--7--|

G|----7--6--4-7-6--7--7--7--7----|

D|-7-----------------------------|

A|-------------------------------|

E|-------------------------------|

Bridge Guitar 2

e|----------------|

B|-3-5-9-7-5------|

G|----------7-6-7-|

D|----------------|

A|----------------|

E|----------------|

End on A