Human Sexual Response

Human Sexual Response was a Boston band formed in the early 80’s named after the famous/infamous book. The Boston music scene during that time was vibrant, energetic, and exciting with new Alternative and Hard Core bands popping up seemingly every day. Such bands as The Pixies, The Lemonheads, The Neighborhoods, Gang Green, Jerry’s Kids, Mission of Burma, etc. were all routinely playing at The Rat, The Middle East, TT the Bear’s Place and other places nightly.

Human Sexual Response never broke through and faded back into the ether within a couple of years (though they still do reunion shows now and then). One of their songs, which is a local cult classic, was entitled “Land of the Glass Pinecones.” There’s a couple of different origin stories over the years about the song. One was about the band members smashing bottles at the now defunct rock station WBCN. The other, which seems more likely, was that one member had hung a bunch of empty beer bottles from a tree and when the song writer saw them he yelled “Land of the Glass Pinecones” and immediately began writing the lyrics. Here's the vid:

Artistic inspiration is a fickle thing and who can say from where great art really derives? I woke up this morning with this song in my head and was thus inspired to write this post. The lyrics of this song are quite easy to understand in that they’re not garbled, etc.. However, what they mean is quite a different story. If listened to with the idea that pinecones have often been associated with the pineal gland and the pineal with the so-called 3rd eye, perhaps the song’s meaning becomes clearer. Let me know what you think of the song and if you have an alternative interpretation.

If nothing else, listen to the song. It is quite catchy.

Wow, good song. I'd not heard of this band before (love some of the other Boston-based groups you mentioned, though). The lead singer's voice reminds me a little bit of the guy who sings for the band Sparks. Thanks for this.

a reply to: TobyFlenderson

I thought this song was about beer bottles. A song about how broken glass is everywhere.

And then there's the reality ...



Not to say some art might not be dumped into this veeeeery mortal sphere as pearls among swine, but it was the 80's, man...
and you forgot The Cars in your great Boston band litany.

I liked these guys back when... two or three hit wonders.

a reply to: Baddogma

That's where the inspiration came from but you can't jibe the lyrics with that story. What about the mantra at the end, "My mind is golden inside". Of course, like most interpretative art, I'm applying my own experiences and knowledge to it.

As for the Cars, no thanks. I can't stand that band and never could. Also, they started out in the mid-70's so a generation or so before the bands I mentioned.

a reply to: TobyFlenderson

No doubt some higher consciousness involved with most artists ... and not to say those guys were dummies, but what I AM saying is most of the higher consciousness at that time was gained by chemical means and most of the songs were written to get laid and not as sign posts to the secrets of existence.