Shout out loud some underground, punk & rock wedding readings

July 17, 2017 1:54 PM

On the hunt for some non-secular, underground writings and/or punk or rock n' roll lyrics that would be stellar for a wedding reading. Long or short. Poem-like or not.

I've read allll the wonderful previouslies that have suggestions, but I'm looking for readings that have less of a flowery 'man and wife'

Specifically, I want something that has the feel and flavor of Aaron Cometbus' Punk Rock Love Is..., or some great lyrics by the Replacements or Husker Du or The Kinks. Something that hammers home a more unconventional, atheist ceremony that still represents the love and hope for the future that my partner and I feel for each other.

Profanity and adult topics OK. Other bands that aren't officially branded Punk™ absolutely welcome -- just wanted to give a flavor for some hard-rocking guitar as a preference, but hell -- Neil Diamond's Delirious Love and Bob Dylan's Forever Young fit the bill, too.

Would love your collective loving brainstorm. Thanks in advance!

posted by knownassociate to Media & Arts (14 answers total)

Response by poster: HA, ah crap -- I meant 'SECULAR' not 'non-secular.' No god stuff.
posted by knownassociate at 1:57 PM on July 17, 2017

The Entire Frank Turner Catalog, basically.

"Get Better"

I'm trying to get better because I haven't been my best
She took a plain black marker, started writing on my chest
She drew a line across the middle of my broken heart
And said, come on now, let's fix this mess
We could get better
Because we're not dead yet

"To Take You Home"

So honey when you're lonely on the road, you're all on your own
Hanging outside at the back of the country show
Picture me there with hat down low
A smile upon my face to let you know
That I would like to take you home
That I would like to take you home, to the hills that I know
I would like to take you home, to the places I go
I would like to take you home

Hits & Mrs is a good one also . .I mean, a lot of his stuff is about relationships. It's what I sort of jokingly refer to as "punk rock for adults" in that it's largely about things that concern you once you get a bit older.
posted by Medieval Maven at 2:06 PM on July 17, 2017 [3 favorites]

Ben Folds' The Luckiest has been a wedding go-to for a long time now.

Romantic punk songs are one of my specialties and I'm a little overwhelmed with the possibilities. Can you give us more info on the couple/family?
Man/woman? 2 men? 2 ladies? Other?
How old are they?
Is Jawbreaker something they loved when it came out or is it oldies?
Is emo a no-no?
And can it range more indie like Liz Phair to Waxahatchee?

Help narrow this down so I can give you less than a database of ideas. :)
posted by littlewater at 2:14 PM on July 17, 2017 [3 favorites]

I walked down the aisle to The Velvet Underground's "I'll Be Your Mirror."

Lyrics:

I'll be your mirror
Reflect what you are, in case you don't know
I'll be the wind, the rain and the sunset
The light on your door to show that you're home
When you think the night has seen your mind
That inside you're twisted and unkind

Let me stand to show that you are blind
Please put down your hands...
Cause I see you...

I find it hard to believe you don't know
The beauty that you are
But if you don't let me be your eyes
A hand in your darkness, so you won't be afraid
When you think the night has seen your mind
That inside you're twisted and unkind

Let me stand to show that you are blind
Please put down your hands...
Cause I see you...

I'll be your mirror

(But yah - if you can provide more specifics about y'all as a couple, I could probably provide more!)
posted by functionequalsform at 2:28 PM on July 17, 2017 [6 favorites]

The Psychedelic Furs, Fall:

You will have a dress of white
You will have a ring of gold
You will have a paper snow
We'll fall

See the wall
The wall is black
We will have a heart attack
We will be alone and
We'll fall, we'll fall, we'll fall

Fall in love like sailors do
Tell your lover you'll be true
Sail upon the stupid sea
We'll fall

You will have a sheet of red
Paint the trees, the trees are dead
We will be alone and
We'll fall, we'll fall, we'll fall, we'll fall

Marry me and be my wife
You can have me all your life
Our love will never end
Parties for our stupid friends

Are the children really home?
We will lie upon the lawn
Needles on the beach at Goa
We will have another flower
We will be a part of structure
You will have a face of structure
We will make ourselves a scene
We will live our stupid dream

I am you and you are me
Tie me down I will be free
Our love will never end...
posted by the return of the thin white sock at 4:12 PM on July 17, 2017 [3 favorites]

"Our Wedding" by Crass.

All I am I give to you
You’ll honor me, I’ll obey you
Rich or poor or come what may
We’ll forsake all other love
Just we two, one flesh, one blood
In the eyes of god
I am yours to have & hold
I’m giving you my lie….

Never look at anyone, anyone but me
Never look at anyone, I must be all you see
Listen to those wedding bells
Say goodbye to other girls
I’ll never be untrue my love
Don’t be untrue to me

Here's the story about the flexidisc from the old Loving magazine.
posted by kendrak at 4:27 PM on July 17, 2017 [2 favorites]

The Reasons by The Weakerthans
posted by FakePalindrome at 4:36 PM on July 17, 2017 [1 favorite]

John Cooper Clark's poem I Wanna Be Yours was recorded as a song by Arctic Monkeys.

Arctic Monkeys - I Wanna Be Yours
posted by fireandthud at 9:06 PM on July 17, 2017 [1 favorite]

Might need to slightly adjust the lyrics to make it a little more one-on-one but I always get the warm fuzzies from Cock Sparrer's We're Coming Back:

We're coming back, we're coming back
We're coming back to you
We're never gonna go away again
Hold on a little longer, try a little harder
'Til we're arm in arm together to the end

So remember, out there somewhere
You've got a friend, and you'll never walk alone again
posted by jeweled accumulation at 11:13 PM on July 17, 2017 [1 favorite]

Calling Cake punk would be...a stretch. But I've always thought Love You Madly would make an excellent wedding song. And Nothing With You by the Descendants is a cute kind of love song also.

If you really want to go full tilt unconventional love song, Stuck With You by Voltaire and Amanda Palmer is a lot of fun. And I know you said no god stuff, but I'll admit one of the first things that sprang to mind when I read this was Into My Arms by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.
posted by helloimjennsco at 5:48 AM on July 18, 2017 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: You guys are SO AWESOME. Stellar. Here are a few more details:

- man/woman, both in their early thirties
- met riding bicycles across the U.S.
- she plays guitar and he plays drums
- Jawbreaker is one of her absolute, all-time favorite bands, so use this as your barometer (and suggest some Jawbreaker gems, too!)
- emo isn't a no, but not particularly looking for a Bright Eyes type feel
- Liz Phair and Waxahatchee definitely work
- love the poem-recorded-as-song idea, so definitely chip in some more plain old writings, too!
- particularly love the Frank Turner (who absolutely is a more mature person's punker), Crass, Cake, Descendants, and Cock Sparrer suggestions but they are ALL stellar

THANKS! Keep em coming!
posted by knownassociate at 6:40 AM on July 18, 2017

Ha, my SO and I used to joke that we'd get Converge to play at our wedding. That didn't happen, but I still think it would have been cool.

My couple suggestions:

Bloc Party - "Ion Square"

Ion square, perspex swings
I breathe out, you breathe in
Permanent midnight
Our love, our love
How we've come to depend
On each other to the end
The space between us has disappeared
You finish my, you finish my words for me
I remember how it began
So many great days in a row
Barefoot on Bishopsgate
Trying to find Blake's grave
If we could stay like this in a silver foil
Trapped in amber for a life
Permanent midnight
Our love, our love
I carry your heart here with me
I carry it in my heart
I carry your heart with me
I carry it in my heart
Who said unbroken happiness
Is a bore, is a bore?
Who said it, my love? I don't mind it
Anymore, anymore
And I reach out a hand over your side of the bed
Pull that blanket over your shoulders exposed to the night
And the hunger of those early years will never return
But I don't mind, I don't mind
Cause I love my mind when I'm fucking you
Slowed down to a crawl
Years of crime and the bread line
Have not at all dimmed your shine
So let's stay in, let the sofa be our car
Let's stay in, let the TV be our stars
I found my dancing shoes but they don't fit
All the bright lights do is bore me
They bore me
I carry your heart here with me
I carry it in my heart
I carry your heart with me
I carry it in my heart


Whirr - "Lean"

I like when you sing to me
Watching your hips take lead
I want you to feel loose
Shoot me with those eyes
Brushing down your thighs
I can't help but want you

My hands around you
Your lips I'll lean to
I'm thrilled about you

Red to our cheeks
Bliss down our feet
I won't spin without you
Hold you close and tight
Thirst quenched with mine
Temptation surrounds through

My hands around you
Your lips I'll lean to
I'm thrilled about you

I've been waiting for you
posted by daisy55 at 9:49 AM on July 18, 2017 [1 favorite]

I've been thinking about this and talking about it.
My husband pointed out that often without the entirety of the song, the big riff, the well-timed drum, the singer's delivery in a whisper or a wail, the lyrics often fall flat on the page.

Besides I'm sure you can recite all of the songs you fell in love to, or songs that will always be with you.

So I'm giving you some actual poetry from Kim Addonizio. There's more from her books, or maybe you'll like Sharon Olds or Adrienne Rich.
But this poem has always had a lot of tender punkness, and would be gorgeous read out loud.

First Poem for You
BY KIM ADDONIZIO
I like to touch your tattoos in complete
darkness, when I can’t see them. I’m sure of
where they are, know by heart the neat
lines of lightning pulsing just above
your nipple, can find, as if by instinct, the blue
swirls of water on your shoulder where a serpent
twists, facing a dragon. When I pull you

to me, taking you until we’re spent
and quiet on the sheets, I love to kiss
the pictures in your skin. They’ll last until
you’re seared to ashes; whatever persists
or turns to pain between us, they will still
be there. Such permanence is terrifying.
So I touch them in the dark; but touch them, trying.
posted by littlewater at 4:43 PM on July 18, 2017 [1 favorite]

> Jawbreaker gems

You know Busy, right? There's also Chesterfield King.
posted by salvia at 6:10 PM on July 18, 2017 [1 favorite]