Metal

Track 29 on The Best Of Gary Numan 1978-1983

Producer

Gary has said that he wrote this song about a machine that was almost, but not quite human. It was inspired by a newspaper story about cybernetics and building partially… Read More

Sep. 7, 19791 viewer18.7K views

Metal Lyrics

[Verse 1]
We're in the building where they make us grow
And I'm frightened by the liquid engineers
Like you
My Mallory heart is sure to fail
I could crawl around the floor just like I'm real
Like you
The sound of metal
I want to be you
I could learn to be a man
Like you
Plug me in
And turn me on
Oh, everything is moving

[Verse 2]
I need my treatment, it's tomorrow they send me
Singing, "I am an American"
Do you?
Picture this, if I could make the change
I'd love to pull the wires from the wall
Did you?
And who are you? And how can I try?
Here inside, I like metal
Don't you?
All I know
Is no one dies
I'm still confusing love with need

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About

Genius Annotation

Gary has said that he wrote this song about a machine that was almost, but not quite human. It was inspired by a newspaper story about cybernetics and building partially organic computers. The lyrics are all in the first person: it is the machine itself that narrates for us over the backdrop of analog synths and mechanized sounds.

Metal has been re-imagined and re-worked by many notable bands such as Nine Inch Nails, Kanga, and Afrika Bambaataa, and is widely recognized as one of his most iconic and underrated masterpieces. In the US, it was the B-Side of the Cars 45-RPM record.

The Track METAL is pure science fiction. One of the images actually came from an advert for Castor Oil. Their slogan used to be Liquid Engineering, so i stole that and out of it into a song about a robot’s desire to be human."

— Gary Numan, from The Pleasure Principle re-release liner notes

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

whose idea was it to play and do it live with NIN?

Genius Answer

According to Gary Numan’s biographical movie Android in La La Land (2016), Gary’s wife Gemma collaborated with Trent Reznor’s wife Mariqueen Maandig to get the two of them together and have Gary guest appear at the 2008 NIN concert in the United States. Gary also appeared with NIN at the O2 Arena in London on 7/15/2009 as well after the successful US appearance.

It was, however, Trent Reznor’s idea to cover Gary Numan’s Metal in the first place.

Who produced “Metal” by Gary Numan?

When did Gary Numan release “Metal”?

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