Never Again (Nickelback song)

"Never Again"
Song

"Never Again" is a song/single released by Nickelback, and the first track of their first commercial album Silver Side Up. It was released in 2002. It became a #1 hit on the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, making it the band's third straight number one on this chart.

Lyrical analysis

"Never Again" deals with the issue of domestic abuse. The events depicted in the song are seen through the eyes of a child who regularly watches his mother being brutally abused and assaulted by her violent husband (who comes home drunk and in a violent mood). The speaker's age is evidenced in the lines

I hear her scream
from down the hall...
She cries to me,
"Go back to bed"

By the second verse, the mother's injuries have brought her to the hospital, where she lies to the nurse about their source (claiming to have "slipped and fallen"). The nurse, however, is not convinced that her injuries are sustained by a simple fall, and suspects that she is the victim of domestic violence, hence the lines

She looks at you
She wants the truth

Since the song is in the eyes of the son, his father's violent actions towards his mother causes him to develop a deep hatred for his father. This is evidenced in the bridge to the third verse:

Father's a name you haven't earned yet
You're just a child with a temper

The lyrics also suggest that he plans to beat up his father when he grows up in retribution:

Kicking your ass would be a pleasure

By the third verse, the mother is about to face this brutal situation yet again; only this time, she grabs the gun and shoots her husband in self-defense.

Track Listing

1. Never Again 2. Breathe (Live) 3. Old Enough (Live)

Reactions

While "Never Again" was not commercially released (being a single that was not promoted compared with Nickelback's later songs) the song does have somewhat of a controversial background. The song itself was deemed as too violent by some and even a little too graphic in the sense that the mother grabs the gun and kills her husband. However, it should be noted that nowhere in the song is the graphic nature of the brutal beating ever described and that the line in the first verse "The living room becomes a boxing ring" describes to the audience that an act of violence is about to occur.

"Never Again" is also highly praised for the realism that it describes. For the most part, the song captures the true moments that one goes through during a domestic violence situation. It best describes the uneasiness of the situation and that for the better of the song, most of it is true.

The song also gains the distinction of being one of only three Nickelback songs containing the expletive "fuck", the others being "Yanking Out My Heart", and "Window Shopper". The word is heard in the third verse "She grabs the gun, she's had enough. Tonight she'll find out, how fucking tough is this man...".

The topic of domestic violence in this song would later be used in Nickelback's later single "Figured You Out", which also touches on the topic.

"Never Again"'s upbeat rock rhythm is also quite noticeable with the heavy drumming and prominent bass riff. Most commonly, the beat is usually featured on Channel Ten's "Sports Tonight" news show in Australia.

Music video

Nickelback originally had a music video made for the song, but the video was banned from showing on music channels as it was deemed too violent. Instead, footage from Live at Home was shown as an alternative.

Live shows

• Nickelback tends to play this song quicker in live shows.