Song Details
- Album Release Date: 2012
- Genre: grindcore
Song Meaning of “I Work for the Streetcleaner” by Impetigo
I Work for the Streetcleaner is a song about how the life a person is living is motivated by a need for survival, in this case, working as a street cleaner. It can be seen as a metaphor for a person sacrificing themselves to survive and eventually getting trapped in a cycle of working to get by. The song opens with the line “Nobody’s paying the price no more, just a life of scraping the floor”, which paints a vivid image of the situation and contributes to the overall feeling of desperation. The chorus delves further into the struggles of such a life, “Working day and night, just to make ends meet, never enough, just barely scrape by with a nickel and a dime”. The lyrics serve as an exploration of how life can be pushed to a state where one is living for a literal job instead of something more fulfilling.
The song’s title is a tribute to the street cleaners, those who make the streets of cities and towns cleaner and better for the inhabitants. The reference serves to remind viewers of the importance of these jobs and how much people rely on them, further solidifying the idea of this person sacrificing time and energy just to get by. The overall message of the song is a sad yet powerful one. It speaks to the reality of getting stuck in a job that one hates but has to do in order to live. The song serves as a reminder for those feeling that same sense of desperation that they are not completely alone.