The Meaning Behind “Violet” by Hole and an Epic Cover by Slayyyter

When Hole released Live Through This in 1994, it seemed like Courtney Love had found another gear, and this new level was noticeable immediately on the album-opening track “Violet”.

I mention this because of Slayyyter’s epic cover of the song, which I’ll link to here. It contains all the fury of the 90s zeitgeist with the wryness of her recent album Worst Girl In America.

Behind the Lyrics

Writing abstractly, Love sets a dark scene here while foreshadowing Kurt Cobain’s opening lyric in “Heart-Shaped Box”, “She eyes me like a Pisces when I am weak.”

Next, she aims bitterly toward an ex.

And the sky was made of amethyst,
And all the stars were just like little fish.
You should learn when to go,
You should learn how to say no.

The painful encounter is short-lived, but the heartbreak lingers.

Might last a day, yeah,
Mine is forever.

In a voice that’s slightly resigned, Love suggests a pattern of bad relationships.

When they get what they want,
And they never want it again.

Then she rages against the emotional and physical toll of dating jerks.

Go on, take everything,
Take everything, I want you to.

Well, I Told You From the Start

For those who know a thing or two about Love’s personal life, many have speculated that “Violet” is about The Smashing Pumpkins’ leader Billy Corgan. In 1995, when Hole performed the song on Later… With Jools Holland, she introduced it by saying: “This is a song about a jerk. I hexed him, and now he’s losing his hair.”

And the sky was all violet,
I want to give the violent more violence.
Yeah, I’m the one with no soul,
One above and one below.

However, in 2024, she told the NME that “It’s not just about Billy Corgan, as many might assume; it’s about sitting on the fire escape of his flat, sipping cheap wine and taking a Vicodin (oh, to be young!) while the Chicago sun sets, leaving behind a bejeweled amethyst sky.”

And regarding the bitter curse she mentioned on Later, “Sometimes I just channel whatever comes. I realize my comment on Jools Holland was a bit mean – I was just being b**chy beefy. But someone has to uphold the standards of good faith beef!”

Well, I told you from the start,
Just how this would end.
When I get what I want,
Then I never want it again.

Photo by Jim Steinfeldt/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images