Go to Hell, for Heaven's Sake by Bring Me The Horizon

Album: Sempiternal (2013)

License This Song

artistfacts

Songfacts®:

Bring Me The Horizon approached their songwriting for Sempiternal in a different manner than for their previous albums, the fruits of which can be seen on this track. Bassist Matt Kean explained to Sugarscape: "In the past we would go into one room and jam it out but it gets kind of like noisy and then when everyone is stuck and nobody has any ideas it can turn into - people start writing funny songs and you just kind of lose your concentration. So for this one, instead of going into a room to jam and play the songs we would pre-record riffs or keyboard parts or anything like that, then if there was a good part we'd record it on the computer directly. Then we had the idea and we could step back and think about it, like replay it and replay it in a loop or whatever, and think about it with more of a perspective. It definitely helped this time."
Vocalist Oli Sykes' lyrics for this song were inspired by his atheist views and an encounter with somebody who had a differing viewpoint. He explained to The Independent: "I obviously just don't believe in God. But I've had a lot a sorting myself out do, and it came to the point where I was put in a position where I asked to believe in God. I was asked to hand over my faith to God, and let someone try and help me. For me, I just thought 'are you serious?', because they thought my only reason to get better was because of God, that imaginary guy in the sky. That really struck a chord with me, and I thought of all the people around me trying to get better because of this reason, because of God. I didn't get it then and I still don't get it now. Everyone in the world, no matter who you are, knows what's right and what's wrong; you don't need anyone to tell you. You don't need a set of guidelines to tell you what's wrong; you know when you do it. That's how you should live your life, you shouldn't have to believe there's a fiery hell that you're going to, or there's a kingdom that you'll go to."
Sykes explained the song's meaning to The Sun: "It's written to sound like it is about someone I don't like and don't want to have a connection with any more," he said. "But it's a letter to myself, talking to the side of me that needed to be destroyed."

Comments: 1

Revrund from ScotlandOli Sykes dunno what sort of Christian you were talking to but they got it wrong.
"I was asked to hand over my faith to God, and let someone try and help me. For me, I just thought 'are you serious?', because they thought my only reason to get better was because of God, that imaginary guy in the sky. That really struck a chord with me, and I thought of all the people around me trying to get better because of this reason, because of God. I didn't get it then and I still don't get it now. Everyone in the world, no matter who you are, knows what's right and what's wrong..."

God is the One who has been around long enough to have a proper perspective on all of it.
He is either imaginary, or solid and very real.

He leaves us all to our own personal interests and decisions.
But absolute reality has concrete consequences.
It's not punishment, for a person who walks off a cliff to plummet to the ground below.
That's just common sense. The lemming who falls has no right to lift a hand to the sky and scream 'I hate you because of gravity!'

How messed-up we are is our own faults (with culpability of others who have 'done to us' in ways that contributed to how messed-up we have become)
God is all about relationship with real people that care about each other.
He cares and doesn't impose and lets each to their own way.
If you say He should stop evil, then be prepared to be forced to live in the concrete of His perfect perspective.
If you say leave us alone, then be prepared to live in a brutal world, where strength dictates culture.

If God is not there as you say, it doesn't matter.
If He is there, what's the harm in relating to someone who is good and fair and loving?

The only reason to get better, is 'being better'.

If the only way to find it is to 'check with the programmer about how the construct works', then why 'ignore the code'?
Hell is not punishment, it is just characterization of a 'tragically fragmented disc drive'.
Every decision, freely made, leading to a scrambled useless end, unless someone can fix it.
(insert some theology here)

see more comments

More Songfacts:

Sister ChristianNight Ranger

"Sister Christian" was written by Night Ranger drummer Kelly Keagy, who was imploring his younger sister to be careful in her reckless youth, especially when "motoring" (driving around) with friends.

99 ProblemsJay-Z

Jay-Z's version of "99 Problems" is a cover of a 1993 song by Ice-T with the lyrics changed to be about Jay's rise to fame.

CelebrationKool & the Gang

"Celebration" by Kool & the Gang has a deeper meaning - it was inspired by a verse in the Quran where angels celebrate as God creates man.

Do The BartmanThe Simpsons

"Do The Bartman," released at the peak of Simpsons-mania, has uncredited backup vocals by Michael Jackson, who later appeared on the show.

You Don't Know How It FeelsTom Petty

MTV reversed the word "joint" in Tom Petty's "You Don't Known How It Feels" so it was unintelligible, but gave the video a VMA anyway.

Breakin'... There's No Stopping UsOllie & Jerry

Jean-Claude Van Damme was an extra in the video for Ollie & Jerry's "Breakin'... There's No Stopping Us." He can be seen at point dancing in the background.