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“I'll buy a Range Rover just to run you over and call you out.”
A wise woman once said, “Why’d you have to go and make things so complicated? I see the way you’re acting like you’re somebody else, it makes me frustrated.”
That unforgettable line from Avril Lavigne’s seminal classic “Complicated” — alongside a slew of others from the golden age of her catalog — inarguably cemented her as one of pop-punk’s most intuitive songwriters, able to distill a generation’s-worth of angst, turmoil, and emotional turbulence through her own unpretentious and straightforward storytelling.
Flash-forward 20 years, and Lavigne has picked up her weighty pen again with Love Sux, her first album since 2019 and her first pop-punk-centered project in, well, a while. But revisiting the record’s buoyant, energy-filled 12 tracks, the time in between then suddenly feels like no time at all, her idiosyncratic voice shining through the records’ stories about love, break-ups, and setting your exes clothes on fire.
From memorable one-liners like “I'll buy a Range Rover just to run you over and call you out,” to multi-line explorations of feeling down and out, Lavigne’s songwriting is concise, vivid, and at-times outrageously punchy in the best way.
Below, NYLON picked the 12 most emo and peak pop-punk lyrics from Love Sux that’ll have you wishing the Myspace status bar was still a thing.
“Cannonball”
You did me dirty, now I'm gonna live a life without you/ I just wrote a song that goes, I don't give a fuck about ya/ And I'll be happy if we never speak again/ I just deleted every memory from inside of my head
There’s just something about the physicality and drama of “I just deleted every memory from inside of my head” that really tickles me.
“Bois Lie”
You've got a sharp tongue, like a razor blade/ You put a knife into my back and try to write your name
Remember that era of the internet when everyone was obsessed with putting razor blades and knives in places they shouldn’t have been? Anyway, this is the lyrical manifestation of that time.
“Bite Me”
So come pick up your clothes from the front yard/ Sprinklers on, burn the rest in the backyard/ Shoulda had the guts just to say goodbye/ Now you're gonna have regrets for the rest of your life
Mostly, we can’t get over the vividness of this lyric.
“Love It When You Hate Me”
Shoulda seen the red flags, but for you, I'm f*ckin' blind
This is the pop-punk version of the Bojack quote: “When you look at someone through rose-colored glasses, all the red flags just look like flags.”
“Love Sux”
Am I a regret yet?/ I thought you were my best bet/ Was it worth what it costed?/ I am exhausted
The worst part of any break-up is thinking the other person regrets all the time you spent together.
“Kiss Me When The World Ends”
I don’t want to say goodbye/ Let’s meet up after we die/ So kiss me, just like the world is ending
Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly would like a word.
“Avalanche”
I say that I’m just fine/ but I don’t feel alright on the inside/ I say that I’m ok/ but I don’t feel OK right now/ I’ve been slipping and sliding my world’s getting colder/ I’m tired of looking over my shoulder/ Tonight I don’t feel alright on the inside
This is one of those great lyrics you’d post when you were feeling a little emo inside but could still laugh it off when your friend asked you what’s up.
“Déjà Vu”
I'll buy a Range Rover just to run you over and call you out
The outrageous visual of this lyric is *chef’s kiss.*
“F.U.”
All this time I thought one day you would listen/ All this time, hoping you would change/ All this time I spent wishing you would listen/ All this time, all this time
Nothing is more depressing than waiting for change that’s never going to come.
“All I Wanted (feat. Mark Hoppus)”
And maybe it was for the best, you used to call me useless/ We're floating to the nothingness 'cause after all the truth is/ The only things we leave behind are noise and absolution/ I act like everything is fine, but I'm plotting revolution
When your pop-punk friend goes through a break-up, gets high, and starts getting existential.
“Dare To Love Me”
I've been goin' way too hard for way too long/ But I'll keep on tryin'/ I've been wishin' on them stars, but are they too far?/ Yeah, are they still shinin’?
Maybe it’s Hayley Williams’ influence, but the act of wishing on stars is automatically extremely emo and very pop-punk.
“Break of a Heartache”
I don't wanna take that chance/ Cause you know it'll never last/ Now I don't wanna feel another rip, 'nother strain'/ ‘Nother bruise, 'nother break of a hеartache
The straightforward emo-ness of this lyric aside, the cadence of its second-half is very pleasing.
Avril Lavigne’s Love Sux is out now. Revisit her 2021 NYLON cover story.
