Sing us the song of the century
That sings like American eulogy
The dawn of my love and conspiracy
Of forgotten hope and the class of 13
Tell me a story into that goodnight
Sing us a song for me

Mass hysteria
Mass hysteria
Mass hysteria
Mass hysteria

Red alert is the color of panic
Elevated to the point of static
Beating into the hearts of the fanatics
And the neighborhood's a loaded gun
Idle thought leads to full-throttle screaming
And the welfare is asphyxiating
Mass confusion is all the new rage
And it's creating a feeding ground
For the bottom feeders of hysteria

Mass hysteria
Mass hysteria
Mass hysteria
Mass hysteria

True sounds of maniacal laughter
And the deaf-mute is misleading the choir
The punchline is a natural disaster
And it's sung by the unemployed
Fight fire with a riot
The class war is hanging on a wire
Because the martyr is a compulsive liar
When he said
"It's just a bunch of niggers throwing gas into the hysteria"

Mass hysteria
Mass hysteria
Mass hysteria
Mass hysteria

There's a disturbance on the oceanside
They tapped into the reserve
The static response is so unclear now
Mayday, this is not a test!
As the neighborhood burns, America is falling
Vigilantes warning you
Calling Christian and Gloria


[II. Modern World]

I don't want to live in the modern world
I don't want to live in the modern world
I don't want to live in the modern world
I don't want to live in the modern world

I'm the class of thirteen
In the era of dissent
A hostage of the soul
On a strike to pay the rent
The last of the rebels
Without a common ground
I'm gonna light a fire
Into the underground

I don't want to live in the modern world
I don't want to live in the modern world
I don't want to live in the modern world
I don't want to live in the modern world

I am a nation
Without bureaucratic ties
Deny the allegation as it's written

I want to take a ride to the great divide
Beyond the "up to date"
And the neo-gentrified
The high definition for the low resident
Where the value of your mind
Is not held in contempt
I can hear the sound of
A beating heart
That bleeds beyond a system
That's falling apart
With money to burn
On minimum wage
Cause I don't give a shit
About the modern age

I don't want to live in the modern world
I don't want to live in the modern world
I don't want to live in the modern world
I don't want to live in the modern world
I don't want to live in the modern world
Mass hysteria
I don't want to live in the modern world
Mass hysteria
I don't want to live in the modern world
Mass hysteria
I don't want to live in the modern world
Mass hysteria

Writer : ARMSTRONG, BILLIE JOE / WRIGHT, FRANK E., III / PRITCHARD, MICHAEL
Copyright : Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.