Pardon me for the generalization, but it seems like “intelligent” lyrics these days are often vague and excessively uninterruptible. It’s as if “poetry” means “use lots of adjectives and don’t so much as mention what you are actually talking about.” Here’s another generalization: That “intelligent” people often dislike disclosing much about themselves.

I’ll only condemn on a case-by-case basis, but esotericism can be a symptom of inadequacy. It’s not the most difficult psychological tendency to understand; the desire to be different and unique is the desire to avoid judgment. If you don’t compete, you can’t lose.

This is one reason why Dr. Frank’s straightforward lyrics are so refreshing. He’s in the league of the angsty, “you don’t know me” types, and probably was one himself, but he is too grown up to get stuck in that mire. From this combination, he knows how to disarm the arty ones before discussing their foibles and fears. He’s even willing to point out his own flaws and kindly ask us to forgive him. It’s all done with an honest incision that can speak to anyone on any level they’re comfortable with.

Dr. Frank is the songwriter, singer, and guitarist for the Mr. T Experience. Most MTX records since 1985 are Queers-comparable pop-punk befitting their long tenure on Lookout! Records. Dr. Frank’s favorite band and biggest influence is, in fact, pop-punk originators the Ramones. The last two MTX albums, fortunately, have broken out of the Ramones’ less than expansive sound. These two albums, Alcatraz and Yesterday Rules, also contain mature, informed songwriting and lyricism. The song “Self Pity”, from Alcatraz, discusses something like what I observed above.

You owe a lot to self-pity
It got you through your darkest days
And anybody looking at the record
Would say you had a case
You never imagined
That you’d ever really make it through
Now that you have, you don’t know what to do
The future has arrived, but where are you?

I see you crying
I hear you trying
Though you’ve got it down to a science
Self-pity won’t help you now 

Look at yourself, do you really believe
That the world needs to see another aging enfant terrible? 

Alienation makes the world go round
And as a fashion statement, it’s absolutely sound
But you’re not really an alien, as such
Self confidence makes you seem so out of touch
But self-pity seems like it’s a bit too much

Looks like you blew it
Looks like you knew it
Though you taught the world how to do it
Self-pity won’t help you now

Dr. Frank’s just that guy who can bitingly insult people song after song and still seem like a nice guy. He nails familiar yet elusive personality types, expertly filters vice from virtue, and leaves everyone feeling okay about it all afterward. If he were a psychologist, I’d be reclining on a leather couch right now, recalling that one time my coach pulled me out of a baseball game. Unfortunately for me, Dr. Frank isn’t actually a doctor; the title “Dr.” is self-bestowed.

For many lyricists, simple rhythm and rhyme can sound embarrassingly familiar. Writers sometimes avoid rhyme because the familiarity of simple structures makes mediocre writing all too apparent. Evasion in subject matter is also common. Dr. Frank communicates incredible charm through the conceptual unity of each song. There’s no pointless drifting or unclear dross. He zeroes in on a subject, and takes exactly the amount of time he needs to get his point across completely.

In Dr. Frank’s personality, there are shades of that Odyssean paradigm, disguising strength as weakness. He has a way of speaking responsibly about utter irresponsibility without sounding like an outsider. When he turns his sights on himself, he tends to employ self-deprecation. Dr. Frank is the Woody Allen of punk rock. Even though “self-pity” is explicitly directed at someone else, it’s clear that such intimate familiarity with that kind of personality comes from firsthand experience with self-defeating neuroticism.

Full disclosure: I omitted a few lyrics from “Self Pity”… there’s a whole lot of “ooooooo-waaaaaa-oooooooo”s. It’s only one example amid a really inordinate amount of “wawa”s, “yeah”s and, strangely, “make-a-bam-pow”s. Which brings me to the second pillar of Mr. T-dom: Juvenile, nonsense sounds and ridiculous puns. It’s a rare feat to be able to pull this kind of literary device off, but something about the combination of emotional honesty and self-willed immaturity makes it okay to crack the cheekiest jokes. Bursts of humor often come in clever one-liners, but sometimes entire songs are devoted to puns.

As a lyricist, Dr. Frank’s wit doesn’t completely come through without the context of his tone of voice and the band’s playing. One of Mr. T Experience’s strengths is the strong relationship between word and sound. You can hardly imagine the one without the other, and together they seamlessly communicate tremendous depth of personality.

Although Mr. T Experience isn’t officially broken up, the band has been almost completely inactive for the past few years while Dr. Frank has pursued a career as a novelist. His first book, King Dork, began as a Mr. T Experience song and, despite the author’s doubts that he could actually write a real novel, was nominated for a Quill award. Will Ferrell liked the book enough to buy the movie rights. King Dork is about a high school loser who turns to music in his loneliness until a copy of The Catcher in the Rye gives him some clues about his father’s mysterious death. Even in this new, different venue, Dr. Frank’s personality shines throughout the book and makes for a thoughtful yet fun read.

The complexity of character really has to be heard to fully come through. Dr. Frank is simultaneously wholesome and fucking rock ‘n’ roll, mature and immature, stupid and smart. He’s Dr. Frank but not a doctor. So let’s make it official. Dr. Frank, I hereby bestow an honorary doctorate from Crawdaddy! University. Feel free to put that on your resume.

Listen: Mr. T Experience, “Self Pity” [at rhapsody.com]

Tags:Mr. T Experience, Dr. Frank, Lookout Records

Read past installments of Lyrical Communique:

Heart of Weirdness: Neil Young, “Revolution Blues”

Daniel Johnston: True Love Will Find You in the End

The National: Fake Empire