“Hurricane” by Extreme

by Osei Kojo Enoch·June 13, 2023

The title of this song (“Hurricane”) is metaphorically indicative of the state of the vocalist’s current emotional disposition. Or as Gary puts it, his “heart” is akin to “an eye of emptiness and pain”. And based on the other, more direct lyrics found within this piece, we are able to ascertain that what has cast him into such an existence is the absence of the addressee.

');var c=function(){cf.showAsyncAd(opts)};if(typeof window.cf !== 'undefined')c();else{cf_async=!0;var r=document.createElement("script"),s=document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];r.async=!0;r.src="//";r.readyState?r.onreadystatechange=function(){if("loaded"==r.readyState||"complete"==r.readyState)r.onreadystatechange=null,c()}:r.onload=c;s.parentNode.insertBefore(r,s)}; })(); You can view the lyrics, alternate interprations and sheet music for Extreme's Hurricane at Lyrics.org.

What type of relationship they share or have shared is not specified. But what is made obvious is that at a certain point in time, they really enjoyed each other’s company. And it may be that they are romantic partners, in that in the here and now, the vocalist is able to detect that the addressee is “calling out (his) name”, which sounds like the type terminology reserved for a lover that misses him.

Furthermore, it is also pretty apparent, based on the above metaphor for instance, that he has come to feel the same. But it does seem that Cherone is confident that the two of them will in fact get back together. Or at least that’s one way of interpreting his belief that what he’s currently going through is “the storm before the calm”.

So it’s as if the first half of the lyrics are direct and the latter half poetic, sometimes painfully so. But combined they do paint a comprehensive picture of a vocalist who has come to the point where he’s ready and willing “to reconnect” with a loved one from the past.