"Pretty Handsome Awkward" is the second single from
the Used
The Used is an American rock band from Orem, Utah, that formed in 2001. The group consists of vocalist Bert McCracken, bassist Jeph Howard, drummer Dan Whitesides, and guitarist Joey Bradford. Former members include Quinn Allman, Branden Ste ...
's third
studio album, ''
Lies for the Liars''. The song was released to US
alternative radio
Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960sā1980s rock music.
Radio format
Mo ...
on August 21, 2007 and released to UK radio on September 3. The song is perhaps best known for being played during a chase scene in
Michael Bay
Michael Benjamin Bay (born February 17, 1965) is an American film director and producer. He is best known for making big-budget, high-concept action films characterized by fast cutting, stylistic cinematography and visuals, and extensive use o ...
's film ''
Transformers
''Transformers'' is a media franchise produced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Tomy, Takara Tomy. It primarily follows the Autobots and the Decepticons, two alien robot factions at war that can transform into other forms ...
'' and is also featured on the
soundtrack
A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...
as well as a downloadable track on ''
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock''. The single peaked at No. 37 on the US
Alternative Airplay
Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988ā2009) and Alternative Songs (2009ā2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...
. It was rumored that the track was written about
My Chemical Romance
My Chemical Romance (commonly abbreviated to MCR or My Chem) is an American rock band from Newark, New Jersey. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist Gerard Way, lead guitarist Ray Toro, rhythm guitarist Frank Iero, and bassist ...
frontman
Gerard Way
Gerard Arthur Way (born April 9, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and comic book writer. He is best known as the lead vocalist and co-founder of the rock band My Chemical Romance. He released his debut solo album, ''Hesitant Alien'', ...
, but
Bert McCracken
Robert Edward McCracken (born February 25, 1982) is an American singer who is the lead vocalist and songwriter of the rock band The Used.
Early life
McCracken was born in Provo, Utah, and grew up in Orem. He was raised in a Mormon family wi ...
said that this is not true. In 2019, while performing at the Rockstar Disrupt Festival, Bert confirmed the song was about Way.
Track listings
CD single
DVD single
7-inch picture disc
Music video
The video starts with footage from the
2007
File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto ...
MuchMusic Video Awards
The iHeartRadio MMVAs were an annual awards show broadcast on Much to honour the year's best music videos that was last held in 2018.
Originally debuting in 1990 as the Canadian Music Video Awards, the awards were renamed in 1995 to the MuchMus ...
of the band and
Chadam walking down the
street
A street is a public thoroughfare in a built environment. It is a public parcel of land adjoining buildings in an urban context, on which people may freely assemble, interact, and move about. A street can be as simple as a level patch of d ...
, with screaming fans on the sidewalks, and an interviewer asks "You guys gonna get all wasted tonight? Up to your normal antics?" Bert responds, "Nah, we're a little partied out, we'll probably try to take, take it easy and chill out afterward," after which a huge party is shown with the aforementioned antics being performed throughout. Jeph Howard also appears as a cross-dressed prostitute in the video. In one of the videos, he flashes the camera. At the end, the piece of dialogue at the beginning is repeated with this added afterward by the reporter: "What are you guys wusses or somethin'?".
Official Video
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Charts
References
{{Authority control
The Used songs
2007 singles
Songs from Transformers (film series)
2007 songs
Reprise Records singles
Song recordings produced by John Feldmann
Songs written by Quinn Allman
Songs written by Jeph Howard
Songs written by Bert McCracken