[2][3][4] In an interview, lead singer Brandon Boyd explained the song's origins, "I was in a bookstore, browsing through an old Life magazine, when I saw a picture of what the article called spontaneous human combustion.

There were an old guy's legs and shoes, perfectly intact - then, right around his knee area, was just a pile of charred ashes.

"[5] Boyd had recently returned from a tour to find out that his girlfriend of 7 years broke up with him, and that both his grandmother and a close friend of his had died.

[citation needed] The music video for "Pardon Me", directed by Steven Murashige,[5] also gained considerable airplay.

The video begins with Brandon Boyd and his father Charles,[5] at opposite ends of a hallway.