Debaser

The meaning is fairly straightforward. It is about the film Un Chein Andelusia (which is a French surrealist film by Salvador Dali, et al). There's a scene where a man is "slicing up eyeballs" and there a scene where a girl dances ("girlie so groovie"). The film is really screwed up, you know those surrealists.

Anyway - I think the song is really interesting in that it says that he IS the movie, "I am Un Chein Andelusia," and then he he wants to grow up to be a "debaser" (something with diminishes the quality of something).

All this to say that, to me, it seems like he's saying this is a movie that is bringing down the quality of movies in general, and someday he hopes to be able to accomplish the same (to the music industry, perhaps?) Don't know - weird reading of the song, I know, take it for what you will.

The movie they are referring to in the song is Un Chien Andalou, by Salvador Dali and Luis Bunuel, 1929.

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It's very weird and had a big effect on the Pixies from what I've heard. Check out the movie sometime, even if it's just to realize that there were Marilyn Manson's in the 1920s, too.

Just wanted to add, the part at the end, when Black Fancis is laughing like a mad man "Got Me a Movie / Ha Ha Ha Ho" is pretty cool, and original. It just adds rawness to a song that sounds so raw already. I've never seen the movie they are referring to, but its a teriffic opener to such a terrific CD. Really original and almost beyond words.

I don't believe Frank Black when he passes over this by saying that he watched the film twice!

Debaser is a clear reference to Dali's desire to debase art of the day

To me its always going to be about a mans desire to debase anything beautiful, the film is very much about the shame of sex and the juxterpossition of those opposing emotions. The appreciation of beauty and the violent amimalistic urges contained within a man.

Also it sound pretty cool when my 3 year old sings it!

This film was banned in England by the bbfc. I think Frank was having a pop at the whole film censors idea of seeing something on a film influencing you to replicate it in real life - funny as hell. He is merely saying that seeing this fucked up thing on screen makes me want to replicate it and be a debaser it’s sarcastic

This song is about how he saw a movie that was so radical and different and creative that he wanted to live his life like that. He wanted to be the Un Chein Andelusia of music. He liked that people challenged what was normal and how things should be done. So he wants to grow up to be a debaser, as in to take what the original idea of how something should be and change it to show it can be done any way you want.

basically the movie is fucked up, and contains a scene in which a man sees a cloud in front of the moon and makes him slice a girls eyeball open. the whole film was made by a bunch of artists, trying to go against everything that made a film i.e. no script or proper actors or narrative. "un chien andalou" means an Andalousian dog...which from what i can see has nothing to do with anything really. a 'debaser' though is someone who acts solely to lower something, to degrade it. so i think the basis of the song is that after seeing a fucked up film, he wants to make everything else just as fucked up.

anyways, that's what i think...

emm.. chien is the french word for a male dog. une chienne is a bitch

their music has alot of suicidal or murderistc ideas atleast that's the impression i get every time i listen to this song and a couple other,yet you don't get this feeling when not listening to the lyrics cause the tune is everyday pop-rock tune of the 90's. does anyone think like me? still good song.

He just liked this movie.