In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
You can tell
From the scars on my arms
And the cracks in my hips
And the dents in my car
And the blisters on my lips
That I'm not the carefullest of girls
You can tell
From the glass on the floor
And the strings that're breaking
And I keep on breaking more
And it looks like I am shaking
But it's just the temperature
And then again
If it were any colder I could disengage
If I were any older I could act my age
But I don't think that you'd believe me
It's not the way
I'm meant to be
It's just the way
The operation made me
And you can tell
From the state of my room
That they let me out too soon
And the pills that I ate
Came a couple years too late
And I've got some issues to work through
There I go again
Pretending to be you
Make believing
That I have a soul beneath the surface
Trying to convince you
It was accidentally on purpose
I am not so serious
This passion is a plagiarism
I might join your century
But only on a rare occasion
I was taken out
Before the labor pains set in and now
Behold the world's worst accident
I am the girl anachronism
And you can tell
By the red in my eyes
And the bruises on my thighs
And the knots in my hair
And the bathtub full of flies
That I'm not right now at all
There I go again
Pretending that I'll fall
Don't call the doctors
'Cause they've seen it all before
They'll say just
Let her crash
And burn
She'll learn
The attention just encourages her
And you can tell
From the full-body cast
That you're sorry that you asked
Though you did everything you could
Like any decent person would
But I might be catching so don't touch
You'll start believing
You're immune to gravity and stuff
Don't get me wet
Because the bandages will all come off
And you can tell
From the smoke at the stake
That the current state is critical
Well it is the little things, for instance
In the time it takes to break it
She can make up ten excuses
Please excuse her for the day
It's just the way the medication makes her
I don't necessarily believe there is a cure for this
So I might join your century but only as a doubtful guest
I was too precarious removed as a caesarian
Behold the worlds worst accident
I am the girl anachronism
I am the girl anachronism
I am the girl anachronism
I am the girl anachronism
I am the girl
I am the girl
I am the girl
I am the girl anachronism
From the scars on my arms
And the cracks in my hips
And the dents in my car
And the blisters on my lips
That I'm not the carefullest of girls
You can tell
From the glass on the floor
And the strings that're breaking
And I keep on breaking more
And it looks like I am shaking
But it's just the temperature
And then again
If it were any colder I could disengage
If I were any older I could act my age
But I don't think that you'd believe me
It's not the way
I'm meant to be
It's just the way
The operation made me
And you can tell
From the state of my room
That they let me out too soon
And the pills that I ate
Came a couple years too late
And I've got some issues to work through
There I go again
Pretending to be you
Make believing
That I have a soul beneath the surface
Trying to convince you
It was accidentally on purpose
I am not so serious
This passion is a plagiarism
I might join your century
But only on a rare occasion
I was taken out
Before the labor pains set in and now
Behold the world's worst accident
I am the girl anachronism
And you can tell
By the red in my eyes
And the bruises on my thighs
And the knots in my hair
And the bathtub full of flies
That I'm not right now at all
There I go again
Pretending that I'll fall
Don't call the doctors
'Cause they've seen it all before
They'll say just
Let her crash
And burn
She'll learn
The attention just encourages her
And you can tell
From the full-body cast
That you're sorry that you asked
Though you did everything you could
Like any decent person would
But I might be catching so don't touch
You'll start believing
You're immune to gravity and stuff
Don't get me wet
Because the bandages will all come off
And you can tell
From the smoke at the stake
That the current state is critical
Well it is the little things, for instance
In the time it takes to break it
She can make up ten excuses
Please excuse her for the day
It's just the way the medication makes her
I don't necessarily believe there is a cure for this
So I might join your century but only as a doubtful guest
I was too precarious removed as a caesarian
Behold the worlds worst accident
I am the girl anachronism
I am the girl anachronism
I am the girl anachronism
I am the girl anachronism
I am the girl
I am the girl
I am the girl
I am the girl anachronism
Lyrics submitted by okokayok, edited by fantascination
Girl Anachronism Lyrics as written by Amanda Palmer
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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The word anachronism refers to being out of sync w/ the times, not to be confused w/ anarchist & anarchy. My guess is that the character in the song feels out of place & doesn't fit in, so she must be ahead or behind the times( most likely the latter, considering the many of the costumes she wears are from the past).
this is about a girl who is deeply misunderstood and does everything in her might to be accepted but yet people assume she thinks that she is better than everyone so no one likes her but shes trying all of her might to be loved but yet everything she attempts to do just makes thinks worse which is driving her into insanity. the reason she is the girl anachronism is because she in lost in time and there are missed connections. such as the connections of people understanding her and her trying to be loved but no one loves her because everyone is assuming things that are not true. she is harmless and just wants to be loved and people are assuming she is trying to prove her intelligence when shes just trying to be loved. and is taking on different appearances to find which one can be loved.
If the Dresden Dolls ever produced a musical... it'd be the most fucking brilliant thing ever.
This song is amazing. The music is just so frantic that you can practically see Amanda pounding away at the keys while singing it, and the emotion in her voice never sounds forced, despite the turmoil of the song -- it's good stuff, kids.
This song is one of my favourites ever... i can totally identify myself with it, which... i'm not sure it's good..... but hey, still an amazing, insane, great song
I don't think this song is as much about mental issues as people are saying.I mean,clearly it is an issue, but it doesn't stop at that.I would have to say the whole anachronism part relates to her feeling like she's either ahead of her time or behind it.This would mean she doesn't find herself insane,she just thinks the people that currently surround her wouldn't accept her as part of the zeitgeist.It sounds like more of an issue with her surroundings than with herself, but of course the opinion of those around you will always hurt you to at least some degree.It seems to be more about people thinking she's insane than her worrying about her own sanity.I suppose it's just in the way that she sings those parts where points to her issues that make it sound satirical to some extent.
What an insane song. The disorder in it is amazing, especially when offset by rare snippets of recognizable melody. This song is what really got me into The Dresden Dolls. I bet they're amazing live.
This song is fantastic, I love the way the piano seems to be violated in this song with the crazy chords, it's absolutely insane.
girl whos very aware of herself ..
Heard this song and video on mtv2 one boring day and i just remembered it today and tried looking it up and i watched it. I LOVE it i think ill check out their other songs. I have only heard this one and coin operated boy. I love the way amanda sings and the way she expresses what shes feelings its great
By the way this was awhile back when i first saw it...