The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
Walls are closing
Anxiously
Channel surfing
Frantically
Burning City
Smoke and fire
Planes, we're certain
Faith inspired?
No clues
A complete surprise
Who'll be
Coming home tonight?
Heads all turning
Towards the sky
Towers crumble
Heroes die
Who would wish this
On our people?
And proclaim
That His will be done
Scriptures they heed have misled them
All praise their sacrificed sons
All praise their sacrificed sons
Teach them
What to think and feel
Your ways
So enlightening
Words they preach
I can't relate
If God's true Love
Are acts of Hate
Who would wish this
On our people?
And proclaim
That His will be done
Scriptures they heed have misled them
All praise their sacrificed sons
All praise their sacrificed sons
God on high
Our mistake
Will mankind be extinct?
There's no time to waste
Who serves the truth
For Heaven's sake?
Anxiously
Channel surfing
Frantically
Burning City
Smoke and fire
Planes, we're certain
Faith inspired?
No clues
A complete surprise
Who'll be
Coming home tonight?
Heads all turning
Towards the sky
Towers crumble
Heroes die
Who would wish this
On our people?
And proclaim
That His will be done
Scriptures they heed have misled them
All praise their sacrificed sons
All praise their sacrificed sons
Teach them
What to think and feel
Your ways
So enlightening
Words they preach
I can't relate
If God's true Love
Are acts of Hate
Who would wish this
On our people?
And proclaim
That His will be done
Scriptures they heed have misled them
All praise their sacrificed sons
All praise their sacrificed sons
God on high
Our mistake
Will mankind be extinct?
There's no time to waste
Who serves the truth
For Heaven's sake?
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Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
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Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
American Town
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Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
The language used in this song is a very cynical look at the way both sides of the spectrum in this "war" take. We have here three positions, for deliberations sake we will refer to them as Arab Bob, Christian Kyle, and Neutral Third Party.
Neutral TP opens the story with his view on the destruction caused in the terrorist attacks on 9/11. now, keep in mind, James LaBrie is Canadian, so this automatically is not a song based on patriotism.
Anyways, TP goes on to tell about the actual event, and then Kyle cuts in with "WHO WOULD DO THIS TO OUR PEOPLE?!?!?!" But, Neutral TP (Who is obviously writing this down) notes that Arab Bob is saying the exact same thing on the other side of the Atlantic.
James is pointing out that there is more than just American pride at stake, here. This has been an ongoing struggle between two religions and two cultures for decades.
Here's the problem:
No one is right, and no one is wrong.
The bombers killed hundreds of people, yes, hence the "Who would do this to our people", but also, they truly did sacrifice themselves for the cause they truly thought to be just, therefore we must "Praise their sacrificed sons".
Would it be better if we persecute them for believing in their own religion? Isn't that what they're doing to us?
So, as a means to retaliate against the religious based attacks on 9/11, our President calls to arms a sort of "Crusade" as he put it, and attacks back. He has told people many a time that he believes he is working under the will of God.
...wait... isn't that what THEY did to US?
And we both think that "God" wants us to hate eachother?
"Words they preach I can't relate If God's true love Are acts of hate."
How can we know what is right and just if the complete irony created by the situation drowns out any good that could arrive from the outcome?
In short, James is talking about how both sides are acting under the will of God, and how maybe we shouldn't point fingers, but try for a single moment to mourn for those that have been lost: the bombers, our own brave soldiers, and the many innocent civilians that have lost their lives in this meaningless war.
It is true in many (if not most) cases that the suicide bombers do what they do for what they believe is just, but there is also more at work here. Other people are brainwashing them to believe that they must do these things, no differently from the way that the gentile Christian ministers of old told people that doing things that modern ones recognize as acceptable would damn them. Also, there is supposedly a belief that a martyr will be awarded seventy virgins in Heaven, who will provide him with sexual services, so as my [very well-informed] mother puts it, many of the younger people who agree to be suicide bombers "just want to get laid". Not to say that this is true for all or even the majority of suicide bombers, but those who are motivated by this reward are not so conscientious about "God's commands". The real villains are those who dictate "God's will" to the people who kill themselves and others in belief that they serve it. Meanwhile, I wonder if any of these people would be half willing to do the same thing. Come on, Osama, let us see YOU become a "martyr".
Furthermore, only extremists think that God wants one side to hate the other. Plus, the Crusades/Jihads (in the literal definition of the word and not the way that terrorists use it) are bad analogies to something perceived to be wrong, because as far as religious wars go, these were devoid of much atrocity attributed to later conflicts. We do not hate Islam; we merely oppose a group that has abused it and turned this cult of theirs into a weapon intended to destroy entire cultures. Meanwhile, I see no such weapon aimed at the world of Islam. Al Qaeda and the Taliban have enemies on both sides: the nations and religions that it wants to destroy, and true/non-extremist Muslims.
This lyric was written by LaBrie and is obviously his take on the 9/11 terrorist attack.
Definitely. I developed my suspicions as soon as I started listening carefully to the words. Because my only Dream Theater album is "Greatest Hit...And 21 Other Pretty Cool Songs", that is the only version I have ever heard, and it is missing the "samples from 9/11" referred to in the annotation on Dark Lyrics. (The album also lacks a printed copy of the lyrics.) There is one thing curious about its placement in this album, though: Endless Sacrifice is song number nine on Disc 1, and Sacrificed Sons is number eleven. Coincidence?
This is one of my personal favorite songs from dream theater. It has a slow and haunting build with "HEADS ARE TURNING, TOWARD THE SKY" until it explodes into "WHO WOULD WISH THIS ON OUR PEOPLE" As if to mimic the moment each plane collided with harrowing force upon the twin towers. Powerful stuff.
It's amazing that somehow all songs that LaBrie writes lyrics to are simply brilliant, except for Anna Lee of course.
great analysis, apprentice. slipped my mind the JLB is canadian, same as I keep forgetting he's actually KLB. I only recently started listening to Octavarium again coz I got hung up listening to Systematic Chaos, but this is definitely in the top 3 off the album (along with 8V, and Root of all Evil)
I think you guys are close, but I think it is a wake up call to our own idealogy as well. Here's where:
"Scriptures they heed have misled them All praise their Sacrificed sons"
With the above verse you'd think the following verse is merely about the muslims who commit the atrocities... but he doesn't say "they praise their sacrificed sons" He states "ALL".
We send our troops to war thinking that our scriptures command it. GWB, himself regularly states he is in communication with God.
Then again later on;
"Words they preach I can't relate If God's true Love Are acts of Hate"
We preach hate in response to their hate. Is that God's True love?
Then the last section;
"There's no time to waste Who serves the truth For Heaven's sake"
He doesn't say, "we serve the truth for heaven's sake."
WHO serves the truth? Time is running out....
The connection between these words and religion in general (especially [the gentile sects of] Christianity) is more relevant to the past than to the present. The way it is practiced today, it might be difficult to believe that Christianity was abused to the point that many so-called Christians were like-minded with the [relatively few] who now pervert Islam.
JP's solo honest to God made me cry the first time I heard it. I always thought abstract 'art' (whether in music or painting etc) was bullshit till I heard this;
I have two parts for JP's solo.
I- Confusion.
The harmonics, the unnatural bends, even the way he plays this solo (Score) is just beautiful and makes complete sense.
Its chaos, its uncertainty. Parts of it even manifest bombs dropping (well whammy bars are known for that)
Its just mass confusion, where to turn, what to trust. Its anxiety, paranoia, acting on impulse.
Part II
I don't even know what to label this, this part speaks the most to me but ironically I have not as much to say about it.
When that guitar wails it HITS this spot in me, my adam's apple goes up into my throat and tears jerk in my eyes.
It paints a dualistic picture; I always see;
A kid in the doctors office just about to get a shot. He knows its coming and the anxiety and fear are unbearable. His mother is right next to him holding his hand and telling him to just squeeze her hand when it hurts and it'll be alright.
likewise;
Our soldiers are always known for their oo-rah! But even they are human. After killing, watching people get killed (their commrades) limbs flying off and being separated from loved ones for so long. Even they hit a point where they huddle into the fetal position wishing that their mothers hand was there to squeeze.
The solo ends kind of. Then it hits back into a break down.
That to me always seemed like the soldier snaps back into consciousness and realizes that its do or die. Time to get yourself together, theres no time for bawling.
Thats what this instrumental section meant to me.
am I the only person to think that the outro to this song is best guitar riff ever????
I'm not quite sure on the religious ramifications. Like ITNOG from TOT, this seems to be about a specific example of religious hypocrisy that spirals out into an attack on all religions by the end (note "does following faith lead us to violence?" from the aforementioned song and compare to the end of this song). However, three years ago, I heard that Labrie gave an interview in the Christian magazine HM in which he explained his Christian faith, so has Labrie had a change in heart since then? Or does anybody know?
I'd have to agree with YtseJam on the meaning. This is song great! The outro riff is really good.