| Sparklehorse – Sea Of Teeth Lyrics | 12 years ago |
| To me it's just about the beauty that we all take for granted sometimes. It's always there, but we rarely notice it. | |
| Elliott Smith – Between the Bars Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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I don't think the narrator in this song is the alcohol speaking to Elliott, it's rather Elliott speaking to a girl he loves and wants to comfort. However unfortunately the only way he knows how to comfort her is the same way he comforts himself, with alcohol. He tells her to drink with him and it'll make everything okay, however he knows that it's only confining her in the same way that he's confined himself, which is what establishs the 'bars' between them, as they will both never be free from their pain, but they will at least have their love. My interpretation, anyway. |
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| Sufjan Stevens – John Wayne Gacy, Jr. Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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The most haunting and thought-provoking song I've ever heard. To not only empthize with America's most notorious serial killers but compare yourself directly to him is the most daring things I've ever seen/heard done lyrically, and it's completely changed my opinions on the nature of evil. And although there's no question that John Wayne Gacy's actions were horrendous and terrible, you have to feel sympathy for the man for becoming mentally instable enough to commit such vile acts. It's unfortunate that he couldn't overcome his demons and that 33 lives were lost because of this. But you have to wonder how Stevens could possibly vilify himself to that level of evil after hearing that chilling final verse. Even though I believe Sufjan Steven's prominent religious themes are discussed too heavily when it comes to discussing the meanings of his songs, ultimately I think Stevens is asking here "what constitutes a sin?" If 'sinners' go to hell, and every human is inclined to hurt someone and commit sin at some point in their life, doesn't that mean we're all going to hell? Are we really forgiveable for the sins we commit? Is murder really 'the ultimate sin', or is Stevens as guilty as Gacy for having sinned against others for his own sake? People always end up regreting and questioning the bad things they do, as if they didn't really mean it and it was beyond their control. But what control did Gacy have over his troubled childhood, his indifferent father, or even his urge to kill and molest those boys? Could John Wayne Gacy's murderous tendancies be credited to the sins of other human beings? And did he deserve to become the troubled man that he became? Stevens is trying to say that nobody has the right to classify him as a 'monster', because ultimately he was just as much a human being as anybody else, a human distorted by the inevitable evil of the human condition. Any one of us could have turned out like Gacy. His murders just go to show that human species is truly capable of evil, because we don't have control over how we are raised. We have all done things that we never thought we were capable of, and although we may want to deny it, we are all in some way like John Wayne Gacy, Jr. |
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| The National – Ada Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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I believe that 'Ada' is a character the narrator has lost and really misses. He can't get over her and simply wants to 'protect' her because he's convinced himself that she's vulnerable out in the world alone and without him. "Let them all have your neck..." "Ada" could be an ex-wife/girlfriend, little sister, or just a lost love that is beyond his control. The warnings of "don't stay in the lake too long" and "if you think you're gonna faint go out in the hallway" hint of that Ada may struggle with some kind of mental disorder ("social anxiety" according to the band?) and the narrator feels guilty knowing he's not there to guide her through it. Unfortunately it almost seems like the narrator is not getting through to Ada, or she's not listening and he is only muttering to himself. She leaves his advice "up in the air". He can only watch Ada from a distance and hope she is doing okay and following his advice. The line "I can hear the sound of your laugh through the wall.." and lightened climax of the song may possibly hint at the narrator's coming to terms with Ada when he hears her laughing behind closed doors. He realizes that she's doing fine without him. Unfortunetly you have to feel sympathy for the narrator because I believe he had ultimately mistaken his own vulnerability and isolation and associated it with Ada, and really all he only wanted to feel important and significant in Ada's life. A sad story, but you can only hope that both Ada and the narrator find peace on their own. |
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| The Antlers – Rolled Together Lyrics | 13 years ago |
| Love and marijuana. | |
| Elliott Smith – Independence Day Lyrics | 13 years ago |
| I think this is a song is about someone who doesn't realize how beautiful they really are. The narrator is the only person who sees this and wants to prove to them how much he higher he views them compared to the other people out 'making a scene'; but he can't find the words to express his feelings. He wants to tell him/her that they have a bright future ahead of them and that their time is going to come but he realizes that he can't say this and becomes guilty because when he sees that the person is going down the same wrong path that he did, and is going to end up alone and unloved, and there's nothing he can do but watch. I'm basing this off personal experience, but it seems appropriate. | |
| Sparklehorse – More Yellow Birds Lyrics | 13 years ago |
| Considering Mark came from a family background of coal miners, "Mork's" theory is definitely correct. This is a beautiful, beautiful song. R.I.P. | |
| Kurt Vile – Overnight Religion Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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So I get it now, it's about Kurt's dedication to songwriting. Writing songs over night, for his family friends and fans, his 'overnite religon'. I corrected some of the lyrics a bit to get an interpretation of what I hear, I wouldn't of figured it out if not for this! 'Here all along, I wrote you this song. Anywhere you strum to, it-a won't quit. Never mind time and you'll have a good time. Hear my guitar, chiming and climbing, Finding all the notes that nobody wrote. In all that time, making it my religion.. Thinking is rhyming, And click track timing, Finding all the words that nobody's heard. And in all that time, emitting my sweet vision. Overnight sensation, my all night, every night religion. Digging on my sweet vision, overnight religion. Talking, you're strumming, and swooning each tuning. When you're looking sick, I'll alleviate it. Each chord I lay a shape, Make you awake, before you break. Overnight sensation, my all night, every night religion. Digging on my sweet vision, overnight religion. Here all along, I wrote you this song, For the ones I know who need it bad, (or 'need it baby?' 'I know made it back' when he sings it live.) For the friends I haven't had, For my sisters, brother's and mom and dad. They are all my friends in the church beneath my chest. See em' hanging over me every night, and it's alright. And as I'm digging on my sweet vision. Comes to me like, overnight religion... Yeah...yeah...' |
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