| Arcade Fire – Modern Man Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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I think a couple of these lines aren't correct. "If it's all right, How come you can't sleep at night?" And "They say we are the choosen few but we waste it", not "we're wasted". |
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| Joanna Newsom – Kingfisher Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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This song is wonderful. I haven't got a clue about half of what she's talking about, but I do have a couple of ideas. Sorry if someone's already mentioned them. "Whose is the hand that I will hold? Whose is the face I will see? Whose is the name that I will call When I am called to meet thee?" I think here she is talking to God, asking who her true love will be. "When I am called to meet thee" would mean when she is dying, and she is asking who's name she will call out when she is dying, I think. Hence, her true love. "Thrown to the ground by something down there Bitten by the bad air while the clouds tick Trying to read all the signs Preparing for when the bombs hit" Perhaps "something down there" refers to something bad deep down in a person's soul? The person who she loves? "Trying to read all the signs/Preparing for when the bombs hit" Trying to figure out when the relationship will end. Hung from the underbelly of the earth While the stars skid away below Gormless and brakeless, gravel-loose Falling silent as gavels in the snow I don't know that she's referring to actual stars here, perhaps lava coming out of a volcano? What makes me think that is "falling silent as gavel in the snow". I think all the imagery of volcanoes and bombs and things is basically saying she fears the relationship is ending in a destructive, catastrophic way. Something exploding. "In this life who did you love Beneath the drifting ashes? Beneath the sheeting banks of air That barrenly bore our rations?" "In this new life where did you crouch When the sky had set to boiling? Burnin' within; seen from without And your gut was a serpent coiling" "And for the sake of that pit o' snakes For whom did you allay your shyness? And spend all your mercy and madness and grace In a day beneath the bending cypress?" "Stand here and name the one you loved Beneath the drifting ashes And in naming, rise above time As it, flashing, passes" I get the feeling that she is asking someone who is dead how they delt with love, but I am not sure. |
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| Florence + the Machine – What the Water Gave Me Lyrics | 12 years ago |
| Oh, and he's not a god, he's a Titan, meaning he was one of Gaia & Ouranous' children. Not important, really, but I can't help it, sorry. :P | |
| Florence + the Machine – What the Water Gave Me Lyrics | 12 years ago |
| I thought Atlas held up the sky.......like, the sky is Ouranous (sp?) and the world/earth is Gaia, and they are, you know, in love or whatever (maybe not love so much as in lust, though...), and Atlas holds the sky up and away from the earth so that the sky's weight does not crush everything on earth. As for how it relates to the song, I haven't got much of clue, except that maybe it's a metaphorical thing, like, something (Atlas) is keeping her (Gaia) from her lover (Ouranous), and she's saying whatever it is has a hard job trying to keep her away from her lover? I'm not sure. | |
| Arcade Fire – (Antichrist Television Blues) Lyrics | 12 years ago |
| Also, on the topic of the title, I think somewhere Win Butler says that a theme of the album is how when you watch television it influences how you see the world, and such. | |
| Arcade Fire – (Antichrist Television Blues) Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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Well, I supose I am a little late to the party, here. :) Oh well. I think this is a criticism of a man who lives vicariously through his daughter, and tries to justify this (perhaps to God) with his "faith". Don't want to work in a building downtown No, I don't want to work in a building downtown I don't know what I'm going to do Because the planes keep crashing always two by two Don't want to work in a building downtown No, I don't want to see it when the planes hit the ground Don't want to work in a building downtown Don't want to work in a building downtown Parking the cars in the underground The voices when they scream, well, they make no sound Want to see the cities rust And the troublemakers riding on the back of the bus I think the interpretations everyone else had are correct about the whole religion/faith/9-11 thing. But I also think that how this relates to the main theme of the song (a father living vicariously through his daughter) is that this is one of his reasons for making his daughter perform. He doesn't want to work in an office, or anything like that, he wants nothing to do with an unglamourous life in the city, he wants to be rich and famous. Dear God, I'm a good Christian man I'm your boy, I know you understand That you got to work hard and you got to get paid The girl's thirteen, but she don't act her age She can sing like a bird in cage Oh Lord, if you could see her when she's up on that stage You know that I'm a God-fearing man You know that I'm a God-fearing man I just got to know if it's part of your plan To see my darling stand by your right hand I know that you'll do what's right, Lord For they are the lanterns and you are the light Here he's asking God to not judge him, that because his daughter is mature and is a good performer and singer, and also because he's a "God-fearing man", there's nothing wrong. Obviously, "she can sing like a bird in a cage" is irony, because the girl is (I'm assuming) forced to sing on stage, which is almost like a metaphorical cage. Now I'm overcome By the light of day My lips are near But my heart is far away Tell me what to say I'll be your mouthpiece I'm not entirely sure about this part. Does it mean that he is removing his emotions & consience when he is making his daughter do this? I'm not sure. Into the light of a bridge that burns As I drive through the city with the money that I earn To the dark of a starless sky I won't stare into nothing and I'm asking you why Lord, let me make her a star So the world can see who you really are Here he asks God to make his daughter famous, and says that he will use her fame to tell people about God, I'm guessing. Little girl, you're old enough to understand You'll always be a stranger in a strange, strange land Men are going to come while you're fast asleep So you better just stay close and hold onto me If mama's mockingbird don't sing well, Then daddy won't buy her no diamond ring This is a very messed up verse. He's making his daughter afraid so that she'll always depend on him, earning him money and fame, and telling her that if she doesn't, there will be no good things for her. Dear God, would you send me a child? Oh God, would you send me a child? Because I want to put it up on the TV screen So the world can see what your true word means Lord, won't you send me a sign? Because I just got to know if I'm wasting my time He again says he will spread the word of God through his child's fame. But I'm not entirely sure why he asks to be sent a child now, because before the child was already there, as evidenced by the previous verse. Now I'm overcome By the light of day My lips are near But my heart is far away But now the war is won How come nothing tastes good? Here his conciense is coming back to bite him. I'm guessing "the war is won" means that his daughter is famous, but he can't enjoy it because of what he's done to her. Oh you're such a sensitive child You know you're such a sensitive child I know you're tired, but it's all right I just needed you to sing for me tonight You're going to have your day in the sun You know God loves the sensitive ones Here he's telling his daughter to keep going, even though she is tired and does not want to sing. He's telling her it'll work out well for them because God loves her, that's how he's justifying making her do this when she doesn't want to, I think. Oh, my little bird in a cage Oh, my little bird in a cage I need you to get up for me up on that stage Show all the men that you're old for your age Now in the times of fear But if you don't take it, it'll disappear This is very similar to the previous verse. He's trying to convince her to go up and perform. "Show all the men that you're old for your age".........I get a feeling that this is sort of a euphimism. Nasty line. Oh, my little mockingbird, sing Oh, my little mockingbird, sing I need you to get up on the stage for me, honey Show the men it's not about the money Want to hold a mirror up to the world So that they can see themselves inside my little girl "Show the men it's not about the money", show the world that you're not performing simply for money. Irony again. Do you know where I was at your age? Any idea where I was at your age? I was working downtown for the minimum wage! And I couldn't let you just throw it all away Here he's trying to make her feel guilty, because she has this opportunity that he has never had to be famous. Throw me a kid, God, throw me a knife So tell me Lord, am I the Antichrist? I think this part's pretty self-explanitory. And I've been wondering if the title of "Antichrist Television Blues" is a sort of prolouge to the events of the song. When the man was younger (the age of the daughter during the song, perhaps?), he was watching television and saw people performing, and decided that he wanted to be like them, but he did not succeed, hence the "blues". I don't know. But that's how it seems to me. |
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| Joanna Newsom – Kingfisher Lyrics | 12 years ago |
| You know, that's a really interesting idea. Especially since it would tie in with the themes of Go Long a little, you know? :) | |
| Florence + the Machine – Never Let Me Go Lyrics | 12 years ago |
| In the booklet for Ceremonials, she talks about how when she was a kid and she would go swimming in pools, she used to swim to the bottom of the pool, and she felt almost like she could breathe. She also says that the idea of being overwhelmed by something, not just water, fascinates her. So, that is probably either what the song is about, or at least what inspired the imagery. | |
| Florence + the Machine – I'm Not Calling You a Liar Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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This is my interpretation-thing: "I'm not calling you a liar, Just don't lie to me. I'm not calling you a thief, Just don't steal from me, I'm not calling you a ghost, Just stop haunting me," I'm not entirely sure about this part, really. It sounds rather like she's begging her lover to be kind to her; I think he has hurt her before several times in the past. "And I love you so much, I'm gonna let you, Kill me." This is saying that she loves him despite the fact that he is no good for her, that he'll wind up killing her in the end. "There's a ghost in my lungs And it sighs in my sleep, Wraps itself around my tongue, As it softly speaks Then it walks, then it walks with my legsTo Fall, To Fall, To Fall, at your feet." I think the ghost she's talking about is kind of like this love inside her, the love she has for the man, but she doesn't really want to love him because of the fact that he's hurting her, but she doesn't really have a choice. The "ghost" is controlling her, and taking her to him in a submissive kind of way ("to fall at your feet"). And I think the rest of the song just repeats this. "And when you kiss me, I'm happy enough" His occasional kindness and love is enough to make her stay with him, despite everything. |
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| Florence + the Machine – No Light, No Light Lyrics | 12 years ago |
| I always took this song to mean that she and her lover are emotionally violent, and they constantly have ups and downs, hence "No light no light in your bright blue eyes/I never knew daylight could be so violent", there's no light because he is upset. The second line would again refer to his eyes, blue being the color of the sky in the daytime. | |
| Janelle Monáe – Faster Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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I really like this song. :) I think this song has something to do with a bad relationship. "You, since that magic day We've been like magnets in a place We smash in then pull away Every day" I'm guessing the "magic day" is the day the speaker and her love meet, or perhaps when they start dating, or something to that effect. The part about magnets suggests that the mood of her love (or possibly both the speaker and her love) is constantly changing. One minute everything's good, the next it falls to pieces, and they go between these. "You kill me softly with your sun You melt my wings and call it fun I should run" I personally feel this alludes to the Greek myth of Icarus and Daedalus (sorry if I botched that), where when Icarus is flying on his wings he gets too close to the sun, which he does because he is intoxicated with the sheer joy of flying, which melts the wax holding the feathers together, and thus he falls and drowns. The speaker is comparing her situation with her lover to the myth, saying that her love for him keeps her getting close to him, despite the fact that he is melting her wings maliciously. Also, in the myth Daedalus, Icarus' father, attempts to call Icarus away from the sun, to warn him. This might suggest that the speaker's family is attempting to warn her that her love is not good for her, will hurt her in the end, but she doesn't really listen because she is too intoxicated with love. "Faster and faster I should run Faster and faster From your arms" Here she is saying that she knows that he is no good for her, but she doesn't seem capable of running very far or quickly. "I watch my powers die Falling our of starry skies You kryptonite my life Every night" Here, she sees that her lover is ruining her. Krptonite is, obviously, what makes Superman sick and powerless, and Monae uses this as an analogy for the fact that the speaker's lover is poisoning her life. "The ending of this road Dashing prince or horny toad? Who really ever knows? I should know" Here, again, the speaker talks of leaving, "the ending of this road", and she questions wether her lover is good or bad, a "dashing prince" or a "horny toad". Mmm, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah I'm running shaking like a schizo 'Lectric sheep are dancing in the window My heart beats It's kicking like a kick drum Am I a freak? Or just another weirdo Call me weak Or just call me your hero Here, she finally manages to run, and it seems to make her nervous and afraid, hence a comparison to a schizophrenic, and the fact that her heart is beating fast. I think "Am I a freak...or just call me your hero" is asking what he thinks of her, wether he really cared for her at all, or just thought her a "freak", a "weirdo" and "weak". You can't zap down all my good times I know right from wrong Kissing loving's feeling good And not this feeling down You hide your chainsaw deep in kisses That don't make it quiet You got em running, muttering, screaming, each and every night Here she has realized that her lover is nothing but trouble, and steals her "good times", and says that love should not bring you down, but rather make you feel good. That's basically what I got. I apologize for any errors, spelling or otherwise. :) |
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