Everyone
Everyone around here
Everyone is so near
It's holding on
It's holding on

Everyone
Everyone is so near
Everyone has got the fear
It's holding on
It's holding on

It's holding on
It's holding on
It's holding on



Lyrics submitted by Vache, edited by TheAmazingSoundsOfGreenwood

Track duration: 05:52

"The National Anthem" as written by Thomas Yorke, Edward John O'brien, Colin Charles Greenwood, Jonathan Richard Guy Greenwood, Philip Selway

Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.

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The National Anthem song meanings
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  • 0
    My Interpretation:Sheer chaos.
    Flag yada3on February 07, 2013   Link
  • -1
    General Comment:This song is awesome, the song is showing us how pathetic goverment is, everybody goes in and votes people in with great hopes and such of what they are going to do, but ultimatly, it's because of the other people that have ambition, that it ends up a great mess.

    What many people don't know is that the "mess" of instruments in the middle, is actually all of the people playing the pipes and other instuments doing a legidiment solo in the key of the bass riff, (which thom wrote when he was 14). Each of the pipe players is proffessional, but when it all goes together it sounds horrendous but scince it's in the same key it makes the bass riff rise above it all.

    If each solo was alone, and every other instrument played rythmically along it would sound great, but because everybody wants to do everything it doesn't work...

    Hopefully you see the connections to the direction I'm going!

    Lyrics fiting
    "Everyone is so near" in the way that they all want the same general things that they will never get
    "What's going on" so much choas and confusion because of differnces in ambition
    "Everyones got the fear it's holding on" They realize that it can't work, and whatever this "utopia" they are trying to reach is useless because they are held down by others that are being held down by themselves. Very Anti-Humanistic, which I like.
    "Is holding on" He screams this at the ending in the choas repeditally, it will never end, were doomed.

    I find the bass riff is just saying over and over againg skeptically and rebilliously, "This just keeps on happening" like the "is holding on".

    My explination fits into the title as well, "National Anthem" sort of a cry of the people.
    A great song,
    Cheers!
    Flag cowofloveon December 31, 2010   Link
  • 0
    Memory:does this remind anyone else of Ravel's Bolero?
    Flag leviathan626on December 03, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:2 things:
    First, I'm pretty sure "what's going on" is supposed to be "and so alone". I'm not a Radiohead expert or anything but the contradiction would be very cool.

    Also, I'm kinda confused about how none of the meanings proposed here have to do with the internet. So far a lot of the stuff I've read about the album (I got it a month ago) has to do with how it sounds computery (e.g. Idioteque, Everything in its Right Place, Kid A) and builds of the 2000, y2k hysteria. The song totally makes sense in terms of internet paranoia. It brings people closer together - but at the same time drives them apart, and takes over our lives and our nations. As in, chaos is the new national anthem.

    Anyway, great song.
    Flag KnightofNion November 13, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Not sure what its about but i do know this song gives me an unearthly feeling like it was written beyond grave as a warning to the human race...hold on maybe holding on to our planet? maybe...the use of everybody is as if he is talking on a whole race scale...maybe a warning about global warming? the planet becoming inclosed into the fear of our planet been destroyed...whats going on? questions with no answers been repeated? desperation maybe this might provoke panic...it some how scares me that if this was the National Anthem then i wonder what sort of world we are all turning into...but hey who knows i may be wayyy of!!!
    Peace and Love
    Soybn
    Flag Soybnon May 20, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:two things,
    it is "its holding on" both times
    not "whats going on"

    and who knows what its about
    95% of the lyrics in the Kid A album were made by cutting up lyrics and pulling them from a hat, literally.
    I think the dissonance and aggressive tendencies of the music are the lyrics in works with the title.

    like this is the title of the song and this is what we mean by it, here is our crazy awesome music.
    Flag henrysawesomeston February 15, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:To me it seems to be about the Nationalistic hysteria and fervor that are created by certain governments in order to achieve political ends.
    Flag m4caqueon July 13, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:this song is about losing your mind. slowly. methodically. almost on purpose, but not quite. at least not at first.

    then you let go.

    the end of this song is how it feels when you get there.
    Flag LA_Rounderon October 30, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:HOW TO DISAPPEAR COMPETELY AND THIS SONG,

    are my favourite's, off of Kid A.

    Which is my favourite album.
    Flag fake.and.safeon October 26, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Self-realization of a collective consciousness, we are all one. We should stop denying it as much as we do. We create this reality physically and metaphysically. It is a reflection of an undeveloped spirituality. This is why things are fucked up right now. I couldn't believe it when it happened. LSD and Thom Yorke did me dirty.
    Flag plasticathexison September 09, 2008   Link

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