Modest Mouse – Truckers Atlas

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I'm going to Colorado
To unload my head
I'm going to New York City
And that's in New York, friends

I'm going to Arizona
Sex on the rocks all warm and red
And we bled
And the writing in the stall said

"we write our maps in the stalls"
I'm going up to Alaska
I'm going to get off scot-fucking-free
And we all did

This truckers atlas roads the ways
The freeways and highways don't know
The buzz from the bird on my dash
Road locomotive phone

I don't feel and I feel great
I sold my atlas by the freight stairs
I do lines and I crossed roads
I crossed the lines of all the great state roads

I'm going up
Going over to Montana
You got yourself a trucker's atlas
You knew you were all hot

Maybe you'll go and blow a gasket
You start at the northwest corner
Go down through California
Beeline you might drive three days

Three nights to the tip of Florida
Do you speak the lingo?
Oh Oh No. No no
How far does your road go?

Oh no, you don't know
I'm going to Colorado
To unload my head
I'm going to New York City

And that's in New York, friends
I'm going up to Alaska
I'm going to get off scot-fucking-free
And we all did

And the writing in the salt says
We ride out to the stars
I'm going to Arizona
Sex on the rocks all warm and red

This truckers atlas roads the ways
The freeways and highways don't know
The buzz from the bird on my dash
Road locomotive phone

Send "Truckers Atlas" Ringtone to Cell


Lyrics submitted by PLANES

Track duration: 10:58

"Truckers Atlas" as written by Isaac Brock, Eric Judy, Jeremiah Green

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

Lyrics powered by LyricFind


Truckers Atlas song meanings
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70 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:The person that is claiming that this song isn't about a trucker doing meth is wrong. Here's the quote "The only drugs I've ever actually written any music on are pills, pot, and alcohol. Acid or coke, you can't write songs on that shit." He clearly didn't say that he's only ever wrote songs about pills, pot or alcohol, he said that he had never written a song while on acid or coke. This song is also very, very clearly about a trucker doing meth and driving around the country. It's plainly obvious.
    Flag johno6700on July 06, 2012   Link
  • 0
    My Opinion:This song isn't about meth, nor is Styrofoam Boots. Isaac says himself that the only drugs he ever wrote about were pills, pot, and alcohol. While I can't say that I know what it's about, I can help narrow it down that much. Check out this interview with Brock where he says; it's really interesting. avclub.com/articles/modest-mouse,13862/
    Flag McMatthew23on April 15, 2012   Link
    • 2 Replies
  • 0
    General Comment:If this song is about doing lines of drugs then the imagery of its name is awesome! Just put the image in your mind of so many lines of meth/coke/whatever on a table that it actually begins to resemble a road map! I personally thought it was just about traveling and escaping but to each his own i guess...
    Flag ImInYourBasementLolon July 19, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I always took this song literally with the travelling around.
    Although the "I do lines" always meant drugs to me.

    If it is talking about drugs though, it is defiantly on about ice, not coke.
    Flag Suhmeron June 02, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:P.S. this song is about doing meth, same as styrofoam boots...
    Flag emsquaredon April 20, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:@ColinSmith

    the original saying is "scot-free", Brock just throws in "fucking" for emphasis, but scot-free means to get away with a criminal act without consequence. Comes from an olde english (Great Britain) saying about avoiding taxes.

    Flag emsquaredon April 20, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:The lines are probably meth, not coke. You stay up on it longer, and trucker's are well known for using it to drive for days. I think that is what the title is referencing as well.
    Flag astroid0on February 13, 2011   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:Sorry, I'm not a native English speaker... what does that "I'm going to get off scot-fucking-free" mean?

    Is it about low taxes in Alaska or something like that?
    Flag ColinSmithon September 03, 2010   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:Guys I honestly believe its him doing drugs off of a map or atlas maybe while he's traveling or just in his car. Maybe he's using the whole travel thing as a metaphor.

    The line of coke started at one point of the map and ended where Colorado is on the map so he is "going" to Colorado to unload his head. He does this multiple times to different destinations.
    Flag xMooDudexon September 10, 2009   Link
  • 0
    My Opinion:I have to be honest, I have no idea what this song is about. However, I created my account here just so I could mention how unbelievably epic it is. And carpe_diem is completely right. As a drummer myself, I bow in servitude to whoever can keep that up for 6 minutes and still have energy for 4 minutes of free styling at the end.
    Flag jeff303on August 13, 2009   Link

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