Won herself a pass to some far off moon
It was second class but what's to lose?
And looking out her window she could more than assume
That you can't see air or time
She's the only rocketeer in the whole damn place
They gave her a mirror so she could talk to a face
She still got plenty lonely but that's just the case
With time, time, time
Started hearing voices sometime in June
She knew she could go crazy but didn't think that soon
Now she doesn't feel lonely but she'd just as soon
Try, try, try, try
Man shot to the moon
I read a paperback and want to go real soon
I'm shot to the moon
Been there a half an hour, I want to come home soon



Lyrics submitted by PLANES

Track duration: 01:54


Space Travel Is Boring song meanings
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33 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:This song and a lot of the songs on this particular album remind me of short stories written my Ray Bradbury.
    Flag Indie_Queenon March 15, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:People brought up good points but, like a lot of mm songs (ie. styrofoam boots, ionizes/atomizes), the beauty is that the metaphor has multiple meanings. Not all MM songs are about drugs but a lot of them compare drug use to other things through metaphor.

    Interestingly comparable to the themes on the last song on LCW, I think this is a metaphor for both drug use and the afterlife.

    This is the metaphor for drug use:

    "Won herself a pass to some far off moon
    It was second class but what's to lose?"

    Going to some far off moon is the state while on drugs, yes its a low class lifestyle but the subject has nothing to lose, or this could be just an aesthetic perspective that there's literally nothing to lose.

    "you can't see air or time"

    When you're on drugs your perception of time is extremely skewed.

    "She's the only rocketeer in the whole damn place
    They gave her a mirror so she could talk to a face
    She still got plenty lonely but that's just the case
    With time, time, time"

    This lifestyle makes the subject feel lonely and isolated. In this isolation she does a lot of thinking to herself, but this doesn't make up for the lack of conventional social interaction. And that's just the case with being in this state.

    "Started hearing voices sometime in June
    She knew she could go crazy but didn't think that soon
    Now she doesn't feel lonely but she'd just as soon
    Try, try, try, try"

    The subject goes deeper down the rabbit hole of isolation and paranoia, she realizes what's happening but its too late to do anything about it. She's lost all feeling, and no longer even cares about her isolation.

    "Man shot to the moon
    I bought a paperback and want to go real soon
    I'm shot to the moon
    Been there a half an hour, I want to come home soon"

    Shot is wordplay for shooting up. When you are sober you want the drug badly, you're prepared (just like buying a paperback before a long trip). From personal experience, 30 minutes into a drug trip a lot of people hate the feeling and just want it to end, you don't know why you wanted it and just want to come down.
    Flag Amnesia88on October 07, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i bought a paperback*
    Flag sheionizeson October 04, 2010   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:this is a very strange ending to the album in my opinion. im not sure why they put it there, kinda feels like they just tossed it on last minute. it sounds like a song for the middle. but in any case its a really really great song. it kinda sounds like trying to get somewhere/something that sounds really really good in theory. but the journey to that thing is really hard and when you finally get there you realize that it wasnt worth it atall and you just wanna go back to where you started.
    Flag Duckson August 03, 2009   Link
  • +1
    Song Meaning:the way i see it, the moon might represent some far-off, desolate place that both the first girl and the second guy opt to go to. the first girl has little ambition to go there, she just sees it as a fortunate option that happened to be handed down to her. "whats to lose" shows that it's just the best of what ever choices she might have laying on the table. because she doesn't feel too strongly about going to "the moon", she doesn't experience the negative aspects of being alone. her lack of aspiration has allowed her to shut down her social drives, "now she doesn't feel lonely", which is a good thing in her situation. this is the closest thing to happiness either of them experience.

    the guy differs from her in the way that he goes to the moon full of aspiration, he feels a need to go, he "wants to go real soon". his downfall is the need for excitement, his drive to do more blocks any chances at happiness, he just can't be content. while she lasts until "June", he's only good for a half hour.
    Flag DiddleDeeon May 09, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Mr. Moustache, I hope you're being facetious.
    My first impression when listening was that it was about drugs of some sort, but I definitely could see it being about trying to find a new definition for yourself by moving to another place and discovering it's all pretty much the same, except you don't know anybody now...
    Flag Amouse1on August 11, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:it's just a clever spin on lonlieness, i don't think he's actually talking about space travel, he's talking about doing something everybody wants to do at some point, which is go it on their own, but found out pretty quick that they need human contact.
    Flag jandrewleeon November 10, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:This song is about utter loneliness. Try watching the fan video on youtube - it's someone driving down a highway and filming everything they see, and it works well for this song. Just the right mix of lethargy, hopelessness, isolation, etc.
    Flag zlson September 25, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i hate it when ppl think modest mouse songs are referred to drug use.. i mean some have but this one.. n-o

    it means anything you want it to
    Flag pet moustacheon June 27, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Such a lonely song to close out an album to.
    Flag OldHickoryon May 26, 2007   Link

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