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Just last night I woke from some unconscionable dream
Had it nailed to my forehead again
To keep this boat afloat
There are things you can't afford to know
So I save all my breath for the sails
But you'll find those lingering voices
Are just your ego's attempt to make it all clean and nice and make a moron out of you
Walking a bridge on weakening cables
Huddled up in fear and hate because we know our fate and it's a lot to put us through
Most ideas turn to dust
As there are few in which we can all trust
Haven't you noticed I've been shedding all of mine?
So let's abandon that track
And leave our fathers fighting in a sack
'Cause we're way too wise-assed for that
You might find some fools at your doorstep
Hustling the latest changes to the book that's the strangest
In an attempt to multiply
Marionettes on weakening cables
Huddled up with fear and hate because they know their fate and it's a lot to put them through
We've taken on a climb
And it's long enough to put the best of us on our backs
Walking up a slide
And there are those we know who'd have us five miles off the track
You'll find those lingering voices
Are just your ego's attempt to make it all clean and nice and make a moron out of you
Crossing a bridge on weakening cables
Huddled up with fear and hate because we know our fate and it's a lot to put us through
Had it nailed to my forehead again
To keep this boat afloat
There are things you can't afford to know
So I save all my breath for the sails
But you'll find those lingering voices
Are just your ego's attempt to make it all clean and nice and make a moron out of you
Walking a bridge on weakening cables
Huddled up in fear and hate because we know our fate and it's a lot to put us through
Most ideas turn to dust
As there are few in which we can all trust
Haven't you noticed I've been shedding all of mine?
So let's abandon that track
And leave our fathers fighting in a sack
'Cause we're way too wise-assed for that
You might find some fools at your doorstep
Hustling the latest changes to the book that's the strangest
In an attempt to multiply
Marionettes on weakening cables
Huddled up with fear and hate because they know their fate and it's a lot to put them through
We've taken on a climb
And it's long enough to put the best of us on our backs
Walking up a slide
And there are those we know who'd have us five miles off the track
You'll find those lingering voices
Are just your ego's attempt to make it all clean and nice and make a moron out of you
Crossing a bridge on weakening cables
Huddled up with fear and hate because we know our fate and it's a lot to put us through
Lyrics submitted by doobeydoobeydude
Track duration: 02:27
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Specifically I love what dcov28 said about “because we know our fate and that’s a lot to put us through”
Because if you were and atheist, you know you fate is to die—and that’s it. No after life. No heaven.
I believe in heaven and if I didn’t feel confident in that belief I would be ‘huddled up in fear and hate too”. How depressing would it be to know that this is it. We have one life and then..that’s it.
Now I’m no expert on the artists of the shins. I don’t look up what they believe because I like to customize the songs meanings for what they mean to me
but with the line—“most ideas turn to dust as there are few in which we trust.”
I can’t help but think of how a lot of philosophies and religions lack staying power but monotheistic religions have been around for quite some time now. So they are the few that can be trusted
And maybe the narrator has been “shedding all of” the ideas he can’t trust—the new-age fads or his disbelief in religion.
With the line “and leave our fathers fighting in a sack, cause we are way too wise-assed for that”
I think the narrator is mocking the kids that are anti-referring to the kids who rebel from their parents or religion just for the sake of it, not because they don’t believe in God. The kids become “marionettes”. Kids who left religion to avoid conforming to it and conformed to atheism instead.
“We've taken on a climb, and it's long enough to put the best of us on our backs”
May be referring to the hopelessness and the heartbreak that comes with abandoning God. Now that they have chosen a path without God, they are on their own and even the best of us can’t handle that. The path is “a bridge with weakening cables”—it seems like a strong, bold decision at the time but it loses it’s appeal because it doesn’t have a foundation (a beliefless belief system, you know?)
I also agree that Christianity is not at all nice and neat. And I liked how dcov28 pointed that out.
It would be simpler to believe that when we die, we are dead. And that is all.
But to open your mind to the idea of a higher power is a harder thing to do once you are older and capable of individual thought.
Okay so that is just what the song means to me, clearly a very different opinion to most of the people that have commented
In so many shins songs, mercer explains his (almost)* atheistic views, on not just religion but all/most structured philosphy.
in saint simon he says that he "values them (these taught belief) but i wont cry everytime ones wiped out"
in "young pilgrims" he says "if your able (as in, able to believe anything: christianity, hari krishna, marxism, harry potter) i suggest it/ cause this modern thought can get the best of you" (the modern biological thought of being dead equals nothingness for eternity.)
and finally in "A comet appears" he says "we can blow on our thumbs and postures but the lonley are such delicate things." ( as in, we might, he might, not be able to belive these many theories and religions, and as 21st century people we can take solice in evolution (opposable thumbs and upright postures are evidence of evolution) yet if we can fake a belief and truely force ourselves to belive it then we'll basically be happier (and not waste life worrying about death). that why i think people have created religions where you have to sacrifice something (sunday mornings, adultery lol) so these beliefs seem more real to them and they can therefore create "heaven on earth"
sorry for getting all philosphical in a lyrics blog.
* i persoanlly think mercer is not an atheist he just lives in a time where you can go to your local religion and philosophy supermarket and chose from a choice of belief or even make your own. so he's not atheist, he just can't MAKE himself "buy" one.
"Just last night I woke from some unconscionable dream
Had it nailed to my forehead again
To keep this boat afloat
There are things you can't afford to know
So I save all my breath for the sails
But you'll find those lingering voices
Are just your ego's attempt to make it all clean and nice and make a moron out of you
Walking a bridge on weakening cables
Huddled up in fear and hate because we know our fate and it's a lot to put us through
Most ideas turn to dust
As there are few in which we can all trust
Haven't you noticed I've been shedding all of mine?
So let's abandon that track
And leave our fathers fighting in a sack
'Cause we're way too wise-assed for that
You might find some fools at your doorstep
Hustling the latest changes to the book that's the strangest
In an attempt to multiply
Marionettes on weakening cables
Huddled up with fear and hate because they know their fate and it's a lot to put them through
We've taken on a climb
And it's long enough to put the best of us on our backs
Walking up a slide
And there are those we know who'd have us five miles off the track
You'll find those lingering voices
Are just your ego's attempt to make it all clean and nice and make a moron out of you
Crossing a bridge on weakening cables
Huddled up with fear and hate because we know our fate and it's a lot to put us through"
doesn't change the meaning but there were a few words that were wrong.
except sometimes the more arguable one is probably right.. accept the fact both ideas are plausable but also try to understand the other side i guess. so the making mistakes over and over does work. but it kind of fits in this whole anti-religion theme.. don't make the mistake our fathers made by wasting ur time with religion. again.
but i think the whole atheist stereotype was ignorant hahahaha
you seem chauvinistic and arrogant. above atheists. too.
but hey i'm not atheist
the shins are truly amazing, truly.
and i wonder if the USA Today writer for the good JW's is associated with them somehow...
hmm ok u could take this song to say: wasting time thinking about stuff like philosophy and religion will kill you. or drown/sink you. so like religious wars and whatnot. ya? perhaps
now to analyze from my opinion - to me the line
" Marionettes on weakening cables
Huddled up with fear and hate because they know their fate and it's a lot to put them through"
takes christianity out of the picture. i have never met a christain who knows their fate and is scared. in the christain faith knowing your fate would be very reasureing seeing as they know they will be saved. as a christain i do have doubts sometimes and, to me, the doubts are the lingering voices.
also religion, christainity at least (that's all i can really speak for), is not all nice and neat. that is one reason i believe. believing is not easy as many would seem to be suggesting.
also "hustling the changes to the book that's the strangest" doesn't have anything to do with christianity. christianity hasn't really changed since luther and calvin. (sorry mormon... i don't buy it. maybe that's what it's about...).
lastly, isn't it a little ironic that we are pondering a song in which the line
"Most ideas turn to dust
As there are few in which we can all trust
Haven't you noticed I've been shedding all of mine?"
love the energy of this song, got to go see them in concery :D