Sufjan Stevens – Kill

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  General Comment:@Dan365, I think this (paired with "Jason") is perhaps written from the point of view of Medea after Jason has abandoned her for Creon's daughter. It would certainly fit with the album's general tendencies of mythical allusion.

  Flag wisenmomuson January 23, 2012   Link

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  General Comment:It is about Sherwood Anderson's Short Story "The Man Who Became a Woman".

  Flag sufjanirongrizzlyjenningson July 31, 2009   Link

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  General Comment:I love Sufjan Stevens. This song creeps the shit out of me.

  Flag rushtapeon February 25, 2009   Link

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  My Opinion:This song has to either be about cain and abel or the short story someone else mentioned. I just have a really hard time imagining that these words were sufjan's own feelings about someone. He seems to be a devout Christian, and these themes are seen in this album a good deal. I can understand him having the human emotion of anger, but this song is really graphic, and kind of disturbing. I just think it has to be about someone or something else.

  Flag djw1234on February 10, 2009   Link

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    +1

    I'm a musician and a Christian, like Sufjan, and Ive written some pretty awful lyrics, in the sense that they are graphic, angry, hate-filled, etc. They are human emotions and its a way for me to vent those frustrations. It doesnt mean I dont reslove the problem that is the source of all my anger and I act out based on my feelings. it wouldnt surprise me if these were Sufjans feelings because Im an extremely mild-mannered person i have writtend some 'dark,' for lack of a better word, stuff. Im not comparing myself to Sufjan at all on a musical level either... just to clear that up. hes a genius

    Flag noclueon March 18, 2009  
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  General Comment:I'm assuming that a) this song is based off of Elliott Smith's Roman Candle and the extremely familiar rhyme scheme/music/lyrical content is not a coincidence, and that b) Elliott Smith's song Roman Candle was written about his step-father, which seems suggested by the lyrics due to Elliott's past relationship with him.
  So therefore, I am assuming this song is about a father figure as well.
  
  He took the stable
  Bred me to be a mare
  Made the bretheren able
  Gave me a room
  
  So his father (he) took the place where he was born (stable), and had him only to have grandchildren and continue the family (I make this assumption from context later in the song, which I will mention, as well as the mare being a female horse who has had at least one fowl, as well as the next line) He made male descendants possible (Made the brethren able) and provided shelter for him (gave him a room)
  
  I never asked him
  I never meant to stay
  He dressed the table
  Wore a dress to be my mare
  
  He never asked his father to give him a room, and it was not his will to stay in there. The father provided food to him (dressed the table), and acted as a mother figure to him. (this was the context i spoke of, there is no other explanation for the father acting as the mare that i can see.)
  
  There's no permanence
  When you never leave the stall
  He ran to other wars
  Won't write me at all
  
  There's nothing left behind but memories once you leave your home, there's nothing to keep from your past relationships with your father. (No permanence when you leave the stall.) His father left to fight in wars. (maybe the word other here means that they fought a lot, as many fathers and sons do, and their relationship was like a war. or, perhaps the job of providing for his son was a fight to him.) Now that his male descendants were assured, he wasn't afraid to die. His purpose was served, his son was unimportant to him beyond this, so he never wrote to him or tried to contact him. (wont write me at all)
  
  I want to kill him
  I want to cut his brain
  And when it's over
  I know I'll feel okay
  
  The repressed hate and anger, the frustration in not being able to do anything but bottle up the pain, the thought, rather the absolute certainty, that if he could bring pain to his father then he would feel better about what happened to them. I don't believe that hurting him would really make him feel better, this is just how much pain he is in, but this is just my opinion.
  
  He was a champion
  We were riding side by side
  Into the frontier
  He left me without a ride
  
  They are still horses in the song, so the meaning of champion might mean that his dad was not only great, but fully grown. They were tackling this wilderness that we call life together (riding side by side into the frontier.) Then his father just abandoned him to fight in the war, leaving nothing for his son but a memory.
  
  Where did the hour go
  When the champions intercede?
  He stole the cargo
  Took every chance to leave
  
  He's asking why he was never given a moment (where did the hour go) to plea in an attempt to persuade him not to go off to die in a war. I am also assuming he is a man at this point, since they are now both champions. (when the champions intercede?) He took everything of value that belonged to him and his son (stole the cargo) and attempted to leave whenever he thought possible.
  
  There's no permanence
  When you never leave the stall
  He ran to other wars
  Won't write me at all
  
  I want to kill him
  I want to cut his brain
  And when it's over
  I know I'll feel okay
  
  I want to kill him
  I want to cut his face
  And when it's over
  I know I'll feel okay
  
  I want
  I want
  I want
  I want

  Flag DMV666on January 16, 2009   Link

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    +1

    on second thought, the father figure is probably his brother.. and i'm to lazy to reinterpret, so i hope that doesnt skew my interpretation too much.

    Flag DMV666on January 16, 2009  

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    on third thought, probably is about cain and abel indeed. i give up. have at it.

    Flag DMV666on January 16, 2009  
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  General Comment:Oy! Look what I found!
  
  "According to Stevens, the song "Kill" is taken from Sherwood Anderson's short story "The Man Who Became a Woman." --from an article in Sound Collector, Issue 8, 2003.
  
  I haven't read the short story mentioned, but I thought it was interesting to find that out...

  Flag annieoveron March 27, 2008   Link

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  General Comment:i came here to see if anyone else thought this sounded like roman candle and i saw like 5 comments saying the same thing. a lot of a sun came sounds like elliott smith and early smashing pumpkins.

  Flag willlliwon September 16, 2007   Link

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  General Comment:Here are the exact lyrics for this song, transcribed from Sufjan's handwriting in the first pressing of the album. The lyrics are originally written without line breaks.
  
  Kill: he took the stable, bred me to be a mare. Made the brethren able, gave me a room. I never asked him. I never meant to stay. He dressed the table, wore a dress to be my mare. There's no permanence when you never leave the stall. He ran to other wars, won't write me at all. I want to kill him, I want to cut his brain, and when it's over, I know I'll feel okay. He was a champion; we were running side by side into the frontier. He left me without a ride. Where did the hour go when the champions intercede? He stole the cargo, took every chance to leave (chorus). I want to kill him, I want to cut his face, and when it's over, I know I'll feel okay. I want I want I want I want.

  Flag Periodixon May 23, 2007   Link

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  General Comment:sounds sort of like a song of lost love, he ran to other wars/won't write me at all, like someone left him and he is misses them a bit but mostly he is angry at them for leaving.

  Flag NosumusHicon April 01, 2007   Link

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  General Comment:guys. i seriously think it's about cain and able. in the bible, they were brothers, one was better than the other so he got jealous and murdered his own brother in a field. sad story.

  Flag umm.kaitlinon February 17, 2007   Link

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    +1

    i think you are overstretching it a little but good thought...

    Flag disneyfreaker45on January 25, 2010  

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