Imogen Heap – Glittering Cloud

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  General Comment:Soooo... how come no one has stopped to reflect on the song's TITLE?
  
  Maybe the song is about a glittering cloud. xD

  Flag Vahn421on August 17, 2012   Link

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  General Comment:I think this song is posed about being a werewolf.
  The line "I'm not always like this" is a hint. The glittering cloud may be the moon rising from the clouds. She says "save me from my self" which I think means she wants to stop her lunar transformation. And "before I hurt somebody else again" might be saying she might have injured somebody while in lycan state. When she speaks of the papers and the telly, she might have been seen as she transformed or just as a wolf. 'The artist's impression looks just me, only better" might state that she/he saw Heap before the transformation and after it you look a lot worse. Trust me.
  
  This is just want I personally think.

  Flag MrWaterWolfofEnglandon May 26, 2012   Link

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  My Interpretation:this song makes me think so much of mental illness. the lyrics sound like they're from someone with dissociative identity disorder. "i'm not always like this, it's something i've become, a terrible weakness, in my nature, in my blood"--it sounds like something genetic that she can't control, and the part about "a blackout approaching, here it comes now, wish me luck" sounds like the switch between the parts of her personality. Most people with DID have at least one personality that controls the most carnal parts of them, the parts of them that are under control when they're in their own "normal" personality. when they're living in this "normal" state, they're typically not aware of the carnal personality (or any of the other ones that come out) or what they do when they're in a different personality, which is why she explains it like a blackout.
  
  I think it's about the character's reaction to the blame that others put on her for a mental condition that she can't control. the phrase "glittering clouds" represents the escape from reality she has when she involuntarily switches into other personalities. glittering clouds make me think of clouds that are about to rain hard and cause problems.
  
  "The artist's impression looks just like me, only better" I think this refers to the way that most of the media portrays "dangerous" mental illnesses--they're kind of romanticized in movies like The Secret Window etc. DID/whatever mental illness it is might be the puppeteer who's making her "dance" without her control. anyway that's just my take on it, it could be something totally different.

  Flag jenn48on February 09, 2012   Link

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  Song Meaning:While I know this song is about locusts, it still totally makes me think about a serial killer/someone who feels almost *compelled* to kill, but they're fighting against it even though it is a part of their nature. Then one night they snap and it's over so fast, but it still happened... just maybe not the way they had thought it would. The next day there is an artist sketch of them floating around on television and people are talking about it. They just want to do it again, have settled into their role, but they still don't want at least the person or people--perhaps a bf/gf/family members--being addressed to loathe and hate/fear them. They can't help it, it's part of who they are to do what they did and will probably do again.
  
  Either way, it's an interesting story in song form and I love the metaphor that Imogen used for the "plague of locusts" thing. It leaves the song itself open to so many different interpretations that way and that, to me, is the beauty of metaphors.
  
  In short: I love this song and bonus: it's a lot of fun to dance to.

  Flag JudasDeniedon March 26, 2011   Link

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  General Comment:i think this song is about f.ucking.

  Flag angela14lynnon November 26, 2010   Link

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  General Comment:As people have already pointed out, she was commissioned to write something about locusts for the 'Plague Songs' project. On her blog she said:
  
  Quote:
  
  My mission, should I choose to accept it was "to write a song about Locusts" That had to be the strangest request I've ever had so of course I took it on! What I had no idea idea of is that for the most part our locust is actually a pretty nice solitary kinda guy. It's only until the rains fall and they're forced to hand out together to eat and breed they become the creature we all know and hate...Our locust is battling between his two sides. In the verses he's trying to explain that he's misunderstood, that he's not really like that and and in the chorus, he's become the tribal cop-eating warrior! I thought that when they are swarming they're probably having a fantastic time about it. Hedonistic even. I imagined them all at some huge rave or something.
  
  End quote
  
  (A couple of obvious typos in the blog: 'hand out' must be 'hang out', and 'cop-eating' must be 'crop-eating'.)
  
  I must admit I would never have guessed it had anything to do with locusts if I hadn't been told, but it works as an expression of a kind of frenzied feeling amyway.

  Flag DavidBon January 15, 2010   Link

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    Great explanation! And it can comport all other interpretations like double personality, werewolves, mental illness and more

    Flag DiscoBoyon January 05, 2013  
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  General Comment:this song actually reminded me of people like Lindsay Lohan. You know, like, alcoholic kids in the spotlight. aha...that's just what it reminds me of.

  Flag tifnzon November 21, 2009   Link

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  General Comment:I think this song is about a chain reaction-
  you know.
  She sort of... pushes a little domino in the scenario and it stumbles around then eventually falls into place, knocking over that one, and the next one, and the one after and it goes on and on and on until it finally reaches the last domino. She feels pretty bad about what she did, whatever that is, and doesn't want to get involved again: whatever she did, it caused casualties to other subjects involved or even standing on the sides thus causing anxiety and depression from guilt and when asked to do it again, she runs away.

  Flag ejisqxon August 04, 2009   Link

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  General Comment:Somehow I feel everyone's missing the obvious here - isn't she talking about being a murderer?
  
  "Save me from myself
  Before I hurt somebody else again"
  
  "It's all over the papers
  And the TV, wagging tongues
  The artist's impression looks just like me, only better
  Don't blame me, don't maim me, I can't help what I am"
  
  Mass murderer? That was my initial impression anyway. Why else would she be "all over the papers" and have an "Artists impression" on the news? Also "Glittering cloud" could refer to drug induced hallucinations.

  Flag sibzlipzon July 19, 2009   Link

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    or she was indirectly involved in one... either way.

    Flag ejisqxon August 04, 2009  
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  General Comment:In my opinion, the song is about how a creature can not beat it's own nature. Locusts have the instinct to devour and destroy, but the particular locusts point of view shows that it is trying to change itself. In humans this could mean our violent or sexual tendencies that nature has programmed into us and some of us just can't change. it could also mean something about addiction.

  Flag kyuuialisonon July 18, 2009   Link

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