Lyrics for Red Dress as interpreted by fistfuloflove

Red Dress Lyrics
Hey Jackboot!!!
Fuck Your WAR!!
Cause I'm fat and in love
and no bombs are fallin’ on me for sure.
But I'm scared to death
that I’m livin' a life not worth dying for.

And your plow shear.
It's a sword.
And its wide arcing swing chops the heads off of many things.
Mono crops... Laughter roars.
Oh high hilarity!.
Oh muck bury me!!
Oh standard bearer carry me burnin’ home from another tour!!

Go ahead put your Red Dress on.
Days of White Robes have come and gone,
come and gone.
Oh you rivers,
oh you waters run.
Come bear witness
to the Whore of Babylon!

"Hey Slave" They called.
And we caved.
We answered.
To a new name.
Shout it loud shout it lame!
But blackface it.
You’re such a good dancer.
Oh you’re a star.
You’re carnival.
Jacaranda petals fall.
Mix with the blood of the saints
shot down in the square.
Don't track it in
on the soles of your shoes.
When you’re dragged into the back of this car!

Go ahead put your Red Dress on.
Days of white robes have come and gone,
come and gone.
Oh you rivers,
oh you waters run.
Come bear witness to the Whore of Babylon!

It's a trap.
That much is plain.
Still, maybe send snapshots
of all your sweet pain.
Playin’ tortuous games.
It goes: Lense. Light. Fame.
Read my names on your lips.
When the man cracks the whip.
And you'll all shake your hips.
And you'll all dance to this.
Without making a fist.
And I know that it sounds mundane.
But it's a stone cold shame.
How they got you tame,
and they got me tame.

So go ahead put your Red Dress on.
Days of white robes come and gone,
come and gone.
Oh you rivers,
oh you waters run.
Come bear witness to the Whore of Babylon!!

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anatomyofacraka
09-28-2008

Rated 0 
TV on the Radio got good at writing lyrics. Dear Science rocks. Awesome album title by the way, I remember thinking that if I had a band, I would want to name it Dear Science a couple years ago. For me, it is a sarcastic view of how people think of science as an alternative to god. Anyway...

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Trunks378
12-26-2008

Rated 0 
Someone is certainly defense of their beliefs against silly things like I dunno...facts..but whatever.

It's an awesome song though, I definitely think it has to do with the oppression of blacks and women throughout history and many still feeling powerless in today's society with still a lack real equality between races and gender in this country.(Though the recent election certainly was a new benchmark)

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falkie
03-08-2009

Rated 0 
Does anybody have an idea of what the Jacaranda trees reference is about? I'm really curious about that, and have not been able to figure it out.

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zephid
03-10-2009

Rated 0 
Seems like an anti-war song to me.

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zephid
03-10-2009

Rated +1 
Is it actually Jackboot? I keep hearing "jackal."

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dkizzle
04-27-2009

Rated 0 

The song references slavery and lack of respect for black people, but to me that's a metaphore for how people in general let society and government tame and enslave them. Not with literal chains or whips, but by caving and taking the easy path. "Hey slave they called and we caved, we answered to the new name." For our personal feeling of safety and perhaps a few compliments, "You're such a good dancer", we sacrifice our beliefs and integrity, "and you'll all dance to this without making a fist". I'd say the red dress could refer to war as an example of what we support and don't resist that compromises our integrity. "Fuck your war cause I'm fat and in love and no bombs are falling on me for sure. But I'm scared to death that I'm living a life not worth dying for."

I am curious about the "Whore of Babylon". Babylon is now located in Iraq, so perhaps we are whoring Babylon?

I'm also curious about the Jacaranda petals. Perhaps it is simply for the stunning visual of the light purple petals mixing with blood, but I wouldn't be surprised if there was more.


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clovus
05-13-2009

Rated 0 
The "Whore of Babylon" is from Revelations in the Bible, and may be the key to this song. There are obvious allusions to slavery and past oppression in the song, but now the days of “white robes” have come and gone. However those that were enslaved (and really everyon) are still in the chains of materialism and fame. One interpretation of the “whore of Babylon” from the Bible is that she represents materialism and greed.

I think he is being sarcastic about many people who claim to be anti-war. The person saying “f*** your war” followed by “I’m fat and in love” obviously just wants to be left alone. They don’t have any real political opinion about it. They are enslaved by the convenience of modern life. We can all be fat and happy and don’t have to worry about thousands of people dying elsewhere in the world.


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sper12
11-13-2009

Rated 0 
"White Robes" is a reference to the KKK I think. As in, the days of that crude sort of overt racism are gone, but although everyone's really politically correct now, maybe not that much has really changed?

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