Well I didn’t think it would end like this
Cutting of the blood to ten
With a rope around my wrist

But I think that every one imagines why
And where it is they’re gonna die
And when it happens do we fly?

And I wished I could have told my son
That I was the coward one
Its never admirable when your father cant move on

Well I never thought that you would slip inside
Your brothers unfaithful wife
While the children were down the stairs

I saw what you were doing
And I wished that I have burnt that goddamn door
Finding both of you on the floor
Realizing your brides a whore
Really takes an enormous toll
On your head

Well I didn’t think that you could craft this song
Sleeping with the devil and all
And I can hear you sing along

And I wished that I could have told the lord
To sever me at the chord
Cause the moment I left I’d never come back no more

So hope that it actually ends for me this way
Cause tomorrow is another day
And I have to decide to stay or stay

For now I’ll keep my hands around this thing
And wait for an apostle to sing
You’re never allowed to come in

So just sink or swim



Lyrics submitted by YourFavWeapon83, edited by Mellow_Harsher


Cutting Off the Blood to Ten song meanings
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13 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:I dont think I agree with a lot of the religious allusions people are saying they see.

    This is more a song of a man contemplating suicide directly after discovering that his wife has been sleeping with his brother.
    "Cutting off the blood to ten, with a rope around my wrist" -Literally has a rope tied to his wrists with something heavy(probably an anchor) attached while he thinks of drowning himself with it.

    Second stanza commenting on the common contemplation of the afterlife.

    "And I wished I could have told my son
    That I was the coward one
    Its never admirable when your father cant move on"
    -Goddamn, I love this verse. He regrets that he will be giving his son a bad example of honor, responsibility, and strength.

    Skip to "Well I didn’t think that you could craft this song
    Sleeping with the devil and all
    And I can hear you sing along"
    This is about his wife. She wrote the song with her infidelity. Also note the nautical theme with "craft".

    "And I wished that I could have told the lord
    To sever me at the chord
    Cause the moment I left I’d never come back no more"
    I am not sure on this one. Does he maybe wish he had never been born? Or does he wish he had been born into a different situation? Or maybe he wants to be able to move on and never look back. I dont know.

    "So hope that it actually ends for me this way
    Cause tomorrow is another day
    And I have to decide to stay or stay"
    Another beautiful stanza. He knows if he doesnt kill himself here and now then he will have to confront this situation. He has to "stay or stay", he is stuck in this.

    "For now I’ll keep my hands around this thing
    And wait for an apostle to sing
    You’re never allowed to come in"
    If he kills himself then he doesnt feel he will get into heaven.

    Beautiful song.
    Flag mpittard67on November 14, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i'm pretty sure he walked in on his wife and some guy having sex. awkward...
    Flag Aidenownon December 08, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:wait a minute, i just listened read the lyrics while listening to this, and it changed my view on it. rather than his biological father talking about it, i think it might be 'Jesus' or 'God' in parts. it just feels like such a religious, faithful song. much like their other songs.


    Well I didn�t think it would end like this
    Cutting of the blood to ten
    With a rope around my wrist
    - cutting off the blood to ten, as in ten fingers. ropes around their wrists, being hung on a cross?
    - sounds like the crucification of jesus? it could be literal, like jesus thinking or saying it. or it could be his biological father, seeing as when you have a kid, you take responsibility for their actions, even without agreeing to do so. you raised that person, and so people believe that the morals you've instilled in them are your own morals.


    And I wished I could have told my son
    That I was the coward one
    Its never admirable when your father cant move on
    - not sure if this is his father or him talking about it. it could be andy talking about how he left his wife when he found out about her sleeping with his brother?


    Well I never thought that you would slip inside
    Your brothers unfaithful wife
    While the children were down the stairs

    I saw what you were doing
    And I wished that I have burnt that goddamn door
    Finding both of you on the floor

    - biological father? or it could be 'God' or 'Jesus', seeing as people seem to believe that they're all knowing.

    Realizing your brides a whore
    Really takes an enormous toll
    On your head
    - thinking about how it will affect andy?


    Well I didn�t think that you could craft this song
    Sleeping with the devil and all
    And I can hear you sing along
    - 'sleeping with the devil and all': lust is a deadly sin, both his wife and his brother were tempted and gave in. really religious people see a temptress or the natural lust in a person as a piece of the devil living in them that they need to fight.


    And I wished that I could have told the lord
    To sever me at the chord
    - 'sever me at the chord' or 'cord'? cord reminds me of an umbilical cord, like andy is saying that he shouldve been killed before he even had a chance to live? i'm not sure how to word it. or it could be a 'chord/cord' he's going to use to hang himself? or a chord that Jesus, or even Andy, is being crucified with?

    For now I�ll keep my hands around this thing
    And wait for an apostle to sing
    - he's waiting for a sign?

    So just sink or swim
    - sink of swim, fight or flight, give up or fight for your life?


    i don't know, this is probably entirely jumbled and incoherent. i just had to write it down while i was still in the state of mind i was in when i really considered all of it.
    Flag liesarelieson January 19, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:it's definitely chord.
    Flag marleekay09on November 16, 2009   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:ahh... after about the 5 thousandth listen... "Cutting off the Blood to ten"; meaning ten fingers? The rope and the weight of the anchor. I can completely picturing teetering on the edge of the ship in this painful moment of choice.
    Flag lisielucyon September 09, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I'm hearing, "and I wish I could have chose the lord,
    to sever me at the cord".

    As in umbilical cord. That seems to make more sense to me, as he goes on to "talk" about the apostle telling him he's not allowed to come in. Thus, chose also seems the appropriate choice. We don't get to choose. His inaction would be easier for him to accept if God had forsaken him. Just my two cents.
    Flag lisielucyon September 09, 2009   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation:i'm pretty sure it's "to sever me at the core" instead of "chord".

    he's also saying that he's the coward because when hr found out that his wife cheated he ran away instead of facing it.
    Flag bennyfreshon July 01, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:First off, thanks for all of you who have taken the time to type out these lyrics; as I understand, there are no "hard copies" of his two albums?

    I have been loving following this storyline; and I keep saying to my husband "I can't wait for the third one!!! I need to know how it ends!!!"

    That said, this particular song totally drew me in. I heard it exactly as Jhurtado . At first I also heard it as the father of these men, the two brothers, and feeling angst over not doing anything to protect our protagonist. But upon closer listening I rethought it. He's talking to his brother... even when he says "Your brother's unfaithful wife" But this, I think, suggests the distance he has from his brother at this point; he doesn't say "my wife". To me, he's removed himself, psychologically, out of the equation.

    But yes, definitely the anchor, drowning, suicide.

    Two questions, if anyone has any ideas:

    1) what does the title of this song mean???
    2) What does he mean by choose to "stay or stay"? Stay alive; stay in the relationship; stay as in do nothing (like "stay your hand")
    Flag lisielucyon June 15, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:this song is written from his father's perspective. he cannot believe that his other son has been sleeping with his sons wife but hes also distraught that he cant stop it or be the one to tell his other son about it.
    Flag themoviesongon June 04, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I think it's about a man looking back at his life just before he dies. He hates what happened but he hates himself more for never letting go.

    this is an awesome tune, love the anger in his voice.
    Flag casbarmovementon February 26, 2009   Link

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