Lyrics for Zero as interpreted by 4barbela

Zero Lyrics
Shake it like a ladder to the sun
Makes me feel like a madman on the run
Find me, never, never far gone
So get your leather, leather, leather on, on, on, on

Your zero
What's your name?
No one's going to ask you
Better find out where they want you to go

Try and hit the spot
Get to know it in the dark
Get to know it whether you're
Crying, crying, crying, oh, oh
Can you climb, climb, climb higher?

Shake it like a ladder to the sun
Makes me feel like a madman on the run
No you're never, never far gone
So get your leather, leather, leather on, on, on, on

Your zero
What's your name?
No one's going to ask you
Better find out where they want you to go

Try and hit the spot
Get to know it in the dark
Get to know it whether you're
Crying, crying, crying, oh, oh
Can you climb, climb, climb higher?

Was it the cure?
Shellshock!
Was it the cure?
Hope not!
Was it the cure?
Shellshock!
Was it the cure?
What's your name?

Your zero
What's your name?
No one's going to ask you
Better find out where they want you to go

Try and hit the spot
Get to know it in the dark
Get to know it whether you're
Crying, crying, crying, oh, oh
Can you climb, climb, climb higher?

Was it the cure?
Shellshock!
Was it the cure?
Hope not!
Was it the cure?
Shellshock!
Was it the cure?
Hope not!

What's your name?
What's your name?
What's your name?
What's your name?
What's your name?
What's your name?
What's your name?

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  • 46 Comments
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Spellings
02-20-2009

Rated -1 
maybe is about war soldiers? for the shellshock (post-war stress), try and hit the spot, no ones gonna ask you whats your name things?

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King of Some Island
02-21-2009

Rated 0 
Amazing new song, hopefully the whole album can be this good

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MilkForWhales
02-21-2009

Rated 0 
I second that.
If the rest is as great as this then the album will be fantastic.

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Crazy000
03-04-2009

Rated 0 
i love this song!~
andd.
the yyys

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Cabres
03-12-2009

Rated +2 
I think she's saying "You're a Zero" not "Your Zero"

This song seems like one of the songs for the outcasts. Something for the people whom aren't socially "in". That's what I believe the reference to the ladder & climbing comes in at. Like climbing up the social ladder towards popularity. It could actually be that the song is more about how they(or at least Karen O) feel in regards to the whole hoopla surrounding them.

YYYs were never one to make political statements with their music, so I doubt that they have made this song with the intention to speak about the war & such.

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1 Reply
SummerAntics
03-13-2009

Rated -1 
"Crying, crying, crying, out loud" I think

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1 Reply
lavenderfire
03-14-2009

Rated 0 
Love this song. The lyrics are a little abstract but they seem sort of like a double entendre. The imagery it suggests to me is someone (the zero) getting all dressed up and going out, maybe to an underground dance club. I love the line "shake it like a ladder to the sun", with the beat it evokes a person dancing around with absolute abandon. At the same time there's the double entendre of some sexy lyrics, (try and hit the spot/get to find it in the dark, Karen O's breathy delivery of the climbing higher line...) maybe even a little S&M? ("Get your leather on"!) There's also the intriguingly contradictory lines of the song's lyrics asking what the Zero's name is, while telling him or her that nobody will ask it... I think you could take a variety of meanings out of this song, but it's awesome no matter what you hear in the lyrics.

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nirvana_cali
04-01-2009

Rated 0 
personally i think it's about them trying to make it big as a band. and the sex, drugs, and rock 'n roll that ensues. i think the music video also helps tell this song's story.

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thespread
04-03-2009

Rated 0 
This song rules. I think it's about tough love, like the cool girl telling her friend how it is ("you're a zero") and encouraging her to put herself out there more ("get your leather on" - go out, party) so she can "climb, climb, climb higher" (like's been said, social ladder). Couldn't say what the 'Was it the cure?
Shellshock! Was it the cure? Hope not!' bit's about though. maybe she's talking about the 'cure' for her social awkwardness or something?

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dorgasm
04-04-2009

Rated 0 
Great song, one of the better ones from the new album!

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JimmieNeverDies
04-08-2009

Rated 0 
:)

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imazero
04-13-2009

Rated 0 
i think its about a prostitue......Your zero
What's your name?
No one's going to ask you
Better find out where they want you to go.......nones gonna ask u what ur name is cuz they dont care they want the sex

Try and hit the spot...well hit the spot talks for it self
Get to know it in the dark
Get to know it whether you're
Crying, crying, crying, oh, oh.....prostitutes have to do their job no matter what even if there crying whil they do it
Can you climb, climb, climb higher?......orgasim of the costemer



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1 Reply
imazero
04-13-2009

Rated 0 
Was it the cure?..sex?
Shellshock!
Was it the cure?..i hope sex isnt the cure for ur probs
Hope not!
Was it the cure?
Shellshock!
Was it the cure?
Hope not!


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carrotflowerking
04-16-2009

Rated 0 
agreed on the prostitute interpretation.
adding: does the continual "what's your name?" at the end of the song refer to frequently dealing with complete strangers possibly

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lalaluongo
04-16-2009

Rated 0 
After seeing numerous live performances of Zero (SNL, Letterman, etc) I am convinced Karen O is saying "crime, crime, crime, of love" not "crying, crying, crying oh oh".

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OriginoPringo
04-17-2009

Rated 0 
Keeping with the prostitute theme, could the 'ladder to the sun' Be a ladder in the tights??

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nonsaltedtopping
04-18-2009

Rated 0 
Reiterating what Cabres said, it seems like the song is mainly about being unpopular. However, I don't believe that the climbing refers to climbing up the social ladder, but rather climbing in self-confidence. The message is that people must develop a sense of self-respect even when under the difficulty of having no supporters. I know it's kinda cheating to bring in the music video, but I think it does relate to this interpretation.

The lyrics tend to waver between optimism (Shake it like a ladder to the sun) and nervous self-consciousness (Makes me feel like mad man on the run), but in general they are meant to encourage and empower (Get your leather on).

Here's my really general interpretation of the chorus:
You're a Zero. What's your name? No one's gonna ask you. (Who cares about you? Nobody really does.)
Better find out where they want you to go (There are people pressurizing you about what to do)
Try and hit the spot, get to know it in the dark (You'll succeed if you're good at what you do)
Get to know whether you're crying, crying, crying, oh oh (Learn from your pain)
Can you climb, climb, climb higher? (Move on and continue to believe in yourself)


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imazero
04-20-2009

Rated 0 
i also always thought it was crime and not crying

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skeletonMe
04-20-2009

Rated 0 
I always think of zero gravity in space when she says "your zero". In zero gravity you're floating and bodiless. So "your zero" could be the customer's high or her ability to become numb to the mind-killing nature of her work. When it says "get to know it whether you're crying" it's like saying it doesn't matter how you feel, this is your job so get it done. So in this case being able to find your zero is vital.

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greatone1987
04-28-2009

Rated 0 
This song is just way too catchy!

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Ian-sama
04-29-2009

Rated 0 
It sounds like "crying, crying, crying alone" to me...

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CallistoBrooklyn
05-07-2009

Rated 0 
sorry, i'd havta agree (with the prostitution meaning).
it's leaning too far into the sex meaning for me to believe otherwise.

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Gobbledeegook
05-08-2009

Rated 0 
Before i looked at the lyrics i always thought she was saying "get to know her with your crime, crime, crime of love"

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fonfreaka
05-10-2009

Rated 0 
This song reminds me of Ayn Rand's 'Anthem'.

"Shake it like a ladder to the sun" -- the box, Equality's harnessing electricity

"Makes me feel like a madman on the run" -- fleeing the panel after his idea was condemned

"Better find out where they want you to go." -- A collective mentality; Equality's unwillingness to conform whole-heartedly to his society.

There are others, too.


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lovemonkey
05-17-2009

Rated 0 
I think it's about someone wanting to be famous; very much like the comments made about the social ladder, but more so a ladder to the stars. The story being told by someone who has no belief in the person.

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