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

[Chorus]
Your zero
What's your name?
No one's gonna 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
Now you're never, never far gone
So get your leather leather
Leather on on on on

[Chorus]

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

[Chorus]

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?



Lyrics submitted by 4barbela

Track duration: 04:26

"Zero" as written by Nicholas Joseph Zinner Brian Chase

Lyrics © CHRYSALIS MUSIC GROUP

Lyrics powered by LyricFind


Zero song meanings
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63 Comments

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  • +1
    General Comment:I feel like its about American Business/Propaganda all together. YOUR Zero is the thing that makes you You and what motivates you to get up in the morning. I feel it talks about Taking out-of-the-ordinary Actions to prove that you're capable of being You, hence Was it the Cure? Shellshock - how we take risks and new ideas to inOrder to be Chosen by whatever-grand-marshal that stands in our way to enlightenment. The enlightenment is the It that we Get To Know In The Dark.
    Flag rjrodriguez89on April 13, 2012   Link
  • -1
    My Interpretation:I think its about MALE RAPE
    Flag jaycce11on April 02, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I think it's a commentary that people who are "zeros" turn to casual sex to feel like they're more than a zero. However, in the end they get to feeling shell-shocked and trashy for their behavior.

    People work in their cubicles or their offices or whatever all week, feeling like a zero, a cog in the machine. When they finally get to climb out of anonymity they may turn to sexuality to feel some sort of agency, and the sex itself is the ladder.

    Is it the cure? Probably not, we're just all shell-shocked and need something to feel human.
    Flag gonzagylot00on August 31, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:remember how prince wrote "cream" about himself standing in front of a mirror?

    i think this is similar, when you try to read it like the "Zero" represents the O that Karen's "last name" is.

    and then it is about herself and her place in the music industry. i always thought so, at least...
    Flag ConMenon April 15, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I'm sure it's coincidence, but has anyone else noticed that the two "big" dance songs on the YYY's last album use the same two main themes from Paranoid Android by Radiohead? Namely , not remembering someones name and "Off with heads". I guess their just cool things to rock about.

    BTW, I agree with lu77 about the most direct meaning of this song. Sometimes I think there's even a hint of feminism in there and she's talking about how being a "girl" (a "0" as opposed to a "1" - if you catch my drift) in society is analogous to having to "whore" yourself out in any business/music. I'm a big hairy man, so I think it would be weird if I picked up on that and it wasn't really there.
    Flag jonibolognion January 10, 2011   Link
  • 0
    Lyric Correction:There's generally multiple meanings to Karen's lyrics, particularly with Zero it starts as the most dancey track they've done
    Meaning A) So the first verse reflects that joy of being on the dancefloor.
    Meaning B) While also being about the height of fame, and the music industry interns working their way up meeting rockstars, being dumbstruck with awe by them or taken in by the bullshit of the industry.

    Shake it like a ladder to the sun -- dance your way to heaven / schmooze your way up the music industry ladder
    Makes me feel like a madman on the run -- awesome dancey feeling / running from industry craziness
    find me never, never far gone -- i'm still here,reachable / i'm not sucked in by it all
    so get your leather, leather, leather on -- put on your dance outfit / put on your rock outfit

    you're zero -- you're at the bottom (not a rock star)
    what's your name? -- rock star asking, that moment of meeting your hero
    noone's gonna ask -- rockstar won't really care, not a real connection here
    you'd better find out where they want you to go -- zero is a groupie or lowly intern from the label
    try an' hit the spot -- reminiscent of hitting your queue (in a song) or standing on your mark (on stage)
    get to know it in the dark -- Zero is in the background like a roadie, supporting the performance.means do the work, know your part backwards, do your homework if you wanna go far
    get to know whether you're (a)
    crime, crime, crime, of love ooh! <-- confirmed in video this is what karen sings -- referring to a crush on the rockstar? or groupie-ism, selling yourself to the industry.
    can ya climb, climb, climb hoh! -- get into the spotlight, get higher in the industry, get noticed.

    Know you're never, never, never far gone -- you aren't completely taken in
    so get your leather, leather, leather on. -- protect yourself, put on your disguise

    was it the cure? -- (meeting karen)
    shellshock! -- (zero is dumbstruck by fame)
    was it the cure? -- (did karen disappoint? crush your dreams?)
    hope not!
    Flag lu77on November 12, 2010   Link
  • +1
    Lyric Correction:It's definitely saying "Crime, crime, crime of love".
    Flag Bella86on October 27, 2010   Link
  • 0
    Song Meaning:I think of the Japanese "Zero" that bombed Pearl Harbor. Think about the lyrics in that context and see how interesting this song really is.
    Flag Garfinatoron September 23, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I think it should be "You're a zero," not "Your zero."

    YOUR ZERO WHAT?
    Flag fodderon September 03, 2010   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation:I think it is a prostitute singing about how they got trained into being a prostitute. She was trained by one man (feeling like a madman on the run) and he tells her to shake it like a ladder to the sun. it is impossible to build a ladder to the sun so he is telling her to shake it and do other things that seem impossible so it will turn him on and make him want to pick her out of the rest because of her "advertising" which is ladder to the sun quality..
    (Find me never far gone) he is speaking for all mean looking for a prostitute.
    after she has that down she can worry about her dress attire which leather is most commonly used for the hard core theme.. He tells her she is zero as in she will mean nothing and serve nothing like a spiritual bond with her customers to not think they will be close, just find out where they need to go to get the job done. Finding the spot in the dark meaning to practice and be extremely good at it to beat competition.
    Was it the cure? meaning the prostitute for filling the needs of the customer is only short term and there is no cure cause the customer will return again for her job to be performed..
    Flag MsTrixieRoseon August 30, 2010   Link

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