In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Tuli: Ah who fought in the Vietnam war, the Americans. And who dropped bombs and killed hundreds and thousands of men, woman and children. They never, they probably never curse at all right? Do you think?
John: I would have no idea. This song that you've written. Why do have to have this poor language in the title?
Tuli: Why do you think I use the language?
John: Ah, a sick obsession of yours?
Tuli: An obsession? No that's no explanation
John: An obsession because maybe you're not mature enough to use other words
Tuli: Oh it's not mature? You think it's not mature to use those words?
DJ: Well listen why don't, why don't you sing the song
Tuli: Well it's
John: Let me tell you something, in the song I..I..
Tuli: Well I'll sing this song and i'd like you to comment on it, Ok?
John: Yes
Tuli: Alright let me find it here because I have trouble remembering obscene words, Ok I'll sing it for you.
'Hey go fuck yourself with your atom bomb
Well I wouldn't see no cause for alarm
If you go jerk yourself off oh well you know you could
Go over the hill and into the wood
You know it's not very nice to kill so many
Will you go away if I give you a penny?
What's bothering you?
Are you some kind of nut?
Hey go get laid, try the cunt or the butt
What's the matter with you, did your dad hate your guts?
Do you think you're strange, are you some kind of nut?
Do you think that money or megalo-power
Will make you into the ghoul of the hour?
Are you some kind of nut?
Hey go get laid, try the cunt or the butt
If you don't like this world, hey just leave it alone
There are still some of us trying to make it a home
And how did you get you're maniac power
That could kill us all in 'bout a half an hour
Something wrong with the system
yeah, I think, that could bring us all to this doomsday brink
Hey go fuck yourself with your atom bomb
Now I wouldn't see no cause for alarm
If you go jerk yourself, well you know you could
Hey go over the hill and into the wood
What's bothering you?
Are you some kind of nut?
Hey go get laid, try the cunt or the butt
Hey go fuck yourself with your atom bomb
Well I wouldn't see no cause for alarm
If you go jerk yourself, well you know you could
Hey go over the hill and into the wood..'
Tuli: John? Comment please
John: That is the most obscene abomination of a song that I .. I. That is trash, that is dirt, that is filth, what possessed you to write such a degusting, degeneratised as that? I am complementing you by considering this song
Tuli: Why do you think I wrote it? What made me so degenerate?
John: I have no idea
Tuli: Think, think you're a smart man
John: Thank-you
Tuli: You must have some idea?
John: Some perversion that, maybe, were you abused as a young child?
Tuli: Not anymore than anyone else
John: Well when you were young did your parents take their belts you for instance?
Tuli: No, no
DJ: Did you go to school Tuli?
Tuli: I was abused in school
John: How?
Tuli: Ah my teachers taught me that all these lies about America
John: What kind of lies?
Tuli: That there was freedom here. That everyone had equal opportunity.
John: That's true, though those, tell me the lies that they'd been saying
Tuli: That ah this country was settled peaceful loving people. That Indians and slaves, and slave were not killed and exploited for hundreds of years. That working people were not wage slaves. That everyone had a chance to become president. When actually only one person every four years can become president. And since there are 220 million they'd each have to wait almost a billion years if they were each to become president. And ah that, That thing were gonna get better. That the wars were right. That whenever, whenever the country went to kill. Hundreds of thousands of people travelled three thousand miles to kill people that it was a wonderful and good thing. That it was this was the best country that ever existed
John: God!
Tuli: That English was the only language worthwhile. That I should die for a piece of cloth that had red, white and blue, ah die on it. Lots of other things, you want me to go on?
John: Yeah but, but let me ask you something?
Tuli: Alright
John: If you're so displeased with this country I don't see, you know
Tuli: Why don't I go to Canada? Because Canada isn't much better
John: No, no, no, no I wasn't going to say that,
Tuli: Mexico?
John: Don't put words in my mouth
Tuli: No, no
John: I was gonna say, if you can save up a couple of pennies, then eventually you'll have enough to buy yourself
a one way plane ticket
Tuli: To where?
John: Go to one of the Eastern block countries. They share the same ideas as you
Tuli: They do? They think all these things about America?
John: Well they ah
Tuli: Did you know the Eastern block countries aren't any better than America?
John: Let me ask
Tuli: Wait did you hear that? Did you answer my question? Did you know the Eastern block countries aren't better
than America?
John: Oh I know that
Tuli: I know that too so I don't wanna go there
John: Because Pan-Slavic and Germany is a cancerous cell
Tuli: Wait did you hear what I said? So that isn't the solution for me. Why don't you propose something else?
John: Well, well I'd like to ask you a question?
Tuli: Sure
John: Where would be your haven? Where would you like to live, look, someone handed you a plane ticket on any
place from Zimbabwe to Antarctica, to any place. Where would you wanna go?
Tuli: Right were I am
John: What? Excuse me?
Tuli: I wanna be right where I am. That's where, that's why I am up here in the studio
John: In America?
Tuli: This America?
John: Well you just said right where you are?
Tuli: I don't recognise national boundaries. See America as an idea as a concept, it's an illusion. Do you know that, do you know that ah, you know that line you see that runs from Washington State to ah, to Minnesota?
John: What line, what? But..
Tuli: What you would call the northern border of the United States
John: Yeah
Tuli: I've crossed that border
John: I would have no idea. This song that you've written. Why do have to have this poor language in the title?
Tuli: Why do you think I use the language?
John: Ah, a sick obsession of yours?
Tuli: An obsession? No that's no explanation
John: An obsession because maybe you're not mature enough to use other words
Tuli: Oh it's not mature? You think it's not mature to use those words?
DJ: Well listen why don't, why don't you sing the song
Tuli: Well it's
John: Let me tell you something, in the song I..I..
Tuli: Well I'll sing this song and i'd like you to comment on it, Ok?
John: Yes
Tuli: Alright let me find it here because I have trouble remembering obscene words, Ok I'll sing it for you.
'Hey go fuck yourself with your atom bomb
Well I wouldn't see no cause for alarm
If you go jerk yourself off oh well you know you could
Go over the hill and into the wood
You know it's not very nice to kill so many
Will you go away if I give you a penny?
What's bothering you?
Are you some kind of nut?
Hey go get laid, try the cunt or the butt
What's the matter with you, did your dad hate your guts?
Do you think you're strange, are you some kind of nut?
Do you think that money or megalo-power
Will make you into the ghoul of the hour?
Are you some kind of nut?
Hey go get laid, try the cunt or the butt
If you don't like this world, hey just leave it alone
There are still some of us trying to make it a home
And how did you get you're maniac power
That could kill us all in 'bout a half an hour
Something wrong with the system
yeah, I think, that could bring us all to this doomsday brink
Hey go fuck yourself with your atom bomb
Now I wouldn't see no cause for alarm
If you go jerk yourself, well you know you could
Hey go over the hill and into the wood
What's bothering you?
Are you some kind of nut?
Hey go get laid, try the cunt or the butt
Hey go fuck yourself with your atom bomb
Well I wouldn't see no cause for alarm
If you go jerk yourself, well you know you could
Hey go over the hill and into the wood..'
Tuli: John? Comment please
John: That is the most obscene abomination of a song that I .. I. That is trash, that is dirt, that is filth, what possessed you to write such a degusting, degeneratised as that? I am complementing you by considering this song
Tuli: Why do you think I wrote it? What made me so degenerate?
John: I have no idea
Tuli: Think, think you're a smart man
John: Thank-you
Tuli: You must have some idea?
John: Some perversion that, maybe, were you abused as a young child?
Tuli: Not anymore than anyone else
John: Well when you were young did your parents take their belts you for instance?
Tuli: No, no
DJ: Did you go to school Tuli?
Tuli: I was abused in school
John: How?
Tuli: Ah my teachers taught me that all these lies about America
John: What kind of lies?
Tuli: That there was freedom here. That everyone had equal opportunity.
John: That's true, though those, tell me the lies that they'd been saying
Tuli: That ah this country was settled peaceful loving people. That Indians and slaves, and slave were not killed and exploited for hundreds of years. That working people were not wage slaves. That everyone had a chance to become president. When actually only one person every four years can become president. And since there are 220 million they'd each have to wait almost a billion years if they were each to become president. And ah that, That thing were gonna get better. That the wars were right. That whenever, whenever the country went to kill. Hundreds of thousands of people travelled three thousand miles to kill people that it was a wonderful and good thing. That it was this was the best country that ever existed
John: God!
Tuli: That English was the only language worthwhile. That I should die for a piece of cloth that had red, white and blue, ah die on it. Lots of other things, you want me to go on?
John: Yeah but, but let me ask you something?
Tuli: Alright
John: If you're so displeased with this country I don't see, you know
Tuli: Why don't I go to Canada? Because Canada isn't much better
John: No, no, no, no I wasn't going to say that,
Tuli: Mexico?
John: Don't put words in my mouth
Tuli: No, no
John: I was gonna say, if you can save up a couple of pennies, then eventually you'll have enough to buy yourself
a one way plane ticket
Tuli: To where?
John: Go to one of the Eastern block countries. They share the same ideas as you
Tuli: They do? They think all these things about America?
John: Well they ah
Tuli: Did you know the Eastern block countries aren't any better than America?
John: Let me ask
Tuli: Wait did you hear that? Did you answer my question? Did you know the Eastern block countries aren't better
than America?
John: Oh I know that
Tuli: I know that too so I don't wanna go there
John: Because Pan-Slavic and Germany is a cancerous cell
Tuli: Wait did you hear what I said? So that isn't the solution for me. Why don't you propose something else?
John: Well, well I'd like to ask you a question?
Tuli: Sure
John: Where would be your haven? Where would you like to live, look, someone handed you a plane ticket on any
place from Zimbabwe to Antarctica, to any place. Where would you wanna go?
Tuli: Right were I am
John: What? Excuse me?
Tuli: I wanna be right where I am. That's where, that's why I am up here in the studio
John: In America?
Tuli: This America?
John: Well you just said right where you are?
Tuli: I don't recognise national boundaries. See America as an idea as a concept, it's an illusion. Do you know that, do you know that ah, you know that line you see that runs from Washington State to ah, to Minnesota?
John: What line, what? But..
Tuli: What you would call the northern border of the United States
John: Yeah
Tuli: I've crossed that border
Lyrics submitted by TheDirge
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