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I will shape myself into your pocket
Invisible
Do what you want
Do what you want
I will shrink and I will disappear
I will slip into the groove and cut me off
And cut me off
There's an empty space inside my heart
Where the weeds take root
And now I'll set you free
I'll set you free
There's an empty space inside my heart
Where the weeds take root
So now I'll set you free
I'll set you free
Slowly we unfurl
As lotus flowers
'Cause all I want is the moon upon a stick
Just to see what if
Just to see what is
I can't kick your habit
Just to fill your fast ballooning head
Listen to your heart
We will shrink and we'll be quiet as mice
And while the cat is away
Do what we want
Do what we want
There's an empty space inside my heart
Where the weeds take root
So now I'll set you free
I'll set you free
'Cause all I want is the moon upon a stick
Just to see what if
Just to see what is
The bird lights float into my room
Slowly we unfurl
As lotus flowers
'Cause all I want is the moon upon a stick
I dance around the pit
The darkness is beneath
I can't kick your habit
Just to feed your fast ballooning head
Listen to your heart
Invisible
Do what you want
Do what you want
I will shrink and I will disappear
I will slip into the groove and cut me off
And cut me off
There's an empty space inside my heart
Where the weeds take root
And now I'll set you free
I'll set you free
There's an empty space inside my heart
Where the weeds take root
So now I'll set you free
I'll set you free
Slowly we unfurl
As lotus flowers
'Cause all I want is the moon upon a stick
Just to see what if
Just to see what is
I can't kick your habit
Just to fill your fast ballooning head
Listen to your heart
We will shrink and we'll be quiet as mice
And while the cat is away
Do what we want
Do what we want
There's an empty space inside my heart
Where the weeds take root
So now I'll set you free
I'll set you free
'Cause all I want is the moon upon a stick
Just to see what if
Just to see what is
The bird lights float into my room
Slowly we unfurl
As lotus flowers
'Cause all I want is the moon upon a stick
I dance around the pit
The darkness is beneath
I can't kick your habit
Just to feed your fast ballooning head
Listen to your heart
Lyrics submitted by lysoljackson, edited by George0312
Track duration: 05:00
"Lotus Flower" as written by Thomas Edward/greenwood Yorke
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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"I will shape myself into your pocket
Invisible
Do what you want
I will shrink and I will disappear
I will slip into the groove and cut me off"- This is someone who is willing to lose themselves and shape to other person's pocket, and lose their self-respect.
"There's an empty space inside my heart
Where the weeds take root
And now I'll set you free
I'll set you free"- This goes on to say that the spot that he/ she had for this person is now filled with weeds/ dirt/ filler and because of this they are letting him go in the the sense that he/she doesn't expect the same in return anymore.
There seems to be someone else or a reason why they cannot be together but this person has lost all self respect because when this person/obstacle is gone, they will be there for them to do as they wish.
"We will shrink and we'll be quiet as mice
And while the cat is away
Do what we want
Do what we want"
Slowly we unfurl
As lotus flowers
From ancient times the lotus has been a divine symbol in Asian traditions representing the virtues of sexual purity and non-attachment.
So this is someone who will give themselves sexually, emotionally, physically and now is not attached.This is a symbol of connecting, becoming one without the "title"
This person is a weakness to them, a habit that cannot be quit. And when you give yourself to someone who won't give themselves to you- you are just... filling their "fast ballooning head"
Ahh- we all have been there. Listen to your heart.
Like many other fav artists of mine (for eg, Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam), I feel like the lyrics are made intentionally abstract so the listener can apply their own background or understanding to interpret them.
Perhaps there is a bit of personal truth as well, hidden in between the lines as artists are often inspired to write about their own thoughts and experiences.
A second theme I feel also is the struggle between wanting to innocently love his partner and himself.
A heads-up to die hard Thom fans, I do try to frame some aspects of his personal life in here so don't get crazy mad ok ;)
Art is after all in the eye of the beholder right?
Then again, maybe it is more science, like a roscharch test, where one is again asked to interpret the shadows according to their own thoughts.
In that matter, I will say that I basically got this vibe from the lyrics from hearing the song but actually read the Wiki explanation later regarding a sensual abandon into the moment and the music or thereabouts.
I think my explanation is far more interesting ;) and perhaps the Wiki page meanings are more or less decoys Thom is throwing around..
read on to see what I mean :)
Major Themes: A soured, worn love. Narcissism. Borderline Personality. Megalomania.
I feel this is a conversation a person with the above traits is having with himself as he copes with the finality of loss of his love...this is not about him losing love, but losing control. Also he is having conversations with his now lost love.
So even as he struggles to understand this loss- he alternates between power-trips (ego defenses)
Like many other fav artists of mine (for eg, Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam), I feel like the lyrics are made intentionally abstract so the listener can apply their own background or understanding to interpret them.
Perhaps there is a bit of personal truth as well, hidden in between the lines as artists are often inspired to write about their own thoughts and experiences.
A second theme I feel also is the struggle between wanting to innocently love his partner and himself.
A heads-up to die hard Thom fans, I do try to frame some aspects of his personal life in here so don't get crazy mad ok ;)
Art is after all in the eye of the beholder right?
Then again, maybe it is more science, like a roscharch test, where one is again asked to interpret the shadows according to their own thoughts.
In that matter, I will say that I basically got this vibe from the lyrics from hearing the song but actually read the Wiki explanation later regarding a sensual abandon into the moment and the music or thereabouts.
I think my explanation is far more interesting ;) and perhaps the Wiki page meanings are more or less decoys Thom is throwing around..
read on to see what I mean :)
Major Themes: A soured, worn love. Narcissism. Borderline Personality. Megalomania.
I feel this is a conversation a person with the above traits is having with himself as he copes with the finality of loss of his love...this is not about him losing love, but losing control. Also he is having conversations with his now lost love.
So even as he struggles to understand this loss- he alternates between power-trips (ego defenses)
Particularly interesting is the last line of several verses Listen to your heart.
As if to say--save yourself..from me..or is he talking to himself? :)
That is the beauty of abstract lyrics and to this particular line, I will leave open for you to ruminate! :)
Now if you're warmed up lol--keep reading for verse reflections!
I will shake myself into your pocket
Invisible
Do what you want
Do what you want
---This is a sense to gain control of a sinking ship (ie his lost love) even though he is likely the captain who sank it!
A last minute futile attempt to blow life into the coal splintered ashes that are bound to go out......some provocation thrown on purpose to his lover, because even anger is an involved emotion--anything is better than the closed door of indifference.
I will shake and I will disappear
I will slip into the groove and cut me off
And cut me off
---This one is kind of weird because here we see borderline personality, first he plays the tyrant, and now the waif lover..
As if to attempt to get the lover back when a sense of power has failed to convince her..now he tries to bring the attention to his fragility.
..even more interesting to consider is the "slip into the groove and cut me off" This part kind of applies to Thom on a personal level as I read an article about how Thom openly mentioned that his partner Rachel Owens is not ready to check out the Rainbow album (during release period) because he is apparently 'neurotic' during his album finishing. Musicians are known to be difficult at times of stress, like any normal human.
--Slip into the groove (making his music) & cut me off ( I will cut myself off from everything--you know me better..when i''m in that phase..this is what I do.)
Another way to say this is that he was saying situations get strained during that time..all artists are misunderstood --even by their lovers and family and so Rachel was actually not ready to listen to his own album even though she would have instant access---why?
Because it is more than likely she would need to feel where she has let go of the past before trying to listen to an album that will remind her of those difficult times.
Too reaching? Don't think so ;) not if you've ever dealt with women -they are strange creatures !
There's an empty space inside my heart
Where the weeds take root
And now I'll set you free
I'll set you free
----Here is where things get interesting and twisted :)
An empty space inside my heart but I'm setting you free?
To me it means the protagonist is declaring that the space once occupied by you my lover is now empty and overgrown with weeds.
When does this happen?
When the garden is not tended to...as in I have not loved you for a while and my heart is empty, and overgrown with weeds.
So I'll set you free could be in terms of uprooting all these weeds that represent you to clear you from my heart in a megalomaniac type behavior
Or it could be a simple resignation..mutual defeat accepted---
My heart is empty and overrun with weeds so I'm letting the idea of you go as we both know this love is no longer real.
There's an empty space inside my heart
Where the weeds take root
So now I'll set you free
I'll set you free
Slowly we unfurl
As lotus flowers
'Cos all I want is the moon upon a stick
Just to see what if
Just to see what is
I can't kick your habit
Just to feel your fast ballooning head
Listen to your heart
---This is the most complex but also the most obvious parts of the lyrics to me that got me thinking about these ideas.
Slowly we unfurl as lotus flowers --
This is an intimate thought to himself or maybe he is even sharing it with his lost lover as a mutual sense of loss.
That as lovers we were once innocent beginning this relationship & started with the best of intentions, the best of loves..
Cause All I want is the moon on a stick--
here the progression of starting as pure lotus flowers (purity reference) is shown to take a narcissistic turn for the worst..soon our well compromised and above reproach holiest love sours, it is taken for granted, worn out..whatever..and then it's about "here's what I want"--ie "all I want to make things work is the Moon upon a stick." This is an unrealistic request to make but really parallels where relationships sometimes end up unfortunately ...a non negotiable power struggle between one weaker and one stronger person..one who perhaps demands too much from the weaker partner..
Just to see what if ..
Just to see what is.. ----
These verses support the idea of someone who is just abusing the power of their relationship, because as mentioned earlier, they have lost any sense of love they once had and in true borderline/narcisssitic fashion are exploiting their power just to see how far they can push it..
this serves as a reminder to them of their power and holds no other real utility really
-ie they aren't really out to hurt the partner just more interested in a selfish way to see how far they can really go in proving to themselves how powerful they are..
I can't kick your habit--- just to feel your fast ballooning head listen to your heart....
This is a really interesting set of verses..with a possible dual interpretation:
1) The protagonist is struggling to be nice but is still true to his bitter self and so offers a sort of tough love by saying,, hey..I know I'm pushing my limits by asking for the Moon on a stick, I know ..but I'm doing it just to see how far I can go, I really can't kick your habit to need a perfect relationship however broken that vision really is-- so when I go for broke pushing this relationship, part of the drive to do this is to see just how messed up your ideals are..
As a very cruel way of caring perhaps, this is the only way he can do so by throwing it in her face how reckless he can be in light of her weakness to want a perfect world.
Listen to your heart is a last attempt to be helpful..listen to your inner voices telling you this isnt right..I can't help you as I am whoI am so please help yourself.
or
2) The protagonist is saying I can't kick your habit of needing things to be right when they aren't..so instead I'd rather see just how your fast ballooning head (unrealistic imaginations) listens to your heart (as you follow blindly by emotions).
We will shake and we'll be quiet as mice
And while the cat is away
Do what we want
Do what we want
--Here, is likely the most abstract lyrical explanation from my end as it is hard to make it work with the rest
We will shake and we'll be quiet as mice, and while the cat is away do what we want, do what we want
--Here he is at a part of the relationship where he is saying to his partner..look we should enjoy this moment while you and I know I'm in a good mood...and the ugly side of me is not here, ie the cat.
When in fact I am in a happy place, let's just keep things this way (quiet as mice) and not raise issues..so you & I can be happy do what we want.
It feels like an implied idea that this is a temporary indulgence we are both taking in knowing this will not be forever.
In a relationship breaking up there are lots of stops & gos before the end..maybe this is a moment to try and salvage whatever good was present even if both parties know it is not forever, hence the cat will return.
There's an empty space inside my heart
Where the weeds take root
So now I'll set you free
I'll set you free
'Cos all I want is the moon upon a stick
Just to see what if
Just to see what is
The bird lights float into my room
Bird lights float into my room--? what could this mean...another open verse. to be really abstract, the bird lights, could signify bright doves of peace or perhaps the angels taking away his broke soul as he finally resigns to the end of this love and finds inner peace in the finality of it..regardless I feel instead of the words but how he says it means more..as if to indicate the above idea.
Also, another crazy explanation could be bird lights float into my room as in a Phoenix rising from the flames-here he is sharing the experience of having really lost someone you truly love and after all the fights together and even dealing with the personal aspects of crying or missing the past, you ultimately do realize at some point that you are still alive---barely...but you are alive..you are breathing and that gives you hope to get up and face a new day....
Slowly we unfurl
As lotus flowers
'Cos all I want is the moon upon a stick
I dance around the pit
The darkness is beneath
I can't kick your habit
Just to feel your fast ballooning head
Listen to your heart
I dance around the pit..the darkness is beneath..I know who I am and perhaps in a weird way, I am taking ownership of being the bad guy in this broken relationship and maybe even a sense of joy as I peer into the darkness within me..dance around the pit.
Well not bad for a first attempt I hope..would like to hear people's views on it :)
All this effort is a small tribute to Thom's musical & lyrical genius on this song ;)
Cheers!
Now to me this song is pretty special, even for Radiohead. It is Buddhist in some regard. Yes, Lotus Flower is the title and yes that is one of the eight auspicious symbols of the religion. But whats important here is something much more simplistic- it about Letting Go.
It begins with the line, "I will shape myself into your pocket". This is an attempt for Yorke to explain that he can be exactly who WE want him to be and his shape is different for everyone. Then he can be "invisible", and we can "do what we want" with him. I believe this is because we will never see what he could wish us to see, the way he sees it. It is OUR life but his music makes him a part of it each time we listen to him, and he is in our own pockets because he is the one who is pouring his soul into his music and revealing just how much he has in his heart. Then there is the fact that it is done with unbelievably truthful yet enigmatic lyrics and accompanying music video. So can you see what he sees? Highly unlikely.
Also notice that in the music video he unfurls much like a lotus flower would, he is in a very real sense becoming a blossoming one as the song goes along. And notice the use of color. Strictly black and white for a reason? Definitely.
"I will shrink and I will disappear ". This is likely his greatest fear and yet he readily admits it. What do you think gives Tom Yorke the greatest joy? For people to listen. Listen hard. Real f-ing hard. And maybe for just one moment you might begin to grasp the complexity of what he is trying to reveal so artistically with his diction. And yet we don't. We like the sounds and take it as another stupid sex song thats hitting Billboards top 40. Then he says, "I will slip into a groove and cut me off, cut me off". We will place him somewhere that it makes sense inside our minds and then cut him off thinking that we've figured out what he is trying to say. At that point, we'll feel content with his song. Like we got it all figured out. But for him... all the while... its driving him insane.
And thats why, "there's an empty space inside MY(Thom's) heart where the weeds take root and so now I'll set YOU free"
Because all he can do as an artist is try to explain himself in this regard when he has so much that he wants to say that he feels as though no one could ever understand. So what does he have? Well he can continue to do whats tearing him apart and sing beautiful songs and have it be "nice sounding" for US so it can set US free. Because for most, thats all we need(sound and a beat). But if you don't think there are about 200 meanings to every line in this song for him then you are off your rocker. As off your rocker as Thom Yorke is whenever he listens to his heart, which is always, which is why he continues to make music for us to listen to that we will never fully grasp they way he could wish...
And so slowly we unfurl, each in our own way at our own pace, as lotus flowers, cause all I want is the moon upon a stick... (to be able to shine this bright light for everyone in darkness so they could see what he sees. "Just to see what if" we could, "Just to see what is" what his truth is which is probably very right by highly complex, and yet we can't, but regardless he can't kick our habit of giving his heart out to society with his music as it is replaced by growing weeds, just to feed our fast ballooning heads- as we enjoy his music with no conception of what he is actually saying.... NOW. "Listen to your heart". Sucks doesn't it?
Next comes, "we will shrink and be as quiet as mice". Very straight-forward. When the pressures on, when we are implored to think critically about ourselves or given a brutal truth(by him) or are asked to fight for what someone else believes in, so many will shrink and be as quiet as mice. But. "While the cat is away"... as long as nobody's after you and you don't feel any fear of getting caught stealing cheese or however you'de like to interpret. Well in that case, we, society, "do what we want."
Now after the second time he says, "just to see what is"... he then says, "bird lights float into my room." Likely my favorite line of the song, as it serves nicely in accompaniment with the moon and the bird lights are most likely a reference to the stars. And he sees them very brightly. But for what they are... Beautiful flying birds which is what he is and what he can see in his room. But what can you see in your room? Perhaps a poster of Mr. Yorke? Do you go look at the stars and see what he sees? Probably not.
Once again he wants the moon upon a stick to illuminate the darkness that is beneath as he dances around the pit so artfully with his words and music even as he loses his heart which drives him insane and what does he want at the end, still, after all that....
For YOU to listen to your heart, let go, and hopefully one day see what he sees and is really trying to say. First you got to unfurl though.