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Used to dream of time machines
Now it's been said we're post-everything
As a child, imagining
Neckties and coastlines
I've seen the show, man, what a sight
Drenched us in approximated sunlight
The crowd was small and mostly blind, but kind
You're too kind
Now you are how you were when you were real
Now you are how you were when you were real
There you go again, on that circular trip
Lick the solar plexus of some L.A. shaman
I'm out of breath, I better sit
Been living hard, living
All I do is follow, just follow this hollow you around
I wouldn't waste another thought
On what is fair and what is not
The Quinceañera dress she bought
Was unstitched with bullets
All the guests in the garden screamed
Women and tires squealing
Such opulence, such misery
Unwinding, unwinding
All I do is follow, just follow, just follow this hollow you around
Now you are how you were when you were real
Now it's been said we're post-everything
As a child, imagining
Neckties and coastlines
I've seen the show, man, what a sight
Drenched us in approximated sunlight
The crowd was small and mostly blind, but kind
You're too kind
Now you are how you were when you were real
Now you are how you were when you were real
There you go again, on that circular trip
Lick the solar plexus of some L.A. shaman
I'm out of breath, I better sit
Been living hard, living
All I do is follow, just follow this hollow you around
I wouldn't waste another thought
On what is fair and what is not
The Quinceañera dress she bought
Was unstitched with bullets
All the guests in the garden screamed
Women and tires squealing
Such opulence, such misery
Unwinding, unwinding
All I do is follow, just follow, just follow this hollow you around
Now you are how you were when you were real
Lyrics submitted by littlebabykatie
Track duration: 04:24
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Such opulence, such misery
Unwinding, unwinding
The opulence is what we want the world to be and the misery is the true world. Oberst is saying, although society controls the two, in this instance they are “unwinding” and returning to the disorder they would naturally be in, and in that instance “you are how you were when you were real”
I'd never looked up the lyrics until now, and was kind of surprised to see L.A. shaman.
"I wouldn’t waste another thought
On what is fair and what is not
The quinceañera dress she bought
Was unstitched with bullets
All the guests in the garden screamed
Women and tires squealing
Such opulence, such misery
Unwinding, unwinding"
He's talking to God.
"All I do is follow you around
All I do is follow you around"
Kinda has shades of Apocalypse Now.
"The Horror,
The Horror".
May even shed a light on the meaning of this cut too.
I think it's about how he once thought at a young age that the world was huge and complex and one day he would experience it all. but in the first verse i think he is saying that the world is a show. "the crowd was small and mostly blind" says that none of the people really know or understand the vast complexities of the world, so they're blind. and they are small compared to everything.
but i think he's realized all this is false, and now that he knows this and experienced everything, he is almost back to where he started. confused still and looking at the world as a mystery. the way he thought when he was young, but in a different way this time. "now you are how you were when you were real".
i also think that the song is about conor. he is saying 'you' but really referring to himself.
what do you all think?
ps. soooo excited to see him live!!
but i think you're right that conor has alas accepted that this is how time and the world are progressing and rather than be consumed by all that is wrong, our best bet is to focus on the positives and the fact that happiness is important and contagious and we need to go back to basics and care for ourselves and others and what we can control.
Now it’s been said we’re post-everything
As a child imagining
Neck ties and Coast lines
I seen the show man, what a sight
Drenched us in approximated sunlight
The crowd was small and mostly blind
But kind, you’re too kind
Now you are how you were when you were real
Now you are how you were when you were real
There you go again on that circular trip
Lick the solar plexus of some L.A. shaman
I’m out of breath I’d better sit
Been living, hard living
All I do is follow you around
I wouldn’t waste another thought
On what is fair and what is not
The quinceañera dress she bought
Was unstitched with bullets
All the guests in the garden screamed
Women and tires squealing
Such opulence, such misery
Unwinding, unwinding
All I do is follow you around
All I do is follow you around
Now you are how you were when you were real