So this has been.my favorite song of OTEP's since it came out in 2004, and I always thought it was a song about a child's narrative of suffering in an abusive Christian home. But now that I am revisiting the lyrics, I am seeing something totally new.
This song could be gospel of John but from the perspective of Jesus.
Jesus was NOT having a good time up to and during the crucifixion. Everyone in the known world at the time looked to him with fear, admiration or disgust and he was constantly being asked questions. He spoke in "verses, prophesies and curses". He had made an enemy of the state, and believed the world was increasingly wicked and fallen from grace, or that he was in the "mouth of madness".
The spine of atlas is the structure that allows the titan to hold the world up. Jesus challenged the state and in doing so became a celebrated resistance figure. It also made him public enemy #1.
All of this happened simply because he was doing his thing, not because of any agenda he had or strategy.
And then he gets scourged (storm of thorns)
There are some plot holes here but I think it's an interesting interpretation.
Prepare the diving bell
It's time to take this low again
I sink into myself, low
No need for farewell
I know you always understand
Sorry there's no place for you inside the solitude
Just stay up here until I'm back again
I swear I'll be there for you
I swear I'll follow through
Stay the course and keep the ship manned
I was certain if I fell through the bottom
You'd be happy just to float here on your own
I was never quite prepared for the long ride, oh
Away, away, away, alone
Oh, this wasn't in my plans
Abandoned ship and headed for the sand
Oh, the albatross crash-lands
I've got the sinking feeling that I never can go home
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
Prepare the diving bell
Maybe for just a spell, again
As far as I can tell
Oh, you knew me too well
I miss you there when I descend
Sorry, there's no place for you inside the solitude
Just stay up here until I'm back again
Oh, this wasn't in my plans
Abandoned ship and headed for the sand
Oh, the albatross crash-lands
I've got the sinking feeling that I never can go home
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
In my mind, endless sea
Calling from the bottom, but you don't hear me
Send your line down to me
Meet me on the surface
I will never leave
In my mind, endless sea
Calling from the bottom but you don't hear me
Send your line down to me
Meet me on the surface
I will never leave
Just one time, all I need
Calling from the bottom but you don't hear me
Stuck in time, stuck in me
Broken on the bottom line like a refugee
Wake me when the new day comes
Together we will ride the sun
The future is an empty gun
We ride on to them one-by-one
Wake me when the new day comes
Together we will ride the sun
The future is an empty gun
We ride on to them one-by-one
Wake me when the new day comes
Together we will ride the sun
The future is an empty gun
We ride on to them one-by-one
One-by-one
It's time to take this low again
I sink into myself, low
No need for farewell
I know you always understand
Sorry there's no place for you inside the solitude
Just stay up here until I'm back again
I swear I'll be there for you
I swear I'll follow through
Stay the course and keep the ship manned
I was certain if I fell through the bottom
You'd be happy just to float here on your own
I was never quite prepared for the long ride, oh
Away, away, away, alone
Oh, this wasn't in my plans
Abandoned ship and headed for the sand
Oh, the albatross crash-lands
I've got the sinking feeling that I never can go home
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
Prepare the diving bell
Maybe for just a spell, again
As far as I can tell
Oh, you knew me too well
I miss you there when I descend
Sorry, there's no place for you inside the solitude
Just stay up here until I'm back again
Oh, this wasn't in my plans
Abandoned ship and headed for the sand
Oh, the albatross crash-lands
I've got the sinking feeling that I never can go home
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
If I stare into the abyss
Will it stare into me?
In my mind, endless sea
Calling from the bottom, but you don't hear me
Send your line down to me
Meet me on the surface
I will never leave
In my mind, endless sea
Calling from the bottom but you don't hear me
Send your line down to me
Meet me on the surface
I will never leave
Just one time, all I need
Calling from the bottom but you don't hear me
Stuck in time, stuck in me
Broken on the bottom line like a refugee
Wake me when the new day comes
Together we will ride the sun
The future is an empty gun
We ride on to them one-by-one
Wake me when the new day comes
Together we will ride the sun
The future is an empty gun
We ride on to them one-by-one
Wake me when the new day comes
Together we will ride the sun
The future is an empty gun
We ride on to them one-by-one
One-by-one
Lyrics submitted by AdamArtz
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
I think this is about someone who's so deeply depressed that their drowning in darkness & seeking out for a life jacket before the undercurrent pulls them to their death.