Lyrics for Teardrop as interpreted by Selfmutilized

Teardrop Lyrics
Love, love is a verb
Love is a doing word
Fearless on my breath
Gentle impulsion
Shakes me makes me lighter
Fearless on my breath

Teardrop on the fire
Fearless on my breath

Nine night of matter
Black flowers blossom
Fearless on my breath
Black flowers blossom
Fearless on my breath

Teardrop on the fire
Fearless on my breath

Water is my eye
Most faithful mirror
Fearless on my breath
Teardrop on the fire of a confession
Fearless on my breath
Most faithful mirror
Fearless on my breath

Teardrop on the fire
Fearless on my breath

Stumbling a little
Stumbling a little

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lyrium
05-20-2006

Rated 0 
I don't think that the last line is 'your stumbling a little'. I could hear how it might be 'you're stumbling in the dark', and that would make a little sense, but before i read these lyrics i was always certain that the last line is 'and it was totally internal', which also makes sense.

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lyrium
05-20-2006

Rated 0 
I don't think the last line is 'you're stumbling a little'. I could hear how it might be 'you're stumbling in the dark', and that would make a little sense, but before I read these lyrics, everytime I listened to this song I was certain that the last line is 'and it was totally internal', which also makes sense. Especially considering the fetus.

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Desaparecida
05-24-2006

Rated 0 
Um, holy crap.

I'd never heard the whole song before (just what they play on the opening of House) and I'd just figured out the name of the song and decided to download it, and wow. It's amazing. It's sort of spooky and gives me goosebumps but the vocals are just Beautiful. Goes well with the show, too :-)

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docuk
06-23-2006

Rated 0 
enjoyed the comments above -gives an insight into the song.

For me the song is both smooth and ephemeral. its clearly about loss but to me it is much more than that.
The song helps me to appreciated the value of qualities such as tenderness and to realise the value of such notions and qualities are beyond quantification.

its clearly encapsulates quite sweetly the preciousness and intrinsic value of human thought and emotion.

when i heard it today for the first time i could have sworn that i heard a similar song on american beauty soundtrack -any ideas anyone

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she has a gf now.
06-27-2006

Rated 0 
house theme song
whoo.
House is the greatest show in the world, by the way.
And Dr. Chase is basically my life.
kthanksbye.

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anaesthetise
06-27-2006

Rated 0 
Thanks for a good set of comments.
This song is fantastic.
Lyrium, I can see how you may have thought "It was totally internal" was the last line, but I'm pretty certain that this set is accurate.
Anyway, scarily beautiful song...

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zoo_station
07-16-2006

Rated 0 
i first heard when watching House lol
such a well constructed and delicate song

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basser
08-16-2006

Rated +1 
Haha. First heard it on House, too. ;) Great choice of theme for that show. Mysterious enough while still having that 'heartbeat' undertone... Beautiful song in its own right, too. Excellent addition to "Hallelujah" and "Dark Blue" as my get to sleep music.

Anyway. I agree most with the interperetation of infidelity. It seems to work best for me. Although regret over an abortion works well too. Maybe it's both. ;)

So here're my thoughts, in no particular order. Just wrote down ideas as they came. Hope it helps.

"Fearless on my breath" - Her telling herself that she's not afraid, and acting/showing to the wolrd that she's fearless.

"Teardrop on the fire" - Already well-defined by others. A single teardrop is useless to stop a fire. Signifies the futility of her feelings either way.

"Water is my eye
Most faithful mirror" - The eye is the window into the soul; it's faithful in that it tells her the truth no matter what. Thus looking into her own eyes she can see that she's crying, or isn't as strong as she makes out to be. The repetition of "fearless on my breath" after this also shows how her eyes are telling a different story than her words.

"Night, night of matter
Black flowers blossom" - Working the infidelity angle, this could be the night of her affair, sleeping with another man whom she may not love; "night of matter" (passion over caring.) And "Black flowers blossom" can be her guilt, or, if you're on the abortion route, her unwanted baby. (Black flowers being her resentment of the baby, not necessarily the child itself. Think of them as the seeds of her eventual evil.)

"Gentle impulsion
Shakes me makes me lighter" - I'm not too sure about this one. On the abortion side it makes sense, as if this song were sung during the abortion process. A gentle prodding, as it were, as she realises that the child is dead and she's (literally and figuratively) lighter. (That's disgusting, isn't it? xD) On the infidelity it could be she finally decides to confess (a gentle impulsion to do so? Haha.) and the decision lightens her guilt somewhat.

"You're stumbling a little" - On either interperetation, she's doubting herself. Turning back or stumbling in her words and fearless mask.

Aaaand those're my ideas. My, this can get quite fun, can't it? xD By the way, I'm pro abortion. The song dosen't seem to be, though... Oh, well. :P Still trippy, still calming. Words don't have to get into the picture.

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cdagger1024
09-05-2006

Rated 0 
i don't think she's saying "fearless on my breath"; it sounds more like "feathers on my breath", just from the intonations of her voice. i've seen both versions on lyrics sites and i'd opt for "feathers".

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louisagiffard
09-06-2006

Rated 0 
I've also heard the Elbow cover of this...It's a great cover. Really does the song justice.
However, I thought that the line was "stumbling, early love." Stumbling in the dark works though, but you're stumbling a little doesn't.

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ScottishMindset
09-08-2006

Rated 0 
The singer has a beautiful voice, but I have no idea what this song is about.

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frequency
10-10-2006

Rated 0 
"Love is a verb" is describing that this is something she wasn;t doing, but now realizes is part of the picture. The "feathers on my breath" phrase speaks of how she is nervous, she breaths very fluttery, like her want to fly away. The gentle impulsion that makes her lighter is the thought of telling him what she has done to hurt him. The night of matter is the night in which the deed took place, and the black flowers blossoming furthers the idea that something unpure has happened. The teardrop on the fire can be the idea that a teardrop cant put out a fire, or maybe that the fire is so hot it dissolves the teardrop, these are two different perspectives. The water is her eye phrase explains further how much it hurts her to say what has gone on. Most faithful mirror indicates that she will have nothing left but herself once this has been rbought into the light. Stumbling in the dark is what she is doing after she has realized everything that she did has really affected. Over simplified it is about cheating, but so much more.

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youcancallmeham
10-19-2006

Rated 0 
listen to this song high...its amazing

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JaedeGreene
10-22-2006

Rated 0 
I think this song is actually very intellectual, at first when hearing it you only listen to the melody and lose yourself in it, but after reading most of your comments, I never realized how deep the lyrics actually are, and how alternate most of your opinions are

[mad props tho antisoap]

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starwhisp
12-05-2006

Rated 0 
i hear both 'fearless' and 'feathers' like, alternately. in support of the 'feathers' there ARE feathers floating around in the video.

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Black Sativa
12-14-2006

Rated 0 
I remember someone saying it was about a unborn child whose mother abuses drugs; the baby feeling all of the same rush, crash and pain as the chemicals are transfused to it through the womb. In that light I find it immeasurably depressing... It's so beautiful though...

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The Serene Man
12-19-2006

Rated 0 
Wow, the lyrics here are way off. The line "Feathers on my breath" should actually read "Fearless on my breath" and "Gentle imulsion" should be "Gentle, an ocean". There's a few more like "Ninght, night o fmatter" that are wrong, but I don't know the ocrrect lyrics.

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maaik_e89
01-18-2007

Rated 0 
,,this is one of those songs i hear and think.. wow.. they should play this at my cremation.. hmm my parents would hate me for it..

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stephsays
01-18-2007

Rated 0 
Someone a bunch of comments back said that they associated this song with abortion, either for or against.

I can't imagine that the song would be radically pro-abortion. The baby in the video is SO lifelike, SO easy to sympathize with. It gives me chills and makes me want to cry. (But then again, I cry at the drop of a hat.) But the way that the fetus was shown in the video is meant for us to feel for, I think.

As for the song itself, I agree with the general opinion of everyone. It seems to me it's about futility.

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stephsays
01-18-2007

Rated 0 
Someone a bunch of comments back said that they associated this song with abortion, either for or against.

I can't imagine that the song would be radically pro-abortion. The baby in the video is SO lifelike, SO easy to sympathize with. It gives me chills and makes me want to cry. (But then again, I cry at the drop of a hat.) But the way that the fetus was shown in the video is meant for us to feel for, I think.

As for the song itself, I agree with the general opinion of everyone. It seems to me it's about futility.

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CryingCrimsonTears
01-28-2007

Rated 0 
I love this song, of course I first heard the intro on the show House. But I love these lyrics, this song is so cool. I love how she sings.

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twiztidgirl
03-05-2007

Rated 0 
Does anyone else think the beat in the background sounds like a heartbeat? Its crazy..

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suelm
03-31-2007

Rated 0 
I think for most of us, the song meant even more when we saw the video...

I have always loved the song, but seeing the footage made it even better.

I feel that this little baby knows it is going to be born into the middle of a nuclear war..hence the flashing lights...The flashing lights show what the child will be up against...The child covers it's eyes, I would take it that it doesn't want to be born into this, but has no choice...

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suelm
03-31-2007

Rated 0 
I so doubt that this song would be about abortion...A baby that formed would not be aborted the bub is almost full term.....and yes,the background music is so like a heartbeat..

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suelm
03-31-2007

Rated 0 
No, it is 'feathers on my breath' not 'fearless'

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