Lyrics for Candle as interpreted by shut

Candle Lyrics
[Thurston]
I see a dark star drivin' at his magic, snatch it
kiss me up a way go crystal cracking
I can't wait
I can't stay, uh candle
Gotta change my mind before it burns out

I'm the cocker on the rock
Wind is whipping through my stupid mop

I see a falling snowgirl walking Broadway
Turns the corner at 14th and I know there's no way
It's alright
It's a lighted candle
And I know that she'll be okay by sunday

I'm the cocker on the rock
Coming back start shining
In your electric clock

It's safe to say, candle
Tonight's the day, candle
It's alright now, candle
The wind's away, candle
Never thought I'd see a dark star falling

I'm the cocker on the rock
Wind is whipping through my stupid mop

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masterprotector
06-08-2002

Rated 0 
i dont know what thurston is gettin' at really, but songs to me attach themselves to memories i have. this song makes me think about a realistion of how i felt for a person and become quite symbolic as i lay there drunk listening to this song and pondering how i felt for them, since then references to candles have come up in my poetry a lot and the song has had a great impact on me, even the music, not just the lyrics represent how i feel, one minute the song is nice and melodic, the next its discordant and angry, i really relate to this a lot

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Lets_kill_music
07-07-2002

Rated 0 
another great art-indie record that nobody has heard!! If you havent heard 'daydream nation' (the album) then get it

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stain
08-05-2002

Rated 0 
a love song to a candle?

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instant_karma
04-19-2003

Rated 0 
i can't believed how little posts sonic youth gets. their soo good

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instant_karma
04-19-2003

Rated 0 
i can't believed how little posts sonic youth gets. their soo good

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kyasarin
06-09-2003

Rated 0 
yeah. they're the best

just wondering, is "stupid mop" referring to thurston's hair? that's how i've always thought of his hair like that, a mop.

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Pixie_zorilor
05-05-2004

Rated 0 
Y love intro on this song.The intro is really cool.
i think that in this song candle is a metaphor for sex....hm,maybe :)))if not for sex than for something else same special as sex.

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nirvana318d
11-29-2004

Rated 0 
karmas rite more peplee need to post sonic youth\

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jezzyboy
12-02-2004

Rated 0 
This song is absolutely mind-blowing in my humble opinion. The duality of its ethereal introduction and its grungey guitar work are perfect.

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Matamoros
01-09-2005

Rated 0 
This song is very obviously about crystal meth (speed).

Thurston]
I see a dark star drivin' at his magic, snatch it
KEEPS ME UP AWAKE go crystal cracking
*You cant sleep on speed as its an amphetamine, its also a crystal that cracks. *
I can't wait
I can't stay, uh candle
*When you want speed, you REALLY want it bad, you will go through ANYTHING to get it *
Gotta change my mind before it burns out
*He knows its stupid, speed eventually burns out your mind and destroys it, but he is addicted.*
I'm the cocker on the rock
Wind is whipping through my stupid mop
*Isnt a cock a male rooster, the king of its domain? A rock of speed. You think your king of the world on speed. Wind is whipping through his hair, but he knows doing speed is stupid.*

I see a falling snowgirl walking Broadway *Snow = Coke*
Turns the corner at 14th and I know there's no way
It's alright *You always think life is going to be alright no matter what when your on speed*
It's a lighted candle *On speed you tend to stare at lights, especially white ones. He is staying up all night, twacked out of his mind staring at a candle*
And I know that she'll be okay by sunday

I'm the cocker on the rock
Coming back start shining
In your electric clock
*You stare at clocks , time has no meaning because your staying up all night spun out of your mind*
It's safe to say, candle
Tonight's the day, candle
It's alright now, candle
The wind's away, candle
*He is still staring at this candle*
Never thought I'd see a dark star falling

I'm the cocker on the rock
Wind is whipping through my stupid mop

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Matamoros
01-09-2005

Rated 0 
Another song about speed is Star Power , a song about Coke is Sugar Kane.

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whiskeyclonehotel
09-05-2005

Rated 0 
For some reason i got the impression that "Candle" was Marilyn Monroe. But Matamoros is probably right!

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couldBanyone
05-12-2006

Rated 0 
Actually the term cocker means "buddy" or "friend." It's a pretty old term but using it in that sense would still support the drugs subtext. He is the "friend" of the "rock" (meth).

However, I disagree that the song is just a pure drug reference. A candle is representative of mortal beauty. They possess an entrancing glow but they must burn out eventually. Thurston sees his life as reflected in this candle. It's a feel good song in the end..."it's alright Candle / Tonight's the day Candle / The wind's away Candle" Wind, in this sense, represents that omnipresent force of impending death. But it is gone for this one night.

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Phrogex
11-25-2006

Rated 0 
couldBanyone's right. The song deals with life and the escape from it through drugs. In western art, especially in the Vanitas (Vanity) still life paintings, the candle has always been representative our life as the flame is time burning away our life. When we die our life goes out like a flame. The album cover itself is even a painting by the artist Gerhard Richter, which I think is good evidence that they're using the same symbol of a candle in western art in their song. Although, I think it deals more with the escape from mortality than anything, mostly because of the lines:

"I can't wait
I can't stay, uh candle
Gotta change my mind before it burns out"

I maybe looking too deeply into it, but I interpret this as "I can't wait [until death/when my candle burns out]" because when we die, so does our mortality. "Gotta change my [mortal] mind before it [dies] out" probably a reference to drugs as an escape from harsh reality.

To me, the song has a half-serious, half-sarcastic tone to it. It's very energetic.

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wizzardsmith
04-14-2007

Rated 0 
I think this song is about a relationship where one person is really needy and clings to the other person, like if he goes out, she will extinguish.

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mrfisto
07-24-2007

Rated 0 
I read somewhere that Lee and Thurston were reading a lot of Philip K. Dick novels during the Daydream era, and that some of the lyrics are based on those stories...I think Candle and Eric's Trip were a couple of those.

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hazzamatazza
09-14-2007

Rated 0 
ha ha love that line "Wind is whipping through my stupid mop" coz i have a mop, they are annoying, but look good. it broke my heart when i found out that thurston's mop was actually blonde, not red. damn it if he was a red head we would have the exact same hair-doo

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hazzamatazza
09-14-2007

Rated 0 
tweeker=thurston

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What I See Is Me
11-09-2007

Rated 0 
Im surprised no one has mentioned the fact that the cover is of a candle...ya have to think thats at least a bit related. Great fucking album.

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SammyJL
02-04-2008

Rated 0 
taking drugs and seeing a fit bird who he thinks is also on rock, but he's more interested in the drugs

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SammyJL
02-04-2008

Rated 0 
taking drugs and seeing a fit bird who he thinks is also on rock, but he's more interested in the drugs

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rocket426
03-28-2008

Rated 0 
Actually, Matamoros, Sugar Kane is about Marilyn Monroe(She used that name as her alias). I don't know what this song is about. Thurston has a tendency to write in stream of conciousness style. Also, he flat out LIES sometimes...But, what can ya do?? Still love his music, I guess. This song is the soundtrack to a rainy morning...Sitting in my kitchen with some tea and toast, watching the rain outside on the street. The lonely feeling, ya know? Really quiet. Just the sound of the cars hitting the puddles...

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