Seeing the Bunnymen with my future wife at the Royal Albert Hall, London the same week this was released...

um, greaaaaaaaaaat
nah, good 4 u
;)

Spiff song!

This song is just great. Fun to dance to.

very gooy doance song but hatts it a bout

No idea what he's singing about. But I love the song. The opening is one of the most distinct I've ever heard. It really grabs your attention.

I have no idea what it's about: I didn't even like it the first few times I heard it. But, one day, I listened without being critical, and some element reached out to me, and I began to feel differently about it. The small feeling eventually balloned into something larger, and I came to love this song, and wonder now how it was I ever felt differently.

Ok, the 7th floor is referencing this Broadcasting building in London, where BBC recordings take place (or used to anyway). Cello tape I believe was used in recording to create a certain sound with a microphone, or maybe just taping mics together, and for other various purposes. So, the way I look at it, they were a struggling band, putting together instruments or setting up their stuff in a studio as best they could, trying to make an impression, and hoping they would be spared from the "cutter" or the critical minds of the music industry who have little patience for experimental, creative music. They're hoping that the industry people on the 7th floor who control their destiny are "brewing alternatives" which would allow their music (the stuff the music industry might put in the bottom drawer initially) to actually see the light of day.

"Say we can, say we will, not just another drop in the ocean." He's saying they are not just another flash in the pan, that they have something to give.

A parallel to all of this (my own interpretation of course) is the idea of the cutting itself. Cutting- as in the way a person with psychological issues might cut into their own skin. This is done for many reasons, and in some cultures the cutting is done as purification rituals (others call it bleeding, and this practice used to go on all the time). In this case, I think he might be referring to the fact that the industry sort of takes chunks out of you when you become part of it, and he is wondering if he will still have the raw emotion that he had before he got into all of this, that the industry doesn't numb him to all of this manipulation. "Will I still be soiled when the dirt is off" to me is another reference to trying to wash away guilt, and that ties in with the cross/religious reference as well as the sacrifice in "figurative" blood he is making to become an artist. He has to make some artistic sacrifices if he want to "escape our lives" of starving artists, or he could just be referencing the art itself as an escape. Also, there is always figurative blood spilled when an artist produces something.

I also really love the line about "happy loss" this really meant to me the true nature of being an artist. There is some bit of a masochistic tendency I think in really good artists. They sort of enjoy suffering for their art (or cutting for that matter), as it can be a wealthy source for creative ideas. It's a necessary evil, so to speak. The pain (the cutting) creates the art (the release, or rush...but also the loss of blood...hence, the "happy loss".... sorry, I just love the metaphor) Lots of great artists have always been somewhat self-destructive, so I think there's something to that in here as well.

Also, along those lines, "will I still be soiled" means that if he is accepted as an artist in the industry, he will have some means, so he won't be as much of a "soiled," starving artist, but will that mean that he will be worthy still of making great art? Will his art be viable if he's not struggling, since that what spawned his desire to become an artist in the first place (by spawned I don't necessarily mean he was driven by money, but rather that he really developed his artistic eye as a struggling outsider)? Additionally, this could also have to do with his worries about failure. When the blinders are off, when everything is tripped away and he is exposed, will he still be shite?

And when he says "watch the fingers close, when the hands are cold," I see this as meaning that he needs to remind himself to keep it together. He needs to stay away from getting caught up in the release, and focus on the art. The release that the actual cutter receives can be too much of a good thing if too much blood leaves the body. Just as the release of emotion in art must be tamed as well, because ultimately an artist wants to harness the emotion and articulate the experience with an objective, critical eye. The risk is dropping into a self-destructive vortex.

So all of the good stuff: self-doubt, stuggle, anxiety, fear of success, fear of failure, overcoming personal hurdles, maintaining integrity- it’s all in here, a great great song as far as I'm concerned. And I didn't even get into the power of the cutting, ripping guitar chords and the sounds of the climactic chorus! Oh well, there's always next time!!!

Just one more point I wanted to make is that they could be the ones one the 7th floor, brewing alternatives. Meaning they are recording their alternative music, and they hope that their art is not cut up by the producers to badly, that when their music is "cut up" so to speak, it will still be good and maintain it's integrity. Porcupine was really the first album that Echo made that was more accessible, with powerful melodies and choruses ala U2. Whether or not this was conscious is not known by me, but it seems a perfect opening track. They are cleaning up or changing their sound, and in this light, "brewing alternatives" could also mean they are going in a different direction with their music. There's lots of ways to take this. I just see it as a metaphor for the possibility that while they are approaching their newer sound with a more objective methodology, they want to make sure they don't lose the edge that makes them great.

Its "sellotape." Its a brand name.

As someone who grew up on echo, this song to me, critics, ect. was regarded as containing several drug references. I don't think they are completely at odds with OneTwo's thoughts, but to ignore them probably isn't right either. Brewing alternatives, bottom drawer could easily be references to drugs. Conquering myself...anyone who has tripped to hard can understand this, etc.

Really I'd say "brewing alternatives, bottom drawer" could have something to do with trying to think of something besides the sharp objects in the drawer for cutting.

I keep mine in the top right-hand drawer.

I don't know, to me it sounds like the lyricist has an addiction to cutting, and he's trying to fight it by using music as an "alternative" (as referenced in the "who's on the seventh floor brewing alternatives lyric" [which is a reference to the BBC{British Broadcasting Company} recording place]) ... he's looking for another way to release his pain... but his knife is just in the bottom drawer, waiting for him to give in... The chorus referencees to how he conquers his addiction through his music for the most part, but when a challenge comes, he's not able to hold his ground... "Not just another drop in the ocean" is when he finally gives in and makes the incision... The lyric is a reference to how blood and the ocean are pretty much the same (look it up if you don't believe me) in their composition if you take away the biological factors. Surprisingly, the rest of the lyrics interpretted by OneTwo pretty much coinside with my interpretation as well... The rest is self explanatory.
Toodles.
Remember, music is all about how you experience it... This is what it means to me, and nobody's "right" or "wrong" in their opinions.

And if the singer reads this, sorry if i'm completely wrong and.or offend you... unless you're dead... well no actually then i'm still sorry since you're probably gonna read it anyway and haunt me for the rest of my life....
AHHH!!!

i love how he randomly says "mustard", it makes me giggle

"Couldn't cut the mustard", is another way of saying you weren't successful at something.

I thought it was about fighting depression and suicide and all the google ads seem to agree with me. There are 3 about depression, 2 about suicide and 2 about teenage help.

onetwo's theory fits well too.

It just makes me think of the Bunnymen's trip to Iceland to play a few gigs in Rekjavik. On their return, Ian McCulloch said of the Icelanders "Everyone was blotto [drunk] and the place smelled of eggy boffs"

Niiiice!

Thank you, OneTwo, for valuable insights that make me believe I GET this song to some extent. I agree with what you say, but would like to add additional elements for anyone's interpretation:

A "cutter" is slang for a film or TV editor. It's done differently in this century, but originally it comes from cutting 35mm film reels. "Cutting" also applies to audiotape, and when this song was made, physically cutting Cello tape was probably still done. Great musical stuff, best-riff-ever stuff which was recorded was literally cut out. Spare us.

I take note that Major Valor pointed out that 'Couldn't cut the mustard" line. I'm American, it's a common US term, and the fact that it's not "Major Valour" tells me the Major is also American. A quick run on the web indicates it's an American idiom. Thus, I read that line as Ian's take on some American A&R guy's bullsh*t line to the band. "Yeah, that band, couldn't cut the mustard, but you, boy, have a cigar, you're gonna go far" Hope that makes sense. ANYWAY.

And I always heard it as "We will escape with our lives", curiously enough. Hey maybe that "with" was cut, eh? But "We will escape our lives..." That's bliss. Bliss. Buddhism teaches it. Sit on a rock and meditate it. Or get yourself from it.

But "We will escape /with/ our lives" could be referring to EATB's six-foot sound mixer (their Cutter?) or the Bunnymen. A six-foot tall guy has a leg up on life, many inches on most, won't get beat up as much, if our singer and his six-foot bandmates don't make it as a Bunnymen, it's onto another part of life, right? Sell shoes, or whatever.

"watch the fingers close
when the hands are cold" - to me, this is suggestion the body's death, and the rigor mortis that happens, wherein muscles tense, and fingers can curl into a fist. The next step is to be buried in the dirt, and Then comes the question of whether the mere mortal has shed the mortal coil, and is either cleansed or dirtied -in body and soul - with the achievements of the life here on this Earthen rock.

I like OneTwo's interpretation of (worthy cross / will i still be soiled / when the dirt is off), but I read it differently. I'm not plugging a certain faith, but the Christian story of Jesus's Ascension is what i first read into it. Such a reference is not surprising, considering -I must guess - Ian is likely a traditional-born Scot. The glorious elements of the bagpipes in the music near the end seem to support the lyrics.

Hey, and, gnuorder, yeah, it's about struggling. Fighting self and doubt and life and all that stuff that makes it interesting. You are gauging, and this is not a measurable opinion pull. You found a great song. Don't just read stuff. Talk and tell whatever friends, strangers, maybe even jerks like a doctor about it. Give it a full-on year. It is a song about struggle. Spare us. The Cutter.

Wonderful song. Let's hear more.

The song centres on the band trying to make it in the music industry.
The CUTTER is rejection and the song focuses on Ian's fear of rejection and his reaction to it (drug taking).
"What's in the bottom drawer, waiting for things to give" He is saying that when things go wrong he turns to drugs.
"With selotape and knives" is a play on words on the biblical quote from Revelations "With seven tapered knives"
Revelations is about the end of the world which is how the Singer sees rejection.

It is about the thin line between success and failure and how people react to it.
Cracking tune!!

First of all the 4th line is wrong, the word come should be give.

Secondly is about CIRCUMCISION.

"watch the fingers close
when the hands are cold"

"with sellotape and knives"

Both are about cutting the foreskin.

So it's about circumcision and his ambivalence towards it.



"am i the happy loss
will i still recoil
when the skin is lost
am i the worthy cross
will i still be soiled
when the dirt is off "

There are many metaphors in the song, and it may have more than one meaning, but "the cutter" is about circumcision. I'm surprised no one else saw this, it's so obvious to me.

This song is amongst my favorites in the repertoire of my music knowledge, largely because i feel it can be applicable to the lives of many. Of course, this song can take the form of numerous meanings.

In my view this song relates to escaping lies/sin, and having to maintain a gripping effort to maintain these lies so that the truth is not expelled for all fears associated with such endeavors. Moreover, the person who retains lies from wrongdoing has a positive image with others of relation, thus these lies are crafted to avoid a changeling effect.

who's on the seventh floor
brewing alternatives
what's in the bottom drawer
waiting for things to come

This relates to the wrongful acts committed by a person that must be dressed up in lies to avoid exposing the truth. Brewing alternatives to me is interpreted as drugs, while whatever is in the bottom drawer can maybe be a weapon or planted device. The individuals who commit these acts must provide lies to supplement their actions so that there is no suspicion.

conquering myself until
i see another hurdle approaching
say we can say we will
not just another drop in the ocean

This stanza to me explicates how the lying done has an element of repetition to the individual, so that it is almost like a disease that must be fought in the hopes of aversion. "Another hurdle approaching" may be the temptation stared at in the face, and the thought to fight it for the fear of a subsequent lie. "Say we can say we will" is the attempt to usher in confidence at thwarting such actions, "not just another drop in the ocean" is giving in to such urges and tacking on one more lie.

I think 'worthy cross' is a reference to Jesus, the Son of God who died on a cross. The writer means is he worthy enough for people to look up to, admire or even worship him?