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.
Jacques Lamure is a
Volunteer fireman
He longs to give his life
Saving a nice old man and his wife
When their house is
Filled with flames
Earning him honor and fame
Jacques Lamure is a foreman
At a clock factory
He wishes he were boss
So he could fire that scoundrel William Moss
Who always puts him down
When Megan Blanchard is around
He told himself last year
That when springtime was here
He would suddenly appear at Meg's door
He'd rent a mariachi band and respectfully demand
His dear Meg to take his hand
And to be his forever more
But of course he didn't dare
And pretended not to care
About the insult or the loss
When he found out she'd married William Moss
Jacques Lamure goes to see a show
Every other Friday night
He likes the westerns best
He'd rather be a sheriff with a gold star on his chest
Than that weird guy who never says a word
And when spoken to pretends he hadn't heard
He realized one day that he didn't have to stay
That he could move as far away as planes could fly
He chuckled as he mused
About the people who had rused him
And how shocked and confused that they would be
When he says goodbye and never turns around
Never returns to that miserable town
Then as weeks passed he soon did find
This move had greatly improved his state of mind
Volunteer fireman
He longs to give his life
Saving a nice old man and his wife
When their house is
Filled with flames
Earning him honor and fame
Jacques Lamure is a foreman
At a clock factory
He wishes he were boss
So he could fire that scoundrel William Moss
Who always puts him down
When Megan Blanchard is around
He told himself last year
That when springtime was here
He would suddenly appear at Meg's door
He'd rent a mariachi band and respectfully demand
His dear Meg to take his hand
And to be his forever more
But of course he didn't dare
And pretended not to care
About the insult or the loss
When he found out she'd married William Moss
Jacques Lamure goes to see a show
Every other Friday night
He likes the westerns best
He'd rather be a sheriff with a gold star on his chest
Than that weird guy who never says a word
And when spoken to pretends he hadn't heard
He realized one day that he didn't have to stay
That he could move as far away as planes could fly
He chuckled as he mused
About the people who had rused him
And how shocked and confused that they would be
When he says goodbye and never turns around
Never returns to that miserable town
Then as weeks passed he soon did find
This move had greatly improved his state of mind
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Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
I love this song... I'd like to pull a Jacques Lamure on my town right now.