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Shut out, pimpled and angry.
I quietly tied all my guts into knots.
gave up on trying to make them,
I figured it'd take them too long to look up and besides...
it was undeniably clear to me, I don't know why
when every other part of life seemed locked behind shutters
I knew the worthless dregs we've always been.
lucked out and found my favorite records
lying in wait at the Birmingham mall.
the songs that I heard,
the occasional book
were the only fun I ever took.
and I got on with making myself.
Yeah the trick is just making yourself
but when they're parking their cars on your chest
you've still got a view of the summer sky
to make it hurt twice when your restless body
caves to its whims
and suddenly struggles to take flight...
Three thousand miles north east
I left all my friends at the morning bus stop shaking their heads.
"what kind of life you dream of? you're allergic to love."
yes I know but I must say in my own defense
it's been undeniable dear to me, I don't know why
when every other part of life seemed locked behind shutters
I knew the worthless dregs we are,
the selfless, loving saints we are,
the melting, sliding dice we've always been.
I quietly tied all my guts into knots.
gave up on trying to make them,
I figured it'd take them too long to look up and besides...
it was undeniably clear to me, I don't know why
when every other part of life seemed locked behind shutters
I knew the worthless dregs we've always been.
lucked out and found my favorite records
lying in wait at the Birmingham mall.
the songs that I heard,
the occasional book
were the only fun I ever took.
and I got on with making myself.
Yeah the trick is just making yourself
but when they're parking their cars on your chest
you've still got a view of the summer sky
to make it hurt twice when your restless body
caves to its whims
and suddenly struggles to take flight...
Three thousand miles north east
I left all my friends at the morning bus stop shaking their heads.
"what kind of life you dream of? you're allergic to love."
yes I know but I must say in my own defense
it's been undeniable dear to me, I don't know why
when every other part of life seemed locked behind shutters
I knew the worthless dregs we are,
the selfless, loving saints we are,
the melting, sliding dice we've always been.
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"The songs that I heard
the occasional book
were the only fun I ever took"
He replaces the word "fun" with drugs. I always thought it was clever. The songs he heard and books he read were the only drugs he ever took...
Well, at the time.
Know yourself first! He is struggling in life and looks up with music and doesn't care about love just yet , plus he's a shut out anyways so what's the point, right?
A young person is trying to figure out who they are. They do stuff to try to fit in, but still feel rejected. At some point they discover a bit of their true self and some happiness through some music and books, but still they try to be someone they're not even though it causes them emotional/physical pain. His or her friends realize that what this person is trying to do is not realistic, but the person still keeps on "making" his or herself. But when it comes down to it, he or she really does know just how fake people are.
That's my take, anyways. :)
To me, James Mercer is a lyrical genius. He's the only musician that I can say truly impresses me with their lyrics. Usually when it comes down to me liking music, it's not at all about the lyrics, but more about tune and melody and rhythm and feeling. But when it's James Mercer/The Shins, I know I'm gonna hear amazing lyrics too.
Shut out, pimpled and angry.
I quietly tied all my guts into knots.
Gave up on trying to make them,
I figured it'd take them too long to look up and besides...
-The first line is a pretty quick description of out main character. He's obviously upset about something, and from the second lines, we can assume he is trying to make a team or club. 'Trying to make them'? Like 'make the team'? But because he is such an awkward, self conscious person, he decides it would take to long for them (as in maybe the coach or the like) to even acknowledge he was there. And even then it's unlikely he'd make it, so he decides to not even trying or 'gave up on trying to make them'.
It was undeniably clear to me I don't know why
When every other part of life seemed locked behind shutters
I knew what worthless dregs we all are then.
-He then realizes that when every other aspect of your life is inside your house alone, 'locked behind shutters', we become worthless. So, giving up on making whatever team has only added to his feelings of insecurity and isolation.
lucked out and found my favorite records
lying in wait at the birmingham mall.
the songs the i heard,
the occasional book
were the only fun I ever took.
and I got on with making myself.
the trick is just making yourself.
-Since our main character doesn't have a club or team, no hobbies, and apparently no friends, he sits around listening to music and reading. This is his entire life, he doesn't go on dates or to parties, 'were the only fun I ever took'. He 'got on with making [himself]', in other words, he spent his days thinking about who he was as a person alone. He is trying to figure out who he is. To 'make' his own identity.
but when they're parking their cars on your chest
you've still got a view of the summer sky
to make it hurt twice when your restless body
caves to its whims
and suddenly struggles to take flight...
-Despite trying to 'find himself', people are obviously crushing him or 'parking cars on your chest'. He tries to find a positive to it, and then realizes that when you try and run away from your problems, it only ends up hurting more because you'll have wished you've done something. The 'restless body caving into it's whims' is a young man becoming to scared to confront whatever problem he has socially and is just leaving to be by himself, to 'take flight'.
three thousand miles north east
i left all my friends at the morning bus stop shaking their heads.
"what kind of life you dream of? you're allergic to love."
-This goes in with the previous lines. This boy has abandoned his friends by themselves because he got upset with something and wasn't emotionally mature enough to deal with it. Even they start to realize that he needs to learn to get along with people, and say that he's 'allergic to love'. That line pretty much means this kid is scared to form a meaningful relationship, if you view love in a non-romantic way.
yes i know but i must say in my own defense
it's been undeniable dear to me, i don't know why
when every other part of life seemed locked behind shutters
i knew the worthless dregs we are,
the selfless, loving saints we are,
the melting, sliding dice we've always been.
-Note how the singer sings "what kind of life you dream of? you're allergic to love", he's making his voice higher pitched to make fun or patronize these friends. This kid is really offended by their analysis, but can't express it. So he retaliates 'I must say in my own defense' (These are friends, you don't defend yourself from friends). He goes on to say that being a bit of a loner has allowed him to see people for who they really are. And that while he may be socially inept, not fit in, and not have friends, the other kids have phony relationships. And he's saying it's the same as being alone is the same as having a 'fake' relationship.
Regardless, this song is definitely about self discovery, like Greyshoes said. The masturbation idea hasn't really appealed to me because so many of the lyrics detract from that idea.
shut out, pimpled and angry.
i quietly tied all my guts into knots.
gave up on trying to make them,
i figured it'd take them too long to look up and besides...
[This is Mercer describing his teenage years: introverted, frustrated, and discovering his own intelligence. The first real chapter of his life, he is rejected and ridiculed by his peers for being himself. He probably tried to convince everyone that there were more important things in life, but he eventually gave up because it only got him in more trouble.]
it was undeniably clear to me, i don't know why
when every other part of life seemed locked behind shutters
i knew what worthless dregs we've always been
[At some point in his life, he had an epiphany for whatever reason. It seemed, to Mercer, that most kids and conforming teenagers have a pretty worthless existance because they can't see any of the valuable parts of life (they're all "locked behind shutters"). All they can see is popularity and apperances and petty nonsense.]
lucked out and found my favorite records
lying in wait at the birmingham mall.
the songs the i heard,
the occasional book
were the only fun i ever took.
and i got on with making myself.
the trick is just making yourself.
[I can relate to this because I remember the first time I bought my first CD and realized how much music could help me. Mercer catches a break from the frustration of school when he starts going to the mall and finding his interests. He slowly begins to get an idea of what lies behind the shutters as he reads books and listens to records, so he decides to keep heading in that direction and "making himself" into the person he wants to be: a musician. "The trick", he says, "is forcing yourself to put up with the BS in the meantime".]
but when they're parking their cars on your chest
you've still got a view of the summer sky
to make it hurt twice when your restless body
caves to its whims
and suddenly struggles to take flight...
[Mercer is now talking directly to the listener about the difficulties of trying to fulfill your dreams. He's saying that whenever life gets hard and you're discouraged and nobody believes in you, just keep your eye on your dreams and take pride in doing so. This section is one of of Mercer's infamous "epitaphs" , it reminds the listener that there will always be setbacks, but that they should never give up.]
three thousand miles north east
i left all my friends at the morning bus stop shaking their heads.
"what kind of life you dream of? you're allergic to love."
yes i know but i must say in my own defense
[He finally understands what it is he needs to do to fulfill his dreams, so he packs his things and moves far away from his hometown and his past life. His friends think he's crazy and he'll never make it work, but he says that it's something he just has to do and he doesn't care if it works or not]
it's been undeniable dear to me, i don't know why
when every other part of life seemed locked behind shutters
i knew the worthless dregs we are,
the selfless, loving saints we are,
the melting, sliding dice we've always been.
[It's incredibly important to him to find himself, though he has no idea why. When everything else in his life seemed out of reach and he finally grew up a little, he realized how worthless, how selfless, how loving, and how multi-faceted we are as human beings. Like the myriad layers of an onion.]