This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Freezin' rests his head on a pillow made of concrete again ooh yeah
Oh feelin' maybe he'll see a little betters any days ooh yeah
Oh hand out faces that he sees come again ain't that familiar
Oh dark grin he can't help when he's happy he looks insane
Even flow
Thoughts arrive like butterflies
Oh he don't know, so he chases them away
Someday yet he'll begin his life again
Life again, life again
Kneelin' looking through the paper though he doesn't know to read, ooh yeah
Oh, prayin', now to something that has never showed him anything
Oh, feelin', understands the weather or that winters on its way
Oh, ceilings, few and far between all the legal halls of shame, yeah
Even flow
Thoughts arrive like butterflies
Oh, he don't know, so he chases them away
Someday yet he'll begin his life again
Oh whispering hands, gently lead him away
Him away, him away
Yeah
Woo
Oh yeah yeah fuck it up
Even flow
Thoughts arrive like butterflies
Oh, he don't know, so he chases them away
Someday yet he'll begin his life again
Oh whispering hands, gently lead him away
Him away, him away
Yeah!
Woo
Uh huh yeah
Yeah yeah mommy, mommy
Oh feelin' maybe he'll see a little betters any days ooh yeah
Oh hand out faces that he sees come again ain't that familiar
Oh dark grin he can't help when he's happy he looks insane
Even flow
Thoughts arrive like butterflies
Oh he don't know, so he chases them away
Someday yet he'll begin his life again
Life again, life again
Kneelin' looking through the paper though he doesn't know to read, ooh yeah
Oh, prayin', now to something that has never showed him anything
Oh, feelin', understands the weather or that winters on its way
Oh, ceilings, few and far between all the legal halls of shame, yeah
Even flow
Thoughts arrive like butterflies
Oh, he don't know, so he chases them away
Someday yet he'll begin his life again
Oh whispering hands, gently lead him away
Him away, him away
Yeah
Woo
Oh yeah yeah fuck it up
Even flow
Thoughts arrive like butterflies
Oh, he don't know, so he chases them away
Someday yet he'll begin his life again
Oh whispering hands, gently lead him away
Him away, him away
Yeah!
Woo
Uh huh yeah
Yeah yeah mommy, mommy
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TBone732, i think the lyric are talking about how when people are homeless they don't always have the mental ability to cope with it, and so thoughts enter his head (they come out of nowhere and sort of float around - like butterflies) but he can't deal with them and doesn't understand them and so he "chases them" out of his head...there is an "even flow" of thoughts in and out of his head...thoughts enter his mind, and leave unchanged because of his inablity to cope. that is just my view...
not always, but obviously in this case
@amunkey i think even flow is karma, his homelessness is payback for bad things he did
It's amazing how you can appreciate a song without even understanding the lyrics.. and when you do realize what the song is about... you can appreciate the song so much more.
I really think people are missing something fairly obvious here. If you know anything about Eddie Vedder, you know he had a really screwed up childhood. In fact Once, Breath (I believe), is a series of 3 songs he wrote about his childhood, before he was even in Pearl Jam. Ill take Alive for my example here since its very well known. His mother really did reveal to him somewhere around age 10 that his real father was dead, and the person he thought was his dad was in fact not. "Faces that he sees time again aint that familiar" The person he was raised to believe was his father is not, he knows the face, but it "aint that familiar". "Thoughts arrive like butterflies" to a child things are light and 'floaty' for lack of a better word at the moment. He has thoughts of a real father and a real childhood but he doesnt understand them so he ignores them, because hes never had that luxury. "Whispering hands gently lead him away", leading the child to believe that this is the way things are supposed to be. Leading him away from the dream of a real home. So in this way he IS homeless in a sense. Notice at the end hes saying mommy...mommy. Notice you never hear a PJ song where he talks about a father with any need or affection. This is just my take on it. I think maybe its him comparing his childhood to being alone and homeless. And always trying to to find an "Even Flow"
@bluboy31 Today I had this idea that the person feeling homeless was Eddie who felt love to a girl where his love was not returned in the end and he has to cope with it. Chasing away butterfly thoughts and somehow begin his life again. Though, the song is a good abstraction for any kind of situation leaving the subject feeling "homeless", including Eddie's childhood trouble.
@bluboy31 Today I had this idea that the person feeling homeless was Eddie who felt love to a girl where his love was not returned in the end and he has to cope with it. Chasing away butterfly thoughts and somehow begin his life again. Though, the song is a good abstraction for any kind of situation leaving the subject feeling "homeless", including Eddie's childhood trouble.
@bluboy31 I think the "homeless man" interpretation holds more merit. In the middle of the song, very hushed, he says:<br /> "Hey man, you got a dollar?"<br /> "Come on man just come spare change I know you got-"<br /> "Well, God bless you man, God bless you"<br /> Which are all common things for a stereotypical homeless man to say
This song is definetly about the homeless, because now I'm trying to remember a quote from a long ago early 90s pj show it's eddie introducing evenflow..."Hey how's everyone doing tonight? Crowd Cheers Hey so how man of you all came out to the show tonight in limo's huh? Parts of crowd cheer Yeaaaa isn't in great riding around in a limo, not a care in the world...Well you know what? Next time your out cruising in your limo I want you to look out that window at the homeless person laying there stiff freezing to death, and I dare you, I fucking dare you to take a sip of that free in-car alcohol...this one is called evenflow!" HAHAHAH eddie you are amazing, standing up for what's right even if it means makign you fans take a look at themselves in the mirror...true genius, pj rocks and always will be the best band ever, PJ4LIFE
@Stevvveo He was being a bit hypocritical during that speech, don't you think? How do you think Vedder and his band arrived at that concert venue that night? They didn't walk, and they didn't drive themselves, and they weren't packed into a VW Beetle like a clown car. I'm willing to be they arrived in Limos. Or if they didn't that night, they have since.
"Even Flow" is about stream of consciousness and achieving a level of thought/thinking that's pure, Zen-like and almost completely from within--that is, free from the tyrannical influence of Western society's most common mind-control 'devices' (TV, politics, news media, advertising, i.e. any monolithic group mentality misguidedly accepted by individuals as infallible Truth) that most people in the 'civilized' world fall prey to every day thus never really realizing their full potential in life. People like the song's author meanwhile break free and write about it in songs like the one we're discussing.
Homelessness is only the backdrop. It's not the main message.
@smegmatic Many good interpretations here but I strongly relate to your version...
I interpret this song to be an exploration into self-sabotage. It seems to me that chasing away the figurative "butterflies" of thoughts is equivocal to blocking out the inspirations that elevate your thinking process. It is an indistinct trait that many have, but I myself am guilty of.
Instead of catching those butterflies, I often chase away moments of inspiration in the assumption that better "days" (thoughts) are ahead. Unless you occupy the upper crust of society then you have to deal with low expectation and drab settings that are apart of every day life.
Resting on the "bed of concrete" is resting on your laurels in that you want to sleep away any creative influences whilst resting on the uncomfortable pillow of self-sabotage. If self-belief isn't instilled into you from a young age, then you may divert the "Even Flow" of thoughts that enter you head.
Of course, I may be biased due to the intimiate interpretation I have with the song, but that is my 3 cents.
@OzymandiasVeidt1 feel the same way
@OzymandiasVeidt1 I agree the same. At the first time listening I felt that, and googled it to confirm. But still no official explanation. It really seems an self-sabotage narrative.
This song is about being homeless
It cant just be about being homeless 2 me, its also about trying 2 find a way to stay sane sinc ehe knows eventually governmet pulls you like a teasing butterfly but flies away when you really need it. Hes pushing thoughts of the shamefull halls(white house) of it coming 2 a strong head & making harmony(even flow). He knows the paper that reads of such silly things doesn't mean anything 2 him since its just man made(government) caused things more often than not. People angry over things that regulations that cause distress & pointless taxing that stops flow of sweet thoughts & actions. Everything must be checked 1st b4 its sent out like a wandering butterfly. Butterflies never seem 2 b going anywhere like government & our wasted taxes.
or maybe its all about donuts
are you cerial.
It goes hand and hand with the homeless idead but I think it may be about a heroin junkie. Even Flow means the heroin flowing into his veins and "butterflies" are what happens when he gets high.
that's my take on it as well.. people try to complicate things too much... butterflies are a rare and transcendent beauty in a disgusting and vile world that knows no compassion.. clearly the homeless person in this song can never seem to grasp that higher level of beauty or transcendence, so they float away like a butterfly as well.
@King of Some Island i guess very few people do this, but a song is about what the maker wrote it to be and then it is about what it means to you. couldn't it be possible that there is messages in songs coming to all people who hear them from all kind of sources sources with a mind or without.When I go to read the lyrics I get a better understanding of what it means to me
@King of Some Island I agree with @doug101402 in that each will interpret in their own way (depending on their life experiences and circumstances). I guess the thing is that if an artists wants a song to get across a particular / defined message than the lyrics need to be clear to that point. This song seems to leave some ambiguity and interpretation up to the listener.
I have to give a presentation on this song as it relates to social stratification in my sociology class tomorrow and as a result have put quite a deal of thought into the meaning of this song..
The lyrics of this song simply describe the plight of one homeless man and the struggles of his situation. (Freezin', rests his head on a pillow made of concrete..", "Kneelin', lookin through the paper though he doesn't know how to read..", etc...)
However, I feel the greatest aspect of this song, although not as obvious, lies within the title and the political criticism it provokes. At the time Ed wrote the lyrics for 'Even Flow', George Bush (the elder and equally imcompetent president) was in office. To resolve the economic situation at the time he supported a 'trickle down' solution in which the rich are given tax breaks and financial benefits hoping to stimulate growth through new investments and such. Anyway Bush eloquently described this technique as providing an "even flow" of money through the classes (unsucessful, mind you). Ed sarcastically entitles this lyrical criticsm of the government and its policies "Even flow" (brilliant! by the way...)
Hopefully you will all find that this is the most concrete interpretation of this great song. I'm sure most of you have the album cover to "Ten". If you look inside the lyrics to "Even Flow" are written around a dollar bill and the title is followed by the words "Not Even" which again displays Ed's opinion of the situation..
PEARL JAM FOREVER..
you nailed it bang on.. I still cannot help but think of the junky mainline interpretation when it comes to the title evenflow.. especially in relation to how its tied to the butterfly metaphor.. makes one think of the butterfly effect after electroshock therapy.. either way drugs are used to control the populace and its all about the mooolahhh and shekel control by the overlord taskmasters...<br />
@SecretSkwirl07. I think your interpretation is the most accurate. Homelessness, social stratification, trickle down economics to create an " even flow ", even the lyrics written around a dollar bill. Spot on. Eddie'd be proud. <br /> I hope you got an "A" on that presentation!!