Spent some time researching and came up with this analysis. I also changed the lyrics to what I think they should be.
Summary: The fall of America/Western Civilization is imminent, but this isn't the good thing that some would have you believe. The resulting power vacuum will plunge the world into chaos ("she breaks, she caves"), where traditional methods (religion, secular knowledge) will be useless. However, Conor has "made his peace" with this and is ready for whatever's next. See below for more details.
"Your class, your caste, your country, sect, your name or your tribe
There's people always dying trying to keep them alive
There's bodies decomposing in containers tonight
In an abandoned building where"
-The first two lines are pretty self-explanatory; everyone's always fighting each other. Not sure what the next two mean, though.
"A squatter's made a mural of a Mexican girl
With fifteen cans of spray paint in a chemical swirl
She's standing in the ashes at the end of the world
Four winds blowing through her hair"
-To me, this is where the meaning of the song really picks up. I believe that the Mexican girl represents our current civilization. Notice that the squatter used 15 cans of spray paint– 15 is the age of the "Quinceañera," a special celebration for Hispanic girls that marks their coming of age. Conor is saying that our civilization, as well, has reached maturity.
-Meanwhile, the "girl" is standing in the ashes at the end of the world. Our civilization is either dead or even already destroyed, waiting for something new to arise. The "Four Winds" are a reference to the Book of Ezekiel, Chapter 37, in which God breathes the four winds into dead bones, making them live again and symbolically restoring the broken nation of Israel. What will the four winds bring to the ashes of our world?
"But when great Satan's gone, the whore of Babylon
She just can't sustain the pressure where it's placed
She caves"
-Many people call for "death to America" or what have you, but what happens when this so-called "Great Satan" is gone? I imagine something like a giant hole being ripped in a vacuum, and all of a sudden air rushes out. Think also of a flood of water bursting a dam. When America is gone, "she" (the Mexican girl, aka civilization) can't take the huge power vacuum that is left.
-"Whore of Babylon" is another Biblical reference, one that refers to a great immoral nation which infects the rest of the world with its evil. Originally directed at Ancient Babylon, it has also been used to describe major civilizations such as the Roman Empire, British Empire, and more recently America.
"The Bible's blind, the Torah's deaf, the Qu'ran is mute
If you burn them all together you get close to the truth still
They are poring over Sanskrit on the Ivy League moons
While shadows lengthen in the sun"
-Traditional means of dealing with the upcoming death of civilization will be useless. Both religion (the Bible, etc.) and secular learning institutions ("Ivy League moons").
"Cast off the school and meditation built to soften the times
And hold us at the center while the spiral unwinds
It's knocking over fences, crossing property lines
Four winds, cry until it comes"
-Going along with the previous verse, there is no way to stop the upcoming unraveling of civilization. As others have mentioned, this song relates to Yeats' poem "The Second Coming" very well. Yeats was saying that the "gyre" which held together the universe was unwinding, and that a cataclysmic change was coming. See Wikipedia for more info, it's pretty interesting.
-"Crossing property lines" refers to national borders being meaningless when the world comes apart.
"And it's the psalm of man
Slouching towards Bethlehem
A heart just can't contain all of that empty space
It breaks, it breaks, it breaks"
-Another reference to "The Second Coming," specifically the last lines, where Yeats wonders: "And what rough beast, its hour come round at last, slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?"
-Bethlehem is the birthplace of Jesus. Yeats was convinced that a major event, on par with Jesus arriving on Earth, was imminent. "The Second Coming" basically describes the symptoms of this change and darkly wonders what it will be. Bright Eyes is embarking on a similar theme with this song.
-I think the lyric is "psalm of man," and here's why: when a devout Jew dies, psalms are constantly recited over his body until the body is buried. Due to the religious imagery in the song, I think this meaning is appropriate. The "psalm of man" (i.e. mankind's death lament) is "slouching towards Bethlehem" to usher in the new age, whatever it may be.
"Well, I went back, in a rented Cadillac, a company jet
Like a newly orphaned refugee, retracing my steps
All the way to Cassadega to commune with the dead
They said, "You'd better look alive"
-Conor is like a newly orphaned refugee because he realizes that nothing can stop the great changes that are happening? Not too sure about this part.
-He went to Cassadaga, Florida to talk with some psychics, who also feel the great changes coming. They tell him to "look alive," or in other words "be ready."
"And I was off to old Dakota where a genocide sleeps
In the Black Hills, the Badlands, the calloused east
I buried my ballast, I made my peace
With four winds, levelling the pines"
-Refers to the massacre of Lakota Indians the U.S. 7th Cavalry, which was ordered to take a group of Lakota to Omaha, Nebraska.
-Some Native Americans claim that the Black Hills are the "axis mundi," or spiritual center of the world, which would be where things start unravel first.
-Ballast was used by sailboat operators to weigh the ship down (to prevent capsizing) when there was no cargo. By burying his ballast, Conor is signifying that he is ready for something with real meaning (cargo) as opposed to the meaninglessness he feels now (ballast). He has made his peace with the upcoming cataclysm.
-The "four winds levelling the pines" means that already the changes are happening, and the four winds of change are destroying what was there before.
"But when great Satan's gone, the whore of Babylon
She just can't remain with all that outer space
She caves, she caves, she caves, she caves"
-Basically sums up the song. "She" (referring back to the Mexican girl, which represents civilization) "just can't remain" once Great Satan is gone. Conor repeats the message for effect: She will cave.
Read "The Second Coming" and Ezekiel Chapter 37 (both fairly short) and the meaning becomes somewhat clear, although the details leave plenty of room for more interpretation.
wow, i was going to log in to interpret this song, but you basically said exactly what i would have, minus the reference to the pheonix possible. The ashes that the mexican girl is standing in are a reference to the apocrapha(lost books of the bible) which includes a bird creature called the pheonix. At the time of its death, a great burst of air causes it to burst into flames and out of its own ashes, the bird is reborn. Possibility that this is a symbol for a new earth/ civilization? either way, your interpretation is beautifully done, MAJOR...
wow, i was going to log in to interpret this song, but you basically said exactly what i would have, minus the reference to the pheonix possible. The ashes that the mexican girl is standing in are a reference to the apocrapha(lost books of the bible) which includes a bird creature called the pheonix. At the time of its death, a great burst of air causes it to burst into flames and out of its own ashes, the bird is reborn. Possibility that this is a symbol for a new earth/ civilization? either way, your interpretation is beautifully done, MAJOR kudos
<3
Spent some time researching and came up with this analysis. I also changed the lyrics to what I think they should be.
Summary: The fall of America/Western Civilization is imminent, but this isn't the good thing that some would have you believe. The resulting power vacuum will plunge the world into chaos ("she breaks, she caves"), where traditional methods (religion, secular knowledge) will be useless. However, Conor has "made his peace" with this and is ready for whatever's next. See below for more details.
"Your class, your caste, your country, sect, your name or your tribe There's people always dying trying to keep them alive There's bodies decomposing in containers tonight In an abandoned building where" -The first two lines are pretty self-explanatory; everyone's always fighting each other. Not sure what the next two mean, though.
"A squatter's made a mural of a Mexican girl With fifteen cans of spray paint in a chemical swirl She's standing in the ashes at the end of the world Four winds blowing through her hair" -To me, this is where the meaning of the song really picks up. I believe that the Mexican girl represents our current civilization. Notice that the squatter used 15 cans of spray paint– 15 is the age of the "Quinceañera," a special celebration for Hispanic girls that marks their coming of age. Conor is saying that our civilization, as well, has reached maturity. -Meanwhile, the "girl" is standing in the ashes at the end of the world. Our civilization is either dead or even already destroyed, waiting for something new to arise. The "Four Winds" are a reference to the Book of Ezekiel, Chapter 37, in which God breathes the four winds into dead bones, making them live again and symbolically restoring the broken nation of Israel. What will the four winds bring to the ashes of our world?
"But when great Satan's gone, the whore of Babylon She just can't sustain the pressure where it's placed She caves" -Many people call for "death to America" or what have you, but what happens when this so-called "Great Satan" is gone? I imagine something like a giant hole being ripped in a vacuum, and all of a sudden air rushes out. Think also of a flood of water bursting a dam. When America is gone, "she" (the Mexican girl, aka civilization) can't take the huge power vacuum that is left. -"Whore of Babylon" is another Biblical reference, one that refers to a great immoral nation which infects the rest of the world with its evil. Originally directed at Ancient Babylon, it has also been used to describe major civilizations such as the Roman Empire, British Empire, and more recently America.
"The Bible's blind, the Torah's deaf, the Qu'ran is mute If you burn them all together you get close to the truth still They are poring over Sanskrit on the Ivy League moons While shadows lengthen in the sun" -Traditional means of dealing with the upcoming death of civilization will be useless. Both religion (the Bible, etc.) and secular learning institutions ("Ivy League moons").
"Cast off the school and meditation built to soften the times And hold us at the center while the spiral unwinds It's knocking over fences, crossing property lines Four winds, cry until it comes" -Going along with the previous verse, there is no way to stop the upcoming unraveling of civilization. As others have mentioned, this song relates to Yeats' poem "The Second Coming" very well. Yeats was saying that the "gyre" which held together the universe was unwinding, and that a cataclysmic change was coming. See Wikipedia for more info, it's pretty interesting. -"Crossing property lines" refers to national borders being meaningless when the world comes apart.
"And it's the psalm of man Slouching towards Bethlehem A heart just can't contain all of that empty space It breaks, it breaks, it breaks" -Another reference to "The Second Coming," specifically the last lines, where Yeats wonders: "And what rough beast, its hour come round at last, slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?" -Bethlehem is the birthplace of Jesus. Yeats was convinced that a major event, on par with Jesus arriving on Earth, was imminent. "The Second Coming" basically describes the symptoms of this change and darkly wonders what it will be. Bright Eyes is embarking on a similar theme with this song. -I think the lyric is "psalm of man," and here's why: when a devout Jew dies, psalms are constantly recited over his body until the body is buried. Due to the religious imagery in the song, I think this meaning is appropriate. The "psalm of man" (i.e. mankind's death lament) is "slouching towards Bethlehem" to usher in the new age, whatever it may be.
"Well, I went back, in a rented Cadillac, a company jet Like a newly orphaned refugee, retracing my steps All the way to Cassadega to commune with the dead They said, "You'd better look alive" -Conor is like a newly orphaned refugee because he realizes that nothing can stop the great changes that are happening? Not too sure about this part. -He went to Cassadaga, Florida to talk with some psychics, who also feel the great changes coming. They tell him to "look alive," or in other words "be ready."
"And I was off to old Dakota where a genocide sleeps In the Black Hills, the Badlands, the calloused east I buried my ballast, I made my peace With four winds, levelling the pines" -Refers to the massacre of Lakota Indians the U.S. 7th Cavalry, which was ordered to take a group of Lakota to Omaha, Nebraska. -Some Native Americans claim that the Black Hills are the "axis mundi," or spiritual center of the world, which would be where things start unravel first. -Ballast was used by sailboat operators to weigh the ship down (to prevent capsizing) when there was no cargo. By burying his ballast, Conor is signifying that he is ready for something with real meaning (cargo) as opposed to the meaninglessness he feels now (ballast). He has made his peace with the upcoming cataclysm. -The "four winds levelling the pines" means that already the changes are happening, and the four winds of change are destroying what was there before.
"But when great Satan's gone, the whore of Babylon She just can't remain with all that outer space She caves, she caves, she caves, she caves" -Basically sums up the song. "She" (referring back to the Mexican girl, which represents civilization) "just can't remain" once Great Satan is gone. Conor repeats the message for effect: She will cave.
Read "The Second Coming" and Ezekiel Chapter 37 (both fairly short) and the meaning becomes somewhat clear, although the details leave plenty of room for more interpretation.
wow, i was going to log in to interpret this song, but you basically said exactly what i would have, minus the reference to the pheonix possible. The ashes that the mexican girl is standing in are a reference to the apocrapha(lost books of the bible) which includes a bird creature called the pheonix. At the time of its death, a great burst of air causes it to burst into flames and out of its own ashes, the bird is reborn. Possibility that this is a symbol for a new earth/ civilization? either way, your interpretation is beautifully done, MAJOR...
wow, i was going to log in to interpret this song, but you basically said exactly what i would have, minus the reference to the pheonix possible. The ashes that the mexican girl is standing in are a reference to the apocrapha(lost books of the bible) which includes a bird creature called the pheonix. At the time of its death, a great burst of air causes it to burst into flames and out of its own ashes, the bird is reborn. Possibility that this is a symbol for a new earth/ civilization? either way, your interpretation is beautifully done, MAJOR kudos <3