Sample lyrics: “Girlfriend, oh your girlfriend is drifting away / past and present, 1855-1901 / watch them build up a meteor tower / think it's not gonna stay anyway / think it's overrated.”

A reference to: A time period in French history that included the famous Exposition Universelle of 1900 and the Art Nouveau movement. The “tower” most likely refers to the Eiffel Tower, completed as an entrance to 1889's Exposition Universelle and loathed at the time by many Parisians.
Historical lesson: Memorable World's Fairs demand timeless symbols. The Eiffel Tower was one of many iconic structures built for a World's Fair, like the Crystal Palace in London, the Unisphere in New York, and the Space Needle in Seattle. This means we can expect Knoxville’s Sunsphere from the 1982 World’s Fair to become a global monument and the undisputed symbol of America any year now, right?
Song’s actually about: A nostalgic look at Paris at the turn of the 20th century, when Jules Verne’s sci-fi tales were regarded as the approaching future. Lead singer Thomas Mars calls the Exposition Universelle of 1900 the "most futuristic moment" for Paris, so when the fair is over, all of Paris is stuck “counting all different ideas drifting away.” In the spirit of Verne, somebody should’ve built an idea-catching machine.
I found a website that explains a lot of the historical references in Phoenix songs. I took the part about 1901 and pasted it here, I found it very interesting. Here is a link to the website though: chicago.decider.com/articles/pencils-down-deciphering-phoenixs-historical-rock,29021/
Song: “1901”

Sample lyrics: “Girlfriend, oh your girlfriend is drifting away / past and present, 1855-1901 / watch them build up a meteor tower / think it's not gonna stay anyway / think it's overrated.”

A reference to: A time period in French history that included the famous Exposition Universelle of 1900 and the Art Nouveau movement. The “tower” most likely refers to the Eiffel Tower, completed as an entrance to 1889's Exposition Universelle and loathed at the time by many Parisians.
Historical lesson: Memorable World's Fairs demand timeless symbols. The Eiffel Tower was one of many iconic structures built for a World's Fair, like the Crystal Palace in London, the Unisphere in New York, and the Space Needle in Seattle. This means we can expect Knoxville’s Sunsphere from the 1982 World’s Fair to become a global monument and the undisputed symbol of America any year now, right?
Song’s actually about: A nostalgic look at Paris at the turn of the 20th century, when Jules Verne’s sci-fi tales were regarded as the approaching future. Lead singer Thomas Mars calls the Exposition Universelle of 1900 the "most futuristic moment" for Paris, so when the fair is over, all of Paris is stuck “counting all different ideas drifting away.” In the spirit of Verne, somebody should’ve built an idea-catching machine.