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.
Children watch their mothers die
Raping a city in the name of freedom
Children growing, their hate inside
A world they lost in the name of reason
I never came back from that trench
I can't be alone, I won't be alone
A schizophrenic cycle of paranoia
Trauma of war! Trauma of war!
I saw the worst in the human nature
My hands are stained with blood of death
Attack all ghosts, I'm like a soldier
Wasted minds that are all alike
I never came back from that trench
I can't be alone, I won't be alone
A schizophrenic cycle of paranoia
Trauma of war! Trauma of War!
Freedom comes with a hail of bullets
My sun is getting dark
My urge to kill awakes
My world is no more
My urge to kill awakes
Children watch their mothers die
Raping a city in the name of freedom
Children growing, their hate inside
A world they lost in the name of reason
I never came back from that trench
I can't be alone, I won't be alone
A schizophrenic cycle of paranoia
A schizophrenic cycle of paranoia
Raping a city in the name of freedom
Children growing, their hate inside
A world they lost in the name of reason
I never came back from that trench
I can't be alone, I won't be alone
A schizophrenic cycle of paranoia
Trauma of war! Trauma of war!
I saw the worst in the human nature
My hands are stained with blood of death
Attack all ghosts, I'm like a soldier
Wasted minds that are all alike
I never came back from that trench
I can't be alone, I won't be alone
A schizophrenic cycle of paranoia
Trauma of war! Trauma of War!
Freedom comes with a hail of bullets
My sun is getting dark
My urge to kill awakes
My world is no more
My urge to kill awakes
Children watch their mothers die
Raping a city in the name of freedom
Children growing, their hate inside
A world they lost in the name of reason
I never came back from that trench
I can't be alone, I won't be alone
A schizophrenic cycle of paranoia
A schizophrenic cycle of paranoia
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Gadjits, The
He reuses the verse melody from the previous album's "Dirty Little Religion", the topics of the verses are all over the place, and he packs too many words into one line (goes to show...) and too few in another (it's pretty hard to find), and rhymes "Henley Regatta" with "Persona non grata", but gets away with it all as only he could.
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Thursday
In regards to the meaning of this song:
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.
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Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Holiday
Bee Gees
Bee Gees
@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Get the feeling the song is about a child growing up in a war torn country that is caught in the cycle of war. That is, they'll grow up to be a soldier too.
Whether it is taken from the perspective of a Muslim child growing up in the Middle East, and that the "trauma of war" is what will drive them to become a terrorist (or the like) ... or perhaps it is just in general looking at the hostility of the world today and violence begets violence.