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"
Sacrifice for you is just flirtation
And friendship a cold convenience
I wonder sometimes what you're made of
Is it rayon or is it dust?
How you calibrate your intuition
Such that it just feeds the kill
And every single night I try to make you come alive
You shove it right back in my face
And you
You don't see me
Because you
You won't change
You
You don't see me
Because you
You won't change
With your big old Russian (rushin'?) brain
To keep you ahead of the stoplights
You to me is like carbon dioxide
You know I won't be your frozen rose
Why don't you just let me get up, yeah
Before you do the rowdy, rowdy, rowdy rough?
reach, reach
Cut it, cut it
Reach, bleach
Stud it, stud it
Sneech, reach
Nut it, nut it
Bleach, beach
Where will we fall
Where will we fall
Where will we fall
Before the darkness hits
Animal midnight
A shit for a brain
Crawl up a leech line
Shocking to me in the yellow and blue
Is it piss?
Is it sky?
Is it why we try?
You
You don't see me
Because you
You won't change
You
You don't see me
Because you
You won't change
And friendship a cold convenience
I wonder sometimes what you're made of
Is it rayon or is it dust?
How you calibrate your intuition
Such that it just feeds the kill
And every single night I try to make you come alive
You shove it right back in my face
And you
You don't see me
Because you
You won't change
You
You don't see me
Because you
You won't change
With your big old Russian (rushin'?) brain
To keep you ahead of the stoplights
You to me is like carbon dioxide
You know I won't be your frozen rose
Why don't you just let me get up, yeah
Before you do the rowdy, rowdy, rowdy rough?
reach, reach
Cut it, cut it
Reach, bleach
Stud it, stud it
Sneech, reach
Nut it, nut it
Bleach, beach
Where will we fall
Where will we fall
Where will we fall
Before the darkness hits
Animal midnight
A shit for a brain
Crawl up a leech line
Shocking to me in the yellow and blue
Is it piss?
Is it sky?
Is it why we try?
You
You don't see me
Because you
You won't change
You
You don't see me
Because you
You won't change
Lyrics submitted by foreverdoomed
Animal Midnight Lyrics as written by
Lyrics © Hipgnosis Songs Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I think this song is about dating/getting close to a sociopath.
"Sacrifice for you is just flirtation," risk-taking behaviors
"and friendship a cold convenience" sociopaths use people only to benefit themselves (including indirect ways)
"I wonder sometimes what you’re made of, is it rayon or is it dust?" he can sense something is off about her. Kind of iffy about the second line, perhaps he wonders if she's just been through a lot and it has given her an off-beat presence (dust), or if everything she does has an ulterior motive and is "artificial" (rayon)
"how you calibrate your intuition, such that it just beats the kill" she is highly calculating and able to get people (including him) to do what she wants
"You don't see me" no genuine connection or caring from her
"You won't change" sociopaths don't change
"that your big old Russian brain can keep you ahead of the stoplights" more risk-taking
"you to me is like carbon dioxide" charisma
"you know I won’t be your frozen rose" knows she is manipulative, refuses want to be cast under the spell and broken
I heard that this song was about the other guitarist in Pavement. To me it's just another song about people with behavioral problems. Little aminals, like I mean DSM behavioral probs. Not just stubborn or a pain in the ass but real crazy driven to lie, conive, cheat and fuck round and round out of sheer habit and compulsion.
Scott? Err.. Spiral Stairs? I hadn't heard that this song was about him (he's so vain). Interesting.
This song is the best Malkmus song ever! I love the weird bird noises in the background and the many changes in tempo and rhythm. It rocks! and the Guitar solo is awesome.