This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
You remind me of you
The way you shot right through and how
You broke my window glass, fast
It happened so fast
I have to confess that I
That I was impressed that I
Despite all the mess and the broken glass
I was impressed
Here's where I disappeared
Where I fell off the pier
And to be rescued I did wait
I watched waterbugs skate
As they draw figure eights as they draw
From the bottom of the lake as they draw
I watched waterbugs skate as they draw
Bottom of the lake I watched the waterbugs skate
Memories like mohair sweaters
Stretched and piled faux distressed letters
Moose's horns and figure eights
White plastic bags in search of mates
What suffocates the land
In the memory of garbage can
Memory of garbage can
You can't be found when the bell rings
You weren't there that day for the naming of things
The naming of things
Where the homeroom bell rings
The homeroom bell rings
Hey, just look at the mess you made today
Didn't really think it would get this bad
Hey, feel like you're living in a Russian play
Where it seems like you made everybody mad
You remind me of you
When you shot through
And broke my window glass
It happened so fast
I have to confess
I was impressed, I was impressed
Despite all the mess and the broken glass
I was impressed
The way you shot right through and how
You broke my window glass, fast
It happened so fast
I have to confess that I
That I was impressed that I
Despite all the mess and the broken glass
I was impressed
Here's where I disappeared
Where I fell off the pier
And to be rescued I did wait
I watched waterbugs skate
As they draw figure eights as they draw
From the bottom of the lake as they draw
I watched waterbugs skate as they draw
Bottom of the lake I watched the waterbugs skate
Memories like mohair sweaters
Stretched and piled faux distressed letters
Moose's horns and figure eights
White plastic bags in search of mates
What suffocates the land
In the memory of garbage can
Memory of garbage can
You can't be found when the bell rings
You weren't there that day for the naming of things
The naming of things
Where the homeroom bell rings
The homeroom bell rings
Hey, just look at the mess you made today
Didn't really think it would get this bad
Hey, feel like you're living in a Russian play
Where it seems like you made everybody mad
You remind me of you
When you shot through
And broke my window glass
It happened so fast
I have to confess
I was impressed, I was impressed
Despite all the mess and the broken glass
I was impressed
Lyrics submitted by mazetti, edited by technicolorama
The Naming of Things Lyrics as written by Andrew Bird
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I always felt it was more of a song about falling in love. "You remind me of you" for one thing, and the idea that his audience "broke his window" but "despite all the mess and the broken glass," he was impressed seems to suggest that his opinions of the girl are pretty much set in stone. He fell off the pier--fell in love--and waited so long he had to look elsewhere--to the waterbugs, skating in figure eights--to find beauty at the bottom of his lake. The memory part is a little weird, but I think it's sort of like he has told her how he feels and knows she doesn't feel the same, so he's reminiscing about the old days when they joked around about plastic bags and moose's horns. But now she won't come back around to him--to her homeroom--even when the "bell rings." This makes him very sad, which makes her feel guilty, prompting the Russian play verse. But on top of it all, he still loves her--which reflects the title: He has named the emotion he feels for her, even if mentally she wasn't "there" for it.
The repetition is brilliant in this song- the second verse is sooo goood.
can it get any better than this?
I love the repetition in this song; it feels like it's being unfolded, like it's a very long silk belt folded upon itself many times and now someone's tugging on an end and the folds cause a sort of pattern as they come undone.
holy crap, the violin break in this song where it absolutely explodes?! holy crap. this song is so damn beautiful...
this song is absolutely wonderful. if i could make music, i would want it to sound like andrew bird.
I always thought this was a "you have a God complex" song. To me, it sounds like he's telling a person that while their persona and abilities are impressive, he/she is moving too quickly and has almost too much faith in his/her self. I thought the "naming of things" bit was a Biblical reference, but maybe I'm reading too much into it. ;)
you know, armchair apocrypha is really, really good, but mysterious production of eggs is magical. i am reminded of that when i listen to this song.
i agree fursoft. i love armchair aprocrypha, but you can't even hardly compete with mysterious production. one of my favorite cds ever made, ever.
couldn't agree more with the last two posts