The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
My building's full of little holes with heads in
Staring at the street
They sometimes topple forwards
Then stick at one another
Passing freaks
They rarely speak and though I don't feed them
Still they keep their double (their quadruple) chins
Their garbage bins are emptied each day
By night waiting with lights off, their cats out
Their wives in
They're peeping!
They're peeping at the methylated man who spits in a can
Spreads his hands for silver
Pans for gutter gold
He mutters old forgotten songs his father taught him
Rolls on the floor
He rolls in alcoves
Gets caught in waterfalls down rotting walls
(He's bored)
My friends applaud, throw pennies and wait
Peeping from the gallery
Staring at the street
They sometimes topple forwards
Then stick at one another
Passing freaks
They rarely speak and though I don't feed them
Still they keep their double (their quadruple) chins
Their garbage bins are emptied each day
By night waiting with lights off, their cats out
Their wives in
They're peeping!
They're peeping at the methylated man who spits in a can
Spreads his hands for silver
Pans for gutter gold
He mutters old forgotten songs his father taught him
Rolls on the floor
He rolls in alcoves
Gets caught in waterfalls down rotting walls
(He's bored)
My friends applaud, throw pennies and wait
Peeping from the gallery
Lyrics submitted by Mellow_Harsher
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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.
Mountain Song
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Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
No Surprises
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Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Just A Little Lovin'
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I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
Beautifully written story of the strange people living in the same house/block of flats. The LPD’s have a lyrically similar song called “Wildlife Estate” on Malachai. Both are great.
My building's full of little holes with heads in (1) Staring at the street They sometimes topple forwards Then stick at one another Passing freaks They rarely speak and though I don't feed them Still they keep their double (their quadruple) chins (2) Their garbage bins are emptied each day By night waiting with lights off, their cats out Their wives in They're peeping!(3) They're peeping at the methylated man who spits in a can Spreads his hands for silver Pans for gutter gold He mutters old forgotten songs his father taught him Rolls on the floor He rolls in alcoves Gets caught in waterfalls down rotting walls (He's bored) (4) My friends applaud, throw pennies and wait (5) Peeping from the gallery. (6)
(1) little holes appear to be windows - the heads are the people living in the flats behind the windows. These people are all staring out of their windows and observing the life in their neigborhood along with the narrator of this song.
(2) These neighbors seem to be well fed, though the narrator says he doesn't feed them. The have garbage service too...
(3) T'would be an eerie scene, no? All the lights in the windows go out and multiple eyes, perhaps with binoculars, are being simultameous voyeurs...
(4) The object of their peeping seems at first to be a homeless drunkard. Methylated is the past tense of Methylate, which means to mix with methyl alcohol. Methyl alcohol, in return, is a colorless, toxic, flammable liquid, CH3OH, used as an antifreeze, a general solvent, a fuel, and a denaturant for ethyl alcohol. Also called carbinol, methyl alcohol, wood alcohol, wood spirits. Doesn't seem very healthy... Amongst this fellow's actions are "muttering old forgotten songs his father taught him", which is turned into "we're singing all the songs our father taught us" from "The Ocean Cried 'Blue Murder'" on 1991's Maria Dimension. It would seem that this fellow goes hungry and lives a life of boredom while the peepers watch as if it is a gallery of art, sitting fat in their flats and not doing a thing about it.
(5) Friends of the narrator throw pennies and applaud, trying at least to do that.
(6) This could indeed be linked well with "Wildlife Estate", which in turn has definite connections to "A Problem with the Natives" from Chemical Playschool 11. Also, "Window on the World" from "Malachi" seems to have similar overtones, this time using a television screen instead of a literal window.
Edward states this is about a scene out of his (bedroom?) window in "dear old Amsterdam" in a live intro.