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.
they're marching up & down
the streets of every town
their boots clamp on the ground
& it's a terrifying sound
cause soon these soldiers will break down our doors
it's the orders handed down
& when they find us hidden here
they'll beat us to the ground
they'll hand the shovels in the woods
for us to dig our graves
...& you say "Jesus Saves"
they'll put us on the trains
they'll pull tight to the reins
they'll strip us in our pain
they'll bash us in our brains
& some may find a way
to survive through the cold
they'll seperate the families
& execute the old
the res of us will starve & die
the sickness comes in waves
...& they say "Jesus Saves"
the bodies burn each day
but we're freezing anyway
and there's nothing left to say
in this good ol' U.S.A.
the day our armies marched on us
we swore they'd gone insane
the president ordered his soldiers
to clean up the fruited plains
& from sea to shining sea
in the land of feudal slaves
...the papers read "Jesus Saves"
& when they sort the populace
our dignity turned to shame
protection is the omnibus
the families are the same
the soldiers drown in alcohol
but no one misbehaves
...they think that "Jesus Saves"
and it could happen here
in a nation full of fear
the prefabricated tears
are cried out through the years
and what's the cost of our discontent
we're dissidents that scream dissent
will we let the pigs break down our doors
or fight 'em back, against the anti-poor
these darkened days will corner us all
& stuck behind the penitentiary walls
we'll have to choose our death or fight
we'll have to stand up for human right
stand up, for human rights
stand up, it's death or fight
living the lies & the laws of the land
locked down in a police state
while all of the pigs with the power and money
get fatter from our fate
look at the world 30 years ago
& the future's plain to see
they smother us all in so many lies
through the media / t.v.
stand up, for human rights
stand up, it is death or fight
the streets of every town
their boots clamp on the ground
& it's a terrifying sound
cause soon these soldiers will break down our doors
it's the orders handed down
& when they find us hidden here
they'll beat us to the ground
they'll hand the shovels in the woods
for us to dig our graves
...& you say "Jesus Saves"
they'll put us on the trains
they'll pull tight to the reins
they'll strip us in our pain
they'll bash us in our brains
& some may find a way
to survive through the cold
they'll seperate the families
& execute the old
the res of us will starve & die
the sickness comes in waves
...& they say "Jesus Saves"
the bodies burn each day
but we're freezing anyway
and there's nothing left to say
in this good ol' U.S.A.
the day our armies marched on us
we swore they'd gone insane
the president ordered his soldiers
to clean up the fruited plains
& from sea to shining sea
in the land of feudal slaves
...the papers read "Jesus Saves"
& when they sort the populace
our dignity turned to shame
protection is the omnibus
the families are the same
the soldiers drown in alcohol
but no one misbehaves
...they think that "Jesus Saves"
and it could happen here
in a nation full of fear
the prefabricated tears
are cried out through the years
and what's the cost of our discontent
we're dissidents that scream dissent
will we let the pigs break down our doors
or fight 'em back, against the anti-poor
these darkened days will corner us all
& stuck behind the penitentiary walls
we'll have to choose our death or fight
we'll have to stand up for human right
stand up, for human rights
stand up, it's death or fight
living the lies & the laws of the land
locked down in a police state
while all of the pigs with the power and money
get fatter from our fate
look at the world 30 years ago
& the future's plain to see
they smother us all in so many lies
through the media / t.v.
stand up, for human rights
stand up, it is death or fight
Lyrics submitted by lzacrack666
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