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The magpie comes a-calling
drops a marble from the sky
tin roof sounds alarming
wake up child
let this be a warning says the magpie to the morning
don't let this fading summer pass you by
don't let this fading summer pass you by
Black hands held so high
the vulture wheels and dives
something on the thermals yanked his chain
he smelled your boring apex
rotting on the train tracks
he laughed under his breath because you thought you could outrun sorrow
take your own advice
cause thunder and lightning gets you rain
run an airtight mission, a Cousteau expedition
find a diamond at the bottom of the drain
a diamond at the bottom of the drain
here I go
mockingbirds sing in the middle of the night
all his songs are stolen so he hides
stolen from the mouth of the whiporwill, screaming car alarms
he sings 'em for you special
he knows you're afraid of the dark
come on sorrow, take your own advice
hide under the bed, turn out the light
the stars this night in the sky are ringing out
you can almost hear them saying
close your eyes now kid
close your eyes now kid
morning's teeth are lit
they are waiting
they are waiting
drops a marble from the sky
tin roof sounds alarming
wake up child
let this be a warning says the magpie to the morning
don't let this fading summer pass you by
don't let this fading summer pass you by
Black hands held so high
the vulture wheels and dives
something on the thermals yanked his chain
he smelled your boring apex
rotting on the train tracks
he laughed under his breath because you thought you could outrun sorrow
take your own advice
cause thunder and lightning gets you rain
run an airtight mission, a Cousteau expedition
find a diamond at the bottom of the drain
a diamond at the bottom of the drain
here I go
mockingbirds sing in the middle of the night
all his songs are stolen so he hides
stolen from the mouth of the whiporwill, screaming car alarms
he sings 'em for you special
he knows you're afraid of the dark
come on sorrow, take your own advice
hide under the bed, turn out the light
the stars this night in the sky are ringing out
you can almost hear them saying
close your eyes now kid
close your eyes now kid
morning's teeth are lit
they are waiting
they are waiting
Lyrics submitted by crowdedsky
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The death of something is alluded to throughout with the birds mentioned: magpies and vultures notoriously eat roadkill/carrion, whip-poor-wills, by popular legend, sing when a soul leaves someone's body, etc. "An airtight mission / A Cousteau exhibition to find a diamond at the bottom of the drain" seems to suggest the kind of constant & prolonged mental gymnastics that people often engage in following the end of a marriage/partnership, if one assumes that the "diamond" is meant to suggest A) the symbol of romantic commitment, and B) that it's "down the drain," literally.
The magpie's admonition to wake up to the beauty of the present indicates that the person being addressed is absorbed in the past. The thieving mockingbird sings a death song and the cacophony of car alarms "for [the depressed individual] special" as signifiers of chaos and loss.
But it's the end of the song that I find most interesting - the idea that "morning's teeth are lit," and that they "are waiting," that is. The idea of the coming day having teeth is not exactly reassuring, after all, yet the thrust of the song seems to be a kind of carpe diem call to release one's self from navel-gazing.
So, overall what I'm getting out of "MttM" is more of the terrible beauty of nature that Neko seems to focus on so often, and in this case, it serves as a reminder that actual death is coming, so stop wasting days wishing to revive a romance that is gone.
I live in New York City, and get up early enough to watch the sunrise. Sometimes it makes the silhouette of the buildings look a little like teeth. It reminds me of a Death Cab for Cutie song called Crooked Teeth: "'Cause at night, the sun in retreat made the skyline look like crooked teeth, in the mouth of a man who was devouring us both." (Here, he is talking about the sunset, but it's the same idea.)
I like the idea that it could be literal and metaphorical, but after all, we don't get a lot of magpies here in New York. All these references to birds sort of make me think of a more rural setting. Any opinions?
I too love the Mockingbird reference, as well as the Cousteau expedition.
Think it could be based on that lullaby "Mockingbird" as in "Daddy's gonna buy you a Mockingbird"?
and
he sings I'm four years special = He sings 'em for you special?
The fading summer line seems most significant to me as well. Spring and Summer are my favorite times of the year, so that line probably just reminds me of the happiness and carefree feelings associated with those seasons. Could morning's teeth have something to do with the sun? The sky is what gets lit up in the morning (obviously), by the sun of course, so it makes sense to me.
I don't know. This song is really intense for me to listen to...brings out a lot of emotions.
"come on sorrow, take your own advice
hide under the bed, turn out the light."
it seems as though she's realized the magpie's warning about not letting the summer (or her life) pass her by and she's throwing Sorrow's advice back in its face. sorrow made her feel like hiding under the bed, but she is ready to move on and instead wishes the sorrow would "hide under the bed" or go away.
Black hands held so high
the vulture wheels and dives
something on the thermals yanked his chain
he smelled your boring apex
Faded summer is the portion of your life where it is all in front of you, fall is the impending darkness. The diamond in the drain is about last ditch hope ( as you are circling the drain) Neko Case is middled aged.