Before electric light,
You paddled through the soup of darkness as a crocodile,
Cherry picking in the river,
I would leave crisp note footprints at the bankside

Watch it closely you will see it begin to move
Watch it closely you see it begin to flicker

While we're here, let's see what happens
What we got, got, got to loose (what we got to loose)
While we're tidal and flexed on a full moon
It'd be a sure, sure shame to not to

In every wonder what you are
I've blurted everything I know just for a piece of it
Flash frozen, patch worked and fallow
I sprung up in hearts and arrow superhighways

Watch it closely you will see it begin to move
Watch it closely you see it begin to flicker

While we're here, let's see what happens
What we got, got, got to loose (what we got to loose)
While we're tidal and flexed on a full moon
It'd be a sure, sure shame to not to

Do what you feel just how you like
Nobody has to know
Nobody has to know

Do what you feel just how you like
Nobody has to know

Watch, watch, watch, watch, watch,
What we got to loose

While we're here, let's see what happens
What we got, got, got to loose (what we got to loose)
While we're tidal and flexed on a full moon
It'd be a sure, sure shame to not to

Do it for England
Do it for love
Do it for us
Do it for goodness sake
Do it for all the times
We wished we had

Do what you want, just how you like
Nobody has to know
do what you want, just how you like
Nobody has to know.


Lyrics submitted by bekkiboo46

Tidal Lyrics as written by Imogen Jennifer Jane Heap

Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

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Tidal (Ellipse) song meanings
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    General Comment

    For years I was confused about the lyrics just from listening to them, but once you actually read them, they make sense. Forbidden love pretty much sums this one up.

    However, I have a crazy theory about this song which is probably dead wrong, but interesting. I often associate Imogen Heap's music with the movie Atlantis: the Lost Empire and I like to write Atlantis fan fiction while listening to these albums. Today I was researching Washington, DC, the city in which some of the movie is set, and I couldn't help noticing a little possible symbolism in this song.

    1. "Before Electric Light" The movie is set in 1914, so, yes, there was electric light, but it was still fairly new then.

    2. The title "Tidal" made me think of the Tidal Basin, a famous man-made lake in Washington, DC.

    3. "You paddled through the soup of darkness as a crocodile" can also refer to the Tidal Basin, since it's a lake. The "river" and "Bankside" lyrics add to this, since the Tidal Basin is technically part of the Potomac River.

    4. "Cherry picking in the river": Washington, DC is famous for its cherry blossom trees, especially near the Tidal Basin.

    5. "Do it for England" doesn't really make sense, since Washington, DC is basically the centre of the USA...

    Okay, I'll shut up now.

    HedonisticHermiton January 02, 2014   Link

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