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.
Here in my place and time
And here in my own skin I can finally begin
Let the century pass me by, standing under the night sky
Tomorrow means nothing
I was only a child then
Feeling barely alive when
I heard a song from a speaker of a passing car
Praying to a dying star, the memories fading
I can almost remember singing( La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
(La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
We watched the end of the century
Compressed on a tiny screen
A dead star collapsing and we could see
Something was ending
Are you through pretending?
We saw the signs in the suburbs
You could have never predicted that it could see through you
Kasparov, Deep Blue, 1996
Your mind's playing tricks now
Show's over so take a bow
And leave it in the shadows (La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
(Oh, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
Hey
Put the cellphone down for a while
In the night there is something wild
Can you hear it breathing?
And hey
Put the laptop down for a while
In the night there is something wild
I feel it, it's leaving me
(La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
(La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
(La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
(La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
And here in my own skin I can finally begin
Let the century pass me by, standing under the night sky
Tomorrow means nothing
I was only a child then
Feeling barely alive when
I heard a song from a speaker of a passing car
Praying to a dying star, the memories fading
I can almost remember singing( La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
(La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
We watched the end of the century
Compressed on a tiny screen
A dead star collapsing and we could see
Something was ending
Are you through pretending?
We saw the signs in the suburbs
You could have never predicted that it could see through you
Kasparov, Deep Blue, 1996
Your mind's playing tricks now
Show's over so take a bow
And leave it in the shadows (La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
(Oh, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
Hey
Put the cellphone down for a while
In the night there is something wild
Can you hear it breathing?
And hey
Put the laptop down for a while
In the night there is something wild
I feel it, it's leaving me
(La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
(La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
(La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
(La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)
Lyrics submitted by jazzmaster5120, edited by wfish
Deep Blue Lyrics as written by Win Butler William Butler
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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At the risk of sounding nitpicky, Kasparov actually won the match against Deep Blue in 1996 -- I believe the final score was 4-2 in Kasparov's favor; an upgraded Deep Blue won the rematch in 1997. However, the computer did beat Kasparov in the first round of the '96 match, and the fact that it beat a grandmaster at all may be enough for Arcade Fire's point.
I think the song is about how much the world has changed in just two decades, and how by accepting all the little changes we do, brought on by technology and social institutions, we're accepting a new way of life and that we can never go back. Arcade Fire lyrics often favor the natural over artificial ("I pray that I won't live to see the death of everything that's wild"), and portray characters trying to escape, but finding this impossible.
At the risk of enabling nitpicking, I actually came to this site because I thought the lyrics I found somewhere else were wrong. Since the first time I heard this song I heard "Kasparov beat Blue in 1996". Being an old fart, I remember the event. The song seemed especially poignant to me because that was that last time the human won, marking the end of an age. Nothing will ever be the same after Blue started winning.
I don't think you're being nitpicky - in fact I think you've struck upon the genius of this song. Kasparov defeated Deep Blue in 1996 (3.5 - 2.5). Deep Blue won the rematch a year later. What Win Butler, et al, are lamenting is not the moment when the human lost. They are lamenting the moment when loss became inevitable. Not the defeat, but the promise of defeat. Brilliant.