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.
Its probably now that I need you the most
When I’m one half child and the other a ghost
And one of them wants to pull you close
And the other to let you go
But time is criminal, Love hard-won
And Love defies everyone
Inside my skin a skeleton
Is warming up his act
Well my body’s a dog and my friend doesn’t bite
Though he looks severe and erudite
At 100 degrees Fahrenheit
He’s as cool as an eremite
If one of these is the poison cup
Then my acceptance seems abrupt
But if you’re gonna line them up,
I have to knock ‘em down
There’s nothing so wrong that what’s right can’t fix
Despite how blood and water mix
When a pony runs out of tricks then
His work has just begun
No law or duty made me fight
Just a lonely impulse of delight
And balancing it brought to mind
All the years to come, the years behind
Will I grow weary of the sun
Remembering what I have done
With Old Mythologies
You gotta choose
You wanted the song to rescue us
Aimee, what did you leave for us
So we could get home
Solomon sang to Sheba’s grace
And he kissed her soft and sulken face
If one of has to leave this place
Would the other come along
We’ve been on the round and round
Shared our kissed by the pound
And chased our shadows on the ground
Spilled our cups in Chinatown
Put up the moon, took down the sun
Played our songs for everyone
Remembering what we have done
With Old Mythologies
You gotta choose
You wanted the song to rescue us
Aimee, what did you leave for us
So we could get home
When I’m one half child and the other a ghost
And one of them wants to pull you close
And the other to let you go
But time is criminal, Love hard-won
And Love defies everyone
Inside my skin a skeleton
Is warming up his act
Well my body’s a dog and my friend doesn’t bite
Though he looks severe and erudite
At 100 degrees Fahrenheit
He’s as cool as an eremite
If one of these is the poison cup
Then my acceptance seems abrupt
But if you’re gonna line them up,
I have to knock ‘em down
There’s nothing so wrong that what’s right can’t fix
Despite how blood and water mix
When a pony runs out of tricks then
His work has just begun
No law or duty made me fight
Just a lonely impulse of delight
And balancing it brought to mind
All the years to come, the years behind
Will I grow weary of the sun
Remembering what I have done
With Old Mythologies
You gotta choose
You wanted the song to rescue us
Aimee, what did you leave for us
So we could get home
Solomon sang to Sheba’s grace
And he kissed her soft and sulken face
If one of has to leave this place
Would the other come along
We’ve been on the round and round
Shared our kissed by the pound
And chased our shadows on the ground
Spilled our cups in Chinatown
Put up the moon, took down the sun
Played our songs for everyone
Remembering what we have done
With Old Mythologies
You gotta choose
You wanted the song to rescue us
Aimee, what did you leave for us
So we could get home
Lyrics submitted by Cyberghost
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Great lyrics, they read like poetry. Some thoughts:
The title, "Old Mythologies", comes from the W.B. Yeats poem "A Coat" (see below) about how a man can only control his own, and shouldn't worry about pleasing others.
"Just a lonely impulse of delight" comes from the Yeats poem “An Irish Airman foresees his Death”, in which a WWI fighter pilot, who only signed up for the service out of boredom, predicts his own death at the hands of the enemy.
Great song, love the vocabulary and poeticism of the lyrics. How often do you hear the word "erudite" in a song? I can't tell you what the song means, but at least I can place some of the references.
W.B. Yeats' "A Coat": I made my song a coat covered in embroideries out of old mythologies from heel to throat; but the fools caught it, wore it in the world’s eyes as though they’d wrought it. Song, let them take it, for there’s more enterprise in walking naked.