So this has been.my favorite song of OTEP's since it came out in 2004, and I always thought it was a song about a child's narrative of suffering in an abusive Christian home. But now that I am revisiting the lyrics, I am seeing something totally new.
This song could be gospel of John but from the perspective of Jesus.
Jesus was NOT having a good time up to and during the crucifixion. Everyone in the known world at the time looked to him with fear, admiration or disgust and he was constantly being asked questions. He spoke in "verses, prophesies and curses". He had made an enemy of the state, and believed the world was increasingly wicked and fallen from grace, or that he was in the "mouth of madness".
The spine of atlas is the structure that allows the titan to hold the world up. Jesus challenged the state and in doing so became a celebrated resistance figure. It also made him public enemy #1.
All of this happened simply because he was doing his thing, not because of any agenda he had or strategy.
And then he gets scourged (storm of thorns)
There are some plot holes here but I think it's an interesting interpretation.
Routine was the theme
He'd wake up, wash and pour himself into uniform
Something he hadn't imagined being
As the merging traffic passed
He found himself staring down
At his own hands
Not remembering the change
Not recalling the plan
Was it?...
He was okay
But wondering
About wandering
Was it age?
By consequence?
Or was he moved sleight of hand?
Mondays were made to fall
Lost on a road he knew by heart
It was like a book he read in his sleep, endlessly
Sometimes he hid in his radio
Watching others pull into their homes
While he was drifting
On a line
Of his own
Off the line
Off the side
By the by
As dirt turned to sand
As if moved by sleight of hand
When he reached the shore of his clip-on world
He resurfaced to the norm
Organized his few things, his coat and keys
Any new realizations would have to wait
Till he had more time
More time
A time to dream
To himself
He waves goodbye
To himself
I'll see you on the other side
Another man moved by sleight of hand
He'd wake up, wash and pour himself into uniform
Something he hadn't imagined being
As the merging traffic passed
He found himself staring down
At his own hands
Not remembering the change
Not recalling the plan
Was it?...
He was okay
But wondering
About wandering
Was it age?
By consequence?
Or was he moved sleight of hand?
Mondays were made to fall
Lost on a road he knew by heart
It was like a book he read in his sleep, endlessly
Sometimes he hid in his radio
Watching others pull into their homes
While he was drifting
On a line
Of his own
Off the line
Off the side
By the by
As dirt turned to sand
As if moved by sleight of hand
When he reached the shore of his clip-on world
He resurfaced to the norm
Organized his few things, his coat and keys
Any new realizations would have to wait
Till he had more time
More time
A time to dream
To himself
He waves goodbye
To himself
I'll see you on the other side
Another man moved by sleight of hand
Lyrics submitted by Trent, edited by Mellow_Harsher
Sleight of Hand Lyrics as written by Jeff Ament Eddie Vedder
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
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As a lifelong Pearl Jam fan, I have been listening to this song for 10 years now since it was recorded. It now takes on more meaning than ever to me (corporate job etc., all the other cliches). I just want to point out that Eddie Vedder has referenced this theme in several other songs. But specifically, the song "I'm Open" has the lyric, "When he was six he believed that the moon overhead followed him, by nine he had deciphered the illusion, trading magic for fact, no trade-backs...so this is what it's like to be an adult." Also the song "Let Me Sleep" has the line, "Oh when I was a kid, oh how magic it seemed...oh please let me sleep, it's Christmas time." So back to this song, when I hear the line, "another man moved by sleight of hand," I think of how we grow up beleiving in magic, dreams, hopes and fantasies...only to realize eventually that these wishes of a fairy tale life usually go unfulfilled. All I can say is good luck to everyone who has posted here and to who is still searching for answers to life's riddles. But hear me out, if you listen to this song along with "Nothingman" too often, please hide your razor blades...
@Lummmber <br /> Lol. Those are two of my favorite PJ songs.<br /> <br /> I'm in my mid-30s now and Sleight of Hand resonates more now than ever. I even sit in the driveway listening to it instead of heading into the house. :)
@Lummmber <br /> Lol. Those are two of my favorite PJ songs.<br /> <br /> I'm in my mid-30s now and Sleight of Hand resonates more now than ever. I even sit in the driveway listening to it instead of heading into the house. :)