I actually read an interesting take on the album Hearts of Oak on Amazon.com, and that was that the entire album was a reaction to September 11th. With that in mind, I listened to the album, and that seemed to make some sense. This song fits in that as well. Its clearly about Boston, Cambridge specificially. I know that Ted lived in Cambridge for a while, and that's perhaps where he lived the day of the attacks. It seems like he is reflecting on the progress of humanity and how they bought such grand destruction in New York, but in the end, everything goes on. He goes on to stay "Its not the time to ossify, its not the end of wondering why, its not in your fath or your apostasy." These really seem like the words of a man reflecting on something huge. Ted is saying that the September 11th attacks may have appeared to be catestrophic beyond belief at the time, but this is not the end of the world. Life goes on. I don't know, the September 11th take on the whole album made sense to me. I mean, you've got "Building Skyscrapers in the Basement" which seems to be about a nervous father contemplating whether the world is safe for his daughter to grow up in, then you've got "I'm a Ghost," which seems to be about feeling helpless politically, then "High Party" which has the lyric "Or I'm looking for another way to process what happened on that birthday." and Ted's birthday is apparently 9-11. Then comes "Ballad of the Sin Eater," which is about a realization of the dangers of the world. The list goes on.
I actually read an interesting take on the album Hearts of Oak on Amazon.com, and that was that the entire album was a reaction to September 11th. With that in mind, I listened to the album, and that seemed to make some sense. This song fits in that as well. Its clearly about Boston, Cambridge specificially. I know that Ted lived in Cambridge for a while, and that's perhaps where he lived the day of the attacks. It seems like he is reflecting on the progress of humanity and how they bought such grand destruction in New York, but in the end, everything goes on. He goes on to stay "Its not the time to ossify, its not the end of wondering why, its not in your fath or your apostasy." These really seem like the words of a man reflecting on something huge. Ted is saying that the September 11th attacks may have appeared to be catestrophic beyond belief at the time, but this is not the end of the world. Life goes on. I don't know, the September 11th take on the whole album made sense to me. I mean, you've got "Building Skyscrapers in the Basement" which seems to be about a nervous father contemplating whether the world is safe for his daughter to grow up in, then you've got "I'm a Ghost," which seems to be about feeling helpless politically, then "High Party" which has the lyric "Or I'm looking for another way to process what happened on that birthday." and Ted's birthday is apparently 9-11. Then comes "Ballad of the Sin Eater," which is about a realization of the dangers of the world. The list goes on.
@george_gordon you still haven't been given your due for your insight! smart thinking, and astute observation! it opens up the whole damn album
@george_gordon you still haven't been given your due for your insight! smart thinking, and astute observation! it opens up the whole damn album