| Phoenix – Lisztomania Lyrics | 15 years ago |
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I agree with sukotto that this is about the Liszt and the pressures of dealing with criticism and inaccurate commentary that accompany fame. In Liszt's case, he was particularly troubled by the view held by many aristocrats at that time that musicians were subservient to them. Liszt held the view that the musician should be respected by all. Quoting "Franz Liszt: The virtuoso years, 1811-1847" By Alan Walker, page 287 http://books.google.com/books?id=lCw4cxHmpgYC&lpg=PA129&ots=Y8L6D8jaZs&lr&pg=PA287#v=onepage&q&f=false "No artist before Lizst, not even Paganini, succeeded so completely in breaking down the barriers that traditionally separated performing artists from those who were then grandly called their "social superiors." After Liszt, all performers began to enjoy a higher status in society. Haydn and Mozart had been treated like servants; whenever they visited the homes of nobility they had entered by the back door. Beethoven, by dint of his unique genius and his uncompromising nature, had forced the Viennese aristocracy at least to regard him as their equal. But it was left to Liszt to foster the view that an artist is a superior being, because divinely gifted, and that the rest of mankind, of whatever social class, owed him respect and even homage. This view of the artist who walks with God and brings fire down from heaven with which to kindle the hearts of mankind became so deeply entrenched in the Romantic consciousness today we regard as a cliché." Phoenix's song takes the view of Liszt speaking to his darling, presumably Countess Marie d'Agoult (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franz_Liszt#With_Countess_Marie_d.27Agoult), whom he was involved at the time before the touring virtuoso stage of his life. In the song, Liszt is experiencing low moment when he feels caged in by the condescending views and lifestyle of aristocracy: "Follow, misguide, stand still Disgust, discourage". Liszt is "looking for something else" and in doing so, he contemplates severing his ties to the aristocracy supporting him: "Do let do let do let jugulate do let do let do" "I’m not easily offended It’s not hard to let it go". He envisions being free to just play his music the way he wants to, for the public: "from a mess to the masses" "this is showtime, this is showtime, this is showtime" I love the musical energy Phoenix gives to the idea of Liszt's groundbreaking vision of what latter manifested as the popular frenzy of Lisztomania: "Like a riot, like a riot, oh!" |
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| Vienna Teng – Nothing Without You Lyrics | 15 years ago |
| Unless I'm mistaken, Vienna is American-born (Wikipedia). That would mean that this song is drawing from her parents' experiences or that of other Asian immigrants. | |
| Phoenix – 1901 Lyrics | 15 years ago |
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Phoenix says its a fantasy of Paris at end of the 19th century, but the lyrics don't lend themselves to a strictly historical interpretation. At the same time, it's hard to justify that this song is simply about a relationship a girl. I take Phoenix's comment as a hint. The intended meaning somehow merges the two themes, so here's my attempt at a synthesis. ---------------- Take an image of a couple in confrontation about their relationship. The song is portrayed from the man's perspective, and he his thoughts are detached from the moment and drifting away as she's speaking. She's talking about things that have happened between them in the past and what they have to do now to fix it. He doesn't care and is not even following her logic, because to him it all doesn't matter -- the future's been sorted out. He knows the relationship is not going to work out and has no illusions over it. She grabs his attention, "Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey." This is urgent for her -- she's on the verge of breaking up. He's still not taking it seriously. To him her troubles are trivial. He's thinking that they should just fall back to bed, have sex, and enjoy themselves like they have before. He knows the relationship won't last and won't even bother give her the impression that it will. He's going to fold this one and move on. In between her protests, his thoughts drift away again. He's relating his situation to that of Paris in the late 19th century. Paris was bustling and great then when they built the Eiffel Tower, which they thought was an eyesore that would eventually go away -- but it didn't. Now Paris is stuck in the past while the world is moving on. In the same way, his relationship with his girlfriend was great in the past, but he knows better now. Rather than investing to build an Eiffel tower of their relationship and glorify their past, he's going avoid the fate of Paris and move on. --------------- This is a historical metaphor for a decision about not investing in a present relationship! Wow Phoenix! Cool. |
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| Phoenix – 1901 Lyrics | 15 years ago |
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Phoenix says its a fantasy of Paris at end of the 19th century, but the lyrics don't lend themselves to a strictly historical interpretation. At the same time, it's hard to justify that this song is simply about a relationship a girl. I take Phoenix's comment as a hint. The intended meaning somehow merges the two themes, so here's my attempt at a synthesis. ---------------- Take an image of a couple in confrontation about their relationship. The song is portrayed from the man's perspective, and he his thoughts are detached from the moment and drifting away as she's speaking. She's talking about things that have happened between them in the past and what they have to do now to fix it. He doesn't care and is not even following her logic, because to him it all doesn't matter -- the future's been sorted out. He knows the relationship is not going to work out and has no illusions over it. She grabs his attention, "Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey." This is urgent for her -- she's on the verge of breaking up. He's still not taking it seriously. To him her troubles are trivial. He's thinking that they should just fall back to bed, have sex, and enjoy themselves like they have before. He knows the relationship won't last and won't even bother give her the impression that it will. He's going to fold this one and move on. In between her protests, his thoughts drift away again. He's relating his situation to that of Paris in the late 19th century. Paris was bustling and great then when they built the Eiffel Tower, which they thought was an eyesore that would eventually go away -- but it didn't. Now Paris is stuck in the past while the world is moving on. In the same way, his relationship with his girlfriend was great in the past, but he knows better now. Rather than investing to build an Eiffel tower of their relationship and glorify their past, he's going avoid the fate of Paris and move on. --------------- This is a historical metaphor for a decision about not investing in a present relationship! Wow Phoenix! Cool. |
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| Gorillaz – On Melancholy Hill Lyrics | 15 years ago |
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My two cents: This is a song about falling back from disappointment and wasting time with a familiar vice, bad habit or addiction. Think video games, porn, drinking, smoking pot or some other pleasurable idle activity. "You" is getting his dose of dopamine ("me") from some artificial amusement while knowing that it's temporal. "Up on Melancholy Hill, there's a plastic tree" - artificial high in the face of disappointment "You can't get what you want, but you can get me" - easy pleasure to fall back on when you fail to achieve "Just looking out on the day of another dream" - wasting time away in this fake, happy world "cause you're my medicine" - chemical happiness "so call in the submarine" - reference to the Beatles "Yellow Submarine": going about in an idyllic happy fantasy "a manatee" - Manatee's spend half their time sleeping: wasting time away I can definitely relate to the thin veneer of temporal happiness this song portrays both lyrically and musically. It resonates with my experience with vices (addictions) such as video games or porn all while there was an undercurrent of melancholy in my life from unaddressed or unsolved problems in my life. This is definitely a very different take from Feel Good Inc. on the themes of wasting time. The sensation portrayed by On Melancholy Hill is idle, almost blissful whereas Feel Good Inc. portrayed a more energetic, socially engaged waste. |
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| Norah Jones – Feelin' The Same Way Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| What an upbeat expression of a depressive mood! I love how the hypnotic instrumentation and repeated phrases convey the mixed state of emotions. There is definitely a progressive feel to the piece; a invigorating sense of realization, a "been there felt that" and a motive to move on. She still hasn't found that something itching away at the bottom of it all, but then again, not finding that something shouldn't stop anyone. Brilliant. | |
| Enya – Ebudae Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Even without knowing what the lyrics mean, this song is mystically awe-inspiring. It gives me impressions of being transcended to an ethereal dimension. | |
| Pinback – Fortress Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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This is a song about a cyclic procrastination. The narrator can't get himself out of bed. Each time he tries, the burden of hits him and he falls right back. He doesn't want to face the world and what he's missed while he's been procrastinating. So he lies in bed feeling defeated ... "uneasy, livid" He tries to find comfort in bed. He tries and fails. There's no "fortress" here. He needs to get out. Summer is outside. He freezing on the inside. He gets the urge to get up. But then he'd have to face the world. He's too late. He's frustrated. Another delay. Too many hassles. Nobody move. Back in bed. And the procrastination continues. He knows he needs to get out, but he doesn't want to face it. So he defaults to lying in the false comfort of his bed. Thinking. Uneasy. Frustrated. GJ Pinback! Cool tune and interesting lyrics. Just the way I like it :) |
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| Death Cab for Cutie – Marching Bands of Manhattan Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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This song is about depression and the narrator's wish to bring someone that he cares about out of it. I will use "friend" to reference this person, but really it could be any person the narrator cares about from a lover to a colleague, "He" is gender neutral here. "If I could open my arms And span the length of the isle of Manhattan I'd bring it to where you are Making a lake of the East River and Hudson" -You won't fully understand this verse until you spend some time wandering around Manhattan (New York City). Manhattan is in short a nexus of human activity, full of entertainment and life. Bringing Manhattan to his friend is the narrator's metaphor for showing his friend all spice in life that there is to experience. "And if I could open my mouth Wide enough for a marching band to march out They would make your name sing And bend through alleys and bounce off all the buildings" -A common cause of depression is not being recognized by others for one's virtues. The narrator wants for his friend to know that there are people out there that appreciate him. "I wish we could open our eyes To see in all directions at the same time Oh, what a beautiful view If you were never aware of what was around you" -"Open your eyes and look at the world around you", the narrator says to his friend. "All directions" and "what was around you" is opposed to what his friend has been staring at; it is a metaphorical opposite to the inward-looking tunnel vision that characterizes a depressive mindset. "And it is true what you say That I live like a hermit in my own head But when the sun shines again I'll pull the curtains and blinds to let the light in" -"A hermit in my own head" is reference to one's introspective tendencies. The narrator is empathizing with his friend's inward-looking tendencies, but draws a difference in the next two lines. "But when the sun shines again / I'll pull the curtains and blinds to let the light in" -- sunshine and light is metaphor for life's opportunities and good moments that the narrator welcomes into his life. This is opposed to 'closing the curtains' that his friend has supposedly been doing thereby shutting out the potentially positive aspects of his life. "Sorrow drips into your heart through a pinhole Just like a faucet that leaks and there is comfort in the sound But while you debate half empty or half full It slowly rises, your love is going to drown" -The narrator is telling his friend that so long as he wallows in his depression, it will slowly drown out his "love". "Love" as it is used here is not romantic attraction -- it's the things one loves - the things that get his friend motivated and excited - the things he cares about. "Sorrow drips into your heart" and "like a faucet that leaks" are metaphors for the gradual loss of loved things as the narrator's friend let's his life and opportunities pass by while in his depressed state. "While you debate half empty or half full" is a shot at the self-defeating and rather meaningless rationalization and self-analysis his friend mulls around thinking about, when what really needs to do is live his life. Truly a beautiful song. It took me a while to fully grasp and appreciate the lyrics. I was first introduced to the song about two years ago, and it wasn't until I experienced a depression of my own, visited Manhattan, and re-listened to this song recently that it occurred to me what it's all about. What's fascinating about this piece is that even without fully understanding the lyrics, the music evokes powerful feelings that strongly relate to to the lyrical interpretation. I highly recommend listening to the Vitamin String Quartet's cover of this song off of the album "Ghost: The String Quartet Tribute to Death Cab for Cutie" if you want to simply appreciate the musicality of the song. Hopefully this interpretation makes the song that much more meaningful for you. |
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| Vienna Teng – Now Three Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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I believe the second to last line should be "i want to be blind, only my heart to guide me" Now three is likely a reference to the presence of the newborn child, where before it was just the two lovers. I love the way Vienna's voice and the music in this song convey a sense of newfound eagerness and restlessness whirling through the mother. When I listen to it intently, the song conjures up images of a woman staring up at the ceiling from her bed in the middle of a quiet night imagining all the myriad of future moments of life and love with her child. Wonderfully composed Vienna. Wonderful. |
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| Snow Patrol – You're All I Have Lyrics | 19 years ago |
| I believe this is about an unexpected attraction that the singer has no rational basis for. To make a reference, think of the tension and thrill Romeo & Juliet had when they first met in spite of the anomosity between their feuding families. | |
| Vienna Teng – Nothing Without You Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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How foolish I could be at first to think this was another song being lovesick. Indeed this is a song about loneliness, but there's another dimension to it. "it's the crowded room that's never heard no one here can say a word of my native tongue" This is no normal crowd; it's a crowd of strangers speaking a different language. The song is about the feelings of loneliness an immigrant has after relocating to a foreign country. "it's the quiet night that breaks me I cannot stand the sight of this familiar place it's the quiet night that breaks me like a dozen papercuts that only I can trace" Describing the anguish of getting nowhere and being lonely. "all my books are lying useless now all my maps will only show me how to lose my way" All the things the immigrant has learned in the past is of little use in this foreign land. The only familiar direction is back, but that would be counterproductive to all that the immigrant has gone through to get here. "it's the crowded room that breaks me: everybody looks so luminous and strangely young" Describing the unfamiliar appearance of the people in this new place. From the perspective of a foreigner arriving on Western soil, this could refer to the fashions and cosmetics that enhance people's appearances. "it's the crowded room that's never heard no one here can say a word of my native tongue I can't be among them anymore I fold myself away before it burns me numb" The last two lines refers to the difficulty of adjusting to a new culture and learning to "fit in." "oh, call my name - you know my name and, in your love, everything will change tell me it won't always be this hard I am nothing without you but I don't know who you are" Describes the longing to hear a familiar call -- to recognize a person who recognizes him/her. The immigrant feels hopeless without someone familiar, someone who could offer comfort against the difficulty and uncertainty of the future. -Though I'm not an immigrant myself, both my parents are immigrants. And indeed, as I've seen in father, the lack of friends and family during a difficult transition can be very unsettling. The feeling of being alone in the world is not something you want to experience. The way Vienna has captured the aura of such a trying time in one's life in a song is truly remarkable. Very poignant indeed. |
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| The Corrs – At Your Side Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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Endearing love against the "haste and hurry" Such a placating and comforting song Like a soft touch that puts a troubled heart to rest |
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| Bloc Party – Blue Light Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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As amusing the wavelength discussion has been, poetically blue is commonly referred as being down or depressed. This song is about the singer's thoughts about a relationship that ended. You'll find it hiding in shadows You'll find it hiding in cupboards It will walk you home safe every night It will help you remember -To the girl: You'll have the memories of all the times we had together If that's way it is Then that's the way it is -If we can't make this relationship work out, then it can't be I still feel you and the taste of cigarettes What could I ever run to Just tell me it's tearing you apart Just tell me you cannot sleep -Still, I remember those times. I still have feelings for you and I wonder if you still have feelings for me too. And you didn't even notice When the sky turned blue And you couldn't tell the difference Between me and you And I nearly didn't notice The gentlest feeling You are the bluest light -The lyrics here form an image. I imagine the singer lying in bed, reminiscing on the memories they shared. And while his thoughts are drifting, a smile forms across his face. He remembers a warm, gentle moment with his ex-lover -- his bluest light who he can't stop thinking of. |
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| Bloc Party – Plans Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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Here's what this song means for me: Wake up dreamer It's happening without you Cut your hair and shave your beard You squandered your chances -Stop procrastinating and do what you know you need to I'll give you a thousand pounds To show me how you do it Stop being so laissez-faire We're all scared of the future -Nothing is easy. Even though your path in life is not laid out in front of you, you still have to take charge, get out there, and try things in life. Been training vipers to come for you In your dreams to release you Been training vipers to come for you In your sleep -While you've been idling about, your anxieties have been building up and you can't deny it. And the ravens are leaving the tower And the ravens are leaving the tower Make your peace -Acknowledge your fears and leave them behind. I've got a taste for blood Leave the weak, leave the young I've got a taste for blood I'm walking out without you You will kill or be killed It's about progress I've got a taste for blood -It's time to make your move. Time to do what you know needs to be done. Don't let yourself fall behind. Do what you need to. Do it now. Wake up sleepyhead It's happening without you Such a nice guy You tell me everything twice -You've dithered around thinking about it for long enough. Whipcrack speed jump We will run backwards Stop being so laissez-faire We're all scared of the future -Snap decision. So what if we make mistakes? Better that than fearing the future. We make plans for big times Get bogged down, distracted We make plans for good times -We all have dreams of what we'd like to accomplish and then we wander off track with all the temporal distractions All neon, all surface So kiss me before it all gets complicated I've got a taste for blood -Kiss your superficial distractions goodbye. Time to leave them behind. It's time for change. |
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