| Cowboy Bebop – Blue Lyrics | 11 years ago |
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My best friend's wife hung herself a couple years ago, after a lifetime of struggling with cerebral palsy that had reached the point of making every waking minute of her life an agony. I began flipping through my very large music library after hearing the news, intending to stop on the first song that felt appropriate. Most likely something solemn and depressing (which I have plenty of), and just think and absorb what had just happened. But after only a few skips, my player brought up this song, and I stopped there. It was probably the best thing that could have happened to help me emotionally digest that moment, and that will forever be the context that I assign to this song. |
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| After Forever – Beyond Me Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Really great observation. I did a whole bunch of reading recently on the psychological effects of solitary confinement, and this makes a lot of sense. A large portion of people who have been placed in pitch-black and soundproofed rooms when volunteering for tests on this subject report a very strong sense of an evil presence with them within only minutes. Many experience full hallucinations within a couple hours. Long-term solitary confinement destroys people's minds and the United States keeps tens of thousands of people in such a state, often for very trivial reasons. |
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| Muse – Exogenesis: Symphony Part 2 (Cross-Pollination) Lyrics | 15 years ago |
| Incredibly similar in theme and tone to Ayreon - Ride the Comet | |
| ReVamp – Million Lyrics | 15 years ago |
| And yes, writing out my interpretation here is very much myself in the process of kicking my own ass. | |
| ReVamp – Million Lyrics | 15 years ago |
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It's a motivational song. The theme is summed up in the first verse. Our thoughts are always stuck in two places. Half dwells on the past and how it defines us, yet the time we spend doing this is time not spent defining ourselves right now. The other half imagines the future we want, but gets tangled up and overwhelmed by the millions of paths that might lead there and the millions of obstacles we might face on the way. We ignore the present, and it continually passes us by... faster and faster. They're telling us that, knowing how difficult it is, we must focus on the present. We don't have to forget the past or stop building a future, but we can't bind ourselves to them. The best we can do is make a solid choice to be who we want to be right now, before the time we have to do so runs out. |
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| Blind Guardian – The New Order Lyrics | 15 years ago |
| I don't think it's intentional, but this song reminds me a lot of the dawning of the 'Age of Men' on Middle-Earth from the perspective of the elves, as they depart and leave men to rule. There's also the mention of moon knights, slaying dragons, and their souls being like water and like rain they will return, as elves were a kind of natural spirit bound forever to Arda. On death, they passed to the Halls of Mandos, which was still on that planet, where Men's spirits passed on to unknown realms beyond the world after death. | |
| After Forever – Equally Destructive Lyrics | 16 years ago |
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More specifically, I think they're referring to positive feedback systems in nature that we've set in motion. Natural disasters keep growing more frequent and destructive, but they're only an equal reaction to the destructive acts of mankind. "We are just a part of this machine and its endless stream." It's a call for us to remember that we're still a part of nature and can't live independent of its cycles of cause & effect. |
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| Blind Guardian – Mirror Mirror Lyrics | 16 years ago |
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The 'Mirror Mirror' line has been bugging me ever since I discovered this album over a year ago, and I think I finally figured it out. Turgon's undoing was his inability to abandon Gondolin in the end. He knew that Morgoth had finally discovered his whereabouts and was soon to bring all his wrath down on them. Against all hope, Turgon couldn't abandon it because he'd spent so long building up the city and it had grown so proud and beautiful. The song is about Turgon's story as a whole, but the 'Mirror Mirror on the wall' lines represent how his vanity subtly dominates his thoughts and twists his judgement as he decides how best to lead his people even though he knows the answer all along - True hope lies beyond the coast. |
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| Van Canto – Quest For Roar Lyrics | 16 years ago |
| Brilliant existentialist anthem. | |
| After Forever – Intrinsic Lyrics | 16 years ago |
| This song cemented Floor Jansen's position as #1 female vocalist in my book. Her performance here just blows me away no matter how many times I hear it. To study the lyrics and see that she's also such an intelligent deep thinker only makes me appreciate her even more. | |
| Nightwish – The Wayfarer Lyrics | 16 years ago |
| I think it's about somebody who simply values their own life and lives every minute of it to the fullest. They're constantly thinking "this could be the last thing I do" so they refuse to settle down into an ordinary, repetitive life. They're always setting out on a new journey in search of new experiences. | |
| Blind Guardian – The Bard's Song (In the Forest) Lyrics | 16 years ago |
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I had a change of perspective with this song today as it was in my car and I had a pet die lastnight. I can't speak for the band's intention with this song, but I think interpretation can go beyond a song for the sake of romanticizing the historical legacy of the bard or representing a specific story. It's really a very moving depiction of a final farewell - quite likely from a deathbed. There are numerous allusions to concepts of ending, finality, mortality, and erosion of memory. Here's a few lines that really seem to point to a death theme, in my opinion. "When hours have gone by, I'll close my eyes." Recognizing the time that's behind them, and admitting that their time has peacefully come. "In a world far away, we may meet again. But now hear my song, about the dawn of the night. Let's sing the bard's song." Comforting the audience with the notion that death is a new beginning (*dawn* of the night), and requesting that we sing with them to ease their passing while paying a romantic tribute to the moment. "Tommorrow will take us away Far from home No-one will ever know our names But the bard's song will remain" Time will change everything, all memories will fade, and we can't possibly know what lies ahead ("far from home" being symbolic of the unknown beyond). I think "the bard's song" is a metaphor for death itself. "Tommorrow will take it away The fear of today It will be gone Due to our magic song" The bard's song (death) will lift all our burdens. "There's only one song Left in my mind" The narrator is finished with their life. Perhaps they see their past as a collection of tales, and death is the only song left for them. "Now the bard songs are over And it's time to leave" Obvious. "Noone should ask You for the name Of the one Who tells the story" We all face death, we're all commemorated in some fashion, and death is a momentous occassion for all of us. Perhaps asking who tells the story (who is god? why does he let us die? what does he has in store for us? etc.) only bogs down our lives. The narrator is asking the audience to leave all that out of it. It's his moment. His death. He knows what he faces is a mystery, and he's just going to move forward gracefully. No stumbling over blind attempts to appeal to the unknown for entrance to whatever possible afterlife and such. "Tomorrow all will be known And You're not alone So don't be afraid In the dark and cold 'Cause the bards' songs will remain They all will remain" We'll all know the truth eventually. Don't sweat it. We all go there so you're not alone. "The dark and cold" is another metaphor for the unknown, which is where all of us are in our final moments. We don't know what lies ahead. Whatever it is, we all face it eventually so there's no use being afraid. My interpretation can't account for the whole song, but I've had it turning over in my head all day anyway. I sang it whenever I was in the car today to pay tribute to the passing of Ninja, my sugar glider. |
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| Blind Guardian – Noldor (Dead Winter Reigns) Lyrics | 16 years ago |
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I think the final verse is all from the perspective of the House of Fingolfin, who wasn't enthusiastic about leaving Valinor, questioned the reasoning, mourned the abandoning of their homes, but felt a duty to accompany their brethren... Fingolfin was half brother of Feanor and (I think) Finwe's first heir who deferred his kingship to Feanor in order to maintain peace with his fiery hearted brother... he also knew that Feanor and his followers were blinded by passion, and they would need help and guidance in times ahead... so the House of Fingolfin walked with remorse and uncertainty into banishment and doom for little more than kinship Dead winter reigns And tomorrow's still unknown (mourning the grief the have cast themselves into for the sake of a future they have little hope for) Lies Condemned and betrayed Now everything is said (after all the sacrifices Fingolfin and his followers make for Feanor, they find themselves abandoned... betrayed... and they've already participated in the kinslaying and marched past the curse of Mandos, so they see their fates as already sealed and see no choice but to face the grinding ice) See my eyes Are full of tears And a cruel price We've paid But still I can't claim That I'm innocent Lost (they're recognizing their folly in supporting Feanor's madness... they knew better all along, but chose loyalty with their brethren in the face of banishment... they're mourning the death of their innocence as they've already done terrible things (and their situation probably seems punishment to them) for the sake of their kin, and now those same kin have forsaken them as well... they're a lost people, and they're mourning) |
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| Muse – Showbiz Lyrics | 16 years ago |
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My interpretation is on the same subject as most of the other major attempts here, but flipped. I think it's about the role of showbiz in culture, presenting people with unrealistic representations of life. We're raised on expectations that are doomed to failure, whether it's looking perfect, experiencing perfect romance, or living a life of adventure. These expectations inspire us to shoot for impossible dreams and in the process throw away healthy bodies (anorexia), relationships, and careers. I don't think this contradicts what was mentioned about the interview with Matt. |
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| After Forever – Beneath Lyrics | 16 years ago |
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Apathy. Passivity. The Bystander Effect. Innocent people are trampled daily in all parts of the world, even America. Everybody knows it. Everybody knows its origins. Everybody condemns it... in words. We defeat ourselves. We allow ourselves to be dominated by fear, and we know it. We know we're all equally vulnerable, but we trick ourselves into believing that our chances are good. It's a minority who face brutal realities, and we'll roll the dice. We'll put up with the invisible violence of our own exploited daily lives, at the cost of tangible violence for a random sacrificial few. The sacrifice takes more forms and more lives daily: cancers, corruption, starvation and homelessness always in walking distance of wasted food and shelter. As a decided anarchist for 10 years now, I'm bitterly aware. Almost anybody can articulate the basic criticisms of authority and wealth. Everybody knows the inevitability of their abuses and on a deeper level everybody understands their turn will come to sacrifice for a system which does not work for them. But when confronted with the idea of doing away of doing away with these same systems, everybody reveals their self-inflicted delusions. We can complain about corrupt politicians and greedy corporations all we want, but ultimately we have only ourselves to blame. We're all complicite in their machinations. I'm no different, except that I've cast off my delusions. Like so many, I'm sitting in an office enslaved to a job that has no meaning to me and or anyone else. Unlike the slavery we're taught in history books, I wear no shackles other than the fear of what hardships I subject myself and my family to by simply leaving. I know everyone around me feels the same, but we're not allowed to talk about it. So we continue working as if nothing's wrong, while fighting a war that rages inside. That's what this song means to me. |
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| After Forever – Empty Memories Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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it may be a requiem for today's youth who are angry about having to grow up in a dying world because of the excessive and egocentric natures of last few generations who have preceded them not only is the world dying, but slavery (in the form of wage slavery) is more prevalent in the modern world than ever in history, and the society built by our grandfathers and great grandfathers is one that expects us to spend most of our waking lives in monotonous, unrewarding, and socially alienating jobs until we're near the end of our lives... we're used up and thrown away and have nothing but emptiness to look back on from our deathbeds like me... I'm sitting in an office right now doing work I have no respect for... I'm not even allowed to have conversation with the people around me... I can feel myself slowly dying and mind, body, and spirit every day I sit here... my grandfather worked himself to death before he could reach 40, and my dad looks like he won't reach 50 for the same reason... I know I'm walking the same path right now for the sake of my two kids, but then I look at the state of the world and can't help but think the planet will be in its final death throes before they even reach adulthood this song expresses something of the bitterness one can't help but feel growing up in today's world |
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| The Faint – Fulcrum and Lever Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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I think OKRadiohead was pretty close actually. This entire album is full of warnings & criticisms of modern culture & technology. I think it's actually a big departure for The Faint, as their previous albums have been mostly curious social observation. This one is full of up front messages, even if cryptically delivered. This song is a cautionary tale about biotechnology and transhumanism. The primitive mechanism built by the kids is symbolic of our modern understanding of ambitious fringe medical sciences - stuff like genetic engineering & human augmentation. The kids dont think things through as well as they should. "Sure whatever just bend your knees and jump like on a trampoline." He knows how to get himself in the air, but gives no thought to what may come next. Obviously, he crashes. The end of the song skews perspective a little (with a concussion as the device to get us there) to bring things into the context of their message, the consequences of rushing headlong into trying to modify and improve our own bodies. Here, the result is alienation. An odd, nagging sense that something isn't right. Everybody's gone strange. Nothing's the way it should be. He's changed. He's no longer human and he's just realizing that he can no longer relate to the world around him as a human being, which has left him isolated and confused. Another thought, I dont think it's the actual message of the song but... I've read that almost all cereal killers suffer head trauma in their youth. Perhaps there's a more down-to-earth explanation there. |
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