| Frightened Rabbit – State Hospital Lyrics | 11 years ago |
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I think you're taking too much of a shit on the mother. While obviously not a great parent, the song's more about the bigger picture: the UK's classism and failing welfare state than an indictment of her child-rearing abilities. Hence lines about limp board schools, sexual references involving the national weight, and even the title being "STATE Hospital". "The most threadbare, tall story the country has ever heard" is a clever turn of phrase linking the shitty block of apartments you mentioned with a Scottish version of the American Dream: the idea that anyone can rise above their circumstances and how it's transparently bullshit. "The blunt kitchen knife Who just lays in a submissive position Beneath a national weight and the slow arc of a fist" This bit refers to the mother having been just as fucked over by her spot in the social hierarchy as her daughter, and possibly that she's being abused by her husband if that fist isn't metaphorical; not that the daughter being physically abused, as this verse is specifically about the mother. (Not sure about the blunt kitchen knife thing, so you may be right about that.) Probably verbally abused though; "A screaming anchor for nothing in particular" makes me think of parents blaming their children for holding them back when the reality is they weren't going anywhere in life anyway. So yeah, good interpretation but you missed the political side of it I think. |
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| Rush – Freewill Lyrics | 16 years ago |
| You can ask yourself whether you want cereal or eggs for breakfast and "choose" eggs. The question is whether or not choosing eggs was an inevitable decision. How can you know? That's the question of free will. | |
| The Gaslight Anthem – We Came to Dance Lyrics | 16 years ago |
| This song will save rock and roll. | |
| Okkervil River – For Real Lyrics | 16 years ago |
| Way to challenge the stereotype that Rand fans are all pretentious cocks. | |
| Rilo Kiley – Dreamworld Lyrics | 16 years ago |
| It reminds me a lot of "Johnny Got His Gun" by Dalton Trumbo. (A book, not a song.) I don't think it's about the book per se, but I see some kind of connection between the two. | |
| The Killers – A Dustland Fairytale Lyrics | 16 years ago |
| That last verse is brilliant. Brandon Flowers is probably the second most underrated songwriter active today. (The first being Stephen Merritt.) | |
| Elliott Smith – Amity Lyrics | 16 years ago |
| Dude, he SAID it's about a person. That's not an interpretation, it's Smith's words. | |
| Vampire Weekend – Oxford Comma Lyrics | 16 years ago |
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Nice find. "I would like to dedicate this article to my children, Rachel and God." |
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| Vampire Weekend – Campus Lyrics | 16 years ago |
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A labored metaphor calling the girl a professor who's using the narrator as a case study is less of a stretch than jumping from one character to another? If we're going to talk about grammar, he never specifically refers to HER in that part, he just kinda says it. The song's about a day on campus, hence the title. If we assume he's going in somewhat chronological order, it makes sense that he'd mention something going on in a class. To wit, studying romances. |
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| Muse – Take a Bow Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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You all realize that people aren't limited to knowing only about their own country? Matt Bellamy is smart enough to know what goes on outside of the UK. That being said, it's not specifically about George Bush. He fits the bill today, but there will always be others, and wannabe political scientists will say that this song was written about them. That's the mark of a well written song, it's timeless. |
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| Muse – Take a Bow Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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I bet you're a fourteen year old who can be brainwashed by whatever vaguely anti-establishment crap you can find on the internet. Go draw anarchy symbols on yourself with a Sharpie. |
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| Muse – Take a Bow Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| There are CCTV cameras all over the place and a DNA database that increases everyday. | |
| Muse – Take a Bow Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Speak for yourself. | |
| Ours – Dizzy Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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It's not that Ours doesn't get airplay. They're virtually unheard of even outside of the radio-listening community. I think Jimmy Gnecco was cursed by Gypsies so that he would always be unmarketable. D: |
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| Ours – Black Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| The unedited version replaces "I'm your maker you built with fear" with "I'm your nigger you built with fear". | |
| Shinedown – The Dream Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Shinedown is awesome, but please don't cheapen them by calling them anything other than standard mainstream hard rock. (Although this was written years before The Sound of Madness, so it's a liiittle more applicable now.) | |
| Shinedown – Devour Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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Jesus Christ people. "Nobody nobody wants a war like this." Seriously, could it have been any more blunt? People saying that it's complicated are just easily confused. |
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| Shinedown – Call Me Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| I dunno. Us and Them was pretty good, but seemed like they were still finding their footing. Plus it had a lot of filler. The Sound of Madness has a much tighter, more controlled feel to it. Every song contributes to the album, there is no extra padding. | |
| Shinedown – Call Me Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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This song is epic. End of story. |
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| Shinedown – What a Shame Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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"God forgive the hands that laid you down." At first I took that line literally. But in the eulogy context it seems more like those doing the judging pushed him into an early grave. Intense song. Solid album. Shinedown's always been pretty standard rock, but they've outdone themselves with this. |
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| Vampire Weekend – Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Ah yes. A high school junior (how oddly specific) is going to the beach to eat pasta. How couldn't I have seen it before! | |
| Vampire Weekend – Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Did you miss the part where he asks if you wanna fuck? | |
| Vampire Weekend – Oxford Comma Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| What a dumbass. | |
| Foo Fighters – Everlong Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| A few years ago I saw the Foo Fighters in concert. The whole show, they didn't play Everlong. Everybody thought they were saving it for last, but when the next act came out I thought the crowd was going to storm the stage, and apparently security did too, there was such a frenzy. Then they came out for an encore and played the hell out of it. Most incredible musical experience in my life. | |
| Foo Fighters – Everlong Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Grace is probably in the top five albums of all time, sure; and Jeff Buckley was the world's best vocalist, no contest. But this... this is just sublime. There may not be any amazing songwriting or virtuosity in Foo Fighters' songs, but Everlong is just fuckin' intense. | |
| Kings of Leon – I Want You Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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It's definitely "finally got the video proof" and not groove. That doesn't even make sense. And I get the feeling that the black dude everyone seems so HUNG up on (get it?) videotapes the chick going down on him, and it ends up getting back to the singer who either had his eye on her, was seeing her, or recently stopped seeing her. I get the feeling that it was intentional though. A bit of a- well a giant "fuck you". (If only because I had a similar experience, only not AS graphic.) |
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| Vampire Weekend – Walcott Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Makes me think of Casablanca to be honest. lol | |
| Vampire Weekend – Campus Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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"I wake up, my shoulders cold I've got to leave here, before I go I pull my shirt on, walk out the door Drag my feet along the floor I pull my shirt on, walk out the door Drag my feet along the floor" Rough night after a breakup. "Then I see you, you're walking 'cross the campus," Seeing her reminds him of the whole nasty business. "Cruel professor studying romances," I'm surprised no one picked up on this: A professor is covering romantic works in class. Again, reminding him of her. Think of it like hearing love songs on the radio after a breakup, so you call the DJ cruel. "How am I supposed to pretend I never want to see you again How am I supposed to pretend I never want to see you again" That pause in there is pretty ambiguous. But VW's songs can be pretty disjointed, and I think the "no comma" interpretation makes more sense. He didn't want it to end, but he can't let her know that. "Walked to class, in front of ya Spilled kefir on your keffiyeh You look inside and turn to the door Drag your feet along the floor" I really have no idea on the kefir or keffiyeh. But dragging her feet like he did indicates that she's not happy with the breakup either. "In the afternoon, you're out on the stone and grass And I'm sleeping on the balcony after class" She's out, and life moves on (contradicting the part about her dragging her feet) but he just goes home to mope. (And take a nap apparently. Sleep is the #1 way to forget life sucks.) |
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| Elliott Smith – Everybody Cares, Everybody Understands Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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"It's a chemical embrace that kicks you in the head." Emotions are caused by chemicals within the brain. He could be railing against emotion as just an empty chemical reaction with no meaning, which fits with the idea that he wants people to stop feeling obligated to be sympathetic. I suppose the same meaning could be applied to, "To a pure synthetic sympathy that infuriates you totally." But the word synthetic makes my mind jump to drugs (whether heroin or the meds administered to him I have no idea) but that interpretation seems a little less kosher to me. |
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| Elliott Smith – I Didn't Understand Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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I think the people who are saying that the girl left or used him are forgetting that he's depressed, and that depression is rarely rational. The first verse makes me think that she's reaching out to him, but his feelings of worthlessness are causing him to push her away (as opposed to him feeling bitter over her rejection or whatever). Aside from that, the majority have hit the nail on the head. Incredibly poignant song, especially for me in my current predicament. |
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