| Between the Buried and Me – Specular Reflection Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| So I read an interview today. Prospect 1 IS directly from Swim to the Moon, and is on planet Earth, in which he goes out to sea on a suicide mission. (same story) now I see where they were going here, I still think the ship sank and he creates a device to get the attention of Prospect 2. Prospect 2 is the character who talks to much yaddayadda, apocalypse at the end of the world is still true, it's not yet explained if these characters share the same dimension or if the planet prospect 2 is from is Earth, maybe Prospect 2 did simply just time travel from one Earth point to another and the horrible realization seen is prospect 2's realization that he's still on the planet Earth and can't change anything, even though he's reflected on this moment all album. | |
| Between the Buried and Me – Specular Reflection Lyrics | 14 years ago |
|
Well lyrically Son of Nothing really just implied a mental state of drifting and loneliness, VERY similar to Pink Floyd's the Wall in my opinion... Swim to the Moon also was it's own concrete entity, but I do believe this is a reintroduction of both stories in a more story driven "this is actually happening in the context of the album" sense. Prequel to the Sequel as well as Lost Perfection (a and b) are also evident, but again, it seems like a reintroduction, rather than a continuation. Also Ants of the Sky is in there in the venturing through the new land. Unfortunately with almost all of their old songs, they didn't really have a concrete single idea. For both albums and songs. The Great Misdirect was really the first album of theirs I really saw as a story driven concept album. But as for individual songs, Ants of the Sky had crazy venturings through the world, and then turned into Tommy wondering if what he wrote was even good enough (then turned into a hoedown) Lost Perfection had a really cool story, the end of the world and a baby being born during it, but it also had Tommy singing about how he, and the other guys were bored on the tour bus... However, I think Lost Perfection (and really Prequel to the Sequel, as it is a prequel to it) are the most relevant to the story element of this album. The rest have more musical relevance (I love how they do that!!!) But Lost Perfection states the apocalypse in which this world is now a victim. MY spin on the story (it probably isn't right) is that prospect 1 has been sent out on some sort of mission to try and save the Earth as a baby, and the first lines of the album are that ship crashing on a distant planet. Eventually Prospect 1 is met by self reflective pasts as well as the desire to get back home. Anyway, Prospect 1 devises a way to signal the outside world, which works. Prospect 2, all along through the album is on his ship (he is the one who talks too much from Lost Perfection, no doubt on that one) his self reflective journey is both literal and figurative, as he heads to Prospect 1, who is still stuck on this distant planet. (Hypersleep for prospect 1 is the initial time wasted sleeping underwater in the ship remnants of the ship, while for Prospect 2 is the time spent asleep in the ship on the way to prospect 1. (The siren of loneliness is prospect 1's signal to prospect 2) Finally in Lunar Wilderness, Prospect 2 lands on the planet, and awakes after many hours in hypersleep, reflecting on the apocalypse. Some horrifying realization is swept over prospect 2 (could prospect 2 not be on the right planet, could prospect 1 have died in prospect 2's crash? They've done a great job of leaving it open for interpretation, unfortunately that makes this entire interpretation open to be completely wrong and flawed...but these are the thoughts I've got going on about it thus far.) |
|
| Between the Buried and Me – Lunar Wilderness Lyrics | 14 years ago |
|
Prospect 1: (The Baby born with the end of the world), sent on a mission (the one the two adults were discussing?) still not a defined gender (correct me if I'm wrong) Devises a method of communicating outside (not sure if being experimented on (as proposed by someone else) or if imperfect improper direction was for the devise used to communicate with others, I think the latter, he/she is all alone and now they've found him/her) Who they are is still undefined, although I think it might be Prospect 2... It could be another anonymous bunch of humans who the guys haven't introduced yet as well (night 4 they come back...they being the waves...they being a group of scientists on a different planet (yes...I dismissed this, but I'm not saying I can't be wrong when I do dismiss it, just a proposal)... Prospect 2: He's stuck in hypersleep, reflecting on the past before the end of the world, trying to affect it. He talks much about changing things, the people around him, but secretly is jealous of their careless lifestyles. However, this time in this familiar world, he is asleep, in a vessel of some kind now, after the end of the world. Possibly he too is drifting through space, and even when he opens his eyes, he is reflecting on the fact that his home is now empty, not the fact that he is there alone. (I think he's on his way to find prospect 1 at the end of the album) As he's just finished reflecting on everything that's happened, including releasing the other one into space to find a better home. ("there seems to be a fourth, but very small") Just as the world is ending I think he really comes to the realization that the vessel was really not helping him go back in time, it just put him to sleep where he could reflect upon his past... (he was in a sort of dreamy "I can change the world if I try, omnipotent as to what will happen (kind of like when Bill Murray thought he was God in groundhog day...lol I know they weren't thinking of that...) state, but really he's just found prospect 1?) Of course this vessel may be a second ship . Sorry if the thoughts there are a bit scattered... I don't think there are any instances of actual time travel, just self (and outerself) reflection in the state of travel. Both are dealing with personal issues as to whether they fit the idea of what being human should be, in a perfect sense. (and because this is an impossible feat, find themselves falling short, both in helping others in their pasts, which they must learn to grow from, and in who they are) I think, and this sis even more speculative than anything else up there...that the two will meet and devise a plan to fix their mistakes of the past, and possibly save humanity. Not sure if they'll bring the idea of time travel in, perhaps self reflection here is a foreshadowing to the inevitable time traveling to save humanity. Again, sorry it's so much to read, and maybe redundant, or just wrong, in parts. But these are my thoughts on the album. |
|
| Orbs – Something Beautiful Lyrics | 15 years ago |
|
Still a few mistakes, luckily I have the lyric book, so I'll write it out for you guys. I turned that man's first born to sand. Hey fascist now you can have that castle that you dreamed of, that you wanted, I'm here to fix everything. I took your toothy grin and left a patch of skin. I took her batting lashes, changed her from blonde to ashes. I took that boy with the giant head, and made his body smaller and his neck too thin. I took the tongue of that annoying neighbor child. Split it down let it bleed there for a while "You are so small," she said. "You are so small." Hey! While you were out there serving wine. Well I was up here on the balcony turning kids to swine. Hey! While you were out there kissing babies, I was luring kids with lollipops and now they're pushing daisies. You will not be heard from for a long time. You will not be found with your rightful hands or eyes. When your mother finds you, you won't believe her cries. They'll wish the child gone missing would be the child who died. Hey you! I can be a miracle man too! Hey you! I can change everything. Hey you! I can be a miracle man too! Hey you! I can fix everyone. I turned that man's trophy wife to brass. He barely noticed the difference. To him she served the same basic purpose. (probably a typo, as it's written puspose, but I decided it must be purpose...) I'm here to fix everyone! Oh oh god damned you might say. Oh oh Quite the talent I'd say. Temper! Temper! With half an alligator's smile. she said to me "no!" Patience! Patience! her scaled and olive face cracked open for me and pleaded... "Don't change me into this!" (Hey you! I can be a miracle man too. I'll make you into anything. Hey you! I can be a god of all sorts too. it's true I can save anyone. Hey you! I'm over here with the magic hands. I'm turning children to mules again. hey you! im over here with a victor's grin I'm turning teens into table scraps.) You will not be heard from for a long time and I will be around because fear will never die and if they should find you, you'll be a sight to see. A mess of flesh and muscle oh! A pile of pulp and teeth. I'm finally a king dad. I made use of all the skills that you once told me I had. I took a town of some brains but mostly fat and turned them into something beautiful... |
|
| Between the Buried and Me – Swim to the Moon Lyrics | 15 years ago |
| A live version I've come across has Tommy changing the lyrics to "Look into the mirror" possibly a statement of what he wanted to say but chose picture? Not really sure how to take that one other than what someone else said, that the water is a reflection and that's where he can see the moon. | |
| Between the Buried and Me – Swim to the Moon Lyrics | 15 years ago |
|
I agree with most of your theory, but Tommy himself said it was kind of an open ended thing, in a sense but not completely intentional, part 2 to Sun of Nothing. In that way, I don't think he actually jumps off the boat, but has a hunger "trip" of sorts, in which he comes to the realization that his life is better off without stresses caused by others. And possibly will soon find an island paradise to survive. Also, it's kind of connected to the song Autodidact, both in that he's learning for himself how to cope with his life for once (in a sense, the only way he could learn to live is by separating himself from others), and also the fact that he's out on the ocean, however, now (in Swim to the Moon) the recurring image of Mordecai (probably representing his need for another person in his life in some form), and his dependence on Mordecai have "flown away". Tommy Rogers is a lyrical genius the way he connects past songs to present ideas, I refuse to believe that all of that is just coincidence. |
|
| The Fall of Troy – Quarter Past Lyrics | 15 years ago |
|
It's actually kind of both guys. Like...every song on the album has a meaning of some addiction vs. a girl that the character portrayed by the singer can't forget. The entire album is basically how women and other addictions manipulate our minds and change what we do and think. Ok, I could be completely off, but I always take every song as 2 meanings from this album, and it's more or less comparing the damage done by a fouled relationship to the damage done by some kind of drug. Or in other cases, the casino, etc. |
|
| Dallas Green – In The Water, I Am Beautiful Lyrics | 16 years ago |
|
It could also be that the song is about a long distance relationship that was going good until something happened. After that, they couldn't possibly fix it, cuz they next time they would see each other is 3 months away. I love Dallas Green in the straight fan love kind of way. |
|
| The Fall of Troy – The Dark Trail Lyrics | 16 years ago |
|
The band is unique, in a way, 3 members and still amazing songs. Most people thought it wouldn't have been possible, with bands like Alkaline Trio just taking the stand with 3 members. But they did it, and will forever be remembered by me as the 'Little band that could' You've heard of Rush and ZZ Top...right... 3 members isn't as uncommon as you're making it sound... |
|
* This information can be up to 15 minutes delayed.