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Ghost Mice – Cementville Lyrics 14 years ago
Cool song. Did anyone else notice that at the end he says 'our gang got twice as big', although there was only one other person that joined? Implying that there was only one member to begin with. Which makes me think that BeastMaster and Hawk are not meant to be real people, but figments of the imagination, and this whole story is just one person's fantasy.

submissions
Neutral Milk Hotel – The King of Carrot Flowers Pt. 1 Lyrics 16 years ago
Excellent song in an excellent album
My take on the song: The early life of a child growing up in a dysfunction, unhappy household. Most of the lines are pretty straight forward, but Mangum sidesteps the part about sex to make it sound a little more romantic and innocent. Which really, it should be.

Stanza by stanza breakdown

"When you were young
You were the king of carrot flowers
And how you built a tower tumbling through the trees
In holy rattlesnakes that fell all around your feet"

Childhood. Imagination and innocence. The child is oblivious to all of the negative things around him, and plays. Spent a lot of time outdoors, where he dream up fantasies of being the king of carrot flowers, towers among the trees, and holy rattlesnakes.

"And your mom would stick a fork right into daddy's shoulder
And dad would throw the garbage all across the floor
As we would lay and learn what each other's bodies were for"

Starting to get older, maybe early teens. Becomes aware of the things around him. Realizes that his parents do not get along as much as he would want. "Stick a fork right into daddy's shoulder" probably indicates a nagging wife, "Dad would throw the garbage all across the floor" maybe indicates a sloppy, uncaring father. Makes me think of a poor, dirty, trash strewn house in which is family lives. "as we would lay and learn what each other's bodies were for", as teens will do, he starts experimenting with girls. First girlfriend, first time holding hands, first kiss, first time to second and third base, etc.

"And this is the room
One afternoon I knew I could love you
And from above you how I sank into your soul
Into that secret place where no one dares to go"

Loses his virginity. "This is the room where one after noon I knew I could love you"- This is the room where he and his girlfriend had sex for the first time . "From above" - Missionary position (first time, after all. Didn't everyone go missionary?) "Sank into your soul" - Entered her for the first time. "Secret place where no one dares to go" We're adults, we can say vagina right.

"And your mom would drink until she was no longer speaking
And dad would dream of all the different ways to die
Each one a little more than he could dare to try"

Things continue to go downhill for his family with a drunk mother and a miserable father. As many miserable people will do, his father considers suicide, but is too afraid of the pain to try it.



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