| Elbow – Scattered Black And Whites Lyrics | 13 years ago |
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Quote: "the line - flitting between short trousers and full dress uniform sybolises a passing of time between short trousers (summer) full dress (winter/autumn) " Actually it refers to the transition from boyhood to manhood: in 20th Century Britian it was the practice to dress young boys in shorts (called 'short trousers' back then), and only when they grew up to become young men did they recieve 'long trousers' - around mid adolescence, it was something of a right of passage, and would have been accompanied by comments of the proud boy/parents along the lines of "he's wearing long trousers now" or "gets his first pair of ~~ next week" or something similar. "Full dress uniform" is what soldiers/officers etc wear on special occasions - all the epulets and medals etc on show, for parades and so on. In other words he is flitting between memories of being a young schoolboy and being a soldier in public parade or at special dinners or functions... |
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| Elbow – Scattered Black And Whites Lyrics | 13 years ago |
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Quote: "the line - flitting between short trousers and full dress uniform sybolises a passing of time between short trousers (summer) full dress (winter/autumn) " Actually it refers to the transition from boyhood to manhood: in 20th Century Britian it was the practice to dress young boys in shorts (called 'short trousers' back then), and only when they grew up to become young men did they recieve 'long trousers' - around mid adolescence, it was something of a right of passage, and would have been accompanied by comments of the proud boy/parents along the lines of "he's wearing long trousers now" or "gets his first pair of ~~ next week" or something similar. "Full dress uniform" is what soldiers/officers etc wear on special occasions - all he epulets and medals etc o show, for parades and so on. |
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| Elbow – Scattered Black And Whites Lyrics | 13 years ago |
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I love this song and the way it works on your emotions in a subtle yet very powerful way. The sound composition emulates the fuzzy haze we fall into when reminiscing - like warm Summer rain, and the quite sparse lyrics throw up fragments of imagery, jumping from one thing to another in the same way that memories do creating a very definite nostalgic feeling. I also love the chilling imagery of a bomb blasted WW1 veteran sitting shell shocked in his armchair so many wasted years later and having almost to be physically pulled into the present moment by the boy, who rescues him from his own traumatic memories by: "Kneeling by and speaking up He reaches out and I take a Massive hand. " The old soldier reaches out for rescue, the young boy takes his hand and pulls him into the present moment, away from the torment of his recollections. The juxtaposition between the warmth of the sister's perfume the idealised mother listening to the stories of the day by the warm kitchen sink and the horrors of war is stunning and spine chilling. And regadless of this, the scene is a comfort for the singer because it brings these people back to mind. The song is also infinitely mirroring itself as well, because its a memory ....of a memory, of people in various states of reminiscing: The boy recounting his day, somone recalling and singing the theme tune, someone else recalling words doing a crossword, and the old soldier remembering the war, and his school days... I think the towering genius of this lyirc is something far beyond what anyone can sit down and create as an intellectual exesricise, the writer has tapped into an unusually rich vein of imagery as a result of having sat with uncomfortable feelings and memories and taken the time to transcribe and distill the experience, and left an amazing legacy for us all. |
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| Andrew Bird – Oh, Sister Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I hope everyone knows this song is by Bob Dylan, and if so I don't know why it's on this site under Andrew Bird, it's not as if he needs a false reputation is it? When thinking about this song it's important to understand the lexicon of the times it was written in. 'Sister' was a groovy way of addressing any female whom one was conversing with regardless of any degree of intimacy, but clearly here the 'sister' is a lover of the song writer. The song references the holiness of love and that the purpose, after all, of our journey on Earth is to love one and other, according to all scriptures and any sermon you listen to, clearly Dylan is drawing parallels with the 'higher' Platonic love, and actually probably singing about an instance where the two are inseparable. |
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| Andrew Bird – Oh, Sister Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| lol. good luck x | |
| Andrew Bird – Oh, Sister Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Platonic love is boring? what a bizarre thing to say. Love is never boring. Maybe for you the platonic love of others is boring, or perhaps you have not experienced platonic love....or perhaps you just don't know what it is? Plato described the human race consisting of individuals each (man and woman) of whom was half of one origian complete soul, for Plato the object was to find this other half of the soul, so that completeness could be attained. Admittedly this is no tthe contemporary meaning, but platonic love still does refer to an intense though non-sexual attraction fro someone. |
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| Andrew Bird – Oh, Sister Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Platonic love is boring? what a bizarre thing to say. Love is never boring. Maybe for you the platonic love of others is boring, or perhaps you have not experienced platonic love....or perhaps you just don't know what it is? Plato described the human race consisting of individuals each (man and woman) of whom was half of one origian complete soul, for Plato the object was to find this other half of the soul, so that completeness could be attained. Admittedly this is no tthe contemporary meaning, but platonic love still does refer to an intense though non-sexual attraction fro someone. |
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| Andrew Bird – Oh, Sister Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Sorry - that last line should read: drawing parallels between the higher love and the carnal love of a man (himself) for a woman, and actually he is probably singing about an instance where the two were inseparable - it is a (somewhat resentful) song about true love. |
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| Andrew Bird – Oh, Sister Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Sorry - that last line should read: drawing parallels between the higher love and the carnal love of a man (himself) for a woman, and actually he is probably singing about an instance where the two were inseparable - it is a (somewhat resentful) song about true love. |
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| Andrew Bird – Cataracts Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Hi the whistling is completely absorbing isn't it? Very sad and evocative. I was wondering if in fact this song is not partly about dying? "when our mouths are filled with uninvited tongues of others" (worms/beetles,crows perhaps, I get stong imagery of flesh being eaten from inside) "And the strays are pining for their unrequited mothers" (unrequited = unresponsive perhaps? Due to deathly absence?) "Milk that sours is promptly spat Light will fill our eyes like cats" (An after death type thing? filled with light??) and on the final lines: "Light will fill our eyes like cats.. Cataracts" (a reversal or change of meaning here possibly from 'radiant light' to 'light in colour'- 'light' becoming a the white veil of death that appears in the eye like cataracts when someone is dead) just a few thoughts...hope they are of interest. I must say i find the comments about being 'conquered by another culture' made by Tru_Shard both offensive and highly unlikely - not to mention zenophobic. Also i find the imagery of the other verses in this song absolutely stupendous. Andrew Bird I HATE YOU!!!! |
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| Andrew Bird – Spare-Ohs Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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i refer the explanation above "But their yolk isn't easy / in fact it's a drag" In Matthew 11:28, Jesus (who dragged a cross) says, "For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." but yes obviously many references to pesticides, and i saw a vid off youtube where Andrew makes reference to himself failing to properly look after some chickens he once had.... he doesnt talk too long about it but i extrapolte from the manner in which he speaks that they died. wether from crop dusting or simple mis management around food/water i do not know. a song like this (and many of Andrews songs) consist of references to several obviously unrelated events, which is one thing that gives them their poetic quality and the capacity to suddenly grip you due to a particular set of lines that stand out. |
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| Andrew Bird – Imitosis Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Just to add to the above tho there is an element of paradox in the song as well, because of the lines "And why do some show no mercy while others are painfully shy? Tell me doctor, can you quantify The reason why?" which show the underlying doubts about the 'case for closeness is just a case of mitosis' i.e. if we are simply organisms attempting to pass our genes on with that single motive in ind then why are there such a range of approaches to trying to do that, from the brutal to the shy? |
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| Andrew Bird – Imitosis Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I'm surprised at how many of you mishear and misunderstand his lyrics. 2 things to say here: 1. the song title: 'Imitosis' - 'Mitosis' is cell division, it is the process by which an emryo grows to become a baby and then an adult. (also how your body heals itself, replaces dead cels, etc) Bird says clearly 'what's mistaken for closeness is just a case of mitosis' i/e/ the feeling of closeness is simply a biological mechanism to get us to pass on our DNA so it can keep replicating inside cells that endlessly divide and increase in number. 2. the lric which everyone seems to think goes like this: "In this nature show that rages every day It was then he heard his intuition say..." Goes like this: "Nietzsche showed his rages every day, It was then he heard his intuition say...." I'm not CERTAIN of the words after Nietzsche but i am positive that he does use this infamous philosopher's name - especially towards the end of the song. Nietzsche's central belief was that mankind was in a (perhaps) permanent state of transition from a weaker to a stronger species, and that everyone should rise to the challenge with uncompromising honesty and recognition of their fualts in order to overcome them. He viewed the (apparent) death of religion as central to the dilemma - i cant remember the exact words but they go something like this: 'God is dead and man has killed him. man must become a 'Superman' In order to be worthy of such a deed." There are those that feel that his ideas fed directly into the German fascist Eugenuics program that followed in the next (20th) Century. Although Nietzsche himself was clearly not a Fascist (he hated prejudice and lies) it is quite probable that a bastardisation of his ideas was one of Hitler's 'influences'. In this song Andrew is clearly examining the barbarity of living things. Its also clear form his other songs that this is not his universal outlook on life, i dotn think you need to 'agree' with the song to appreciate the element of truth within it. |
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| Andrew Bird – Imitosis Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I'm surprised at how many of you mishear and misunderstand his lyrics. 2 things to say here: 1. the song title: 'Imitosis' - 'Mitosis' is cell division, it is the process by which an emryo grows to become a baby and then an adult. (also how your body heals itself, replaces dead cels, etc) Bird says clearly 'what's mistaken for closeness is just a case of mitosis' i/e/ the feeling of closeness is simply a biological mechanism to get us to pass on our DNA so it can keep replicating inside cells that endlessly divide and increase in number. 2. the lric which everyone seems to think goes like this: "In this nature show that rages every day It was then he heard his intuition say..." Goes like this: "Nietzsche showed his rages every day, It was then he heard his intuition say...." I'm not CERTAIN of the words after Nietzsche but i am positive that he does use this infamous philosopher's name - especially towards the end of the song. Nietzsche's central belief was that mankind was in a (perhaps) permanent state of transition from a weaker to a stronger species, and that everyone should rise to the challenge with uncompromising honesty and recognition of their fualts in order to overcome them. He viewed the (apparent) death of religion as central to the dilemma - i cant remember the exact words but they go something like this: 'God is dead and man has killed him. man must become a 'Superman' In order to be worthy of such a deed." There are those that feel that his ideas fed directly into the German fascist Eugenuics program that followed in the next (20th) Century. Although Nietzsche himself was clearly not a Fascist (he hated prejudice and lies) it is quite probable that a bastardisation of his ideas was one of Hitler's 'influences'. In this song Andrew is clearly examining the barbarity of living things. Its also clear form his other songs that this is not his universal outlook on life, i dotn think you need to 'agree' with the song to appreciate the element of truth within it. |
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| Andrew Bird – Imitosis Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I'm surprised at how many of you mishear and misunderstand his lyrics. 2 things to say here: 1. the song title: 'Imitosis' - 'Mitosis' is cell division, it is the process by which an emryo grows to become a baby and then an adult. (also how your body heals itself, replaces dead cels, etc) Bird says clearly 'what's mistaken for closeness is just a case of mitosis' i/e/ the feeling of closeness is simply a biological mechanism to get us to pass on our DNA so it can keep replicating inside cells that endlessly divide and increase in number. 2. the lric which everyone seems to think goes like this: "In this nature show that rages every day It was then he heard his intuition say..." Goes like this: "Nietzsche showed his rages every day, It was then he heard his intuition say...." I'm not CERTAIN of the words after Nietzsche but i am positive that he does use this infamous philosopher's name - especially towards the end of the song. Nietzsche's central belief was that mankind was in a (perhaps) permanent state of transition from a weaker to a stronger species, and that everyone should rise to the challenge with uncompromising honesty and recognition of their fualts in order to overcome them. He viewed the (apparent) death of religion as central to the dilemma - i cant remember the exact words but they go something like this: 'God is dead and man has killed him. man must become a 'Superman' In order to be worthy of such a deed." There are those that feel that his ideas fed directly into the German fascist Eugenuics program that followed in the next (20th) Century. Although Nietzsche himself was clearly not a Fascist (he hated prejudice and lies) it is quite probable that a bastardisation of his ideas was one of Hitler's 'influences'. In this song Andrew is clearly examining the barbarity of living things. Its also clear form his other songs that this is not his universal outlook on life, i dotn think you need to 'agree' with the song to appreciate the element of truth within it. |
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