submissions
| The Presidents of the United States of America – Lump Lyrics
| 14 years ago
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A lot of PUSA songs, especially the early, deal with bugs, animals, and dead things - basically, things that young boys are interested in. I think that Lump is an anthropomorphic frog that Chris hangs out with. It's not that crazy, since he hangs out with "chickie", "froggie", and talks about his bug friends. So Lump is this somewhat mentally handicapped frog or toad creature, sitting in the swamp, and eventually she falls in love (maybe with Chris?) and they screw a bunch and they all live happily ever after. Overall though, PUSA songs go more for feel than a coherent story. |
submissions
| Sea Wolf – Leaves In The River Lyrics
| 14 years ago
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It is open to many interpretations, of course, and deals with themes common to Sea Wolf tunes such as young love, death, and the loss of innocence. However, after the first couple of listens, it suddenly struck me that this is a ghost story. It's very unlikely that this was unintentional, and hence, whatever else it is, I think this is a deliberate play on the ghost story/mystery, the solution to which is thus: a lonely guy was walking in the rain on Halloween night, met a strange girl, they got to know each other, she showed him the house she was raised (and died) in, they got a little friendly (holding hands and teasing about kisses), then she ran off cackling. Interestingly, the most striking line is the one which breaks the story, and provides the title: He talks about the leaves blowing, and wonders where they go. i.e. where do dead/lost souls go? "Leaves in the River" then, are the leaves which fell off the tree (life) but didn't blow off to the suburbs or city (afterlives), but instead are floating around in the river before they wash away. There are lots of ways to read it, but it would be hard to end up with something like this if it wasn't supposed to be a ghost. Given that she is, you can also read her as a young, lost girl reaching out for love/protection, and that's just another layer of the total onion. |
submissions
| Sea Wolf – The Orchard Lyrics
| 14 years ago
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I think it is about the loss of innocence through a combination of sexual maturity and the ideological death of innocence, as are most Sea Wolf tunes. The Orchard, and the apples, suggests a parallel with the Garden of Eden story - the seduction which takes place. All throughout, the orchard is represented as a beautiful and peaceful place, but also empty and cold. The element of nature is mysterious and dark, while the human element is warm. This is the effect that pulls the characters together. All of the lyrics are saying to me that these young lovers are going off into the woods to be alone together, but also striking off into the unknown and facing their fear of it together. |
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