| Queensrÿche – Roads To Madness Lyrics | 2 years ago |
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Seems pretty clear that this is written from the perspective of a typical doomed HP Lovecraft or Clark Ashton Smith-type mystic anti-hero. Even the title seems borrowed from Lovecrafts' _At the Mouth of Madness_. It starts with a typical HPL introduction where the figure explains from the beginning that this has already taken place in the past, and he is recounting the events from some changed and maybe unpleasant perspective. He's opened up some occult portal in search of power or secret knowledge, only to discover the truth is too terrible to comprehend without going mad, and he's released some terrible entities from the other side who seek to destroy him for what he's done, and prevent him from using the powers he's tried to gain. He tries to escape, thinking in his madness he can eventually outrun his fate and become the being he sought to be in the first place, but there is nowhere he can go where is isn't pursued. Everywhere he goes (maybe to the end of time and space), he sows insanity and destruction, until he is eventually caught and either destroyed or dragged back to the realm of his phantom pursuers. |
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| Steely Dan – Peg Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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On first view, the 2nd verse conjures up the image of a man describing a photograph of a woman in a blue dress, that he keeps with her letter. But consider that the letter isn't a "Dear George" type letter, but rather, it is a Letter of Agreement: it is a contract, which a producer or director would naturally keep in his file with an actresses photograph. Now on second glance, it appears "done up in blueprint blue" could refer to the contract; it is a plan, an outline of a business structure that is to be built. But let's go back and look at our first impression again, that it is about the woman in a photograph, wearing a "blueprint blue" outfit. It brings to mind an image of a woman wearing a blueprint on her body. A whole set of plans that rest on her skin, parceled up like one of those meat diagrams that show you where the cuts of beef are on a cow. "It sure looks good on you." This is all a not-so-subtle legal threat to Peg to follow up with her end of the agreement, couched in the bubbly encouragement of a director who is trying to keep his nervous "actress" from losing heart and walking off the set. The verse ends with "And when you smile for the camera, I know I'll love you better." (the lyrics listed in the above quote right now are wrong, the actual lyric is "And when you smile", not "So won't you smile" which is how the line appears in the first verse). All previous doubt is now removed that she will be smiling for the camera. It's a done deal, all we're missing is the action. It's time for Peg to get on the set! |
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