| British Sea Power – Remember Me Lyrics | 6 years ago |
|
This popped up in my iTunes the other day, and I was brought back a decade ago to when I was really into BSP. So I checked out the video for this on YouTube, and it all kind of makes sense. This song is very interesting as it was written back in 2001, but remains even more topical in modern day UK. I'd say (and the music video appears to confirm as much) that this is about the fetishing of military remembrance in UK society, especially regarding World War I - hence the "Remember Me" chorus The following verse sums it up: "Did half of you pass away What about the other half Yeah what about the other half Whatever!" This refers to the young men who went to the front line in WWI - "Did half of you pass away?" And the contempt that was shown to them by the British ruling class at the time, "what about the other half? Whatever!" Indeed, this is backed up by the following two lines, regarding the contempt of the ruling class in the UK: "We're all part of the same old bloody regime With someone taking it out whilst you were putting it in" My take on the repetition of the lines "Increment by increment" is that they also refer to WWI, and in particular the trench warfare aspect of the conflict, whereby battle lines would inch forward into enemy territory at an infinitesimally slow pace. |
|
| The National – Mistaken for Strangers Lyrics | 7 years ago |
|
My take on this song is that it's about the singer's distaste for a former/old friend's career in the financial services industry, namely "Under the silvery, silvery Citibank lights". Note the reference to silver here - as in forty pieces of silver, you've sold your soul to Citibank, or whichever big company it is. The subject of the song believes they're better than everyone else because they earn more money and lead an extravagant lifestyle, "Oh, you wouldn't want an angel watching over you", but the truth is that this choice of life/career is deemed pathetic by the singer and indeed not nearly as interesting as the subject believes it is, "Surprise, surprise, they (the angel) wouldn't wanna watch". Then we get into just what has this person given up in their pursuit of greed/career? "You get mistaken for strangers by your own friends, when you pass them at night" - i.e. your old friends don't even recognize you any more, because you spend your whole life either working or in this superficial world. Hence why this person is passing their friends during night-time hours - as they would be working otherwise. "Showered and blue-blazered, fill yourself with quarters" - i.e. the subject is just like an automaton, fill them up with coins like a fairground attraction to make them operate ... "Make up something to believe in your heart of hearts, So you have something to wear on your sleeve of sleeves" - An interesting line. Makes reference to the idiom of wearing one's heart on their sleeve, i.e. to be passionate about your beliefs etc. The problem being that the subject of the song doesn't really believe in anything, thus the need to make up something. |
|
* This information can be up to 15 minutes delayed.