| Tool – Schism Lyrics | 22 years ago |
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I have to agree with a lot of what everyone has said... the main fact I HAVE to agree with is that Maynard incorporates so many different meanings into his songs that almost anyone who makes an interpretation is correct, because he makes the music, and expects people to make their own interpretation and apply it to their own personal life... however i'll just tell it the way I see it, which is probably far from the truth, but it's my own personal truth. For a long time I considered this song from the relationship stand point. I still see the strong arguements made to the relationship testament in this song... it very well could deal with 2 depleted lovers... and how although once the pieces were all there, yet after losing everything they had and breaking into those "pieces", he wishes to re-find them... bring them back together... I mean that can even be seen in the video (but I'll make a different point on the video later) where in the end they come together, reforming the one... which is what i believe a relationship does. It takes 2 people and forms them into 1 body... But that's not even what this interpretation is about... after a long time of pondering over it, I've come to realize I think the song is about the religious aspect of it all... there are a lot of Tool songs that deal with religion... so... here goes nothin. Okay, the hardest area for me to cover is who the song seems to be coming from... I don't feel that Maynard meant for this to seem as if it's coming from his mouth... maybe these words are meant to be from Christ? but my best feeling is that the words are simply from any believer who can realize what has happened to "faith" because of the blunder known as "religion"... At one time, the "church" was one body. It was a singular unit, set on one system of beliefs that everyone who had faith followed... there was none of this "denomination" shit... "I know the pieces fit, cuz i watched them fall away" (saying that he knows religion should be one body, even though it's not. he's seen the separations) "Mildewed and smoldering. Fundamental differing" (rotten and burned up, to put it into different terms... when he says fundamental differing, i think he's showing the basis for the break... that from the very FUNDAMENTALS of the belief structure, there started to be DIFFERING feelings among people, and how they wanted to express them) "Pure Intention juxtaposed will set 2 lovers souls in motion" (meaning that although the intentions every time were pure, they were juxtaposed, or twised, and because of that, it sat 2 lovers [of Christ] into almost a square off to see who could be MORE correct) "Distentigrating as it goes, testing our communication" (simply saying the square off was what orignially caused the separation into pieces, and it caused a lack of discussion) "The light that fueled the fire then has burned a hole between us so we cannot see to reach an end, crippling our communication" (the light of passion that originally fueled our fire [love] for Christ is what, in the end, tore us apart and burned a hole between us... it's caused the end of the communication as well) "I know the pieces fit cuz i watched them tumble down. No fault, none to blame, that doesn't mean I don't desire to point the finger, blame the other, watch the temple topple over bring the pieces back together, rediscover communcation" (I think here the meaning is that although no one is directly to blame for this break, because every "piece" that was broken was done in the name of righteousness. Still, he thinks he's right, so he wants to be able to point the finger, say the OTHER was wrong. Yet still he wants to see the separate temples topple over, and the pieces brought back together, so they can reunite under one belief system." I know the end of that last interpretation was a bit shaky, because i say that the meaning of the "temple toppling over" was the separate temples, so they could be reunited... but i think my theory is backed up in the next paragraph. "The poetry that comes from the squaring off between, and the circling is worth it, finding beauty in the dissonance" (although the separation needs to end, the writer is saying that the separation NEEDED to happen... because the church split, and each went it's own direction, the poetry [writings, findings, ideals] that came from the separation, and the fighting was worth it. It brings new truths back to the faith, thus strengthening it.) The next paragraph just restates the others... that the whole was broken into the "pieces" due to the fighting and coveting. The writer knows that they MUST return together. otherwise the separate pieces will fall. They must grow, and strengthen, and reunite. At the end, Maynard says "Cold silence had a tendency to atrophy any sense of compassion between supposed lovers".... I think what he's saying is that the breaks have cause us to lose true LOVE for our counterparts (the other pieces)... and we're SUPPOSED to be lovers of Christ, or the one true god (whatever your belief states that that is)... but how can we be if we can't even get along with our fellow believers? Okay, to wrap this all up... I'll refer to the video one more time... although it can be seen as 2 separate people becoming one, i believe it's the "church" reforming into one unit... I mean notice what happens to the 2 separated people [who represent "denominations"]... they almost seem to be trying to outdo the other. I mean one even stands on his head during the song. It seems they're trying to show that they're the BETTER group (which you can't deny happens today). Yet in the end, the 2 come together, reforming the one true body... Thanks for reading my entirely too long interpretation... I know a lot of what I've said isn't right, but I like to believe that my belief is pretty close. However, once again, Tool's music is meant for you to make your OWN interpretation, so you can apply it to your own life... Once again, sorry this is so long (as are all of my other interpretations). Continue to keep posting, and keep open that third eye... |
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| Tool – Lateralus Lyrics | 22 years ago |
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Hey guys, awesome interpretations so far. Again this is everyone's THOUGHTS, so if I seem to dis anyone or anything by what I say, nothin bad intended. I think it's great seein what other people think. Anyway, on to the interpretation. To begin with, I wanna clear up an earlier post. Colsy said the title was pronounced "Lateral-Us" (A mistake i made too for a long time) but it's really pronounced "Ladder-alice" (say it and it makes sense, i found this in the FAQ from toolshed.net). Instead of "Side of Us", i think the song deals with lateral parts (the bigger picture, as maynard put it). Anyway, it deals with the ability to have a physical life, as well as a spiritual one (In whatever god you chose to believe in). "Black then white are all i see in my infancy" (at birth and early on you only see what's plain to the human eye, the physical side of life) "Red and yellow came to be, reaching out for me" (how spiritual feelings creep up after sometime, and almost seem to make you realize a new side of life) To keep from breaking down every line in the song (like i did on "the grudge") i'll just say that the next section deals with testing spiritual life (pushin that envelope, watching it bend, almost to see how far it will go). spiritual life takes you 'beyond the lines of reason'. Yet he retracts these statements by talking about "OVER thinking, and OVER analyzing" (saying that there is a balance in spirit and body, don't push either ot the extreme, because you'll become separate humans, leading a LATERAL life) Then he speaks about reaching out to embrace the random.... possibly spiritual meaning saying that he holds on to a belief hoping that he can eventually find truth in it. The next part seems to be my strongest point of backing. he speaks about how he has the desire to do all of these wonderful (spiritual and physical) things, and he sums it all up by saying "swing on the spiral of our divinity and still be a human" (think about it... the lateral lives of body and spirit NEVER have to each other, they can stay completely separate, but he longs to bring them together, to SPIRAL them, and make such a connection to feel DIVINE but remain a HUMAN.) Next he backs my statement again. He speaks of 'keeping his feet on the ground', yet he also talks about an enlightenment of somekind 'opening wide to suck it in and feeling it move across his skin'. He wants that connection of body and spirit, as everyone does. He'll continue to connect the 2 to push the boundaries and enlighten himself "Spiral out, keep going...." And interpretation is now done, thanks for botherin to read this terribly long post (as are all of mine, sorry bout that). Anyway, continue writin posts, i love to read em, and again this is only my opinion. Later... |
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| Tool – The Grudge Lyrics | 22 years ago |
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Just like schism86 said, i had this post before the site re-vamped... I'm just gonna copy what I wrote before.. It's hella long, so only read it if your REALLY interested. First off, sorry this is gonna be so long, I'm gonna disect pretty much every line Well guys, I'm not here to clear anything up on the meaning of this song, cuz I don't know it for sure. I like to think my interpretation is right (some of you are probably closer though), but it's open to everyone's views, and I love reading what all of you think. But anyway, here goes. I think unlike most songs, Tool is pretty straightforward on this song. It doesn't seem allegorical, but it is quite deep. To be honest, after buying lateralus and hearing this song, it became my life motto. I hate grudges, and I can't stand holding them now. It just seems so childish. I think Maynard is almost throwing the idea of grudge holding back into the faces of people that do it. He's making fun of them for such a savage thing. Like the first line... "wear the grudge like a crown of negativity" (go ahead, put your grudge out where everyone can see it, let everyone know that you're mad and that you want to be that way). "calculate what we will and will not tolerate" (decide exactly what you want to get mad over that would make you hold a grudge. this way when it happens, you can keep putting that crown back on) "desperate to control all and everything" (you don't want to be on good terms. you WANT the grudge. if you can control the grudge, you can control the person you hold the grudge against.) "unable to forgive your scarlet letterman" (although they know they've done wrong, you won't forgive them under any circumstance) "clutch it like a cornerstone, otherwise it all comes down" (clutch the grudge that you hold like a cornerstone, because you know if you don't then the grudge dies. you don't want that) "justify denials and grip em to the lonesome end" (come up with excuses to continue holding the grudge, and stand by them until the end, even when everyone hates you for what you're doing, hence lonesome) "Terrified of being wrong, ultimatum prison cell" (you're scared to death that someone can prove that you have no reason to hold a grudge. you worry about it so much you put yourself in your own little prison over it) [Remember this whole time, I believe Maynard's making fun of the people that do this. Almost reverse psycology by showing them how stupid it is] Then I have to agree with 'Insecure Dilusions' idea on the Saturn thing. Saturn was god of all greek gods. he was sooo worried he could be overthrown he ate his children. Yet Zeus was the one thing that Saturn overlooked. That one thing overthrew Saturn and killed him. Hang on to the grudge like saturn would, because if you don't you'll be humbled in your ignorance. And later he says "ignorant to the damage done"... ignorance isn't stupidity, it's not knowing about something. in this case, Saturn was ignorant to the damage done to himself until Zeus killed him. "unable to forgive and we're sinking deeper" (you won't forgive, and for this you're slowly creating a larger grudge) The grudge begins to define you, confine you, even control you. Again to the Saturn reference for almost the rest of the song. Saying that Saturn, almost as if, takes over your body. He and you become one, you make the decisions Saturn chose. And not until you end the grudge will he quit tearing you apart. Finally Maynard quit's criticizing and simply tells them what they need to do. Give away the (corner)stone. Let the oceans take and transmute this cold and weighted anchor (that was your grudge, holding you down). Give away the stone. Let the waters take and transmute these leaden (heavy burdensome) grudges into gold. LET GO. And thus ends my entirely too long interpretation. However, this is what I believe and exactly how I feel. This pretty much explains my life motto. I thank each of your for your time in reading such a long and drawn out post. You deserve a pat on the back for putting up with my jabbering. |
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| Tool – H. Lyrics | 22 years ago |
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Okay guys, I'm pretty positive on this meaning. This isn't my own interpretation, therefore I do not take credit for it, but I do agree with it. Okay, about the meaning from toolshed.down.net... it's partly true, but not completely. Ya ever wonder why they just DO NOT play that song on tour, like hardly at all, even though it's so popular? Well it's because this song has a special meaning to Maynard. Devo Keenan, his son, has the middle name of H... not anything extra... just H. The song isn't about any person at all, it's about his son... think about the song. Maynard had a bad relationship with his father when he was young, constantly being abused. Even though he loves Devo, sometimes he has a problem, and wants to hurt him. He gets it from his father... and it causes him to want to lash out at his wife and his child. that's why when he says they're "void of hate, but killing him just the same"... he means that Devo loves him, but he's still hurting Maynard because of Maynard's past.... When he talks about "snake behind me hisses, what my damage could have been", he's talkin about how what his father did to him wants to resurge through him and onto Devo. then the next verse "my blood before me begs me, open up my heart again"... he's sayin that the blood before him (his children, future grandchildren, etc.) is begging him to forget the past and start over... Infer the rest of the song for yourself. I think this is the best explanation possible. Thanks for botherin to read this. |
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