Daylight

the first few times, and even still some after, this song just makes me say wow. wow.

Wow....a rap song that actually has thought and emotions behind its words.....who would've thought? (That's sarcasm by the way) I wish more rappers would take a hint from these guys instead of rapping about bitches and pistol whipping......might actually give them a little more credibility out in the world, as quite a few of them deserve....

One of my favorite hip hop songs. For awhile I hated the genre, because I was looking at mainstream acts like DMX, Jay Z etc. that have absolutely NOTHING of value to say in their lyrics and can barely put together a couplet. Aesop Rock is everything they aren't. He is quite literally a genius, so I'm not asking that the genre as a whole try to emulate him (an impossibility) - instead, I simply with people would use rap, a very powerful medium, in a more intelligent, thoughtful way.

actually... i think Music for Earthworms is the best Aesop Rock album... if you can get your hands on it.

www.definitivejux.net is also a great site with lots of other talented artists.

I'm planning on making an interpretation of the whole song but here's what I've gotten so far. I'm also going to insert commas and semi-colons into the lyrics to make them clearer.

"Put one up for shackle-me-not clean logic procreation" - "Put one up for Shackle Me Not; clean, logic procreation"

"Shackle Me Not" is a famous skateboarding video that was made in 1988, famed for its innovation and showcasing of new tricks. "Clean logic procreation" can be put as "Clean, logical procreation" which is enforcing this idea of individualism - being raised whilst not having your opinions and your mind tainted by media or any outside influence.

"I did not invent the wheel I was the crooked spoke adjacent"

Aesop states that he didn't "invent the wheel" which means that he did not make things this way - he did not make the "cycle". Instead, he was the "crooked spoke" adjacent to the wheel. This could mean either that he was disrupting the wheel (raging against "the man"), or he was discarded from the wheel (made an outcast), depending on your interpretation of "adjacent".

"While the Triple-Sixers' lassos keep Angels roped in the basement"

Speaks for itself really. In its plainest form: "whilst the bad keeps the good pinned down".

"I walk the block with a halo on a stick poking your patience"

This is interesting because normally you would associate the Devil with poking people with a pitchfork. However, Aesop uses that symbol as a sign of his good intentions and of how people misinterpret his intentions as being evil. Aesop is trying to open people's minds with his music, but many do not want this.

"Y'all catch a thirty second flash visual"

Simply, "you watch a thirty second advertisement"

"Dirty cooperative med platoon bloom head trip split ridiculous" - "Dirty, cooperative medical platoon bloom; head-trip, split, ridiculous"

He's referring to the tainting of the mind that the media causes, yet is using a symbol of war (a medical platoon). Medical platoons are supposed to be a form of utmost help, so this is possibly a reference to how some advertisements target a certain audience and promise to "better their lives" with whatever they are trying to sell.

"Fathom the splicing a first generation fuck up will trickle down to any hero smack; crackin' "

The "first generation fuck up" - or in other words, "American fuck up" - seems to be a reference to the person who is behind these advertisements and/or media that is destroying the minds of potential heroines and heroes. It could also be an allusion to what is being advertised. Aes is saying "think of the tainting that a media mogul will place upon a potential hero" (a "smack" means a slight trace of something, i.e. a "slight trace" of a hero.) "Cracking" is, by definition: "The thermal decomposition of a substance, especially that of crude petroleum in order to produce petrol / gasoline." You can make up your own minds on that one.

Hip hop is an art form and art is about creativity. Isn't creativity about 'person creating something new' anyway? So, comparing Aesop Rock to some other rappers out there isn't fair. I listen to all kinds of hip hop from mainstream to undergroung, from poetry to bullshit. They all have something different to offer...

The keyword here is different. My favorite hip hop artists involve such names as Mos Def, Talib Kweli (especially together for Black Star), Common, Lupe Fiasco and even Kid Cudi. They all have their style, their own message and their way to bring up the message. What I like about Aesop Rock though is that he brings up his message on a different way: he lets you figure it out urself; instead of just simple straightforward lyrics he lets your imagination do the work through the beat, tone of his voice and absurd sentences that might not make sense at first. I'm a guy from Europe and I can still relate to this song and the album on my own way... That is the beauty of Aesop Rock!

The lyrics definitely have a meaning but with all the metaphors/references from popular culture, movies, books, tales (-->general knowledge).. it's pretty much impossible for anyone but Aesop Rock himself to understand them fully. You are supposed to pick up these little pieces that you do understand and create your own picture of the message --> create a bigger picture.

"All I ever wanted was to pick apart the day, put the pieces back together my way."

The goal of his lyrics seems to be to wake us up. We need to see the bigger picture in order to understand that a lot things in this world are messed up and we don't even notice coz we don't use our own brain coz that is how the system (through propaganda) has trained us -> to be ignorant.

"Daylight" and the whole album does it's purpose. I love it.

If you like intelligent lyrics like this song's, here are few examples from my favorites u should try: Black Star - Thieves in the Night, Lupe Fiasco - Put You on Game, Mos Def - Life in Marvelous Times, Gang Starr - Moment of Truth, Nas - Sly Fox

referencemark posted a lot of things I agree with.

"I did not invent the wheel; I was the crooked spoke adjacent." – Feeling like an outsider and that you are incompatible with reality on the terms that its been handed to you.

"Now it's an honor and I spell it with the 'H' I stole from heritage." – Probably a dig at colonialism. A line or two before this, he talks about the "American nightmare." He's talking about how the barbaric process of colonizing what we currently call the United States is dressed up as some prideful freedom that we are all entitled to just by virtue of being born on this soil. It's arrogant to think we ought to be allowed to own things like land and water.

"All I ever wanted was to pick apart the day, put the pieces back together my way" – Similar to the meaning of the crooked spoke line. Aesop says that all he's ever wanted to do is to reconstruct reality on his own terms since he can't accept the world he's presently surrounded by.

"Who split HOLIDAY freaks ON A BOX CUT CINEMA, high road bellow Heads ripped! Watch red bricks turn yellow Sort of similar to most backbones at camp Icarus" – "Holiday freaks" refers to prostitutes. Think about the "Holiday Inn" and the "freaks" that keep finding themselves in them. This is another dig at the idea of the American dream. The "box cut cinema, high road bellow" is actually talking about a prostitute's aspiration to become a successful pornographic actor.

"Red bricks turn yellow" is a Wizard of Oz reference. This goes back to the idea that by having goals and such, we can achieve a better future for ourselves. The bit about Icarus is referring to the mythological character who flew a little too close to the sun and it ended up melting his wax wings and caused him to plummet into a body of water where he drowned and died. The myth itself is an illustration of hubris or pride, and Aesop likens it to the pride of those who believe in the American dream.

this song's hella tite

Great song. If you like this one you need to check out Night Light. The duality in those two songs blows me away.

Great song. If you like this one you need to check out Night Light. The duality in those two songs blows me away.