So this has been.my favorite song of OTEP's since it came out in 2004, and I always thought it was a song about a child's narrative of suffering in an abusive Christian home. But now that I am revisiting the lyrics, I am seeing something totally new.
This song could be gospel of John but from the perspective of Jesus.
Jesus was NOT having a good time up to and during the crucifixion. Everyone in the known world at the time looked to him with fear, admiration or disgust and he was constantly being asked questions. He spoke in "verses, prophesies and curses". He had made an enemy of the state, and believed the world was increasingly wicked and fallen from grace, or that he was in the "mouth of madness".
The spine of atlas is the structure that allows the titan to hold the world up. Jesus challenged the state and in doing so became a celebrated resistance figure. It also made him public enemy #1.
All of this happened simply because he was doing his thing, not because of any agenda he had or strategy.
And then he gets scourged (storm of thorns)
There are some plot holes here but I think it's an interesting interpretation.
the sun is shining
it could be a wonderful day
the children play outside
while the birds sing in the sky
a warm breeze moves the grass
and small feet squeeze it
and while a butterfly passes
you hear the children laugh
it's waiting in the dark
a tiny metal bar
peeps out of the ground
dew reflects the sun rays
see me
see me
oh please see me
it's waiting in the dark
a stone is pushed back in the earth
while a small sole pushes the metal bar
a tiny flash
disappears into the ground
a soft click
and with a hollow sound
slowly it ejects - irrevocable
with a swirling movement like a butterfly
it's slowly climbing high
it passes the knees
it passes the hands
it passes the chest
until it reached its high
another click
and a fireball appears out of a shock wave
- the eardrums break
like deadly insects
a swarm of glowing spikes
bursts out of the red center
while flying razor blades
peel the last laugh off the face
- smeared with blood
a firestorm burns down pieces of flesh
on the red colored grass
stop searching
hell is already here
yes we made it happen
worse than any beast of prey
it could be a wonderful day
the children play outside
while the birds sing in the sky
a warm breeze moves the grass
and small feet squeeze it
and while a butterfly passes
you hear the children laugh
it's waiting in the dark
a tiny metal bar
peeps out of the ground
dew reflects the sun rays
see me
see me
oh please see me
it's waiting in the dark
a stone is pushed back in the earth
while a small sole pushes the metal bar
a tiny flash
disappears into the ground
a soft click
and with a hollow sound
slowly it ejects - irrevocable
with a swirling movement like a butterfly
it's slowly climbing high
it passes the knees
it passes the hands
it passes the chest
until it reached its high
another click
and a fireball appears out of a shock wave
- the eardrums break
like deadly insects
a swarm of glowing spikes
bursts out of the red center
while flying razor blades
peel the last laugh off the face
- smeared with blood
a firestorm burns down pieces of flesh
on the red colored grass
stop searching
hell is already here
yes we made it happen
worse than any beast of prey
Lyrics submitted by dthprod
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It seems to me that it's a pretty obvious meaning really. The title "Mine / Beast of Prey" kind of says it anyway.
It's about children laughing in the day, while nearby a landmine lays in waiting. I don't think it's even intended that much as a metaphor. It's merely a reflection on how our world has turned out, and how we leave our past battlefields strewn with devices that lay in waiting to kill future generations.