22 Meanings
Add Yours
Follow
Share
Q&A
Dark Matter Lyrics
Inside the vehicle the cold is extreme
Smoke in my throat kicks me out of my dream
I try to relax but its warmer outside
I fail to connect, it's a tragic divide
This has become a full time career
To die young would take only 21 years
Gun down a school or blow up a car
The media circus will make you a star
Dark matter flowing out on to a tape
Is only as loud as the silence it breaks
Most things decay in a matter of days
The product is sold the memory fades
Crushed like a rose
In the river flow
I am I know
Smoke in my throat kicks me out of my dream
I try to relax but its warmer outside
I fail to connect, it's a tragic divide
To die young would take only 21 years
Gun down a school or blow up a car
The media circus will make you a star
Is only as loud as the silence it breaks
Most things decay in a matter of days
The product is sold the memory fades
In the river flow
I am I know
Song Info
Submitted by
ministry On Jun 21, 2002
More Porcupine Tree
Trains
Blackest Eyes
Arriving Somewhere But Not Here
The Sound Of Muzak
A Smart Kid
Add your song meanings, interpretations, facts, memories & more to the community.
I guess noboby commented on the title yet. Here's my vision: as the entire album is about music industry and how you try to make your life significant by releasing music and you can't do it as an "alternative" musician, this song sums it up and gives the answer. The theory of dark matter assumes that it fills about 80% of the universe and affects it dramatically, while remaining unseen. That's what "alternative" musicians are to the music industry. There's many of them and they affect lives, but remain unseen. The music appears unappreciated by masses, unheard. It's only as loud as the silence it breaks.
I've always thought that connecting art with science is amazing.
@Sapromind Also 'dark matter' refers to the dark magnetic tape used in recording music.
@Sapromind Also 'dark matter' refers to the dark magnetic tape used in recording music.
He's such a master of lyrical concepts..."to die young would take only 21 years". Man, this song is the reason Porcupine Tree is the best band of the 90s and 00s.
this song is amazing, the lyrics and music go together so well and the vocals and the beat its so mellow. so wonderful.
damn this is one of my favorites of the early PT era. i wish i was in steve wilsons head when he wrote all his lyrics so i could know what some of these songs are about. absolutely wonderful
i read in the Stars Die booklet that he wrote this on tour and was originally called "Tour Song".
This song is actually about life on the road and being in a successful band. The first verse talks about how uncomfortable and uninspiring the tour bus can be, how he just wishes he could go outside. The second verse, he thinks about other avenues in which one could become famous and the time he's wasted/labored in said carreer. And in the third verse, he's actually just talking about the release of music itself, how you pour your heart and soul into a project only for it to be forgotten within days, months, etc. But the refrain is about acceptance, coming to terms with one's self and the decesions we've made along the way, no matter how many people step on us. A personal favorite of mine too.
Somewhat ironic, since I'm listening to this song 15 year later, and it's still awesome. PT's music doesn't "decay in a matter of days", for sure.
Somewhat ironic, since I'm listening to this song 15 year later, and it's still awesome. PT's music doesn't "decay in a matter of days", for sure.
One has to understand that back in 1996, PT sales weren't so good as they would become. So of course SW was a bit depressed writing this song.
One has to understand that back in 1996, PT sales weren't so good as they would become. So of course SW was a bit depressed writing this song.
This album is about different ways people try to make their lives significant. This is one of the more overt ones. It's about someone trying to make something notable of themself through acts of violence. Among other things.
first of all, i must say that this is my favourite PT song. i've been grinding this song for ages now, and it gets me everytime exactly like the 1st time i listened to it.
anyways, i've been trying to think about what this song means. i think that what GroovyJude said is true. this entire album is about trying people trying to make their lives significant. i think that the 3 verse are describing 3 different stories. the first one sounds like a person trying to commit suicide in a car by connecting one end of a tube to the exhaust and the other into the car.
the second verse talks about how the worst things you'll do will get you to be the most famous. the media leaves on bad stuff people do.
the third verse is about artists writing their most painfull memories in a song, which eventually sells very good, and the song looses it's meaning eventually.
well, that's my idea for this beautifull song. i'd really like to hear some of your opinions guys :)
Amazing song with an awesome outro on guitar and drums.
Gun down a school or blow up a car The media circus will make you a star
So true, one of just a few lines that showcase the brilliant songwriting of Steven Wilson.
The spoken word bit at the end of the song, about electroshock therapy, is actually from an old, old episode of Saturday Night Live. It was originally part of a fake advertisement for a beer aimed at lobotomized people, Spud. I'm a big fan of both Porcupine Tree and SNL and I thought it was crazy when I made the connection.