We Suck Young Blood. (Your Time Is Up.) Lyrics

Are you hungry?
Are you sick?
Are you begging for a break?
Are you sweet?
Are you fresh?
Are you strung up by the wrists?
We want the young blood

Are you fracturing?
Are you torn at the seams?
Did you do anything?
Fleabitten? Motheaten?
We suck young blood
We suck young blood

Woah, woah

Won't let the creeping ivy?
Won't let the nervous bury me
Our veins are thin
Our rivers poisoned
We want the sweet meats
We want the young blood
Song Info
Submitted by
ruben On Jul 31, 2002
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Cover art for We Suck Young Blood. (Your Time Is Up.) lyrics by Radiohead

I agree that this is not about "sucking blood" literally, but in some way or the other a social commentary on the impact society can have on a person; wearing them out, beating them down, in essence "sucking" the "young blood" from them (wearing them down). Even better, there is an underlying idea of the loss of innocence. What this may be about may not be as shallow as society wearing you down, but the corruption of "young blood," which could signify innocence. My impression of the final verse is that in the narrator's search for young blood [innocence] he states "our veins are thin," and "our rivers are poisoned," as if he has not had "young blood" in quite some time, and cannot find any more. Accepting my theory on this song, the delivery is outstanding. Dark undertones and implicit desperation make me think of being stranded in a desert without anything to drink, as this narrator, in his search for innocence, is stranded in society without anything innocent around him. This song is definitely my favorite song on HTTT. The way Thom sings... so creepy, so dark, so RIGHT. What makes Radiohead the best band in the universe is that Thom's voice is not just a "voice..." it has as much, in my opinion more, importance as the guitar, drums, bass, FX, etc. in making the music what it is; exemplified by this song.

That is so ACCURATE damn.

Cover art for We Suck Young Blood. (Your Time Is Up.) lyrics by Radiohead

I also am surprised there arent more posts on this song. At first when I saw the title I rolled my eyes and thought 'this is gonna suck, sounds like some sort of rob zombie kind of hard rock song. When listening, I get the impression of a man in a village speaking on behalf of the town and is sort of drawn to blood no matter how he resists. I particularly like the 'ooooos' in the chorus- and how the piano crescendos during the chorus- chorus very strong. One of the best on HTTT

Cover art for We Suck Young Blood. (Your Time Is Up.) lyrics by Radiohead

This song is just CREEPY. But it's also totally ironic.

Anyway, I think this song is about slave labory and industrialization. And how they have absolutely no hearts.

"are you hungry? are you sick? are you begging for a break?"

The people from poor countries are very desperate and will work for any amounts of money, because they have no other jobs. They simply exploit this to gain tons of profit.

"are you strung up by the wrists? are you fracturing?"

Their repetitive and potentially dangerous works are causing permanent damages to their bodies(especially to their hands and wrists).

"we want the young blood we suck young blood"

Younger people are more efficient and can work quicker... And most of the slave labors are just children, even though they're still under-aged and not allowed to work.

Cover art for We Suck Young Blood. (Your Time Is Up.) lyrics by Radiohead

Jove makes me wish I weren't circumsized.

About the song, though.. It's great, I like the claps. Radiohead's newer stuff sort of grows on me like mold, so I'll have to listen to it more to become properly infected.

Cover art for We Suck Young Blood. (Your Time Is Up.) lyrics by Radiohead

This song kicks ass. Dark = good.

Sounds like the music/entertainment industry sucking up new young artists & making puppets out of them. It sounds like an Illuminati song....

Not Valid
Cover art for We Suck Young Blood. (Your Time Is Up.) lyrics by Radiohead

saturnine, foie gras pate is made by force feeding the geese, it's very cruel, i suppose it goes with the torture theme. this song puts me in a very strange mood. the first time i heard the album, it was on in the background and i suddenly felt very strange, lazy and hypnotized, i didnt know what was going on until i realised it was the music. it's strange also, it reminds me of twin peaks (the tv series) probably from the sad piano bits. but it sort of relates to the first couple of posts, about a strange community, if you see what i mean.

Cover art for We Suck Young Blood. (Your Time Is Up.) lyrics by Radiohead

Did anybody see the posters that radiohead put up featuring these lyrics? They had a phone number on the bottom of it making it look like an advert for a Pop Idol style competition. Highly amusing.

Cover art for We Suck Young Blood. (Your Time Is Up.) lyrics by Radiohead

This song gives me a weird feeling when I watch people out in public while listening to it.

Also, I think the "poli-tics" thing is supposed to be more of a joke. ya know. ;) I'm not sure where it was I read it, but I definitely remember it being in a humorous context. I think aubree probably realizes that.

Cover art for We Suck Young Blood. (Your Time Is Up.) lyrics by Radiohead

Oh, and adding to the foie gras thing, the way they used to do it (I'm pretty sure this method's illegal here, now; not sure about other places) was by nailing the goose's feet down so it couldn't walk around and then feeding it lots and lots of very fatty food. Then the pate is made from the liver, which is extremely rich as a result of the goose's diet.

Cover art for We Suck Young Blood. (Your Time Is Up.) lyrics by Radiohead

I don't like this song. It's my least favourite on HTTT. Now that I look at the actual lyrics, though, they're very good.

And I agree with the interpretation above. It definitely sounds like an ailing community, not one that literally sucks blood but one that drains the life out of people.