In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Sur la boite cartonnee un trompe-l'oeil
Avoue volontiers qu'il est trompe-l'oeil.
Sur la boite cartonnee un trompe-l'oeil
Avoue volontiers qu'il est trompe-l'oeil,
Donne l'idee do jeu et do mystere,
Un spectacle intime donne l'idee do jeu et de l'humour,
Spectacle qui rime, qui suscite dans les yeux un eclair,
Une decouverte, une idee qui peut jouer des tours,
Une muse, certes, donne l'idee do jeu et do mystere,
Un spectacle intime.
Sur la boite cartonnee un trompe-l'oeil
Avoue volontiers qu'il est trompe-l'oeil.
Sur la boite cartonnee un trompe-l'oeil
Avoue volontiers qu'il est trompe-l'oeil.
Miss Modular
On the cased box a trompe l'oeil
Confesses willingly that it is trompe l'oeil.
On the cased box a trompe l'oeil
Confesses willingly that it is trompe l'oeil,
Gives the idea of the game and the mystery,
An intimate spectacle gives the idea of the game and the humor,
Spectacle that rhymes, that arouses on the eyes a flash,
A discovery, an idea that can play tricks,
A muse, admittedly, gives the idea of the game and the mystery,
An intimate spectacle.
On the cased box a trompe l'oeil
Confesses willingly that it is trompe l'oeil.
On the cased box a trompe l'oeil
Confesses willingly that it is trompe l'oeil.
Avoue volontiers qu'il est trompe-l'oeil.
Sur la boite cartonnee un trompe-l'oeil
Avoue volontiers qu'il est trompe-l'oeil,
Donne l'idee do jeu et do mystere,
Un spectacle intime donne l'idee do jeu et de l'humour,
Spectacle qui rime, qui suscite dans les yeux un eclair,
Une decouverte, une idee qui peut jouer des tours,
Une muse, certes, donne l'idee do jeu et do mystere,
Un spectacle intime.
Sur la boite cartonnee un trompe-l'oeil
Avoue volontiers qu'il est trompe-l'oeil.
Sur la boite cartonnee un trompe-l'oeil
Avoue volontiers qu'il est trompe-l'oeil.
Miss Modular
On the cased box a trompe l'oeil
Confesses willingly that it is trompe l'oeil.
On the cased box a trompe l'oeil
Confesses willingly that it is trompe l'oeil,
Gives the idea of the game and the mystery,
An intimate spectacle gives the idea of the game and the humor,
Spectacle that rhymes, that arouses on the eyes a flash,
A discovery, an idea that can play tricks,
A muse, admittedly, gives the idea of the game and the mystery,
An intimate spectacle.
On the cased box a trompe l'oeil
Confesses willingly that it is trompe l'oeil.
On the cased box a trompe l'oeil
Confesses willingly that it is trompe l'oeil.
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Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
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The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
Hayalperest
Hayalperest
This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
Here's a not very good half self-translation in English:
On the cardboard box a trompe loeil Readily confesses that it is trompe loeil. On the cardboard box a trompe loeil Readily confesses that it is trompe loeil, It gives off the notion of a game and a mystery, A quiet spectacle gives off the notion of a game and humour, A Spectacle that rhymes, that arouses on the eyes a flash, A discovery, an idea that may play tricks, A muse, certainly, that gives off the notion of a game and a mystery, An intimate spectacle.
On the cardboard box a trompe loeil Readily confesses that it is trompe loeil.
On the cardboard box a trompe loeil Confesses willingly that it is trompe loeil
One thing I know is that "trompe l'oeil" literally means "trick the eye", in other words a trick/fool of the eye (later fooling the eye) or something deceptive. Although many of their songs do have socialistic meanings, I don't think this one is really. Having said that, I don't really know what it's talking about...
Dear Donny (and anyone else who thinks like Donny),
Art is not obligated to make any sense to you in particular or the audience at large. It’s the abstract (re:”vague”) nature of art that makes it beautiful. If you want something literal, read a newspaper or take a photograph. Art serves a completely different purpose. And Stereolab certainly were not doing it for the money — anyone who knows the first thing about them know they did not like money and capitalism. Stereolab was / is a masterful band and I would not change a single thing about their work to fit some banal expectation of accessibility to the lowest common denominator.
That being said, I do not know exactly what the song is about (and that’s okay), but “trompe loeil” means “optical illusion”. Combined with the other translation, the song is about someone pretending to be something it’s not. It’s plain to everyone that the person or thing is not genuine, as it’s plainly written on the box, yet everyone is dazzled by the show regardless and like to pretend it’s real.
Knowing Stereolab seems to put their extremely socialistic songs in french, I kind of suspect this is a song about socialism.
Kudos to them if it is.
it is simply about the music product --
Guy Debord
I hate it when artists try to be vauge and arty with their song lyrics. Now a trend is to put ... for left out on purpose lyrics. And the fact that the words aren't universal sucks to me. But if you want to stay poor, break-up and then not get remembered when you show a lot of potential otherwise be my guest. Also in the case of Stereolab I suspect that the French woman in SL couldn't sing and play the keyboards at the same time. And since they are keyboard driven songs- that killed live performances. But when the lyrics make sense they are GREAT to me like the Milkyway song about Andy. I fall in the category of HATING artists burying vocals way in the background although on a sidetone "Brown Sugar" by the Stones is SO racist that they had to do it. How did they get away with that one? But so I love and hate SL at the same time. The New Pornographers are the same range of this live performance problem plus lyrics made so they can't be understood by us. I just think that's like constantly sticking the finger super hard at the fans. Artists reading this- don't be an A-hole like that. Be universal, clear in singing your vocals and artistic as you want to be all the same time. While Barnet Newman can get 45 million + for his Blue with white stripe painting, music doesn't seem to work that way.
I hate it when artists try to be vauge and arty with their song lyrics. Now a trend is to put ... for left out on purpose lyrics. And the fact that the words aren't universal sucks to me. But if you want to stay poor, break-up and then not get remembered when you show a lot of potential otherwise be my guest. Also in the case of Stereolab I suspect that the French woman in SL couldn't sing and play the keyboards at the same time. And since they are keyboard driven songs- that killed live performances. But when the lyrics make sense they are GREAT to me like the Milkyway song about Andy. I fall in the category of HATING artists burying vocals way in the background although on a sidetone "Brown Sugar" by the Stones is SO racist that they had to do it. How did they get away with that one? But so I love and hate SL at the same time. The New Pornographers are the same range of this live performance problem plus lyrics made so they can't be understood by us. I just think that's like constantly sticking the finger super hard at the fans. Artists reading this- don't be an A-hole like that. Be universal, clear in singing your vocals and artistic as you want to be all the same time. While Barnet Newman can get 45 million + for his Blue with white stripe painting, music doesn't seem to work that way.
I hate it when artists try to be vauge and arty with their song lyrics. Now a trend is to put ... for left out on purpose lyrics. And the fact that the words aren't universal sucks to me. But if you want to stay poor, break-up and then not get remembered when you show a lot of potential otherwise be my guest. Also in the case of Stereolab I suspect that the French woman in SL couldn't sing and play the keyboards at the same time. And since they are keyboard driven songs- that killed live performances. But when the lyrics make sense they are GREAT to me like the Milkyway song about Andy. I fall in the category of HATING artists burying vocals way in the background although on a sidetone "Brown Sugar" by the Stones is SO racist that they had to do it. How did they get away with that one? But so I love and hate SL at the same time. The New Pornographers are the same range of this live performance problem plus lyrics made so they can't be understood by us. I just think that's like constantly sticking the finger super hard at the fans. Artists reading this- don't be an A-hole like that. Be universal, clear in singing your vocals and artistic as you want to be all the same time. While Barnet Newman can get 45 million + for his Blue with white stripe painting, music doesn't seem to work that way.