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.
I turn my camera on
I cut my fingers on the way
On the way, the way I'm slipping away
I turn my feelings off
Y'made me untouchable for life
Yeah, yeah and you wasn't polite
It hit me like a tom
You hit me like a tom
On, on, and on
Ooh yeah
When I turn my feelings on
I turn my feelings on inside
Yeah, feel like I'm gonna ignite
I saw them stars go off
I saw them stars go off at night
Ooh yeah, and they're looking alright
Keep on blowin up
Keep on blowin em off
Get up roll it out
Keep on showin em out
Y'hit me like a tom
It hit me like a tom
On and on a tom
I turn my camera on
I cut my fingers on the way
On the way, on the way
I feel me slippin away
I wipe my feelings off
Y'made me untouchable for life
(Keep on rolling on)
Ooh yeah and you wasn't polite
Y'hit me like a tom
I don't know where it's from
It hit me like a tom-tom
Ooh yeah
Ooh yeah, I turned my camera on
Ooh yeah, I turned my camera on
Ooh yeah
Ooh yeah
I turned my camera on (hit me like a tom)
I turned my camera on (hit me like a tom)
I turned my camera on (hit me like a tom)
I turned my camera on
Feel this slip away
I cut my fingers on the way
On the way, the way I'm slipping away
I turn my feelings off
Y'made me untouchable for life
Yeah, yeah and you wasn't polite
It hit me like a tom
You hit me like a tom
On, on, and on
Ooh yeah
When I turn my feelings on
I turn my feelings on inside
Yeah, feel like I'm gonna ignite
I saw them stars go off
I saw them stars go off at night
Ooh yeah, and they're looking alright
Keep on blowin up
Keep on blowin em off
Get up roll it out
Keep on showin em out
Y'hit me like a tom
It hit me like a tom
On and on a tom
I turn my camera on
I cut my fingers on the way
On the way, on the way
I feel me slippin away
I wipe my feelings off
Y'made me untouchable for life
(Keep on rolling on)
Ooh yeah and you wasn't polite
Y'hit me like a tom
I don't know where it's from
It hit me like a tom-tom
Ooh yeah
Ooh yeah, I turned my camera on
Ooh yeah, I turned my camera on
Ooh yeah
Ooh yeah
I turned my camera on (hit me like a tom)
I turned my camera on (hit me like a tom)
I turned my camera on (hit me like a tom)
I turned my camera on
Feel this slip away
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Hello! Newbie and first time poster here... It seems to me that he's saying he wanted to capture an experience, or capture feeling,s or particular moments in his life (cameras can be/are used to capture moments, memories...), but in his efforts to do so, he got hurt. And hurt BAD. The part about "hit me like a tom" is him saying She/the lover/ hit him like a tom as in tom tom drum- a percussion instrument. She used him to make some 'music' to please herself, used him like one would use an instrument to achieve an end. He was just the means.
It seems to me to be about him feeling like he has been used by his lover. Used, not loved. And this painful experience, this betrayal of trust and I suppose, an offense to his feelings of genuine affection for his lover have left him feeling scarred him for life.
The hurt and betrayal was totally unexpected (as it is in most cases, huh?) so, maybe, he really really trusted her and believed she loved him or cared about him for who he is not just what she could get from him. ? And post-betrayal, or post-being used by her, he's turned his heart off so as not to be hurt again. So as not to be used. Not to be hit like a tom tom drum ever again? And she wasn;t very nice about it all when confronted or asked for explanations. She might have been cruel, dismissive, callous.
Or maybe, like many peopld have done before me and will do after me, I'm just projecting from some of the embittering and painful experiences from my disastrous time as someone who feels used! :-/ :-( :-)
Cheers, Phocid from DownUnder.
One thing I love about Spoon is the way they take lyrics and sentiments about sad/depressing experiences, and turn them into funky, groovy numbers that make you want to dance -- very much a product of Britt's Mo-Town influence, I think.
For those who are familiar with the album art, I think the line, "I cut my fingers on the way" may be fairly significant, because the image of a cut finger is part of the cd/record's visual packaging. In my mind, that image represents symbolically cutting through barriers that stand in the way of emotions, inspirations, vitality, alive-ness, etc, much like cutting through skin to get blood.
Essentially, I think this song is expressing emotional impenetrability and an inability to feel, although I see two possible interpretations in terms of context. Perhaps it's about someone who meets another person who blows his mind so much that he couldn't possibly have feelings for anyone else ever again, or perhaps it's about someone who has never felt anything deeply for anyone ever in his life, until he meets this person who turns his feelings on -- perhaps more of a chicken vs. egg kind of thing.
Interestingly, on Ga^5, Eddie's Ragga has the lines, "And then the place ignite, It’s in my face" and later, "And then the place ignite, All out of grace," which harkens back to the line, "Feel like I'm gonna ignite," in this song. Within the context of these two songs, the word, "ignite," sounds to me like it represents a surge of emotions/feelings that is sudden and nearly volatile.
The imagery is also interesting in reference to the pyrotechnic metaphors in You Got Yr Cherry Bomb.
I'll be hopping and dropping a few more comments for Ga^5 and Gimme Fiction songs on this site. Thanks for reading.
Can't...stop...grooving...to...song...
Thanks to Spoon for creating the catchiest songs in the universe.
i don't even have time to comment on this song, i have to go listen to it
one of the catchiest songs ever created by man. the bass line is so simple it grabs you and pulls you in and wont let you go. this song will get stuck in your head for like months on end.....guaranteed.
they've done it againn
Guy lives througt his (insert device here) Because a woman hurt him, a lot.
bum-tisch-bum-tisch-bum-tisch-bum-b-bum-bum-tisch! (adopts Britt Daniel-esque falsetto) "I turn my camera on". How good is this?! They're finally coming to Manchester at the end of September. Oh, good Christ, am I looking forward to that?!
does anyone else think he sounds like beck sometimes?
britt's voice, i mean, not musically...