Both as a standalone and as part of the DSOTS album, you can take this lyric as read. As a matter of public record, Jourgensen's drug intake was legendary even in the 1980s. By the late 90s, in his own words, he was grappling with massive addiction issues and had lost almost everything: friends, spouse, money and had nearly died more than once. "Dark Side of the Spoon" is a both funny & sad title for an album made by a musical genius who was losing the plot; and this song is a message to his fans & friends saying he knows it. It's painful to listen to so I'm glad the "Keith Richards of industrial metals" wised up and cleaned up. Well done sir.
Some said the local lake had been enchanted
Others said it must have been the weather
The neighbors were trying to keep it quiet
But I swear that I could hear the laughter
So they jokingly nicknamed it the porridge
Cause overnight that lake had turned as thick as butter
But the local kids would still go swimming, drinking
Saying that to them it doesn't matter
If you just hold in your breath til you come back up in full
Hold in your breath til you thought it through, you fool
The genius next door was busing tables
Wiping clean the ketchup bottle labels
Getting high and mumbling German fables
Didn't care as long as he was able
To strip his clothes off by the dumpsters
At night while everyone was sleeping
And to wade midway into that porridge
Just him and the secret he was keeping
If you just hold in your breath til you come back up in full
Hold in your breath til you thought it through, you foolish child
In the morning the film crews start arriving
With donuts, coffee and reporters
The kids were waking up hungover
The neighbors were starting up their cars
The garbageman were emptying the dumpsters
Atheists were praying full of sarcasm
And the genius next door was sleeping
Dreaming that the antidote is orgasm
If you just hold in your breath til you come back up in full
Hold in your breath til you thought it through, you foolish child!
Others said it must have been the weather
The neighbors were trying to keep it quiet
But I swear that I could hear the laughter
So they jokingly nicknamed it the porridge
Cause overnight that lake had turned as thick as butter
But the local kids would still go swimming, drinking
Saying that to them it doesn't matter
If you just hold in your breath til you come back up in full
Hold in your breath til you thought it through, you fool
The genius next door was busing tables
Wiping clean the ketchup bottle labels
Getting high and mumbling German fables
Didn't care as long as he was able
To strip his clothes off by the dumpsters
At night while everyone was sleeping
And to wade midway into that porridge
Just him and the secret he was keeping
If you just hold in your breath til you come back up in full
Hold in your breath til you thought it through, you foolish child
In the morning the film crews start arriving
With donuts, coffee and reporters
The kids were waking up hungover
The neighbors were starting up their cars
The garbageman were emptying the dumpsters
Atheists were praying full of sarcasm
And the genius next door was sleeping
Dreaming that the antidote is orgasm
If you just hold in your breath til you come back up in full
Hold in your breath til you thought it through, you foolish child!
Lyrics submitted by lemonjuice
Genius Next Door Lyrics as written by Regina Spektor
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
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Great version of a great song,
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DROWNING "dreaming that the antidote is orgasm" - many believe that when a person drowns, they experience a euphoric sensation at the moment of death, comparable to an intense orgasm.
I believe maybe the lake had a reputation- the teenagers would go there to party, and dare eachother to hold their breath a long time underwater, hoping to achieve the fabled orgasm while still surviving to tell about it. Instead, many drowned- but this did not keep the kids from going back. They were foolish. Perhaps they joked that those young men who died had ejaculated in those waters... inspiring the humor in the consistency of the lake itself. The townspeople obviously did not find it appropriate to talk about what went down at the lake. "The neighbours were trying to keep it quiet But I swear that I could hear the laughter So they joke, and they nicknamed it the porridge Cause over night that lake had turned as thick as butter"
now the geek "genius" thought he'd try the theory out himself, without anyone knowing- he thought he was smarter than the drunk boys and would be sober enough to save himself, but he drowned alone in the lake, still hoping to acheive his orgasm, not realizing that there was no "antidote" to save him from death.
that has got to be the most amazing interpretation ever...I LOVE IT!! great job!
Wow.. I agree, this is the most believable interpretation that i've read so far. Nice Job! :)
I definitely agree with this interpretation!! Nicely done :)
I like this interpretation. Although it makes me cringe a little bit... gaaah. I would not swim in this porridge...
I agree with the auto-erotic asphyxiation interpretation. “If you just hold in your breath till you come…” is sung orgasmically and would suggest as much. <br /> <br /> This song is about masturbation as an accepted antidote for youthful boredom. The adults (neighbours, others and locals) don’t want to talk about “the porridge” and the kids are also dismissive “saying to them it doesn’t matter”. The genius next door verse expands on this; his dismally drab job didn’t matter “as long as he was able to strip his clothes off… at night… just him and the secret he was keeping”. <br /> <br /> I think the genius is one of the local kids, not an older man as some here have suggested. He busses tables and gets high, he’s probably just come back from a gap year around Europe (mumbling German fables whilst high). <br /> <br /> The suicide/death concept which many people on here seem to have commented on doesn’t fit in here, for me. I recognise the suffocation theme but I don’t get the notion of a literal death. Note the French phrase “La petite mort” or “the little death”, an idiom for orgasm, pertaining to the breathless post-climatic exhaustion. <br /> <br /> Perhaps the little town where these kids live is suffocating them; bussing tables is very boring. The stagnant atmosphere could be responsible for suicide, but more likely for a littler death. The song suggests that swimming in a lake of “porridge” is a foolish pursuit and the young people are wasting their lives. Think of the way genius is used sarcastically; these young people should be pursuing wisdom. <br /> <br /> Whatever reason the cameras and reporters turn up (perhaps a metaphor for “the morning after” questioning that the kids will face as they wake up), it seems the situation is unlikely to change. Talking about it won’t stop it from happening. <br /> <br /> There seems to be no effort to clear up the mess; garbagemen clean the dumpsters, but this is a cycle of dirty and clean. The prayers (think of a “God help us!” sort of parental exclamation) are both cynical and sarcastic. The neighbours (representing parents) start up their cars — they’re running away from the town and it’s issues.<br /> <br /> The genius is still sleeping and therefore not becoming any wiser. His dreams (not just night time images but also his aspirations for the future) are for more orgasms. <br /> The cycle continues, but it’s not as bleak as it sounds. Kids wont make porridge of their lives forever; they will eventually realise the dangers of living for pleasure and the stifling result. <br /> <br /> Porridge is a fairly fast perishing food, it wont be left to stagnate in a skanky lake forever.<br />
Well, at least, I understand now why I cry when I listen to this song!<br /> Very good job, this interpretation is clear and right, I can only agree with you.
@juliaspaperbags the secret he was keeping is that he was going to commit suicide that night in the lake. Regina Spektor would not write a song about masturbation. The orgasm reference is a metaphor. Imagine the tough life she’s lived, the cops and reporters are there the next morning because there is a dead boy in the lake. And then life goes on as usual. No one gave a shit about the kid. Really sad song.