Drones

I think people are taking their song lyrics way too literally, although I think most people have the right idea about what the song is about. If you like Rise Against and their message, read a book called Ishmael because this heavily influences their work (and they say so in the booklet with their album). I happened to come across it in my Bio class, and was well worth the read. Anyways.

This song refers to Mother Culture (pointed out in Ishmael, read it) and how it is going to ruin the world. I firmly believe this because of this:

The drones will slave away, they’re working overtime, -we work so that we don't starve They serve a faceless queen, they never question why. -"they" is actually everyone, the faceless Queen being Mother Culture, and we don't question why things are like they are, going all the way to the basis of our culture and the way it works Disciples of a god, that neither lives nor breathes, -we listen to mother culture blindly because it’s all we know (I won’t go back!)

• to simpler lives that is, that of the Leavers (Ishmael) But we have bills to pay, yeah we have mouths to feed! -the reason why we CAN'T go back now, mother culture prevents this (I won’t go back!)

Too make a long story short - in today's world you work because if you don't you starve. But Mother culture tells us that if somebody is starving, send them food (such as places in Africa), yet this only makes the problem worse because they reproduce and require even more food in the future. How do we grow more food? We destroy the forests and make more room for agriculture. In effect, we’re destroying the world and all of nature simply so that we can have more people, simply to keep anyone from suffering. But in the end, if things continue as they are and our own technology can’t save us, then everyone will suffer.

Again, I urge any devoted Rise Against listener to read Ishmael. You’ll see the connections in every song and hopefully become a little more aware, as this song calls for.

i agree with the non conformity angle. also i think the lines:

If you see me please just walk on by, walk on by, Forget my name and I'll forget it too.

seem like the speaker is ashamed of not being able to stand out and break the cycle because he "bills to pay" and "mouths to feed" so they keep working with their head down.

also liked that line cos when i first heard the song i didnt know all the lyrics nd it sounded like how i felt about a girl i used to date. but thats not what its about.

one more thing, the lyrics should read: Diciples of a god THAT NEITHER LIVES NOR BREATHES. great line about blind faith

IT's 'consession to the grave," I think. And I beleive it is about organizations; but signifigant ons. For example, a tobacco company. The CEOs knows that it kills people and causes all sorts of health problems. But the simple workers never question the CEOS. and they always come back fro work the next day.

I personaly think that the song is about how today's society conforms. The more you conform the more likely you are to lose yourself.

"Failed attempts at living simple lives, simple lives, all will keep me coming back to you." This to me is saying that you can try to be different, but if you fail, you will come crawling back to what you know. Non-Conformity is the answer, at least in my world it is.

"The drones all slave away, their working over time, they serve a faceless queen they never question why, Diciples of a god that neither lives nor breaths but we have bills to pay, yeah we have mouths to feed" This is sorta like saying America is full of workaholics and yeah, they'll work the 9 to 5, but they are only doing it to get by. The goverment is the faceless queen and also the god that neither lives nor breaths. Society are the diciples that serve both. Society turns to the gov't for answers. DON'T CONFORM!!!

May I bring one thing to light? It is a follow-on from Prayer of the refugee so it continues that story e.g. the chgaracter has arrived, but life isn't the freedom that he expected doesn't exist. They don't know what to do, and so they follow their "programming" and follow the "faceless queen" they've forgotten what its like to really live, "if walls could speak, I pray that they would tell me what to do". In the later part, after he has "left" the colony he just wants to forget his time there. the failed attemp at living a simple life is just that. hive creatures rely on groups and alone are much weaker so the character has no choice but to return to work for the controlling power.

"the drones all slave away" the "drone" is the military units. "they serve a faceless queen" the "faceless queen" must mean the government. "they're working over time they never question why" this means how the military units stay in combat longer than they should and they don't get any word to leave. and the part "failed attempts at living simple lives" means that how the solders are suffering from PTSD and go insane with themselves.

Lyric corrections:

"many mountains i could move" should be "then mountains i could move" "always keep me coming back to you" should be "are what keep me coming back to you" "jump confessions..." should be "shout confessions..." "disciples of a god, they neither live nor breathe" should be "disciples of a god that neither lives nor breathes"

By the way, I have the album & have read the lyrics.

This is my favorite song off their new album.

All about the general working population. The person in the song is trying to break the cycle, forget the old person and reinvent him/herself - "forget my name and I'll forget it too".

The comparisons in this song work well, "The drones will slave away, they’re working overtime, They serve a faceless queen, they never question why.", comparing big companies to a faceless queen. The "drones", i.e. workers, know what they have to do, but don't know why they do it.

However, it seems as if the storyteller is saying that he/she cannot break away from the grasp of large organisations, and in the end he keeps coming back.

A lot of this song seems to deal with conformity to me. People going along saying nothing just getting by, the line "If you see me, please just walk on by, walk on by. Forget my name and I’ll forget it too" to me seems along the lines of the more that they aren't reminded of who they are, the more they assimalate, the more they forget who they are or were for that matter.

Using trying to live simple, uncomplicated lives as excuse for not speaking out if there is something that might be wrong. But it does also seem to follower the lines of what Climber boy said as well.