Lightning Rod Lyrics
this song has always seemed reminiscent to me of two things: war and moses. War is evident in both verses, specifically the part about "remaining an honest soldier" and "swimming in adrenaline/the sky is caving in". The latter bit has reminded me of bombers and fighters raging overhead, artillery fire, etc. And it seems to be told from the perspective of a lowly soldier, who is in desperate fear of losing his life, yet will fight till he's dead. It also reminds me of the Biblical tale of Moses atop Mount Sinai, receiving the Ten Commandments. It is written that God carved the Commandments into the stone with lightning, hence, I believe "I'm a lightning rod". However, "standing on a building" kinda kills that...
standing firm in the face of persecution and adversity. protecting others and taking abuse and insults in their place. maintaining your pride in knowing that you did the right thing in all of it.
I think it's about taking a ton of abuse all the time -"these clouds are so familiar" But being able to get through it everytime -"I will remain an honest soldier"
I like both of those, but my first take on the song was that it was about loneliness and isolation and observation. but never succombing to deppresion or anything like that, "i will remain an honest soldier. great song...
Fantastic song, his voice at the end howls so beautifully...pretty impressive stuff.
I agree with the war part... I just love this song. It took me a while to get into it, but now it's one of my favorite Guster songs. "I am a lighting rod" He attracts attention, not positively, but refuses to change.
the vocals are so haunting, love it i think you've all hit it on the head
recurring abuse/pain, perseverance and isolation
I believe it is about war as well. The honest soldier being the lightning rod for our country, standing in the ,"boiling clouds" and getting hit randomly like soldiers do. Also notice how his description of the soldier changes from "return the honest soldier" to "remain the honest soldier" adding a sense of finality and fatality. As a deployded soldier myself I can empathise as he seems to moan the word home.
this song is awesome. nuff said.
I first encountered this in a Doctor Who fandom wallpaper that someone made as a tribute to the Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) and I will always associate the song with that character (who we learn came back from a war psychologically scarred.)
Pretty much agree with most of these interpretations. The war could be literal or metaphorical, but it is about standing up for your convictions and taking the damage that ensues.