So this has been.my favorite song of OTEP's since it came out in 2004, and I always thought it was a song about a child's narrative of suffering in an abusive Christian home. But now that I am revisiting the lyrics, I am seeing something totally new.
This song could be gospel of John but from the perspective of Jesus.
Jesus was NOT having a good time up to and during the crucifixion. Everyone in the known world at the time looked to him with fear, admiration or disgust and he was constantly being asked questions. He spoke in "verses, prophesies and curses". He had made an enemy of the state, and believed the world was increasingly wicked and fallen from grace, or that he was in the "mouth of madness".
The spine of atlas is the structure that allows the titan to hold the world up. Jesus challenged the state and in doing so became a celebrated resistance figure. It also made him public enemy #1.
All of this happened simply because he was doing his thing, not because of any agenda he had or strategy.
And then he gets scourged (storm of thorns)
There are some plot holes here but I think it's an interesting interpretation.
Little flightless metal birds
High above in limbless tree
Ring out into the atmosphere
Creating beauty inadvertently
It was a technological feat
This little bird
Wading through the market's waste
We locked eyes felt our lonliness abate
True desire showed its face, but only momentarily
Grey cascades in foreign waves
Wash the day away
I bought you from the dying woods of Brazil
This little bird
While the kids burned down the greenhouse pushed the
Charred frame into the landfill
Put his beak to the world
We bought new bodies we bought diamond encrusted guns
So who the hell are you?
Making out so high in the backseat of a car-bomb under carcinogenic sun
Grey cascades in foreign waves
Wash the day away
Grey cascades in foreign waves
We did believe in magic we did believe
We let our souls act as canaries
Our hearts gilded cages be
Watched a million dimming lanterns float out to sea
Lay your malady at the mouth of the death machine
Aeroplane odabo
Ba mi ki won lo Odabo
Eko meji, o yo mi
O yo mi
O yo mi
Grey cascades in foreign waves
Wash the day away
Grey cascades in foreign waves
High above in limbless tree
Ring out into the atmosphere
Creating beauty inadvertently
It was a technological feat
This little bird
Wading through the market's waste
We locked eyes felt our lonliness abate
True desire showed its face, but only momentarily
Grey cascades in foreign waves
Wash the day away
I bought you from the dying woods of Brazil
This little bird
While the kids burned down the greenhouse pushed the
Charred frame into the landfill
Put his beak to the world
We bought new bodies we bought diamond encrusted guns
So who the hell are you?
Making out so high in the backseat of a car-bomb under carcinogenic sun
Grey cascades in foreign waves
Wash the day away
Grey cascades in foreign waves
We did believe in magic we did believe
We let our souls act as canaries
Our hearts gilded cages be
Watched a million dimming lanterns float out to sea
Lay your malady at the mouth of the death machine
Aeroplane odabo
Ba mi ki won lo Odabo
Eko meji, o yo mi
O yo mi
O yo mi
Grey cascades in foreign waves
Wash the day away
Grey cascades in foreign waves
Lyrics submitted by prayingmantis84
Wash the Day Lyrics as written by David Sitek Babatunde O Adebimpe
Lyrics © Hipgnosis Songs Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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The lyrics in a foreign language (its not "made up!") might be important for context. Google thinks they are Yoruba, except for parts of it which it can't translate which googling seems to indicate are Nauruan and Nigerian English slang. Nauruan is oceanic which is confusing because the rest of it is supposed to be Nigerian/Nigerian english, so that might be a fluke (maybe no Nauruan). I don't know if there are possible transcription errors in the lyrics or whether Google just doesn't know Yoruba very well. Combing through a list of common Yoruba words and phrases, a more likely transcription is:
Aeroplane odabo (o da abọ) Ba mi ki won lo odabo (o da abọ) Ẹ ku meji, o yo mi O yo mi O yo mi
So, cobbling something together using Google translate's notoriously bad guesses:
Goodbye Aeroplane, if they use goodbye. She died twice, my (yo?? -- no luck translating here) Remove me (Don't bother me?) Remove me (Don't bother me?)
@mrule Yeah I'm not sure what Google translate is smoking, but "E ku" also seems to be a general positive greeting ("what cheer") ("good" as in "good day") ("happy" as in "happy cristmas"). <br /> <br /> meji does appear to be "two" ( but also "water" in Lunda which is kinda in the same family but seems very distantly related? )<br /> <br /> no idea what "happy two" would men.<br /> <br /> ... need someone who can actually speak Yoruba.
For what it's worth<br /> O dabọ definitely is goodbye<br /> <br /> Google now says Ba mi ki won is "Let me use it" in Yoruba but that doesn't sound right<br /> <br /> Ẹkọ meji is "two lessons"<br /> <br /> o yo mi may be Isoko (southern Nigerian)for "s/he learned from"<br /> yo = hear/learn/receive <br /> mi = from<br /> glosbe.com/iso/en/o%20yo%20mi<br /> <br /> Yes, this is pretty weak. I boast roughly 5% confidence itis correct, but it would be pretty haunting if the lyrics mean <br /> Two lessons, learned from...<br /> Learned from...<br /> Learned from...<br /> <br /> (i.e., two lessons the enemy learned from the worst aspects of American celebrations of violence and warmongering, but non-American listeners shouldn't get too comfortable either, any culture with violent tendencies may have responsibility)<br /> <br /> Finish-it-yourself lyrics work for TVOTR. See Blues From Down Here: "Let it wash away your..."