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.
When I was running out of time
I turned it into a dream
And you went drifting into my mind
Things ain't the way that they seem
I turn you into a dream
And make it all go away
You know your hair looks different when you wear it that way
You've got a painted face and a body made of clay
You are my super star
They will fill you with big ideas
They'll hang your heart in the sky
I know you want to save the world
How long have you been that high
How long have you been that high
And did you make it all go away
You know your eyes look different when you look the other way
You've got a cheating heart bleeding emeralds everyday
You are a shooting star
Things ain't the same as when we was young
They hung us from shooting stars
Let's tell the world we're doing fine
I know how lucky we are
I know how lucky we are
To make it all go away
You know this world is topsy-turvy in days like today
We got a million souls looking for a place to stay
Each one a shooting star
I turned it into a dream
And you went drifting into my mind
Things ain't the way that they seem
I turn you into a dream
And make it all go away
You know your hair looks different when you wear it that way
You've got a painted face and a body made of clay
You are my super star
They will fill you with big ideas
They'll hang your heart in the sky
I know you want to save the world
How long have you been that high
How long have you been that high
And did you make it all go away
You know your eyes look different when you look the other way
You've got a cheating heart bleeding emeralds everyday
You are a shooting star
Things ain't the same as when we was young
They hung us from shooting stars
Let's tell the world we're doing fine
I know how lucky we are
I know how lucky we are
To make it all go away
You know this world is topsy-turvy in days like today
We got a million souls looking for a place to stay
Each one a shooting star
Lyrics submitted by allmymutedmornings
Nuclear Daydream Lyrics as written by Joseph Arthur
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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This is a very poignant song about loss and, at the end of the day, the decision made to move on. Sometimes the best you can do is just to keep on walking away from the disaster behind you.