All the Things That Go to Make Heaven and Earth Lyrics

All those things that go to make heaven and this
Where Midnight walks with flesh across the canvas
Midnight, who was a girl
Midnight, who lost control and found this world

With matter removed of divine dimension
Our time reduced to an honorable mention
This world, which time forgot
This world, it lost control and then saw God

All of the things that go to make heaven and earth are here
All of the things that go to make heaven and earth
Put your new weight in gold and see what it's worth
All of the things that go to make heaven and earth are here
All of the things that go to make heaven and this
Success was survival and, kid, it still is
Success was survival and, kid, it still is

Did you think of something he didn't think of?
Crashing into horizons, on the brink of success!
Hurrah! Success which was survival gone too far

All of the things that go to make heaven and earth are here
All of the things that go to make heaven and earth
Put your new weight in gold and see what it's worth
All of the things that go to make heaven and earth are here
All of the things that go to make heaven and this
Success was survival and, kid, it still is
Success was survival and, kid, it still is
Success was survival and, kid, it still is
Success was survival and, kid, it still is
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6 Meanings

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Cover art for All the Things That Go to Make Heaven and Earth lyrics by New Pornographers, The

I understand this song as a celebration of man's prosperity. The first part seems to refer to the old (I believe medieval) belief that this world doesn't matter and that you should focus on the afterlife ("with matter removed of divine dimension/our time reduced to an honorable mention"). They then go on to reject this old belief by stating that not only are Heaven and Earth not separate (classically considered completely separate), but that their very building blocks are "here", within human reach. This essentially means that there is nothing that man cannot do.

The bit about success as survival "gone too far" implies that success - in this case progress - is in human nature, that as humans it is part of our very being to succeed. Our successful survival has provided us with new challenges which, in order to survive, cause us to succeed even more. Thus the chain of success in unending. The perpetuity of our success, our progress, is evidenced in the line "crashing into horizons on the brink of success." It is impossible to "crash into a horizon", because the horizon is by definition distance. That is to say that we are constantly moving rapidly and recklessly towards complete success, which I suppose would be an end to our progress, but we will never reach it.

My Interpretation

Superb analysis! Or, as they say, "This!". I knew there was a reason I liked this song so much.

Not Valid
Cover art for All the Things That Go to Make Heaven and Earth lyrics by New Pornographers, The

Meaning? I won't even bother But that flute line?! Kick ass!

Cover art for All the Things That Go to Make Heaven and Earth lyrics by New Pornographers, The

This song is awesome!!

Cover art for All the Things That Go to Make Heaven and Earth lyrics by New Pornographers, The

I think this song is about the difference between primitive and modern survival. It suggests that modern man has gone, in a way, beyond the work of god, and turned the art of keeping alive amidst the wonders of nature into "survival gone too far" : something to complicated and caught up in all the trappings of money, work, possesions, etc.

Cover art for All the Things That Go to Make Heaven and Earth lyrics by New Pornographers, The

It's an anarchist type song for sure. Really success just means staying alive.

Cover art for All the Things That Go to Make Heaven and Earth lyrics by New Pornographers, The

very good, yeah.