Both as a standalone and as part of the DSOTS album, you can take this lyric as read. As a matter of public record, Jourgensen's drug intake was legendary even in the 1980s. By the late 90s, in his own words, he was grappling with massive addiction issues and had lost almost everything: friends, spouse, money and had nearly died more than once. "Dark Side of the Spoon" is a both funny & sad title for an album made by a musical genius who was losing the plot; and this song is a message to his fans & friends saying he knows it. It's painful to listen to so I'm glad the "Keith Richards of industrial metals" wised up and cleaned up. Well done sir.
Oh I've been knocking on that door in my sleep
Fight my fireplace glow
I've been knocking on that door in my sleep
Fight my fireplace glow to keep me away,
To keep me away from home
Papa get the rifle from its place above the french doors
They're coming from the woods
Oh they're coming from the woods
And mama you're running too
Oh my mama your running too
Mama you're running too
Oh my mama your running too
Brother I'm so sorry that you watched the paintings burn
And I've been holding onto the gold
When lettin' go would free my hands
And I've been tying your tongue in a knot
Oh I've been tying your tongue in a knot
To wrap this death, to wrap this death in a sheet
And Papa get the rifle from its place above the french doors
They're coming from the woods
Oh they're coming from the woods
And mama you're running too
Oh, my mama you're running too
Mama you're running too
Oh, my mama you're running too
Brother I'm so sorry that you watched the paintings burn
I can't hide the dirty pads down there carpet anymore
No, no I can't hide the dirty pads down there carpet anymore
There were too many heavy boots
There were too many heavy boots
There were too many heavy boots
And there were too many big black boots
And there were too many little brown shoes marching though
So I'm countin' it to the sky
Oh I'm countin' it to the sky
I'm countin' it to the sky
Oh I'm countin' it to the sky
And moving back
Oh I'm moving back to
Face the lack of home
Fight my fireplace glow
I've been knocking on that door in my sleep
Fight my fireplace glow to keep me away,
To keep me away from home
Papa get the rifle from its place above the french doors
They're coming from the woods
Oh they're coming from the woods
And mama you're running too
Oh my mama your running too
Mama you're running too
Oh my mama your running too
Brother I'm so sorry that you watched the paintings burn
And I've been holding onto the gold
When lettin' go would free my hands
And I've been tying your tongue in a knot
Oh I've been tying your tongue in a knot
To wrap this death, to wrap this death in a sheet
And Papa get the rifle from its place above the french doors
They're coming from the woods
Oh they're coming from the woods
And mama you're running too
Oh, my mama you're running too
Mama you're running too
Oh, my mama you're running too
Brother I'm so sorry that you watched the paintings burn
I can't hide the dirty pads down there carpet anymore
No, no I can't hide the dirty pads down there carpet anymore
There were too many heavy boots
There were too many heavy boots
There were too many heavy boots
And there were too many big black boots
And there were too many little brown shoes marching though
So I'm countin' it to the sky
Oh I'm countin' it to the sky
I'm countin' it to the sky
Oh I'm countin' it to the sky
And moving back
Oh I'm moving back to
Face the lack of home
Lyrics submitted by holbytla
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Brother I'm so sorry that you watched the Patens burn And I've been holding onto the gold When lettin' go would free my hands And I've been tying your tongue in a knot Oh I've been tying your tongue in a knot To wrap this death, to wrap this death in a sheet
I listened to this song a number of times and I always thought she was saying "paintings burn". If it is Patens, that completely changes the meaning, and it actually makes a lot more sense to me that way. kind of. She mentions "mama" also in this but I wonder if brother is not used in the religious sense. Alela obviously has very strong ties to Christianity (not necessarily that she is faithfully devoted but that it is somehow important to her). "And I've been holding onto the gold, When lettin' go would free my hands" refers literally to holding the cup or plate for communion (often gold). I get the sense that in this verse she is speaking from the perspective of a priest or someone who appears very pious to another member of the church (or maybe a monk (Brother), and when it says "And I've been tying your tongue in a knot" that the tradition and dogma associated makes it hard to speak up about anything that may appear critical of the church (even if the communion wafers are on fire!). "To wrap this death in a sheet" is clearly supposed to evoke again, in a literal sense that when the bread and wine sit on the alter they are covered with a white cloth. I think the idea of the rifle fits. Obviously it is supposed to elicit some feeling of being trapped in your home and there are bad people (or i suppose maybe wolves or something) coming to attack. The "it's us against the world, let's fight" mentality that some religious people have (not necessarily in the violent sense of the word fight) fits this rifle theme and to me also fits in with the verse that is obviously "about" communion.
As for the rest of the song, i don't really understand how it all fits together. All i know is it's a beautiful song, and if i were to find it didn't have a real meaning at all, i wouldn't care.
Ah, paintings! Maybe it is. I had a hard time making that word out and started to think it was a random last name, like her brother watched a family burn in a fire or something.<br /> I think until I hear different, I'll change it to "paintings".<br /> <br /> As for meaning, Alela described it on Daytrotter as "a song about a dream that took place in the house I grew up in. My parents had recently sold the house and the song is about letting go of that place and that time. It is a loss of home song"