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.
If you walk away from me
Well you know that I hope that it would sure as hell be
Better than everything
And all that I've let you see
Tell your mom I said hello
Tell her sorry that I ever let you go
Far from the life you knew
And all that I put you through
But don't let the time that you knew
Break you like you broke me
Now that you're free
Rose
You're fantastic
You know if it can't last
You'll always be the one who knows
You'll always be my Rose
Fantastic Rose
Remember how it all began
All you had to do was hold my hand
And we've been running all this time it seems
But what does it really mean
It seems like a million years
So how's it all disappear
Are you still here
Rose
You're fantastic
You know if it can't last
You'll always be the one who knows
You'll always be my Rose
Fantastic Rose
All that I ever could show you was love
And Rose, you taught me how to let go
Of love
You saved me more than I could tell
Not that I'm desperate but you know just where to cut me
And you did
Right through the bone
But somehow I'm never alone
Rose
You're fantastic
You know if it can't last
You'll always be the one who knows
You'll always be my Rose
Fantastic Rose
Well you know that I hope that it would sure as hell be
Better than everything
And all that I've let you see
Tell your mom I said hello
Tell her sorry that I ever let you go
Far from the life you knew
And all that I put you through
But don't let the time that you knew
Break you like you broke me
Now that you're free
Rose
You're fantastic
You know if it can't last
You'll always be the one who knows
You'll always be my Rose
Fantastic Rose
Remember how it all began
All you had to do was hold my hand
And we've been running all this time it seems
But what does it really mean
It seems like a million years
So how's it all disappear
Are you still here
Rose
You're fantastic
You know if it can't last
You'll always be the one who knows
You'll always be my Rose
Fantastic Rose
All that I ever could show you was love
And Rose, you taught me how to let go
Of love
You saved me more than I could tell
Not that I'm desperate but you know just where to cut me
And you did
Right through the bone
But somehow I'm never alone
Rose
You're fantastic
You know if it can't last
You'll always be the one who knows
You'll always be my Rose
Fantastic Rose
Lyrics submitted by VampedVixen
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Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
It's about Rose from Doctor Who! That's always what I thought it was about, but I figured it was just my interpretation. However, Geoff Smith has said that he wrote it because he was inspired by Rose's relationship with the 9th Doctor when Doctor Who began again in 2005.