Cover art for The Ballad of No-Face lyrics by Owen Pallett

Owen Pallett

The Ballad of No-Face

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The Ballad of No-Face Lyrics

You say that I'm a bigot. No sir! No sir!
I have lots of swishy friends around, I do, I do-dah-do
But a bunch of those together
Can only do the Devil's work, and it's the Devil's work they do

Finding beauty in ugly things is alright...to a point!
And have you seen that cross-breed of the high-brow and the low?
It's a note tied to a brick that reads:
Freedom, foul freedom, we are free to foul whatever, and we will

Why can't these people see? Theirs is a life of mimicry
They are fathers without sons or daughters
They are bathers at the mouth of a literary delta
It isn't poetry
It's an orchestration, orchestration of their own demise

And you'll call me a bigot, or a dog in the manger
But I've seen them in the commons with their kerchiefs and tattoos

And a bunch of those together
Can only do the Devil's work, and it's the Devil's work they do
Song Info
Submitted by
vivalasvegas On Aug 29, 2008
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Cover art for The Ballad of No-Face lyrics by Owen Pallett
by le_deluge

"Freedom, foul freedom, we are free to foul whatever, and we will." ^I love that line.

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Cover art for The Ballad of No-Face lyrics by Owen Pallett
by Krem

this is a cool song whose meaning is kinda complicated, maybe ill post about it later

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Cover art for The Ballad of No-Face lyrics by Owen Pallett
by TheForceOfTragedy

I think this song is a "homophobe" speaking of how people call him a bigot (which he isn't, since he has gay ("swishy") friends) because he believes that 'those people' (the gays) "can only do the Devil's work".

I also think that these lyrics are amazing, what with Owen being gay himself and all... He really manages to put himself on another person's shoes :)

Wonderful song, btw.

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Cover art for The Ballad of No-Face lyrics by Owen Pallett
by konmeika

I'd be curious to know how much this song is based on Miyazaki's animated film 'Spirited Away' in which there is a character named No-Face. The opinions in the song seem like they could be relevant to that story.

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Cover art for The Ballad of No-Face lyrics by Owen Pallett
by zoolah

i see the homophobe thing, but im trying to remain within his story. in doing so, i am getting these vibes that No Face is like a satanic entity in the storyline.

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Cover art for The Ballad of No-Face lyrics by Owen Pallett
by zoolah

althoguh, re-reading, i almsot think this might be the perspective of some sort of wayward saint. like a man who was God before Owen was.

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