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.
Was he badly mistaken or guided
As he wondered his valley built in silence
He'd cover his face to speak as he chewed off his finger, to the bone
The haze of his coloured days
That march of content as his dignity splits to unveil
His bitter sweetness
The town would shudder and stare
At his presence with a single glare
As he makes his way through
The local square
And he says to them
'Your a broken fence, in the yard of annoyance'
'Your a broken fence, in the yard of annoyance'
Annoyance
Hang the cyst
Hang the cyst
Hang the cyst
The first time in pace or in math
Was at the sight of his wilting noose
And the chance will soon reduce to an angry silence
He escaped in the shock of the snap
His wonderful vanishing act
Was a spectacle but not what anyone expected
The route was planned as much as the broachpin dagger
The route was planned as much as the broachpin dagger
Catch the cyst
Catch the cyst
Catch the cyst
Catch the cyst
As he wondered his valley built in silence
He'd cover his face to speak as he chewed off his finger, to the bone
The haze of his coloured days
That march of content as his dignity splits to unveil
His bitter sweetness
The town would shudder and stare
At his presence with a single glare
As he makes his way through
The local square
And he says to them
'Your a broken fence, in the yard of annoyance'
'Your a broken fence, in the yard of annoyance'
Annoyance
Hang the cyst
Hang the cyst
Hang the cyst
The first time in pace or in math
Was at the sight of his wilting noose
And the chance will soon reduce to an angry silence
He escaped in the shock of the snap
His wonderful vanishing act
Was a spectacle but not what anyone expected
The route was planned as much as the broachpin dagger
The route was planned as much as the broachpin dagger
Catch the cyst
Catch the cyst
Catch the cyst
Catch the cyst
Lyrics submitted by TosMcGee
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In regards to the meaning of this song:
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.
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So what's a cyst then? (Apart from the obvious medical definition, since they seem to mean something different.)