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Nightingale/December Song Lyrics
So let me hammer this point home
I see us all as lonely fires
That have burned alive as long as we remember
Well, like all fires and all sunsets
We all burn in different ways
You are a vast explosion and I am the embers
And though your flames are quick and mean
They will not last the year
But expire like a sudden falling star
That only nightingales had seen before
Migrating to sudden jungles
And in this way you will come find me in December
He said he'd like to move to Nashville
To master the guitar
Where he would live a single day
The way I live a single year
He covered his body in mud
Went hunting for the sun
Then went swimming in the lake of holy water
Oh, you are too hot for me
I am too slow for you
You are a vast explosion and I'm the embers
You need the one who slowly burns
And burns to stay alive and
In this way you will come find me in December
So let me hammer this point home
I see us all as lonely fires
That have burned alive as long as we remember
But like all sacrificial virgins
We all burn in different ways
You are a vast explosion and I'm the embers
And though your flames are quick and mean
They will not last the year
But expire like a sudden shooting star
That only nightingales had seen before
Transforming into bluebirds and
In this way you will come find me in December
I see us all as lonely fires
That have burned alive as long as we remember
We all burn in different ways
You are a vast explosion and I am the embers
They will not last the year
But expire like a sudden falling star
Migrating to sudden jungles
And in this way you will come find me in December
To master the guitar
Where he would live a single day
The way I live a single year
Went hunting for the sun
Then went swimming in the lake of holy water
I am too slow for you
You are a vast explosion and I'm the embers
And burns to stay alive and
In this way you will come find me in December
I see us all as lonely fires
That have burned alive as long as we remember
We all burn in different ways
You are a vast explosion and I'm the embers
They will not last the year
But expire like a sudden shooting star
Transforming into bluebirds and
In this way you will come find me in December
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i think its an opposition to the Neil Young quote "its better to burn out than to fade away"
so let me hammer this point home i see US ALL as lonely fires that have burned alive as long as we remember but like ALL fireworks and ALL sunsets, we all burn in different ways we are a FAST explosion and i am the embers and though your flames are quick and mean, they will not last the year, but expire like a sudden falling star that only nightingales had seen before, MIGRATING TO southern jungles and in this way you will come find me in december
he said he'd like to move to Nashville to master the guitar where he would live a single day the way i live a single year he covered his body in mud, went hunting for the sun then went swimming in the lake of holy water oh you are too hot for me, i am too slow for you you are a FAST explosion and i'm the embers you need the one who slowly burns, and burns to stay alive and in this way you will come find me in december
so let me hammer this point home i see US ALL as lonely fires that have burned alive as long as we remember but like ALL sacrificial virgins, we all burn in different ways you are a FAST explosion and i'm the embers and though your flames are quicker than me, they will not last the year, but expire like a sudden shooting star that only nightingales had seen before, transforming into bluebirds and in this way you will come find me in december
such a good song. !
I agree with all your corrections, thank you!
I agree with all your corrections, thank you!
what do all of these fires mean?! they're everyyywhereee in his writing
devastating.
the images these lyrics conjure are amazing, in fact the entire album has this fantastic imagery about it.
i just got the new album and right now this is my favorite from it. The lyrics are amazing, up there with Krug's best. I love the line "you are a fast explosion, and I am the embers"
I love this song.
I do think the lyric is "vast explosion" rather than "fast explosion," however.
I almost wonder if this song isn't about a band member or ex-band member from one of Spencer's other projects. I have a few reasons for saying this and the interesting thing is that none of the reasons involve "He said he wants to move to Nashville and master the guitar". The primary reasons are
This album deals a lot with the divergence of friends and acquaintances and how they lead their lives (as we talked about in the forum "Apollo and the Buffalo and Anna Anna O!", this song might represent the dichotomy created between the lives of the narrator and "he" in the song.
The metaphor of the Nightingale and the Bluebird, the immediate thing that comes to mind when a person uses the Nightingale as symbolism is creativity as the Nightingale has a very distinct song (and also the historical and cultural use of this symbolism to suggest this). Also, the Nightingale is migrative as "he" is- in wanting to move to Nashville to harvest his talent and creativity.
Having said this, I don't believe that the use of fire symbolizes "Life" but rather "Livelihood and creativity". "He" in the song represents an explosion of creativity, perhaps even a forced creativity in the actions like "covered his body in mud" and "swam in a lake of holy water". These seem like spiritual attempts at harvesting creativity for "he".
The reason that I wonder if this is about a band member is that, well, we all know that members of Sunset Rubdown and Wolf Parade have created loads of side projects (Frog Eyes, Moonface, Handsome Furs, Johnny and the Moon) and they've gone different directions and came back, but it seems that most of the acclaim resides in the bands that Spencer is involved in. I think that this song is a bit of a cautionary tale, about a person forcing creativity, perhaps somewhat humble in a way about the means of nurturing creativity rather than harvesting it, like a bluebird rather than a raucous Nightingale. I think that Spencer does a bit of sympathizing with the line "I see us all as lonely fires that have burned as long as we remember" saying that neither branch of the dichotomy is gifted as an artist but rather that they are "sacrificial virgins" of their muse.
Perhaps "he" in the song is meant to return to Spencer as a band member so they can amalgamate their two forms of creativity and continue to create evocative music- as many band members have- branched out and returned to create undeniably good albums (EXPO!WOO!W.P).
Even if its wrong, I'd like to see if this song is an analysis of how Spencer views his creativity and the means of creating art through music.
Spencer Krug is a poet.