All I Know

This is the Karnivool's Notice of Understanding and Intent.

From Black's Law Dictionary: Understanding: an agreement to "stand under", or be bound by, the terms of a contract.

In all common law jurisdictions under the British Empire (Australia, Great Britain, Canada, New Zealand, etc), you can send a notice to the government, informing them what your understanding of the world is. Further, you inform them what your personal laws are, and how you are going to live your life. Lawyers and Law Students in these countries have been encouraged to remove themselves from being bound by all the acts, statutes, and codes of their particular country of origin. The rest of us (slaves) are never told that we can do this. Seems someone told the band. :)

If you do a google search for "Notice of Understanding and Intent and Claim of Right", you will see much of what is being spoken here, in a "Whereas it is my understanding" form. The main source of this movement is currently Robert-Arthur: Menard from http://www.thinkfree.ca, but there are many others around the world doing the exact same thing as him.

it seems that Ian Kenny's understanding is that he's a Soul Taker (Taking control of his corporate strawman account), and a Cruel-Witted mind. That's his prerogative.

Are you with him? Are you of like mind?

In my personal NoUI/CoR, filed over a year ago, I claimed the right to control my corporate strawman, the right to use hallucinogens, the right to use public transportation and schools without paying for them, and a fee schedule ($20,000 per hour if arrested/detained/handcuffed). it was accepted by all parties sent to, and it has actually gotten me out of civil and criminal court cases (I don't adhere to their codes/acts/statutes anymore).

Once his NoUI/CoR is accepted, he can walk free free of gravity because he has severed his umbilical wires (i.e. being considered a child of the state/province).

in fact, this entire album's theme is of personal sovereignty, once you learn what the hell it is he's talking about: a young boy who learns he doesn't have to be a slave anymore, and the path he takes to being considered competent to manage his own affairs.

I believe that good lyrics have a specific meaning for the writer but are also mysterious enough to invite each individual's personal interpretation. I think this makes good music therapeutic, as we will all use the emotional vehicle it provides to transport our thoughts to a place of necessity and perhaps healing.

I don't know what each line of this song means to the author (the singer of Karnivool, in this case), but every line screams something glaringly and painfully obvious to me.

I am currently coping with the reality of ending a relationship with the person I love. "This is my sense of reality." "The decision to not be together causes me more pain than I have ever felt, but it was made with maturity and foresight for what will be best for both of us in the end. "This is proof of my coming of age." Because of my deep love for her, I repressed many fears and doubts in order to prolong the relationship. "This is truth in captivity". I put all of my faith in our love and our future together, and, in the aftermath, I find it difficult to believe that I will ever experience something so meaningful again. "This is losing a theology."

I promised that I would never leave her, and, in doing so, I have (temporarily) crushed her spirit (and my own). "I'm a soul taker." I have never hated myself more than I do now for breaking my promise. "I'm a cruel-witted mind."

It will help me to cope with the decision if she made it clear that she also feels that not being together is truly what is best for us. Her honest answer to these questions would help. "Are you with me? Are you of like mind?"

We often spoke about the heights of love and happiness we experienced with each other, and yet other unseen forces seemed to drag our idealistic and romantic notions down to earth. "We keep falling free of gravity." In coming to realize that our relationship may have been slightly codependent, we decided that the health of the relationship would depend on re-establishing our own separate lives. "We just severed these umbilical wires". Over the course of the relationship, we became best friends and will always love each other deeply. "This is more than just affinity". We know in our heads that we should move on, but our hearts keep us hoping that this doesn't have to be the end. "We're moving further through an endless desire".

I am terrified to face the world without her by my side. "....I feel afraid now". I wish we could elevate ourselves above the fears and doubts and get back to where we were when we were blissfully happy. "Let's go higher". But the fears and the doubts are telling us something that we don't want to hear, because we don't want to let go of the dream we had of our future together. "This is the sound of your reason to wake." We often said that our love would overcome any obstacle. "Have we forgotten now?" There is now a seemingly impassible rift within the beautiful connection we have? "Can we relate?"

I know I want to marry her, so why won't the panic attacks stop. "It's backwards, it makes no sense." However, we cannot convince ourselves that my anxiety has nothing to do with my fears about being together. "[It's] So real that we can't pretend." The anxiety seems to grow in my subconscious, the more I try to deny it on a conscious level. "It's harder to just pretend."

If I can't be with her, I don't know what is worth believing. "Is this the end of all I know?"

I would just like to comment on the intensity of the music and how it complements the mood, depending on the section of this song. The bridge (Come again...can we relate) is like an unleased cataclysm; a harsh, corrosive, enraged sound accompanied by sharp drumming and frustrated vocals that seems to break out of the "captivity" mentioned in the first stanza. However, it is subdued by the lush ambience that dominates most of the song.

And that's what I love about this album. It develops emotions as the song progresses through shifts in mood - not only in vocals, but in atmosphere. You end up in a completely different place than the beginning (which is refreshing instead of starting and ending on the same riff), and, as a result, you're taken on one hell of a ride from start to finish.

For some reason most Karnivool songs remind of complex relationships; the "umbilical wires" line seems significant to me. It tells of dependency, estrangement, and loss. Hard hitting, as always. I will never tire of this album.

Like most songs on this album, I think this song is about consciousness.

It's about cutting the 'umbilical wires' between you and your 'cruel witted mind' and waking up. Freeing yourself from thinking and all you know.

To me the song is about a person who has completely changed their view about something or has had a sort of revelation.

He believes he has gotten wiser, hence claiming: "This is proof of my coming of age"

He might be having feelings of regret or guilt about this change: "I'm a soul taker, I'm a cruel witted mind"

If you go along with this concept and try to go along with the words you might grasp what I mean.

Another thing that supports the idea that this person has had a changed perception of something is in the bridge: "It's backwards it makes no sense, So real that we can't pretend" - This is stating the person is confused but feels compelled to make a change about their view.

What do you reckon? I came up with that in about 15 mins and after reading mazzypants hehe cheers bro.

Why the fuck does it sound like the singer is saying: "Losing a themology" when singing "Losing a theology" ??????????????????????????

Love this song, to me it's about two people most likely friends who are used to being around one another 24/7, one however is manipulative and therefore they're breaking apart as friends and I feel it's about getting used to being by yourself instead of just going along with it. Hence the repeated lyrics of 'hey is this the end of all I know' and 'Are you with me?'

If anyone actually read the Karnivool interviews (countless google results with videos/magazines etc) you would find the answer.

<Interviewer>: How about "All I Know"?

Kenny: "All I Know," I think that kind of stemmed from some ideas that Jon [Stockman] had on his bass that kind of, I guess he had that whole sort of pulse to it, that whole sort of anchor . . . I guess was the birth of that song, and the rest of it was work-shopped around and has that whole ethereal, sort of floating feel to it. Yet again, that's a kind of bit of a call to arms again, I think, about what we could be capable of if we all get connected at some point as a race and as people, it'd be a collective conscience and a collective mind would be frigging phenomenally powerful if we harnessed that one day. I know we will, I'm just not sure the best way we'll get there with that.

<Interviewer>: Is there a particular philosophy that you guys study, or religion, or that's just your collective thinking?

Kenny: That's just our collective thinking but it's actually free thinking. I mean, we don't ever hold ourselves to any sort of [idea of] this or this or this. It's absolutely free thinking, and thinking of the bigger picture outside ourselves and what we're capable of and questioning everything. Questioning all of it and questioning where we're going and curiosity, too, of what really lies ahead of us all. It's a number of things but not really religion as such. If anything, I collectively think we're anti-religion. I think there's all kinds of pros in my experience, but that's not really a topic for us, as such.

I believe this song as a lot to due with the choice of whether we as human beings, are to become sheep & blindlessly follow the rules society lays out for us, or do we at times use our own logic & follow our own instincts to forge our own path in life. It's certainly an interesting subject to ponder especially if you take in to account todays political climate. I appreciate songs that make you think & Karnivools songs are always thought provoking.

Huge Karnivool fan here and just created an acoustic instrumental version of “All I Know.” Just wanted to share if anyone is interested. Hope you enjoy it! https://youtu.be/FnFNo0GyA20