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Floating Vibes Lyrics

forget the second coming
i need you in the here and now
instead of dreamin' up a way to spread your name
across the world somehow

when you told me you were leavin'
i wasn't thirsty for revenge
no i wasn't disappointed much at all
'cause you'll be back again

if you're movin' out to the west
then you'd better learn how to surf
the tide will break in on itself
there are no ghosts to exhume or unearth

if you're gonna do it then do it
otherwise you just might lose your nerve
i swear that ocean it swallowed me fully
and it might have to follow you home

when you wake up in the morning
and you hear that awful applause
put it in your fuckin' napkin
and watch it dissolve

you could seal it in an envelope
tuck it away in your safe
but you can't take it to the bank
and you can't take it back
Song Info
Submitted by
tjwells On Dec 09, 2009
3 Meanings

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Cover art for Floating Vibes lyrics by Surfer Blood

The singer is reflecting on the ups and downs of early stardom... one night you're a rock god and the next big thing, the next morning you're waking up in the same old dump and the rent is due. that's what all the "you can't take it to the bank" is about.

He's singing to a girl, not to god. She's left, for the coast, but he expects that once he goes big time for real, it will be like the "second coming," and of course she'll want a piece of that, which is why he knows that she'll be back.

So he's asking her, "why do we have to wait for that, or for me to write some song about you that gets played everywhere so that everyone has to become involved in our story? Instead of all that crazy shit, just come back now, OK?"

The band makes a big point of telling us that they don't really surf, which to me makes all of the surf metaphors kind of funny, but it's a free world, and the more I listen to this album, the more I like it, so I'm not complaining. And only one of the Beach Boys surfed, and that didn't stop them either. So, OK (AOK?), gotta go catch some waves now...

Song Meaning

Its obviously about the western spread of Christianity. Not some women.

yeah that's what i thought at first too. but after listening to it and the rest of the album a million times, and seeing a bunch of their videos and interviews, I don't think that anymore.

i think that, in addition to any specifically biblical meaning, "the second coming" has by now become a catch phrase that is used in other contexts. Like saying something is a "crown of thorns" or that someone has a "cross to bear."

maybe i'm wrong. do you have an interpretation for the napkin scene?

you are probably half right--first verse I see spread of Christianity and the 2nd coming of Christ, then a connection to a female leaving...last stanza...fame and fortune vs the reality of music world...indie bands have obviously devoted and loyal fans, but make little money compared to the Justin Beiber's out there...sad but true

Cover art for Floating Vibes lyrics by Surfer Blood

really sounds to me like hes saying "when you told me you were even" not leavin

Cover art for Floating Vibes lyrics by Surfer Blood

The lyrics that come with the disc say:

"You can seal it in an envelope, Tuck it away in your sleeve;"

 
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