Jens Lekman

Waiting for Kirsten

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Waiting for Kirsten Lyrics

We were waiting for Kirsten, me and Joel,
'Cause we found out the name of her hotel,
With the folköl and an evening paper,
In which she spelled out my name letter by letter.

Well, I grew up outside this city,
Where the local Estrella chips factory
Had paved the to your grave and to your destiny,
So what can a suburban boy like me do when she mentions me
Except compromise a portion of his dignity?

Another club, another beer, another hour --
Squint at the clock up at the church tower.
"What she's doing here, you think?"
"I heard she's filming with von Trier."
"Hey Klara, how's your night?
Did you know about Kirsten? Have you seen her?"
She says:"Yeah she was here,
But she was turned away at the door."
I know, I know, I can't believe no one told her before...

That in Gothenburg we don't have VIP lines.
In Gothenburg, we don't make a fuss about who you are.
In Gothenburg, we don't have VIP lines.
But then I bit my tongue, and the taste of blood was so strong.

'Cause times are changing, Kirsten:
Göta Älv is slowly reversing;
They turned a youth-center into a casino;
They drew a swastika in your cappuccino.
And the VIP lines are not to the clubs
But to healthcare, apartments and jobs.
"Hey buddy can I borrow five grand?
'Cause my dad's in chemo,
And they wanna take him off his plan."

I said, in Gothenburg, we don't have VIP lines
I said, in Gothenburg, you're not worth less, and you're not worth any more.
I said, in Gothenburg, we don't have VIP lines,
But then I bit my tongue, and the taste of blood was so strong.

At the end of the night, me and Joel
Went back and sat outside her hotel
And drank beer after beer 'til the sun came up,
And since she didn't show up, Joel said I had to man up,
And write a note of affection, and leave it in the reception.
And I wrote this confession with the lipstick from his girlfriend
on the back of our receipt.
But the receptionist said I was drunk and asked me to leave.

Submitted by

hukdonfoniks On Sep 18, 2011

The Opposite of Hallelujah

We were waiting for Kirsten, me and Joel,
'Cause we found out the name of her hotel,
With the folköl and an evening paper,
In which she spelled out my name letter by letter.

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hukdonfoniks

Submitter

2011-09-18 19:35:07

1 Meaning

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by soapytiger

13y ago

Kerstin Dunst was in Gothenburg, Sweden (along with Keifer Sutherland) during the shooting of Lars von Trier's "Melancholia". From the lyrics, it sounds like she name-checked Lekman during an interview with the local newspaper. Lekman, having seen this, was a flood of thought and felt driven to meet her. So he and friend "Joel" found her hotel and waited for her.

Speaking to another friend, they discuss how megastar Kerstin Dunst was turned down at a club. "I can't believe that no one ever told her before"

That in Gothenburg we don't have VIP lines. In Gothenburg, we don't make a fuss about who you are. In Gothenburg, we don't have VIP lines. But then I bit my tongue, and the taste of blood was so strong. <

In Gothenburg, there is an unspoken mandate to bring everybody to the center, to create a sense of equality on the surface. So for someone of Dunst's stature, being in Gothenburg would be an exercise in humility, being made an example, brought hurling to earth like the rest of us in front of onlookers. Being put in your place and proven that you are not special, is particularly strong in Gothenburg. But its a superficial farce. While there are no VIP lines for clubs, there most definitely are for "healthcare, apartments and jobs".

Lekman is very deft with these lyrics as he is battling back and forth with the idea of worth, of value. Who is he, a boy growing up next to the potato ship factory, that Kerstin Dunst should speak his name? Who is she that she should get into a club in Gothenburg? And its the same friction I imagine Lekman deals with his own celebrity in Gothenburg. Though he may be accustomed to it, it's still a bit insane. I'm not 100% certain what the line "But then I bit my tongue, and the taste of blood was so strong" means, but I interpret it to be him being hit with the realization that he too has to deal with this kind of static, and YEAH, this IS messed up! This is revealed at the end of the song where the receptionist turned him away, saying he was drunk. Now, the receptionist may have not known who Jen Lekman is, but even if she had, this is how he would have been treated. You are no one special in Gothenburg. I live here, I know.

For further fun reading about the mentality of "You are not special", check out Jantelagen http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_Jante

Song Meaning

Speaking to another friend, they discuss how megastar Kerstin Dunst was turned down at a club. "I can't believe that no one ever told her before"

> That in Gothenburg we don't have VIP lines.
  In Gothenburg, we don't make a fuss about who you are.
  In Gothenburg, we don't have VIP lines.
  But then I bit my tongue, and the taste of blood was so strong. <

Lekman is very deft with these lyrics as he is battling back and forth with the idea of worth, of value. Who is he, a boy growing up next to the potato ship factory, that Kerstin Dunst should speak his name? Who is she that she should get into a club in Gothenburg?  And its the same friction I imagine Lekman deals with his own celebrity in Gothenburg. Though he may be accustomed to it, it's still a bit insane. I'm not 100% certain what the line "But then I bit my tongue, and the taste of blood was so strong" means, but I interpret it to be him being hit with the realization that he too has to deal with this kind of static, and YEAH, this IS messed up! This is revealed at the end of the song where the receptionist turned him away, saying he was drunk. Now, the receptionist may have not known who Jen Lekman is, but even if she had, this is how he would have been treated. You are no one special in Gothenburg. I live here, I know.

For further fun reading about the mentality of "You are not special", check out Jantelagen http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_Jante

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by laurisol 9y ago

@soapytiger Thanks so much for this in-depth explanation! :) At first I heard: In Gothenburg we don't have the IKEA's :D.

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