Vater

I noticed similarities to lines from poems called "Kindertodtenlieder" by Friedrich Rückert (1788-1866). 'Kindertotenlieder' means 'Songs on the Death of Children' or 'Children's songs about Death'. They are famous because Gustav Mahler selected five of them and set them as songs in 1903.

1) extract of the poem "Du bist mein Schatten am Tage" original: "Wo ich mein Zelt aufschlage, Da wohnst du bei mir dicht; Du bist mein Schatten am Tage Und in der Nacht mein Licht." translation: "Wherever i pitch my tent you are living close to me you are my shadow in the daytime and my light at night" i think there are similarities regarding the rhyme-structure, the content, the words used in the lines and the rhythm of the spoken words - to the verse "Wo immer ich aufschlage..." (2nd verse).

2) extract of the poem "Oft denk' ich, sie sind nur ausgegangen" original "Oft denk' ich, sie sind nur ausgegangen, bald werden sie wieder nach Hause gelangen." translation "often i think, they just went out (for a walk) soon they will be at home again" it remembers me to the line "wann kommst du wieder heim" (when will you return home again)

there are not only hints to the "kindertotenlieder" but also to the poem "funeral blues" by w.h.auden which starts similarly to "vater":

"Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone, Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone, Silence the pianos and with muffled drum Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.

the poem can be seen here http://homepages.wmich.edu/~cooneys/poems/auden.stop.html, it has even been sung: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slDNSH7a84c.

Anja's father died while riding a bicycle so I think she means bicycle wheel when she sings "Rad". I watched a concert where she explained this was for her father.

I love this song. So raw, open, heartfelt... Really gritty lyrics, so many conflicting feelings, the description of the process of a body's decay... I have an elementary understanding of German grammar and basic vocabulary, so armed with that and online dictionaries, I've conjured the following translation. Know that its accuracy is unreliable at best!

All the clocks stop and the dog there stops barking at its bicycle

Whenever I open up, I find you You fall into the shadow of day as silence and stitches

I toast dozens of wine bottles to you and would much rather be a maggot The coffin collapses, the flowers fall into the cheeks

First white, then blue, then grey, then green then foam, then brown and leaves and dust Please blow out of my head, out of my house How else can I think of the horror? With what heart, with what body out?

Out

Whenever I open up, I find you You fall into the shadows of day as silence and stitches I’m waiting for you, when are you coming back home? I would never wish to be a maggot to be a maggot

Let me in, in, to be bone-hard as you are let me into your eyes I want to see it, to pass the test without agony, without agony let me in, you stone

Of all the things in the world that you hold in love I smash [them] and [even] my own sky so that it may collapse under you and you fall over (really not sure if I got this right) and you endlessly reappear.

Hey there, I am also from Germany and understood a few words differently:

First of all I think that by Rad she does mean bicycle... If it referred to a wagon's wheel, the dog would bark at the wagon and not an individual wheel, I guess... Anyway, to me clocks ticking and a dog barking at a bicycle are typical background noises of everyday life. I think when someone you love has died, your life stops in a way, at least for a while, so you might want these sounds to stop because they reflect that life outside your head is progressing as normally as ever.

Wo immer ich aufschlage find' ich dich: I always understood "aufschlagen" as to crash or fall down, as in "Das Flugzeug schlug auf dem Boden auf und wurde zerstört." (The plane crashed onto the ground and was destroyed.) Opening a photo album does make a lot of sense though, probably more than my interpretation. I always imagined that you felt as if you had lost touch with the ground, were floating through life and wherever you hit the ground and came back to reality, something reminded you of him again.

Du fällst im Schatten der Tage als Stille und Stich: I think in this context Stich means stab or sting, the pain you feel when you are reminded of losing him. So I would say: In the shadow of the days you fall as silence and a sting. To me "the shadow of the days" expresses the somber feeling that lingers after the days surrounding his death, the funeral etc. In this atmosphere his memory descends like a veil of silence and pain. Or the shadow might refer to the days having two sides, a regular light everyday-life one that everybody sees, and a second dark shadowed side that only a bereaved person experiences, in which his loss brings silence and pain.

Bitte schlag dich aus meinem Kopf: As you said, it basically means please get out of my head. Normally this expression is used as in "Schlag es dir aus dem Kopf!" (schlagen literally means to beat), which means "stop thinking about it". You might say this to someone who keeps thinking or talking about a hopeless idea or plan. So usually, you can only 'schlag' something out of your own head. Saying "Bitte schlag dich aus meinem Kopf" therefore has so much more meaning because it implies that you do not feel in control of your own thoughts. I hope this was somewhat understandable, I just felt the need to comment on how beautifully Anja put this.

Lass mich rein, rein, beinhart wie du sein: "Lass mich rein" means let me in, but "Lass mich rein sein" means let me be pure. So you might also translate the line as "Let me in, let me be pure, bone-hard as you."

I am at a loss for words to describe how wonderful and touching this song is. Three days ago I saw Soap&Skin in Cologne and it was the most beautiful, emotional and intense concert I ever experienced. Anja seemed like such a sweet humble person and I am grateful that she shares her feelings and her incredibly beautiful honest music.

@Inue

Yes, he died of a heart attack whilst riding his bike, sadly.

This song (the demo is my favourite if I'm honest) is so pure and beautiful, and heartbreaking.