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Language of the Dead Lyrics
Take this lightning off of me,
too wonderful for me to keep.
All the stories of ancient greece.
Agamemnon, great Ulysses.
Everybody talkin' bout the language of the dead.
Antiquated murmurs maybe Dylan might've said.
Well I'm not so self assured,
I can barely sing a word.
Fads of the 60's and the 19th century.
Leo Tolstoy and Robert E. Lee.
We got a war on in our duplicity,
suburban white blasphemy.
Everybody talkin' bout the language of the dead.
Antiquated murmurs maybe Dylan might've said.
Well I'm not so self assured,
I can barely sing a word.
You can skim through every book they read,
you can dress a little smarter and claim your hit.
But the weight you've been seeking, you lifted it.
Plagiarize the twenties you never lived.
Take this lightning off of me,
too wonderful for me to keep.
Throw your idols into the sea.
Dreamers, get your own dream.
Everybody talkin' bout the language of the dead.
Antiquated murmurs maybe Dylan might've said.
Well I'm not so self assured,
I can barely sing a word.
Well I'm not so self assured.
But I don't need to lift a word.
too wonderful for me to keep.
All the stories of ancient greece.
Agamemnon, great Ulysses.
Antiquated murmurs maybe Dylan might've said.
Well I'm not so self assured,
I can barely sing a word.
Leo Tolstoy and Robert E. Lee.
We got a war on in our duplicity,
suburban white blasphemy.
Antiquated murmurs maybe Dylan might've said.
Well I'm not so self assured,
I can barely sing a word.
you can dress a little smarter and claim your hit.
But the weight you've been seeking, you lifted it.
Plagiarize the twenties you never lived.
too wonderful for me to keep.
Throw your idols into the sea.
Dreamers, get your own dream.
Antiquated murmurs maybe Dylan might've said.
Well I'm not so self assured,
I can barely sing a word.
Well I'm not so self assured.
But I don't need to lift a word.
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It seems fairly clear they are invoking history with the purpose of asking people to stop obsessing about it. This could seem anti-intellectual but I get their point and agree at least in part. People seem to over indulge on aspects of history or works of history (prose, poetry) that often serve no other purpose that to keep them from living their own life, i.e. be Hemingway don\'t just read him. Have your own adventure, and stop quoting stale works that have been overly referenced. \n\nThe singer is saying "please release me of the burden of having to sound like every other tortured twenty-something poet." While there should be a millennium hall of fame for great people, works and times and certainly lessons learned so as not to repeat history (and maybe even a Centennial Hall), I agree life is more about living than reflecting.