So this has been.my favorite song of OTEP's since it came out in 2004, and I always thought it was a song about a child's narrative of suffering in an abusive Christian home. But now that I am revisiting the lyrics, I am seeing something totally new.
This song could be gospel of John but from the perspective of Jesus.
Jesus was NOT having a good time up to and during the crucifixion. Everyone in the known world at the time looked to him with fear, admiration or disgust and he was constantly being asked questions. He spoke in "verses, prophesies and curses". He had made an enemy of the state, and believed the world was increasingly wicked and fallen from grace, or that he was in the "mouth of madness".
The spine of atlas is the structure that allows the titan to hold the world up. Jesus challenged the state and in doing so became a celebrated resistance figure. It also made him public enemy #1.
All of this happened simply because he was doing his thing, not because of any agenda he had or strategy.
And then he gets scourged (storm of thorns)
There are some plot holes here but I think it's an interesting interpretation.
I buried my heart in a hole in the ground
With the lights and the roses and the cowards downtown
They threw me a party, there was no one around
They tried to call my girl but she could not be found
I buried my guilt in a pit in the sound
With the rust and the vultures and the trash downtown
So don't step to me, kid, you'll never be found
'Cause while you were sleeping, I took over your town
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, of my eye
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, I want ya
I fell for a girl with a port-wine stain
I knew her initials but never her name
I tried and I tried and I was never the same
It's no longer for love and I'm forever changed
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, of my eye
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, I want ya
Give up my money, give up my name, take it away
I'll give it away, I'll give it away, I'll give it
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, of my eye
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, I want ya
Give up my money, give up my name, take it away
I'll give it away, I'll give it away, I'll give it
I'm a sycophantic animal, I'm a sycophantic animal, I'm a sycophantic animal
Break up the chain, I'll break up the chain, I'll break it
Give it away, I'll give it away, I'll give it
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, of my eye
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, I want ya
Give up my money, give up my name, take it away
I'll give it away, I'll give it away, I'll give it
See you again, I'll see you again, I'll see ya
Give it away, I'll give it away, I'll give it
When I feel low, when I feel low, I feel it
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, of my eye
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, I want ya
With the lights and the roses and the cowards downtown
They threw me a party, there was no one around
They tried to call my girl but she could not be found
I buried my guilt in a pit in the sound
With the rust and the vultures and the trash downtown
So don't step to me, kid, you'll never be found
'Cause while you were sleeping, I took over your town
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, of my eye
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, I want ya
I fell for a girl with a port-wine stain
I knew her initials but never her name
I tried and I tried and I was never the same
It's no longer for love and I'm forever changed
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, of my eye
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, I want ya
Give up my money, give up my name, take it away
I'll give it away, I'll give it away, I'll give it
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, of my eye
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, I want ya
Give up my money, give up my name, take it away
I'll give it away, I'll give it away, I'll give it
I'm a sycophantic animal, I'm a sycophantic animal, I'm a sycophantic animal
Break up the chain, I'll break up the chain, I'll break it
Give it away, I'll give it away, I'll give it
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, of my eye
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, I want ya
Give up my money, give up my name, take it away
I'll give it away, I'll give it away, I'll give it
See you again, I'll see you again, I'll see ya
Give it away, I'll give it away, I'll give it
When I feel low, when I feel low, I feel it
When I see a man, I see a lion
When I see a man, I see a lion
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, of my eye
You're the apple of my eye, of my eye, I want ya
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
I pondered on this song so hard, I burned out on it.
"With the lights and the roses and the cowards downtown" I guess the White House is well lit(?) It has a rose garden They call the Senate the offices "downtown" and they are full of cowards. "They threw me a party no one around", I was thinking about how the Vietnam vets got no parade in their honor. "Tried to call my girl, could not be found" She left him, probably protesting, because soldiers in Vietnam were hated by America. "Rust, vultures, trash downtown" Wash DC again but this time we as a nation are not innocents as to the agenda of politicians and their reasonings for war and invasions. "Don't step to me kid, you'll never be found, cuz while you were sleeping I took over your town" Desert Storm(?) CIA(?) Then the "buried my heart", " buried my guilt" The politicians become the "sin-eaters" for the atrocities of war(?)
That's all folks. IDK, I just hope songs are not "simple simon says". I put alot of brain power into deciphering meanings.
@AllyMcNally <br /> Well this is AllyMcNally, only my new handle is Aleemay. <br /> My latest interpretation is that the song is about the life of a senator, his service in Vietnam, his political career, and eventually, his disillusionment and disenchantment with American politics and our justifications of foreign wars. <br /> Maybe overthinking the song too much but at least I'm listening.