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.
Bat your eyes, girl
Be otherworldly
Count your blessings
Seduce a stranger
What's so wrong with being happy?
Kudos to those who see through sickness, yeah
Over and over and over and over
And ooh-ooh-ooh
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
I suggest we
Learn to love ourselves
Before its made illegal
When will we learn? When will we change
Just in time to see it all come down
Those left standing will make millions
Writing books on the way it should have been
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning (warning)
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
Floating in this cosmic Jacuzzi
We are like frogs oblivious
To the water starting to boil
No one flinches, we all float face down
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning (warning)
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
Pass you by, oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
Be otherworldly
Count your blessings
Seduce a stranger
What's so wrong with being happy?
Kudos to those who see through sickness, yeah
Over and over and over and over
And ooh-ooh-ooh
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
I suggest we
Learn to love ourselves
Before its made illegal
When will we learn? When will we change
Just in time to see it all come down
Those left standing will make millions
Writing books on the way it should have been
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning (warning)
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
Floating in this cosmic Jacuzzi
We are like frogs oblivious
To the water starting to boil
No one flinches, we all float face down
When she woke in the morning
She knew that her life had passed her by
And she called out a warning (warning)
"Don't ever let life pass you by"
Pass you by, oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh
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there are a lot of postings on here so i'm sure everyone has pretty much covered the meaning of the song but i just wanted to say that i love this song :)