Absent in the things I’ve done
For the real
Revelations come to people so slow
Frightening
Won’t stop now before they’re done
Peel their skin
Eaten underneath
Rotten
Rotten
Drowning in understanding
Swallowed poison keeps them well
But watching the others struggle through
Makes me grin
Should I tell the mindless stumbling through
That I have found it?
Watching all the things they’ve done
This is real
When revolution comes from misguided hands
Frightening
And in all the idiots I see
Thoughtless men casting doubts on me
Enlightening
Downing in understanding
Swallowed poison keeps them well
But watching the others struggle through
Makes me grin
Should I tell the mindless stumbling through
That I have found it?
They’ll turn the vice once
And slowly break your hand
Will it come back to you now
Just like it never left?
(Chorus in forefront, lyrics below as backup)
Peel away their faith, their fears, have led them towards the worse one
See the way their minds have glazed they’re looking for the worst one
But I have found it
For the real
Revelations come to people so slow
Frightening
Won’t stop now before they’re done
Peel their skin
Eaten underneath
Rotten
Rotten
Drowning in understanding
Swallowed poison keeps them well
But watching the others struggle through
Makes me grin
Should I tell the mindless stumbling through
That I have found it?
Watching all the things they’ve done
This is real
When revolution comes from misguided hands
Frightening
And in all the idiots I see
Thoughtless men casting doubts on me
Enlightening
Downing in understanding
Swallowed poison keeps them well
But watching the others struggle through
Makes me grin
Should I tell the mindless stumbling through
That I have found it?
They’ll turn the vice once
And slowly break your hand
Will it come back to you now
Just like it never left?
(Chorus in forefront, lyrics below as backup)
Peel away their faith, their fears, have led them towards the worse one
See the way their minds have glazed they’re looking for the worst one
But I have found it
Add your song meanings, interpretations, facts, memories & more to the community.
I think maybe this song is about someone who knows the meaning of life (or THINKS they know) but Im not really sure. I like it though. It reminds me of The Lion King...
I think this is about a stoner, seeing all his friends drink themselves to be happy, and their everyday lives reflect this. you peel away their skin, and most people are ugly. he sees people struggling though, and all they need to know is that everything will be ok. love is a saving grace. thats just what this means to me
also, drowning in understanding, is him being overwhelmed. he just looks around at everything, its all from his point of view. he's just sitting back and understanding the meaning of life. killer song
chipper's good on this one.
i love guster and their double lyrics stuff. like "what you wish for" and "all the way up to heaven." i love it.
Like many of the earlier Guster songs, the lyrics are vague enough where the meaning of the song can vary. For example, this song can simply be about someone who learned about the secrets of diet/nutrition and the benefits. Read the lyrics over and think about it. "Peel their skin rotten underneath" "Swallowed poison keeps them well" "Should I tell the mindless stumbling through that I have found it". I don't really think it's about that, it was just an example of how this song can be applied to anything where someone feels they know the secrets and the masses don't.
When I first heard this song and Guster was on the rise, I actually wondered if it was about the music industry, and how they finally had the clarity to know how the business works and how to manipulate it. The lyrics apply there as well.
It could also be about religion with the faith references, either for or against:
"Peel away their faith, their fears, have led them towards the worse one See the way their minds have glazed they're looking for the worst one But I have found it"
Great song, very ambiguous. Classic Guster.