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King Of Loss Lyrics
Mother, at my first breath
Every paragraph was set
As I inhaled the scent of debt
Mother, that first stolen air
On papers saying I'm not mine
"We crown you, the King of Loss...
Better get on your feet
Best be one of us
Better get yourself on the list
For success
Dress up as a State investment
Charm the press
A breed from the seed of only
One short breath"
Mother, hence we cry:
Some of us are free to stand
Most of us are bound to lie
In those bloodstained beds
No one can afford to pay
The prices on their babies' heads
I am the King of Loss!
For every dear smile I feel I'm not one of us
"An ivory coin for every plus on your stone"
"One more governmental blade
Now drawn from its sheath
Quite a bargain I'd say since either way
You will live by the show of our teeth!"
Mother, I wish that we could talk
You see
I'm not fit to play this game
Bound by its rules just the same
My talents turned to talons
Every monetary pile
Will buy me a precious smile...
smile...
So smile for the King of Loss
Feed from the juices
Bleeding from this cross
Then tell me our lives mean more
Than this vain thirst!
"A governmental blade
Drawn from its private sheath
Quite a bargain I'd say, since either way
You'll be living by the show of our..."
I hold up my head
This was my life
Now I'm with the dead
So I lay my bare neck
This is your call
Dub a king or a wreck
(Mother, listen to me mother)
This was my life
This is your call
Is this all I am? Is this all I'll be?
This is not enough!
We're all crying for respect and attention
We're all dying for a painless redemption!
This is not what I wanted
But for every drop of blood I lost myself
I, too, lay bleeding on the sidewalk...
Mother
Long live the dying king
"A governmental blade
Now drawn from its private sheath
Quite a bargain I'd say, since either way
I will live by the show of your teeth..."
Every paragraph was set
As I inhaled the scent of debt
Mother, that first stolen air
On papers saying I'm not mine
Better get on your feet
Best be one of us
Better get yourself on the list
For success
Dress up as a State investment
Charm the press
A breed from the seed of only
One short breath"
Some of us are free to stand
Most of us are bound to lie
In those bloodstained beds
No one can afford to pay
The prices on their babies' heads
For every dear smile I feel I'm not one of us
"An ivory coin for every plus on your stone"
Now drawn from its sheath
Quite a bargain I'd say since either way
You will live by the show of our teeth!"
You see
I'm not fit to play this game
Bound by its rules just the same
My talents turned to talons
Every monetary pile
Will buy me a precious smile...
smile...
Feed from the juices
Bleeding from this cross
Then tell me our lives mean more
Than this vain thirst!
Drawn from its private sheath
Quite a bargain I'd say, since either way
You'll be living by the show of our..."
This was my life
Now I'm with the dead
So I lay my bare neck
This is your call
Dub a king or a wreck
This is your call
This is not enough!
We're all dying for a painless redemption!
This is not what I wanted
But for every drop of blood I lost myself
I, too, lay bleeding on the sidewalk...
Long live the dying king
Now drawn from its private sheath
Quite a bargain I'd say, since either way
I will live by the show of your teeth..."
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I think we found out in this song that "he" was born an orphan and that the first time he felt betrayal or loss was right at his birth.
"Mother, at my first breath Every paragraph was set As I inhaled the scent of debt Mother, that first stolen air On papers saying I'm not mine"
The mother he could actually be refering to is the government, the only mother hes actually ever known. The whole 5-7 minute mark of this song is amazing.
I think this song is about how He was never good enough, neither for himself or his mother. On some level, he both despises and loves her, declaring that she is the one who could make him a king or kill him. When he says "Long live the dying king!" I shiver.
Guys, guys... Please... It's all about the fact that in our world, every child is born in debt. The payment for the hospital bed for the mother giving birth comes first, then, the upbringing, the college fees, and then we spend the rest of our lives killing ourselves for each cent we get. It's all about the literal price we pay for living our lives in this capitalist, dog-eat-dog world.
Just an interpretation. I may be wrong.
Yeah that's wrong, its part of a concept album about a man and a woman with similar scarred pasts that meet by chance...nothing political in this one. Not a bad interpretation otherwise though.
Yeah that's wrong, its part of a concept album about a man and a woman with similar scarred pasts that meet by chance...nothing political in this one. Not a bad interpretation otherwise though.
Sherick is right.
Sherick is right.
Regardless of the overarching plot, if you examine the lyrics rather than focusing on a vague description of the album, Long is absolutely right here.
Regardless of the overarching plot, if you examine the lyrics rather than focusing on a vague description of the album, Long is absolutely right here.
The album is about more than "him" and "her." It's also about the circumstances and pains that have lead them to be together. They were each born into a tragic life, from their very first breath, starting with this debt, both literal and figurative... born into a society in which he is "not fit to play this game." It's a world where he must live by the show of his teeth, to use his talents...
The album is about more than "him" and "her." It's also about the circumstances and pains that have lead them to be together. They were each born into a tragic life, from their very first breath, starting with this debt, both literal and figurative... born into a society in which he is "not fit to play this game." It's a world where he must live by the show of his teeth, to use his talents as "talons" (PoS references "birds of prey" frequently, which I think stem's from Nietzsche's concept of sheep and birds of prey.) in order to make a superfluous living and buy those precious smiles.
And, truly? Do you really think that the lines "A governmental blade Drawn from its private sheath Quite a bargain I'd say, since either way You'll be living by the show of your teeth."
are not political?
I agree with @Longandweirdname and @remedie. If you listen to kingdom of loss on Scarsick, its even more evident that the subject was political.
I agree with @Longandweirdname and @remedie. If you listen to kingdom of loss on Scarsick, its even more evident that the subject was political.
I can't see how anyone is unable to see the political undertones in this song. Really they're more like overtones compared to the rest of the album. Scarsick only furthers Longandweirdname's interpretation. It's definitely about Him and the role he is playing in society. Which is only a part of the overall story concerning Him and Her.
He sees himself but a tool, another cog in the machinery (ala the character in One Hour By The Concrete Lale). He's told there's a greater purpose but he doesn't seem to believe in that.
Thinking that the so referred mother in the lyrics is actually the government makes more sense not only for the song itself as well as for the perfect fit of the rest of the story in the conceptual album this song is a part of.
However, as a musician, I also feel that some of the stanzas of this lyrics depicts exactly how we end up feeling deep inside, mainly due to the way that the music industry has grown up to operate, and - more widely - the way we are sort of "forced" to use our expertises to make money and a living out of it. In the song, I personally undertand it as composing songs and perfoming live, and since Daniel has a high standard for music composition/live perfomance, choosing between composing what you really want and what would give you more green in your pocket is a painful decision (sometimes between comfort and fun). This might happen mainly because society forces us to be one of them, do the same things and fall into a given category.
If we read upon the books "1984" and "Brave New World", it is notable that a small part of us can't fit in these categories, but we are gradually forced to, or life would be even harder.
Not sure what he chose and in which level. However, from this album forward (The Perfect Element pt. I), it is noticeable that melodies came to be more accessible, reaching an even more plain approach on Scarsick, leaning towards it even more on both Road Salts.