Rings

very very good realization toadtws...however id say glen is comparing himself to a tree... you can tell what happened in a given year by the size and condition of a ring on a tree when you cut it down...glen may be comparing this to himself - looking inside himself.

I read somewhere that Glen wrote this song around the time of his birthday. I suppose looking back on his life gave him inspiration to write from the point of view of a tree.

I see this song as symbolic. The tree (Glen) reflects on all the things that have added to who he is. All of the difficult times and struggles, the brushfires, the dry spells, have helped to make him who he is. But the first verse of the song tells of the end of his life. The plane that shapes the board... in other words, the tree has been cut down and is being cut apart to be used for other purposes. I love the line "You must cut me down to look inside." It's like you always see a persons true character when they face adversity, whether it be from another person or from uncontrollable conditions. Very poingnant lyrics to me.

Glen wrote this song when he was 17, it was originally demoed for the bands 1990 "Pale" album but didn't see release until they re-recorded it for their 1997 album "Coil", Gle has stated before "I thought this was about a tree but a friend of mine says it's deeper" so there you go

This song is clearly about a tree and how it might view life. Many things that seem pressing become obviously inconsequential when looked at in the context of hundreds of years of history.

Why can't it just be about trees? Who cares if Glen is comparing himself to one. I think it's more imaginative and spooky if it's just the point of view of a tree. Reminds me of Ents.