a few minor corrections, line four in the first verse should be "like drab and dolor" - dullard has a completely different and unrelated meaning that i don't believe can really even be applied to a kingdom.
also, the second line on the second verse should read "a lithe young lawyer," or possibly "a live young lawyer" although i'm personally leaning toward the former. lithe implies grace or flexibility, like "a lithe ballerina" or something thereabout. the idea, i think, is to contrast ironically this graceful young lawyer - colin seems to have taken special care that we sympathize with the lawyer, something our society traditionally does not do , hence i think the use of "lithe" and "young" - who is trying to protect her unjustly arrested brother from the king and queen of light.
the theme of ironic contrast repeats throughout the song; in the the third verse, love is compared to war through the use of words and concepts like fodder, cannonades drumming and arguably fingerless gloves - again, though, the gloves are white, implying innocence. the fact that the song begins in the kingdom of spain, given the history of spain, is not at all surprising - it is, as described, a beautiful and charming land which nevertheless has a long history of well-intentioned cruelty, an excellent parallel i think for the kingdom of love.
given only the first and third verse, i might have interpreted the song merely as being about love, but the decemberists write very few songs that are solely about love, and the second verse makes me think the theme is quite broader than that - my interpretation is that the world and life itself are so beautiful but suffering is also inescapable; people are not evil exactly, and are rarely intentionally cruel to one another, but everyone is trying to get through life as best they can and just as we will inevitably suffer, we will also inevitably cause suffering. throughout all of this, however, there is still a great deal of beauty in it all (not that he ends by repeating "of love").
it's a shame that this song ended as a b-side and does not get more attention - while i love "of angels and angles" for all of its tender sentimentality, i think the kingdom of spain might have been a stronger way to end the album, although i'm sure they had reasons for the decision they made.
a few minor corrections, line four in the first verse should be "like drab and dolor" - dullard has a completely different and unrelated meaning that i don't believe can really even be applied to a kingdom.
also, the second line on the second verse should read "a lithe young lawyer," or possibly "a live young lawyer" although i'm personally leaning toward the former. lithe implies grace or flexibility, like "a lithe ballerina" or something thereabout. the idea, i think, is to contrast ironically this graceful young lawyer - colin seems to have taken special care that we sympathize with the lawyer, something our society traditionally does not do , hence i think the use of "lithe" and "young" - who is trying to protect her unjustly arrested brother from the king and queen of light.
the theme of ironic contrast repeats throughout the song; in the the third verse, love is compared to war through the use of words and concepts like fodder, cannonades drumming and arguably fingerless gloves - again, though, the gloves are white, implying innocence. the fact that the song begins in the kingdom of spain, given the history of spain, is not at all surprising - it is, as described, a beautiful and charming land which nevertheless has a long history of well-intentioned cruelty, an excellent parallel i think for the kingdom of love.
given only the first and third verse, i might have interpreted the song merely as being about love, but the decemberists write very few songs that are solely about love, and the second verse makes me think the theme is quite broader than that - my interpretation is that the world and life itself are so beautiful but suffering is also inescapable; people are not evil exactly, and are rarely intentionally cruel to one another, but everyone is trying to get through life as best they can and just as we will inevitably suffer, we will also inevitably cause suffering. throughout all of this, however, there is still a great deal of beauty in it all (not that he ends by repeating "of love").
it's a shame that this song ended as a b-side and does not get more attention - while i love "of angels and angles" for all of its tender sentimentality, i think the kingdom of spain might have been a stronger way to end the album, although i'm sure they had reasons for the decision they made.