Listen, get this: Clutch is typically not trying to get a certain message across, but instead they're kind of painting a picture with really broad strokes. The allusions and metaphors carry the weight of the lyrics, typically alluding to sci-fi, classical and/or biblical mythology and (to a lesser extent) popular culture. This song is a perfect archetype of the lyrical stylings of Neil Fallon. The opening lines give the impression of someone who is keeping up with current (watching CNN) events in the morning, possibly before going to work. We then get this weird line about locusts flying in the window (possibly an allusion to a plague?), followed by an invasion of British troops and the paranoia of the "protagonist" wrapping everything in aluminum (have the British launched spy satellites?); this is then followed by a confirmation that the protagonist is protecting himself from the "pink rays from the ancient satellites" (the lyrics above are wrong)-- I'm not really sure why the satellites are "ancient" but it could tie in with the biblical-esque reference to the locusts. The allusion to cranes is also peculiar, but they are typically associated with peace and long life, so it might just be an introduction to a symbol that contradicts the general mood of the protagonist; the three dogs in this stanza could also be an allusion to cerberus, the three-headed dog that guards the gates of Hades (but I might just be reading way too much in to this).
There are next allusions to Saturnalia and the Praetorian Guard (where I got my kick-ass screen name from); these are pretty much self-explanatory if you run a wiki or google search on them (particularly the idea of the festival of Saturn, where slaves are treated like they are the masters and the masters try to please their slaves with gifts and food and stuff; these allusions immediately follow the "reversal" allusion where cranes are seen as a source of discomfort for the protagonist).
I've written way too much about a song that only lasts like four minutes, so I'm just going to list the allusions and what they refer to and y'all can figure out the rest.
Seven Habits of the Highly Infected Calf--A double allusion to "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People" (a book, by an author that I really can't remember: one of those things a sales manager would read) and also an allusion to the golden calf.
"Swan diving off the tongues of crippled giants"-- possibly an allusion to the idea of businessmen jumping from skyscrapers when their businesses go kerplunk (particularly since the next line references IBM).
Golden Parachute-- what would keep a businessman from commiting suicide if their business did go kerplunk (a guaranteed severance package).
Okay, that's like a freakin' college essay on a song that I was planning to write like two sentences on-- the power of that which is Clutch.
And by the way, schoolbag88; Slayer does, in fact, rule, but anyone who disses Clutch is either eight years old or just doesn't really like heavy rock, so which class do you fit in?
the crane reference i think is from Ibycus the poet. not sure i'm citing wikipedia but here is what i found.
the crane reference i think is from Ibycus the poet. not sure i'm citing wikipedia but here is what i found.
"The Greek for crane is ΓεÏανος (Geranos), which gives us the Cranesbill, or hardy geranium. The crane was a bird of omen. In the tale of Ibycus and the cranes, a thief attacked Ibycus (a poet of the 6th century BCE) and left him for dead. Ibycus called to a flock of passing cranes, who followed the attacker to a theater and hovered over him until, stricken with guilt, he confessed to the crime."
"The Greek for crane is ΓεÏανος (Geranos), which gives us the Cranesbill, or hardy geranium. The crane was a bird of omen. In the tale of Ibycus and the cranes, a thief attacked Ibycus (a poet of the 6th century BCE) and left him for dead. Ibycus called to a flock of passing cranes, who followed the attacker to a theater and hovered over him until, stricken with guilt, he confessed to the crime."
the theater thing reminds...
the theater thing reminds me of the Lincoln assassination though it's probably unrelated. "cranes fly in to terrorize me" might be fear of being robbed and/or assaulted?
The "pink rays from the ancient satellites" is a reference to the Philip K. Dick quasi-autobiographical novel VALIS (short for Vast Active Living Intelligence System). The protagonist "Horselover Fat" (translation of Philip Dick from Greek and German respectively) has an episode where he imagines himself struck by a pink laser beam, which imparts information to him which he couldn't possibly know, such as that it has been fired from a ancient satellite constructed by aliens from the star Albemuth.
The "pink rays from the ancient satellites" is a reference to the Philip K. Dick quasi-autobiographical novel VALIS (short for Vast Active Living Intelligence System). The protagonist "Horselover Fat" (translation of Philip Dick from Greek and German respectively) has an episode where he imagines himself struck by a pink laser beam, which imparts information to him which he couldn't possibly know, such as that it has been fired from a ancient satellite constructed by aliens from the star Albemuth.
It is strange to mention, but scientists have recently been able to perform some rudimentary mind control...
It is strange to mention, but scientists have recently been able to perform some rudimentary mind control on mice by exciting areas of their brain with lasers. The report didn't mention if they were pink though.
Listen, get this: Clutch is typically not trying to get a certain message across, but instead they're kind of painting a picture with really broad strokes. The allusions and metaphors carry the weight of the lyrics, typically alluding to sci-fi, classical and/or biblical mythology and (to a lesser extent) popular culture. This song is a perfect archetype of the lyrical stylings of Neil Fallon. The opening lines give the impression of someone who is keeping up with current (watching CNN) events in the morning, possibly before going to work. We then get this weird line about locusts flying in the window (possibly an allusion to a plague?), followed by an invasion of British troops and the paranoia of the "protagonist" wrapping everything in aluminum (have the British launched spy satellites?); this is then followed by a confirmation that the protagonist is protecting himself from the "pink rays from the ancient satellites" (the lyrics above are wrong)-- I'm not really sure why the satellites are "ancient" but it could tie in with the biblical-esque reference to the locusts. The allusion to cranes is also peculiar, but they are typically associated with peace and long life, so it might just be an introduction to a symbol that contradicts the general mood of the protagonist; the three dogs in this stanza could also be an allusion to cerberus, the three-headed dog that guards the gates of Hades (but I might just be reading way too much in to this). There are next allusions to Saturnalia and the Praetorian Guard (where I got my kick-ass screen name from); these are pretty much self-explanatory if you run a wiki or google search on them (particularly the idea of the festival of Saturn, where slaves are treated like they are the masters and the masters try to please their slaves with gifts and food and stuff; these allusions immediately follow the "reversal" allusion where cranes are seen as a source of discomfort for the protagonist).
I've written way too much about a song that only lasts like four minutes, so I'm just going to list the allusions and what they refer to and y'all can figure out the rest. Seven Habits of the Highly Infected Calf--A double allusion to "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People" (a book, by an author that I really can't remember: one of those things a sales manager would read) and also an allusion to the golden calf. "Swan diving off the tongues of crippled giants"-- possibly an allusion to the idea of businessmen jumping from skyscrapers when their businesses go kerplunk (particularly since the next line references IBM). Golden Parachute-- what would keep a businessman from commiting suicide if their business did go kerplunk (a guaranteed severance package). Okay, that's like a freakin' college essay on a song that I was planning to write like two sentences on-- the power of that which is Clutch.
And by the way, schoolbag88; Slayer does, in fact, rule, but anyone who disses Clutch is either eight years old or just doesn't really like heavy rock, so which class do you fit in?
the crane reference i think is from Ibycus the poet. not sure i'm citing wikipedia but here is what i found.
the crane reference i think is from Ibycus the poet. not sure i'm citing wikipedia but here is what i found.
"The Greek for crane is ΓεÏανος (Geranos), which gives us the Cranesbill, or hardy geranium. The crane was a bird of omen. In the tale of Ibycus and the cranes, a thief attacked Ibycus (a poet of the 6th century BCE) and left him for dead. Ibycus called to a flock of passing cranes, who followed the attacker to a theater and hovered over him until, stricken with guilt, he confessed to the crime."
"The Greek for crane is ΓεÏανος (Geranos), which gives us the Cranesbill, or hardy geranium. The crane was a bird of omen. In the tale of Ibycus and the cranes, a thief attacked Ibycus (a poet of the 6th century BCE) and left him for dead. Ibycus called to a flock of passing cranes, who followed the attacker to a theater and hovered over him until, stricken with guilt, he confessed to the crime."
the theater thing reminds...
the theater thing reminds me of the Lincoln assassination though it's probably unrelated. "cranes fly in to terrorize me" might be fear of being robbed and/or assaulted?
The "pink rays from the ancient satellites" is a reference to the Philip K. Dick quasi-autobiographical novel VALIS (short for Vast Active Living Intelligence System). The protagonist "Horselover Fat" (translation of Philip Dick from Greek and German respectively) has an episode where he imagines himself struck by a pink laser beam, which imparts information to him which he couldn't possibly know, such as that it has been fired from a ancient satellite constructed by aliens from the star Albemuth.
The "pink rays from the ancient satellites" is a reference to the Philip K. Dick quasi-autobiographical novel VALIS (short for Vast Active Living Intelligence System). The protagonist "Horselover Fat" (translation of Philip Dick from Greek and German respectively) has an episode where he imagines himself struck by a pink laser beam, which imparts information to him which he couldn't possibly know, such as that it has been fired from a ancient satellite constructed by aliens from the star Albemuth.
It is strange to mention, but scientists have recently been able to perform some rudimentary mind control...
It is strange to mention, but scientists have recently been able to perform some rudimentary mind control on mice by exciting areas of their brain with lasers. The report didn't mention if they were pink though.
You sir, are deserving of a kudos.
You sir, are deserving of a kudos.