None Shall Pass Lyrics

Lyric discussion by sobriquet89 

Cover art for None Shall Pass lyrics by Aesop Rock

I broke the song down and wrote out what I believed each line meant. (The ones that I felt I understood).

"So when a dog fight's hog-tied prize sorta costs a life, the mouths water on a fork and knife, and the allure isn't right. It's gore on a war torn beach where the cash cow's actually beef." A commentary on the American love of violence. The visual imagery is a dog attacking another animal hog-tied and helpless (the prize) and since it's only an animal that's dying it "sorta costs a life". The mouths water because it's feeding the American need for violence.

"The allure isn't right" just like the allure of "a war torn beach" isn't right. I'm not sure about the meaning of "where the cash cow's actually beef" but the rest of it sounds like a reference to the storming of the beach of Normandy as it is arguably the most famous military event because of all the lives lost there, and how gruesomely they were lost.

"Blood turns wine when it leak for police like that's not a riot it's a feast, let's eat" I think this is perhaps a commentary on police brutality, like it's condoned and therefore is a "feast" instead of being something bad.

"And I will rejoice in your fall from grace with a cane to the sky like 'None Shall Pass'". I always think of Gandalf saying "YOU SHALL NOT PASS!" in the LOTR movie :P

"If you never had a day a snow cone couldn't fix, you wouldn't relate to the rogue vocoder blitz". I have no idea who or what a rogue vocoder blitz is, but apparently if you've had an easy life you can't relate to him.

"How he spoke through a no-doz motor on the fritz, 'cause he wouldn't play roll over fetch like a bitch". A no-doz motor sounds like a torture device used to keep prisoners awake, but I don't really know. Either way it's "on the fritz" and "he spoke through" it because he wouldn't be a dog and do as commanded.

"And express no regrets, though he isn't worth a homeowner's piss to the jokers who pose by the glitz". So he expresses no regrets about not doing as commanded, and the rich, or maybe just powerful, think he isn't worth a homeowners piss. Which I think plays into the American mindset of success = money.

"Sign of the swine in the swarm when a king is a whore who will comply and conform" I'm not sure about "swine in the swarm", but "a king is a whore who will comply and conform" sounds like a description of political leaders America has put into power in other countries, or perhaps may even be a reference to our own president (the office in general, not a particular president).

"Miles outside of the eye of the storm with a siphon to lure out a prize and award while avoiding the vile and bazaar that is violence and war". I think this is a commentary on politicians, how they don't get their hands dirty in the wars, they stay "outside of the eye of the storm" and use "a siphon to lure out a prize and award".

"okay, woke to a grocery list goes like this: duty and death. Anyone object come stand in the way, you could be my little snake river canyon today". The only thing I know about Snake River Canyon is that Evel Knieval tried to jump it and failed. The "grocery list goes like this: duty and death" sounds like he's describing a soldier.

"and i ran with a chain of commands" sounds like the military as well. I'm not sure about the next line but "what a bit of gusto he muster up to make a dark horse rush like enough is enough" sounds like the little guy, or the "dark horse" is tired of being beat down and is pushing back.

"It musta struck a nerve so they huff and puff 'til all the king's men fluster and clusterfuck" I think this means that the little guy fighting back inspired all the other little people to fight back, like a riot.

"And it's a beautiful thing to my people who keep an impressive wingspan even when the cubicle shrink" here he applauds the people who can stay free even "when the cubicles shrink".

"You gotta pull up the intruder by the root of the weed NY chew through the machine" This reference to "the machine" along with the cubicle line makes me believe he is refering to the military-industrial complex and encouraging people to fight against it.

That's all.

My Interpretation