My interpretation of this song is that it's about a man (the 'raven') who has a sort-of temporary, fiery relationship with the protagonist of the song ('you'), who has 'rain in their hands' - i.e. the relationship is based it all on something fleeting and exciting but ultimately insubstantial. The protagonist is giving an illusion of something and, like a carrion-bird the 'raven' can't resist pursuing the protagonist who's trying to hide this fact from them.
'Like a dog set on wheels' is a reference to the fact that, much like a dog wheeling itself along, it's rather a pathetic scene. The metaphorical dog is very obviously deficient and lame to have to pull itself along on wheels, and so the illusion of the 'rain in your hands' is cut down to the same level as the dog, and the protagonist's attempts to hide the illusion are justified solely by the repercussions that are now driving this pathetic scene to continue ('the sound of the scratch in his claws'). The idea of a lame dog fleeing something it fears gives the idea of cowardliness.
The 'chorus', if you like, then seems to me to go some way to forgiving the protagonist. "As the buildings grew high / you knew nothing about time" gives the idea that they've been doing it for so long as to begin to forget how long and their original purpose, and "but an arrow just brushing your chin" suggests that they've actually become the victim. They no longer know anything but running from the consequences they're so scared of and are driven now only by this fear.
"You said 'Damn be this wind it's still moving on in' / 'to the bones and the bed of my soul'" suggests that they themselves are oblivious to what's forcing them onwards by calling the anxiety "this wind", like it's an unavoidable natural force with inexplicable roots. They do recognise how deeply its damaging them, however.
"Like a fox on the run from the well-informed son / With the bearings for cannonball love" gives the idea that they can't escape because not only is the son ('the raven') 'well-informed' so he can hunt the fox (the protagonist) down no matter what, but they have only the most inaccurate of 'bearings' or direction to go in which they're pursuing with a blind cannonball like momentum.
"Just like nobody said where that eagle was fed / 'Till you stood on the black cross in June" is another reference to their obliviousness and that nobody's helped them out either. The idea being that the 'raven' who's after them is now 'that eagle' and that unwittingly the protagonist wandered right into their trap -- just nobody told them where it was. The 'black cross in June' is I think just suggesting that the trap was in fact laid somewhere blatantly obvious (marked with a 'black cross') and underlining just how ignorant the protagonist is to what's going on.
"And nobody said that the raven was dead, / So you hid all your tears in the grass" - I'm not so sure about this bit. It's either that nobody else knew what had happened to the man ('the raven') and so the protagonist was sad and hid it from them, or that the protagonist was scared of the raven seeing the tears and so hid them from him.
"Sure, it could look like dew, but they're laughing at you / And they'll send in their clowns when you're lost." is I think again referring to the other people. It's become clear that the protagonist may have started this charade but has since become trapped in it as a victim, and importantly a victim who's vulnerably ignorant by not being helped by those around them. The idea is that actually the people who could be helping are having a laugh at this person's expense.
So ultimately I suppose I'd say that the question remaining at the end is whether actually being pursued by the evil raven who the protagonist loves but is abused by/scared of in some way is better or worse than the kind of humiliation and lack of concern received at the hands of other people. Personally I think that the protagonist is overwhelmed by the world around them and what's going on and that the final refrain somehow lessens their predicament by reminding us that despite it all somehow they still keep referring to it as "damn be this wind" - and they can't be suffering as much as they ought to be because actually they're somehow dumb to it. To them it's an incomprehensible wind that keeps bothering them and the various cruelties which affect them are reduced by this protective layer of ignorance.
I love this song, best on the album and possibly my favourite by the Tallest Man :D Sad there aren't more people trying to think up explanations!
My interpretation of this song is that it's about a man (the 'raven') who has a sort-of temporary, fiery relationship with the protagonist of the song ('you'), who has 'rain in their hands' - i.e. the relationship is based it all on something fleeting and exciting but ultimately insubstantial. The protagonist is giving an illusion of something and, like a carrion-bird the 'raven' can't resist pursuing the protagonist who's trying to hide this fact from them.
'Like a dog set on wheels' is a reference to the fact that, much like a dog wheeling itself along, it's rather a pathetic scene. The metaphorical dog is very obviously deficient and lame to have to pull itself along on wheels, and so the illusion of the 'rain in your hands' is cut down to the same level as the dog, and the protagonist's attempts to hide the illusion are justified solely by the repercussions that are now driving this pathetic scene to continue ('the sound of the scratch in his claws'). The idea of a lame dog fleeing something it fears gives the idea of cowardliness.
The 'chorus', if you like, then seems to me to go some way to forgiving the protagonist. "As the buildings grew high / you knew nothing about time" gives the idea that they've been doing it for so long as to begin to forget how long and their original purpose, and "but an arrow just brushing your chin" suggests that they've actually become the victim. They no longer know anything but running from the consequences they're so scared of and are driven now only by this fear.
"You said 'Damn be this wind it's still moving on in' / 'to the bones and the bed of my soul'" suggests that they themselves are oblivious to what's forcing them onwards by calling the anxiety "this wind", like it's an unavoidable natural force with inexplicable roots. They do recognise how deeply its damaging them, however.
"Like a fox on the run from the well-informed son / With the bearings for cannonball love" gives the idea that they can't escape because not only is the son ('the raven') 'well-informed' so he can hunt the fox (the protagonist) down no matter what, but they have only the most inaccurate of 'bearings' or direction to go in which they're pursuing with a blind cannonball like momentum.
"Just like nobody said where that eagle was fed / 'Till you stood on the black cross in June" is another reference to their obliviousness and that nobody's helped them out either. The idea being that the 'raven' who's after them is now 'that eagle' and that unwittingly the protagonist wandered right into their trap -- just nobody told them where it was. The 'black cross in June' is I think just suggesting that the trap was in fact laid somewhere blatantly obvious (marked with a 'black cross') and underlining just how ignorant the protagonist is to what's going on.
"And nobody said that the raven was dead, / So you hid all your tears in the grass" - I'm not so sure about this bit. It's either that nobody else knew what had happened to the man ('the raven') and so the protagonist was sad and hid it from them, or that the protagonist was scared of the raven seeing the tears and so hid them from him.
"Sure, it could look like dew, but they're laughing at you / And they'll send in their clowns when you're lost." is I think again referring to the other people. It's become clear that the protagonist may have started this charade but has since become trapped in it as a victim, and importantly a victim who's vulnerably ignorant by not being helped by those around them. The idea is that actually the people who could be helping are having a laugh at this person's expense.
So ultimately I suppose I'd say that the question remaining at the end is whether actually being pursued by the evil raven who the protagonist loves but is abused by/scared of in some way is better or worse than the kind of humiliation and lack of concern received at the hands of other people. Personally I think that the protagonist is overwhelmed by the world around them and what's going on and that the final refrain somehow lessens their predicament by reminding us that despite it all somehow they still keep referring to it as "damn be this wind" - and they can't be suffering as much as they ought to be because actually they're somehow dumb to it. To them it's an incomprehensible wind that keeps bothering them and the various cruelties which affect them are reduced by this protective layer of ignorance.
I love this song, best on the album and possibly my favourite by the Tallest Man :D Sad there aren't more people trying to think up explanations!