Heard this album a little later than I would have liked, but this is definitely my favorite song on it. Its clearly about police brutality within an inner city neighborhood. "Right before it happens" suggests a police raid. There's danger in the air, and the residents watch from their windows, culminating in the "rain" - a riot. The narrator witnesses the actions of the police (the arrest of her brother) and suddenly shares the neighborhood's collective hostility towards them: "Why did you come here?"
Heard this album a little later than I would have liked, but this is definitely my favorite song on it. Its clearly about police brutality within an inner city neighborhood. "Right before it happens" suggests a police raid. There's danger in the air, and the residents watch from their windows, culminating in the "rain" - a riot. The narrator witnesses the actions of the police (the arrest of her brother) and suddenly shares the neighborhood's collective hostility towards them: "Why did you come here?"