Lyric discussion by mason11569 

Cover art for Carolina Low lyrics by Decemberists, The

To me this song has a Deliverance kind of vibe to it. A teenager from the mountain (high country) comes down to the coast (low country), kidnaps, rapes and kills a smaller boy, maybe a boy that was a tourist or from one of the more wealthy coastal areas.

Maybe I'm way off, but this is what I pictured.