This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
So the saying says
An elephant never forgets
Standing in the concrete cave
Swaying side and sing
They walked over the ocean
And their dreams they dreamed awake
Until the lights grew dim
Until the cop cars came
Everybody tells me this is crazy, yes I know
But I'm a man man man man man man man eater
But still you're surprised when I eat ya
You know they call them killer whales
But you seem surprised
When it pinned you down to the bottom of the tank
Where you can't turn around
It took half your leg and both your lungs
And I craved I ate hearts of sharks, I know you know it
I'm a man, man, man, man, man, man, man eater
But still you're surprised when I eat ya
It will end again in moonlit song
It will end again in moonlit song
An elephant never forgets
Standing in the concrete cave
Swaying side and sing
They walked over the ocean
And their dreams they dreamed awake
Until the lights grew dim
Until the cop cars came
Everybody tells me this is crazy, yes I know
But I'm a man man man man man man man eater
But still you're surprised when I eat ya
You know they call them killer whales
But you seem surprised
When it pinned you down to the bottom of the tank
Where you can't turn around
It took half your leg and both your lungs
And I craved I ate hearts of sharks, I know you know it
I'm a man, man, man, man, man, man, man eater
But still you're surprised when I eat ya
It will end again in moonlit song
It will end again in moonlit song
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Hayalperest
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Mountain Song
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Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
From Neko's website:
AS THE SAYING SAYS "AN ELEPHANT NEVER FORGETS" STANDING IN THE CONCRETE CAVE SWAYING SAD AND INSANE
THEY WALKED OVER THE OCEAN IN THEIR DREAMS THEY DREAM AWAKE UNTIL THE LIGHT GREW DIM UNTIL THE COP CARS CAME EVERYBODY TELLS ME THIS IS CRAZY YES, I KNOW IT
I'M A MAN-MAN-MAN, MAN-MAN-MAN-EATER AND STILL YOU'RE SURPRISED WHEN I EAT YOU
YOU KNOW THEY CALL THEM "KILLER" WHALES?! BUT YOU SEEM SURPRISED WHEN IT PINNED YOU DOWN TO THE BOTTOM OF THE TANK WHERE YOU CAN'T TURN AROUND IT TOOK HALF YOUR LEG AND BOTH YOUR LUNGS "WHEN I CRAVED I ATE HEARTS OF SHARKS, I KNOW YOU KNOW IT"
I'M A MAN-MAN-MAN, MAN-MAN,MAN-EATER AND STILL YOU'RE SURPRISED WHEN I EAT YOU
IT WILL END AGAIN IN BULLETS, FRIEND
"I know you know, that I'm a man, man, man Man, man, man eater But still you're surprised-prised-prised when I eat ya"
--I think this song is about (wild) animals that attack humans and how surprised we (humans) are that such an attack took place, as if we think we're immune to such attacks.
"It will end again in bullets from.... It will end again in bullets from...."
--I interpret this to mean the killing of the animal once it attacked a human. Some animals are too strong to fight off (elephant, whale) so you have to shoot/kill them in order to save the person it's attacking.
cnn.com/2009/US/02/17/chimpanzee.attack/index.html
I would prefer to think that this song is less directly about animals than it is about people. Basically, why is anyone surprised when people (using animals as a metaphor here) act in ways entirely expected by their very nature? It's almost a "buyer beware" type of mentality.<br /> <br /> My first assumption about this song is that when she sings "I'm a man-eater..." she's speaking from a human female perspective and not a Lioness, but I suppose the metaphor works both ways...
I don't necessarily think the song is about this but the following lines make me think of it:
We know They call them killer whales But you seem surprised When it pinned you down to the bottom of the tank Where you can't turn around It took half your leg, and both your lungs And I craved I ate hearts of sharks I know you know, that I'm a man, man, man Man, man, man eater But still you're surprised-prised-prised when I eat ya
Those lines make me think of how people do things they know are bad for them, but they crave it, and do it anyway. Things like smoking or heavy drugs, or even just things like obesity. I know smoking a pack of cigs a day is probably going to end up with negitive effects for me, but i crave them and keep buying them. Well should I be suprised then when that happens?
i think the song's a little more abstract than actually being about wild animals... a maneater is basically "an irresistable woman who chews and spits out men after using them for some sort of gain -- be it sexual, financial or psychological." neko warned this guy that she's no good for him and yet he didn't listen and fell for her anyway. she has no apologies and points him to her previous warning. the "ending in bullets" is basically the harsh ending of the friendship/relationship.
I thought this song was about relationships, but it's not. This song was skillfully crafted by a clever artist to carry the double meaning, but make no mistake... this song is about animal cruelty.
Also, this song means (at least to me) that people sometimes mess around with wild animals, & forget what wild animals are actually capable of doing, so they are surpised when a wild animal attacks them.
& the title "People Got a Lotta Nerve" is saying how dare people have the audacity to be surpised when they knew that the animals are wild.
I have know clue if what I typed makes sense....
Call me crass, but I wish I'd thought of this song when that animal trainer was killed by the Sea World orca whale the other day.
We know they call them killer whales But you seem surprised when it pinned you down to the bottom of the tank.
People continually forget what animate objects can do, people included.
I thought the same thing!
People anthropomorphize wild animals, or give them human characteristics. We like to think they think and feel like us. We exploit them for our gain. They are neglected and abused, and their natural instincts are ignored, leaving them frustrated and desperate. Then they act like wild animals and harm or kill people, and they are disposed of ie. the bullets. This goes for the elephants and orcas that we keep in small spaces and make do tricks for our entertainment, or the squirrels and opossums that we find as orphans and raise, the wolf-dog hybrids that people take so much pride in. What if you once had the world and now were kept in a tiny cage? The animals are wild and we can enslave them, but we shouldn't be surprised by their wild behaviors.
Paul Morstad and Julie Morstad animated and directed an amazing video to accompany this song.
This song is definitely both of the above two explanations.