Dead Flag Blues

[V.I.]

The car's on fire and there's no driver at the wheel
And the sewers are all muddied with a thousand lonely suicides

And a dark wind blows

The government is corrupt
And we're on so many drugs
With the radio on and the curtains drawn

We're trapped in the belly of this horrible machine
And the machine is bleeding to death

The sun has fallen down
And the billboards are all leering
And the flags are all dead at the top of their poles

It went like this

The buildings tumbled in on themselves
Mothers clutching babies picked through the rubble and pulled out their hair

The skyline was beautiful on fire
All twisted metal stretching upwards
Everything washed in a thin orange haze

I said, "Kiss me, you're beautiful..
These are truly the last days"

You grabbed my hand and we fell into it
Like a daydream or a fever

We woke up one morning and fell a little further down
For sure it's the valley of death

I open up my wallet
And it's full of blood

-Godspeed You! Black Emperor

[DAZMCFC]

[reminisco]

dude, that band RULES!

i've seen them live twice before.

they had a freestyle projectionist with them on the tour. wild stuff.

good taste.

[reminisco]

and i need to get F#A#(infinity sign) again...

my copy got all scratched up. i have Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennae to Heaven if you wanna trade. i'll pm you about it.

[V.I.]

The car's on fire and there's no driver at the wheel
And the sewers are all muddied with a thousand lonely suicides

And a dark wind blows

The government is corrupt
And we're on so many drugs
With the radio on and the curtains drawn

We're trapped in the belly of this horrible machine
And the machine is bleeding to death

The sun has fallen down
And the billboards are all leering
And the flags are all dead at the top of their poles

It went like this

The buildings tumbled in on themselves
Mothers clutching babies picked through the rubble and pulled out their hair

The skyline was beautiful on fire
All twisted metal stretching upwards
Everything washed in a thin orange haze

I said, "Kiss me, you're beautiful..
These are truly the last days"

You grabbed my hand and we fell into it
Like a daydream or a fever

We woke up one morning and fell a little further down
For sure it's the valley of death

I open up my wallet
And it's full of blood

-Godspeed You! Black Emperor

[khazalid]

post rock is DEAD

and with good cause.

new silver mt zion is out, i assume yer interested. the best way you can help out efrim is by sticking it to the man. he doesnt want your money *nudge nudge*

[V.I.]

koyaanisqatsi, khazalid, koyaanisqatsi.

[khazalid]

im not saying differently, i just find the persistently woeful metaphors a bit daunting. i mean.. when i was 14 that stuff was tip top, but you live and learn. its a good an indicator of a thinking man as any but you'll wind up more subtle less 'generic et cacophonic orchestral movement mark deux - action!' o the mountains o the rivers! you know how these things go. i think i turned from there to avant garde, then gay pop, then old folk and blues.

[V.I.]

I suppose this is one (of the many) drawbacks to the Internets; posting an active (or even perceived) interest in virtually (punny) any subject is bound to prick the ears of the more attentive watchdogs.

Your point about "14, tip top, living and learning" is certainly not without merit, however the very same "thinking man", who, presumably having just read 1 Corinthians 13:11, and therefore eager to discount the utter uselessness, banality and shamefulness of human existence in favor of becoming a "man" and/or contributing member of society should follow the complete trajectory of our shared track by entering the nearest House of Worship to find doddering old crows who, having reverted or "awakened", and yearning for salvation. The horrible reality has set in and preparations are sorely lacking.

In other words, I accuse those you describe as having "lived and learned" of simply falling into the warm caress of the duplicitous machinations that will, have, are destroying us. Willful, blissful ignorance. This is a race to the bottom, as I am sure you are well aware. Post-rock is not dead, but instead has been muted by myriad forces of varying purpose.

Apocalyptic? Certainly. Unwarranted? Certainly not. I agree that the metaphors are woeful, but not for the same reasons.

This music reminds us of the reeking breath and horrible screams belonging to the monster we created but which now has grown too large and powerful, and which now reigns over us, our cackling master.

I agree with your "subtly" argument, for the most part, though I must respectfully charge you with the crime of overt po-mo reasoning.

[khazalid]

po-mo reasoning! a serious charge indeed..

while i'm not slamming the door on the possiblity of thee creeping intra-cranial death here described, i'm equally not busy baking cakes of quasi-marxist lyricism with which to feed my duplicitous brothers, like the smoking cock of self-worth erupting in the wake of his million dollar 'anguish' - fondant not included.

[khazalid]

p.s - i love VI

[RiskTycoon]

well, i can't get past the fondant... freakin love those cream eggs... can i have some fondant please.... ?

[V.I.]

po-mo reasoning! a serious charge indeed..

while i'm not slamming the door on the possiblity of thee creeping intra-cranial death here described, i'm equally not busy baking cakes of quasi-marxist lyricism with which to feed my duplicitous brothers, like the smoking cock of self-worth erupting in the wake of his million dollar 'anguish' - fondant not included.

Fucking hilarious.

It is quite the conundrum, much like "working within" any institution to affect social change, all the while responsible for the less-desirable outcomes of said institution. I believe this is the argument fashioned by those who believe 9/11 "victims" (or Bali, or London, or Madrid, etc.) weren't actually victims at all but fair game, as they function as some component of the very ideology those "evil-doers" mean to topple.

Take Bono, for example. The man is worth more than the entire GNI of many countries, he works with the UN, subscribes to carbon-offsetting and responsible environmental stewardship, global access to clean water and food, blah blah blah. Who knows if he actually recycles? Or washes his dishes "properly", or doesn't leave the shower running while he takes a healthy, non-worm-infested crap?

We are not privy to Efrim's tax-returns, nor his spending habits, nor stool content. Perhaps in an ideal society, the one he presumably wishes upon the world, and writes about on the albums which sell for $15 a pop, we would have complete access to Efrim's financial and behavioral state of affairs.

Perhaps we should reconstitute our society, in a way in which we have complete and unfettered access to all aspects of our neighbor's affairs? Wouldn't this keep everyone honest? It's like Bush contends: if you aren't a terrorist, and don't have anything to hide, then why would you care if we tap your phones?

Seriously, though, how will society ever know the value of art if we don't pay for it? And don't tell me to simply "look at the number of hits it received on youtube", because the "Soulja Boy Tellem - How to Crank That - INSTRUCTIONAL VIDEO!" has been viewed nearly 30 million times, which is more than, like, the Mona Lisa and Hamlet and the first Die Hard movie combined.

I'm sure we at least agree on one thing: "I open up my wallet, and it's full of blood."

[khazalid]

very close. personally speaking:

i open up my wallet and its full of knives

[khazalid]

and 'fair game,' well.. i'm inclined to agree more often than not. ignorance is bliss and yet we have adam, eve and original sin. i dont know if its more sinful to eat the apple or to eat it and rationalise it's eating but i wouldnt mind taking a hit for a loftier place, which is the only real test you can qualify any action with. i'm probably not the only one laughing when the planes stop and the shares tumble for a few days. terror? so be it!

[khazalid]

note also that i don't charge when i post

[khazalid]

not even for four in a row..!

[reminisco]

from the band's wiki on Last.fm:


http://www.last.fm/music/Godspeed+You%2 ... eror/+wiki

"The group was in one instance misconstrued as being a band of terrorists. After stopping at a local Sinclair gas station in the small town of Ardmore, Oklahoma, for fuel during their 2003 tour of the United States, the station attendant working that day believed the group of Canadians to be terrorists. She quickly passed a note to another customer also getting fuel to call the police. When the local police appeared, the group was held until they could be questioned by the FBI. When no incriminating evidence was found in their various vehicles and background checks were run, the ensemble was released from custody and continued on their way to their next show in St. Louis, Missouri. Interestingly, Efrim Menuck later spoke to the crowd about what happened to them during their appearance in Missouri and said, if they were of any other race than white, they would have been detained much longer than they were originally, hinting heavily toward the suspicion of racism in the police force. The incident was mentioned in Michael Moore's book, Dude, Where's My Country?."



(that must have been after they came to Philadelphia. I saw them in Feb. of 2003 that year, and they made no mention of it, nor did any of the fans in line at the show)

[got tonkaed]

some of the stuff in this thread is pretty decent cultural criticism.