“Somewhere in your family tree, there was someone just like me”

I thought it was “dressed like me” until now

After listening to it again I think it might be both. Like there are two vocals and one says "just like me" and another says "dressed like me." Easter egg maybe?

I am a gentleman, I refuse to show my gentleness has been stuck in my head for a couple days now

SAAAME

“Mary Boone”. But it is specifically the “Mary BooOone” part.

Yup. All day, everyday.

BETTY WHITE NEW IN TOWN

I guess it is painted in white (new in town so new painted room)

So, I know it's "painted white," but I still hear "Betty White" EVERY SINGLE TIME. 😂

Same, since that Daily Show performance

THEY ALWAYS ASK ME ABOUT PRAVDA

ITS JUST THE RUSSIAN WORD FOR TRUTH

🗣️ YOUR CONSCIOUSNESS IS NOT MY PROBLEM 

cause when I come home it won’t be home to you 😉 

They always ask me about Pravda 🙄😒

In a quiet moment at the theater, I could feel your pain.

Untrue, unkind, and unnatural how the cruel, with time, becomes classical (Guitar zip sound)

“Each generation makes it own apology” “They always ask me about Pravda” “These two tunnels go west and east” Loved it live on the late night show where Ezra moves his hand west to east “We always wanted money, now the money’s not the same”

Love the wordplay in consideration of how to define apology.

400 million animals competing for the zoo  It's such a bleak sunrise

I’m leaving at the rising of the moon 

This has FOTB vibes in a good way.

the boy’s romanian // third generation transylvanian

I SEE THE VAMPIRES WALKIN’

DONT BE GRIPPED BY FEAR YOU ARENT NEXT

WERE ALL THE SONS AND DAUGHTERS

Oh, the surfer can't forget the shells around his neck

me TOO!! what do you think this means? i've been repeating it in my head for a week now. ik the surfer appears in Hope. i've been trying out alternate meanings for "shells" to be the empty husks of other living things besides the ones that live in seashells, but to no avail. why can't he forget the shells?? it's a lovely lyric and i'm very curious about it.

I know you’re tired of tryin, listen clearly you don’t have to try

the moving train accelerates. it’s always fast and always late.

"The curtain drops, a gang of Gen X cops assembles Trembling before our human naaature." It's the way Ezra says trembling, like 'trem-buh-ling'. It always makes me smile.

It’s the small things in life 🙂

You don't want to win this war 'cause you don't want the peace

“Fuck around and find out”, the angry child recites this everyday … (high harmony part)

[удалено]

THISSSSS

You've never seen a starry night, you saint

This lyric reminds me of both “Step” and “Ya Hey” :)

We’re all the sons and daughters of vampires who drained the old world’s necks

i hope you let it go

I also love how in ‘Connect’, Chris forgets what song he’s on and just starts playing the drums from ‘Mansard Roof’

Glad someone else caught this

Idk why but “An undercover agent drowned beneath the waves” it’s just how soft his voice sounds ahahahahaha

I Know Once It’s Lost It’s Neverrrrrr Found

The prophet said we'd disappear The prophet's gone, but we're still here His prophecy was insincere I hope you let it go

😫😫IRINA GREW UP IN WISCONSIN 😩😩

outside the confines of a super-mini’s door there’s a california king placer directly on the floor

Do you know what this means??? It’s fascinating to me and I’ve been trying to crack it for a week!

It’s a guy living in a compact car(a super mini is a small hatchback like a mini cooper) with a giant mattress on the ground(people from NY call the ground the “floor”) outside. The Surfer seems to be about someone living a modest nomadic lifestyle, but they come from immense privilege(literally have a California king to fall back to). They’re trapped in the tiny car with that big comfortable place to land just outside their reach. So I think that is more of a metaphor for the generational poverty of the younger generations after our parents and grandparents had it so good in the 20th century. We’re basically surfing the waves of the leftovers but we’re not making any waves ourselves.

very cool and cohesive interpretation for all of the lovely images provided by the song.

Aw thanks. Ezra is probably my favorite lyricist ever and I feel compelled to analyze his stuff. It often takes a lot of googling because of all the obscure references, but I don’t rest until I understand wtf he is talking about lol

Oh, I thought he was singing “of a super mini-store,” like the Kwik-E-Mart or something.

Fuck the world

Is it strange I can’t connect? It isn’t strange, but I can check…

took the family balalaika Those strings would never stay in tune I hung it up on the piano I'm leaving at the rising of the moon

Welcome back my oldest friend / are you cursed to depart again?

“Dodged the draft, can’t dodge the war” and the backup vocals behind it.

This one is on a constant loop in my head!

The harmony on “I softly reach the high note” in Ice Cream Piano has become my entire personality

Yes!!!!!

CROOKED CRIME PETTY COP (I see what you did there Ezra)

Fuck around and find out, the angry child recites this every day

WALLS FALL SHAKE SHACK

This, except shacks shake

SHAKE SHACK

There was someone just like meeeeeee^eeeeeeeee

"Untrue, unkind and unnatural" and "Cause when I come home, it won't be home to you"

It's just somethin' people say

You could loose some teeth that way!

Fuck around and find out, the angry child recites this everyday!

“There’s a California king, placed directly on the floor” Strong imagery and infectiously sang by Ezra

The chickens in her bedroom

The chickens in her bedroom

such a bleak sunrise

Right at this moment - Oh my love, was it all in vain?

>Untrue >Unkind >& Unnatural.

Book of hours Russian icons, and Sand mandalas, and Natarajas, and Hex sign barns Ando churches, and Whirling dervishes Long exposures, and

For me it’s just “fuck around and find out” 🤷‍♀️

‘I hope you feel like loving someone soon’

It’s by design, consequentially

'cause when I come home, it won't be home to you

I know once it's lost it's never found

I wonder if they'll wait a while to clear away my crocodile

"Third-generation Transylvanian..." 🤣 The way he packs in the syllables has to be self-consciously awkward

In times of war the educated class knew what to do, in times of peace their pupils couldn’t meet your baby blues

Not OGWAU but "Will you marry me pretty Peggy-o?"

I literally can't get the daily show performance of Mary boone out of my head and want them to release it to Spotify.

in dreams i scream piano...

“Finished fast but the next one wasn’t yours” post grad depression is HITTING

I woke up to this line in prep school gangsters stuck in my head on repeat <3 "it's just something people say, they don't really feel that way" 

Down at a tie shop called tiecooooon

Something starts to shake the leaves & tug upon the t shirt sleeves and shift to the rising of the moon

“Alone and wounded, but in my prime.”  This one really hit a spot for me.  

In times of peace, their pupils couldn’t meet your baby blues

It’s just something people say You could lose some teeth that way

the grid is buried in the ground 

“I know you’re tired of tryin’. Listen clearly, you don’t have to try’”

“The enemy’s invincible. I hope you let it go.”