Eighteen People Living in Harmony
dredg Lyrics
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Singers have all gone home
Seats are empty
The kitchen is closed
The sidewalks are sprayed down
The blinds are pulled down
The foundation's unstable
The wrecking ball is back
Quiet business vacancy
Quiet business vacancy
Rents are rising
Our lease is up
Culture is down
Symphony's concluded
The instruments are all cased up
The notes are silent
The music's still apparent
Rents are rising
Our lease is up
Culture is down
Spirits are jaded
Art is dying
Is art dead?
Art is dying
Is it dead?
Believe it
We need it to move on
A one track mind in a one way town
Let's go ahead and gentrify
We let art die with robot minds
Steal the brush and paint boundary lines
A stale kind the people we'll find
Walking in single file line
I think its time to finally rewind
Lets go ahead we might as well
Rents are rising
Our lease is up
Culture is down
Spirits are jaded
The lyrics of dredg's song "18 People Living in Harmony" paints a picture of a community that has seen better days, with a fading culture and dying art. The first few lines suggest that the community's entertainment options have dwindled - the opera is over and the singers have gone home. Furthermore, even the literal and metaphorical kitchens are closed, suggesting an overall lack of vibrancy in the community. The sidewalks are sprayed down, and the blinds are pulled down, suggesting a certain emptiness and a lack of activity. This is further compounded by the fact that the "foundation's unstable," and "the wrecking ball is back," suggesting that the community is falling apart and that there's no hope for revival. The final refrain that "Rents are rising, our lease is up, culture is down, spirits are jaded" suggests that the people in the community are struggling both economically and emotionally, and are deeply disillusioned with their surroundings.
However, even as the community appears to be crumbling, the second half of the song suggests that there is still hope for renewal. The lines "The music's still apparent" suggest that despite the physical absence of music, the spirit of music lives on. The final refrain, "Believe it, we need it to move on," suggests that the community needs art and culture to thrive and survive. However, the lyrics also imply that there needs to be a conscious effort to revive art, and not just a passive acceptance of its death. This is suggested in the lines, "Let's go ahead and gentrify, we let art die with robot minds, steal the brush and paint boundary lines." Here, the lyrics suggest that reviving art would require a conscious effort from the community and not just a passive acceptance of the status quo.
In conclusion, "18 People Living in Harmony" is a lament for the loss of culture and art in a community. However, it also suggests that there is still hope for revival, and that the community can take active steps to save their culture and rekindle their spirits.
Line by Line Meaning
The opera is over
The event that was being displayed in life is done.
Singers have all gone home
The actors who brought the event to life have left.
Seats are empty
The people who filled up the event are no longer present.
The kitchen is closed
All that was used to make the event has been put away.
The sidewalks are sprayed down
The area where people come and go has been cleansed.
The blinds are pulled down
The view of what is happening is obstructed.
The foundation's unstable
The base that formed the event is shaky and unreliable.
The wrecking ball is back
The entity that destroys things has returned.
Quiet business vacancy
The space that was previously occupied is now empty and dull.
Rents are rising
The cost of living for this space is getting more expensive.
Our lease is up
The agreement to rent will expire soon.
Culture is down
The level of behavior and knowledge in this space is declining.
Symphony's concluded
The meaning behind the events have been completed.
The instruments are all cased up
All the tools that were used have been stored away.
The notes are silent
The voice that was used to carry meaning has vanished.
The music's still apparent
The feeling that the music brought is still there.
Spirits are jaded
Emotions are at a low.
Art is dying
The creative process that occurs is about to come to an end.
Is art dead?
Has the process to create become extinct?
Believe it
Trust in the process.
We need it to move on
The process to create is required to move forward.
A one track mind in a one way town
The behavior that is exhibited is limited in direction and thought.
Let's go ahead and gentrify
Let's change the community to fit a particular group of people.
We let art die with robot minds
Art has died because of the uncreative behavior of people.
Steal the brush and paint boundary lines
Let's break the limits of what we think can be done.
A stale kind the people we'll find
The people who stick around bring no new ideas or behavior.
Walking in single file line
All behavior is the same, there is no diversity or individualism.
I think its time to finally rewind
Let's go back into history and try to recover what was lost.
Lets go ahead we might as well
Let's progress forward in new behavior and ideas.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DINO CAMPANELLA, DREW ROULETTE, GAVIN HAYES, MARK ENGLES
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind