Atrophy
The Antlers Lyrics
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You've been writing me rules, shrinking maps and redrawing borders
I've been repeating your speeches, but the audience just doesn't follow
Because I'm leaving out words, punctuations, and it sounds pretty hollow
I've been living in bed because now you tell me to sleep
I've been hiding my voice and my face and you decide when I eat
In your dreams I'm a criminal, horrible, sleeping around
While you're awake I'm impossible, constantly letting you down
Little porcelain figurines, glass bullets you shoot at the wall
Threats of castration for crimes you imagine when I miss your call
With the bite of the teeth of that ring on my finger, I'm bound to your bedside, your eulogy singer
I'd happily take all those bullets inside you and put them inside of myself
"Someone, oh anyone, tell me how to stop this
She's screaming, expiring, and I'm her only witness
I'm freezing, infected, and rigid in that room inside her
No one's going to come as long as I lay still in bed beside her"
The Antlers’ “Atrophy” is a profound exploration of mental illness and its effects on an individual. The lyrics are an internal monologue of the singer, who is addressing the voice in his head that is controlling his life. The voice has become a permanent resident in the singer’s mind, issuing orders and setting rules that he must follow. It has created a new world by drawing boundaries, making maps, and altering the singer’s perception of reality.
The singer is aware of the voice’s influence on him but is helpless to resist it. He has no control over his life and is confined in bed, where the voice decides when he should eat and sleep. The voice is burdening the singer with unreasonable expectations, causing him guilt and anxiety. The singer is being held captive by his own mind, and even his dreams are being manipulated by the voice, painting him as a horrible criminal.
The singer relates his situation to that of being bound to his partner's bedside as a eulogy singer. He expresses his willingness to take on his partner's suffering and bear it himself, highlighting the intensity of his feelings. The singer concludes with someone coming to his aid, screaming in agony, and lying still in bed in a futile attempt to avoid further pain. The song is a poignant reflection on how mental health can consume an individual's life, and the sheer frustration that comes with being out of control.
Line by Line Meaning
You've been living a while in the front of my skull, making orders
I have an inner voice that influences my decisions and gives me orders.
You've been writing me rules, shrinking maps and redrawing borders
My inner voice has created rules and limitations that restrict my potential and freedom.
I've been repeating your speeches, but the audience just doesn't follow, Because I'm leaving out words, punctuations, and it sounds pretty hollow
I try to communicate what my inner voice tells me, but I struggle to convey the message and make others understand it.
I've been living in bed because now you tell me to sleep
My inner voice controls my behavior to the point of making me unproductive and idle.
I've been hiding my voice and my face and you decide when I eat
My inner voice has made me feel insecure and ashamed of myself, and it even determines my basic actions like eating.
In your dreams I'm a criminal, horrible, sleeping around, While you're awake I'm impossible, constantly letting you down
My inner voice portrays me as a disgrace and a failure both in my own dreams and in reality.
Little porcelain figurines, glass bullets you shoot at the wall, Threats of castration for crimes you imagine when I miss your call
My inner voice not only judges me, but also punishes me with violent thoughts and self-doubt.
With the bite of the teeth of that ring on my finger, I'm bound to your bedside, your eulogy singer, I'd happily take all those bullets inside you and put them inside of myself
I feel trapped and obligated to my negative inner voice, even if it's self-destructive and unhealthy.
"Someone, oh anyone, tell me how to stop this, She's screaming, expiring, and I'm her only witness, I'm freezing, infected, and rigid in that room inside her, No one's going to come as long as I lay still in bed beside her"
I desperately need help to overcome my inner voice, but I feel powerless and isolated in my struggle.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Peter Joseph Silberman
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ilkka Strömblad
His voice is litteraly the best voice never hear in this world.
Kamy12
This is absolutely beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing!
DemascoNY
incredible stuff! can't wait to see what these guys do next
TheBluridgemountains
Nice. I have family in Xenia ,Yellowsprings, Dayton, Kettering, and I swear everytime I listen to The Antlers I feel Ohio in my bones. I love it when music is real!! Only the real can make you feel what they feel and I thank you for sharing that with everyone and myself. Godspeed Namaste and Happy Birthday
Charles Hughes
everyone is directed at the whole! the earphones, the guitars, the humans who play them here, the words in the lyrics, are all there for one purpose- the quality of the production as a whole. Each part has been put there for a reason. Thought out, placed there because it has a specific purpose in the development of the rest of the song. Excellent stuff.
Jonathan Franzen
those drums are amazing
tricycle101
This must be my most watched thing on youtube by miles, absolutely incredible
iknowme
Why don't they ever do the last bit of this song live? :(
TLL
Not an uplifting title, but the song is beautiful itself.
Jason
Why is this better than the original?!?