The Living Toys
Animal Collective Lyrics


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Hey, love
Jimmy Raven's my plastic toy
in his kitchen the baby's all good
he sat in front of you play for battles, he said
You can call me the spider boy
took tokens to take to thee,
but came to, over the rail
then all of the battles are gonna
lock that face
I play mine
turn off that skin
I play mine
Let me keep feeling like a train
and now we're, before I turn around the train
I've done olive eyes burn
you're gonna make me feel in a train, and I've
Jimmy Raven's my plastic friend
turn your bathtub into his home for good
to die for the child, although exploding's quit, I'm gonna
get out my snout, I'm gonna wipe the place
you're gonna make me feel in a train, Jimmy Raven
Although, I've burned promise, all I did was make sure that the
dolls like the girls with the velvet faces
the boys like the dolls with the violent faces, all my toys love me
the weather brought his pride, and make sure that the
dolls like the girls with the velvet faces
the boys like the dolls with the violent faces, all my toys love me
oh, ah-oh
Jimmy Raven and spider boy




in his kitchen, I am alone, but no time to call the shadows
turn off for the shadows

Overall Meaning

The Living Toys is a song by Animal Collective, known for its abstract and poetic lyrics. The song opens with the vocalist calling out to "love," and introducing his plastic toy, Jimmy Raven. He describes how the baby in the kitchen is fine, and how Jimmy Raven sat in front of him to play with "battles." The vocalist then refers to himself as the "spider boy" and talks about taking "tokens" to "thee" but being "over the rail" instead. He talks about playing his own battles and wanting to "keep feeling like a train," while talking about how his eyes burn when he turns around.


Line by Line Meaning

Hey, love
The opening statement is just a casual greeting or a way to get attention.


Jimmy Raven's my plastic toy
Jimmy Raven is a toy made of plastic and is owned by the singer.


in his kitchen the baby's all good
In the singer's kitchen, there is a baby or child who is doing fine.


he sat in front of you play for battles, he said
Someone, probably the baby, was playing with toys in front of the singer and said they were playing battles.


You can call me the spider boy
The singer is referring to themselves as the spider boy, which is probably related to the toy playing or the previous line.


took tokens to take to thee, but came to, over the rail
The meaning of this line is unclear, but it could be related to playing with tokens or a toy train.


then all of the battles are gonna lock that face
This line is cryptic but could suggest that the battles being played will have an effect on facial expressions or emotions.


I play mine
The singer is saying they will do what they want or play their own way.


turn off that skin
This line is vague but could mean to stop pretending or being fake.


Let me keep feeling like a train
The singer wants to keep feeling a certain way, possibly related to playing with the toy train.


and now we're, before I turn around the train
The meaning of this line is unclear but could relate to the toy train or turning around to face a situation.


I've done olive eyes burn
This line is cryptic and has no clear meaning.


you're gonna make me feel in a train, and I've
The meaning of this line is also unclear but could relate to feeling a certain way while playing with the train toy.


Jimmy Raven's my plastic friend
The singer is referring to Jimmy Raven as their friend, even though he is a toy made of plastic.


turn your bathtub into his home for good
The singer is suggesting turning a bathtub into a proper home for the toy.


to die for the child, although exploding's quit, I'm gonna
This line is cryptic and has no clear meaning.


get out my snout, I'm gonna wipe the place
The singer is planning to clean up and possibly put away the toys.


you're gonna make me feel in a train, Jimmy Raven
The meaning of this line is unclear but may relate to the singer feeling a certain way while playing with the train toy and Jimmy Raven.


Although, I've burned promise, all I did was make sure that the dolls like the girls with the velvet faces
The singer may have broken a promise, but regardless, they made sure that the dolls prefer girls with velvet faces.


the boys like the dolls with the violent faces, all my toys love me
The boys like dolls with violent faces and all the singer's toys love them regardless.


the weather brought his pride, and make sure that the dolls like the girls with the velvet faces
The weather may have brought pride to the singer, but they still want to make sure the dolls prefer girls with velvet faces.


the boys like the dolls with the violent faces, all my toys love me
The boys like dolls with violent faces and all the singer's toys love them regardless.


oh, ah-oh
These are just random sounds or filler words with no clear meaning.


Jimmy Raven and spider boy
The singer is again referring to Jimmy Raven and themselves as spider boy.


in his kitchen, I am alone, but no time to call the shadows
The singer is alone in the kitchen but doesn't have time to call the shadows or doesn't want to be lonely.


turn off for the shadows
This line is vague but could mean to stop hiding or being introverted.




Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS

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