Construction
Arms Lyrics


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Steady your tremors
Calm your nervous hearts
Knit your brows and lie in the dark
With your pile of silent parts

Safe from your worries
Sweating in your coats
You will miss the softness and snow
Or the row of egg-shaped holes

Run your tiny fingers through mild and abiding winter
Everything is strange to me
Your presence gives me cause for concern

Think of your parents
And may they rest in peace
If they were here to see this ungodly mess
It would scare them half to death

This wasn't what we planned you know
We stay inside on Sunday mornings

Sleeping through construction and
The pounding of the rain

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Arms’ song Construction paint a picture of a dark and uncertain time, where the world is changing and people are trying to adapt to it. The opening line, “Steady your tremors, calm your nervous hearts”, sets the tone for the rest of the piece, as if the singer is trying to convince someone to keep their cool in the face of danger. The next line, “Knit your brows and lie in the dark with your pile of silent parts”, is particularly evocative, conjuring up imagery of someone lying alone in the dark, surrounded by their thoughts and fears.


As the song progresses, the singer addresses their listeners directly, telling them to “run your tiny fingers through mild and abiding winter” – a moment of tenderness in an otherwise bleak piece. The singer is struggling to make sense of everything that is happening around them, and the presence of the people they are speaking to both comforts and concerns them. They think of their parents, and how they would react to the “ungodly mess” that surrounds them.


In the final verse, the lyrics take on a more poignant tone, as the singer laments that “this wasn’t what we planned”. The last line, “sleeping through construction and the pounding of the rain” is particularly striking, suggesting that the singer is almost resigned to the chaos around them, and just wants to retreat into themselves. Overall, the song is a haunting meditation on change, uncertainty, and the human need for connection.


Line by Line Meaning

Steady your tremors
Control your shaking and be calm


Calm your nervous hearts
Relax your anxious minds


Knit your brows and lie in the dark
Furrow your eyebrows in worry and lay in the darkness


With your pile of silent parts
Amidst your collection of quiet pieces


Safe from your worries
Free from your fears


Sweating in your coats
Perspiring in your outerwear


You will miss the softness and snow
You'll long for the tenderness and winter precipitation


Or the row of egg-shaped holes
Perhaps even the line of oval-shaped gaps


Run your tiny fingers through mild and abiding winter
Pass your small digits through a gentle and steadfast winter season


Everything is strange to me
I am unfamiliar with everything around me


Your presence gives me cause for concern
Your being here alarms me


Think of your parents
Consider your guardians


And may they rest in peace
And may they be at peace


If they were here to see this ungodly mess
If they were present to witness this terrible situation


It would scare them half to death
It would terrify them immensely


This wasn't what we planned you know
This isn't what we had intended, you understand


We stay inside on Sunday mornings
We remain indoors on Sunday mornings


Sleeping through construction and
Slumbering through the sound of building work being done, and


The pounding of the rain
The heavy and harsh pelting of precipitation




Contributed by Andrew N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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