Califone is the musical project of former Red Red Meat frontman Tim Rutili. Its regular and rotating contributors include many former members of Red Red Meat and some members of other Chicago bands, such as Tortoise. Their music is less rooted in blues-rock than Red Red Meat and is more directly inspired by experimental music and early American folk music as can be found on Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music.
Califone's current lineup includes Joe Adamik (drums), Jim Becker (banjo, violin), Ben Massarella (percussion), and Tim Rutili (vocals, guitar, keyboards). Each member is a multi-instrumentalist.
Tim Rutili has collaborated with a number of other artists as well. He joined up with Modest Mouse frontman Isaac Brock and others in 2002 to release the album Sharpen Your Teeth under the band name Ugly Casanova. Some members also toured with Freakwater and served as a backing band to record the album Thinking of You in 2005. In 2006, Tim Rutili teamed up with Wil Hendricks and Michael Krassner under the name The Unseen Hand to record the soundtrack for Rank, a documentary about bullriding. In the same year Califone worked with animator/musician Brent Green on a series of performance art pieces featuring animation, live music, and spoken word. They are also featured on the soundtrack for the movie Stranger than Fiction.
Electric Fence
Califone Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's apples and cigarettes on cold water drive
Give your belly to the lions and your throat to all their babies
The power washer screams like a panther
Your rope and scar and rabbit hearts
Jesus drains electric fences to fill you again
Sailor's mouth and falling brail
Don't fall away, don't fall away
Wash it down in a fountain, lean into the kill
The mayflies all explode when they come to the coil at the driving range under blocks of fake light
A broken feel, electric fence
Don't fall away, don't fall away
The lyrics to Califone's song "Electric Fence" are enigmatic and suggestive, but they seem to center on themes of danger, transformation, and spiritual regeneration. The opening lines, "Lit a blue tip match off the white in your eye / It's apples and cigarettes on cold water drive," set a moody scene that suggests a nocturnal encounter between two individuals. The following lines, "Give your belly to the lions and your throat to all their babies" and "Your rope and scar and rabbit hearts" evoke images of violence, sacrifice, and vulnerability. The metaphorical language continues with the line, "Jesus drains electric fences to fill you again," which suggests that the singer is seeking some kind of redemptive experience.
The song's imagery becomes even more fragmented and surreal as it progresses, with references to "sailor's mouth and falling brail," "mayflies," and "the coil at the driving range." The repeated refrain, "Don't fall away, don't fall away," seems to be an admonition to the listener to hold fast to something, perhaps faith or hope, in the midst of these chaotic and uncertain situations. The final lines, "A broken feel, electric fence / Don't fall away, don't fall away," encapsulate the song's sense of tension and danger, juxtaposing an ominous image with an urgent plea.
Overall, "Electric Fence" is a mesmerizing and haunting song that invites multiple interpretations. It could be read as an exploration of human frailty and our simultaneous desire for transcendence and self-destruction. It could also be a meditation on the power of language and metaphor to evoke deep emotional responses in listeners. Whatever its meaning, it's a song that stays with you long after it's over.
Line by Line Meaning
Lit a blue tip match off the white in your eye
You struck a match against the white part of your eye, creating a spark that lit a blue-tipped match.
It's apples and cigarettes on cold water drive
On Cold Water Drive, you have apples and cigarettes, likely to eat and smoke during your journey.
Give your belly to the lions and your throat to all their babies
You are surrendering your stomach to the lions and your throat to their offspring, possibly symbolizing that you are sacrificing yourself to protect younger generations.
The power washer screams like a panther
The power washer produces a loud, aggressive noise that resembles a panther's scream.
Your rope and scar and rabbit hearts
You have the characteristics of rope, scars, and rabbit hearts, which could represent your tough exterior, your past traumatic experiences, and your natural shyness or timidity.
Jesus drains electric fences to fill you again
Jesus depletes the electrical energy from fences to rejuvenate and replenish you again, suggesting that a higher power can help you recover from difficult experiences.
Sailor's mouth and falling brail
You speak like a sailor, with a vulgar or crude vocabulary, and you are also experiencing a downturn or misfortune, as if you were navigating your ship with damaged or broken brail.
Don't fall away, don't fall away
It is advised not to lose your focus or direction in life and to avoid becoming distracted or disheartened.
You sleep like an angel with sparrows beneath your eyelids
You rest peacefully but still have a connection with nature, as if tiny birds are nesting near your eyes while you sleep.
Wash it down in a fountain, lean into the kill
It is recommended to cleanse troubling emotions with the symbolic purity of a fountain and to confidently move forward to take on a challenge or confrontation.
The mayflies all explode when they come to the coil at the driving range under blocks of fake light
Mayflies combust when they reach the coil at the driving range, which is illuminated by artificial lighting, possibly signifying how even harmless creatures can be harmed by human technology and development.
A broken feel, electric fence
There is a sense of disarray and instability, akin to a faulty electric fence that is no longer reliable or secure.
Don't fall away, don't fall away
Once again, there is a strong emphasis on maintaining focus and avoiding distraction or disorientation.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Temistoclas Hugo Rutili
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind