Garneau, a native of Boston, lived with his family in Paris during grade school, and later New Jersey before moving to New York City. Garneau discovered a love of music at a young age while learning to play piano. After high school, Garneau briefly attended Berklee Music School in Boston, but left after completing one term and moved to Brooklyn, NY. There he began writing music and playing live shows at small venues in the East Village and Lower East Side of Manhattan, including CBGB's Gallery and "The Living Room".
Garneau eventually signed with Absolutely Kosher Records, an Emeryville, California-based record label. He was brought to the label by Jamie Stewart and Caralee McElroy of Xiu Xiu. Garneau released his debut album Music for Tourists in October 2006 and on iTunes in January 2007. His second project, an EP titled "C-Sides", was released in December 2007. Garneau's second full-length album, titled "El Radio," was released in July 2009.
Castle-Time
Chris Garneau Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Chewing candy and tabacco lines
Drinkin heart puned pints
Tossing nikels and dimes
Their lookin for an exit signs
Their lookin for a lucky night
The darken and boring ryhmes
My teacher died, even the frying pan cried,
Rain fell slowly according to caslte-time,
I was only nine
I lookin for an exit signs
I was lookin for a lucky night
And my darken and boring ryhmes
Well face it were living in war times
Lets cry about you
Lets cry about you, you can't
Cry about you
Don't be embaressed
I'won't laugh at you
The river flows north and wines
Travelling south you head wind time
The passers by are not kind
But the sky is sublime
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
The song Castle-Time by Chris Garneau delves into themes of nostalgia, coming of age, and the slow decay of life. The opening lyrics describe a group of men engaged in mundane activities like chewing candy, smoking tobacco, and playing games. These activities reflect their desire to hold on to the past and keep the tradition alive. They are looking for an exit sign, an escape from their routine, and are hoping for a lucky night to break the monotony. However, they are stuck, and their "dark and boring rhymes" reflect this sense of being trapped.
The chorus, "My teacher died, even the frying pan cried, rain fell slowly according to castle-time, I was only nine", is a poignant reflection of the singer's childhood. The death of the teacher and the crying frying pan reflect the impact of loss on the singer's life. It signifies that even the inanimate things in life acknowledge the feeling of loss, and the world comes to a standstill during such times. The singer reflects on his search for a way out of his mundane life, a desire for a lucky break, and the monotony of his everyday existence. The final verse talks about the river flowing north and the journey towards the unknown. The passersby may not be kind, but the sky is sublime, highlighting the beauty in the world, even in difficult times.
Line by Line Meaning
Men doing men thing times
Men engaging in stereotypical masculine activities
Chewing candy and tabacco lines
Bitting on candy and tobacco
Drinkin heart puned pints
Drinking strong alcoholic beverages
Tossing nikels and dimes
Gambling small amounts of money
Their lookin for an exit signs
Searching for a way out of their current situation
Their lookin for a lucky night
Hoping for good fortune in the present moment
The darken and boring ryhmes
The mundane and uninteresting lyrics they are singing along to
Damn their keeping up old times
They are perpetuating outdated traditions and behaviors
My teacher died, even the frying pan cried,
Referencing the grief and sadness of losing a cherished loved one
Rain fell slowly according to caslte-time,
Reflecting on the slow passing of time and events
I was only nine
When this event occurred I was still very young
Well face it were living in war times
Acknowledging the current state of society and its conflicts
Lets cry about you
Let's address and express emotions around the situation surrounding you.
Lets cry about you, you can't
You are so emotionally repressed that you cannot even cry for yourself.
Cry about you
Expressing the emotive state surrounding the other person.
Don't be embarrassed
Assuring the other person that there is no shame in showing emotion
I won't laugh at you
Promising the other person that they will be taken seriously
The river flows north and wines
Describing the path and character of a nearby river
Travelling south you head wind time
Alluding to the difficulty of facing headwinds while sailing south on the river
The passers by are not kind
The strangers who are just walking by are not compassionate
But the sky is sublime
Contrasting the people around with the beauty of the sky
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
A repeated affirmation or agreement with what is being expressed
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CHRIS GARNEAU
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jeroen Amador
The thing that no one seems to notice is that a terrible thing happened to him at 9 years-old: his teacher died. It makes no sense. When someone is making breakfast, to sizzle of food in it sounded like "even the frying pan cried." It happened and it was raining slowly, "according to castle-time". Yes, it does not "make sense", buy it makes sense to a little boy.
He is now a young man, and he's trying to make sense out of it.
Lyrics:
Men doing men thing times
Chewing candy and tobacco lines
Drinking harpooned pints
Tossing nickels and dimes
They're lookin' for exit signs
Their lookin' for a lucky nines
They're talkin' in boring rhymes
Damn, they're keeping up old times
My teacher died;
Even the frying pan cried.
Rain fell slowly according to castle-time;
I was only nine.
I was lookin' for exit signs
I was lookin' for a lucky nines
And my talkin' in boring rhymes
Well, face it: were living in war times.
Let's cry about it
Let's cry about it
You can cry about it
Don't be embarrassed; I won't laugh at you.
The river flows north and winds
Travelling south, you'll head wind-time
The passers-by are not kind
But the sky is sublime
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Umbra
This is one of those songs I come back to time and time again and cry every time.
acc1
Same! Well, enjoy :,(
Library of the Labyrinth
This is the first song I ever heard from Chris. All these years later and it still means so much to me. I don’t how I feel about anything anymore. Thanks for the memories Chris.
meyaisdumb
Wow. It's been so long since someone left a comment on this beautiful masterpiece...
acc1
Lol, i even memorized all the comments by heart, since i always end up listening to this song. And i can say that you're the freshest comment here XD
Adrian Lingard
So many people search for meaning and insight in lyrics, all the meaning is there, in the voice and the music, sublime!
Lynne O
Holy shit. This song. This man is a genius. He is a true noble poet of the post-poet days.
Isabella Elizabeth
I love this song so hecking much!
Moody Moofin
Guys, I think we're all missing something important. If even the frying pan cried, how can it ever be used as a drying pan?
acc1
Lmao that was genious