Clawjob's last release, an EP called Manifest Destiny, is focused on 19th-century American history and totally doing whatever awful thing you want without any regard for the well-being of others. Manifest Destiny was Clawjob's first release since their 2006 debut full-length album, Space Crackers, a science fiction rock opera that adroitly addresses the complex subjects of love, mortality, science, and ravenous alien assault.
Clawjob formed in 2000 in Boston, Massachusetts. The two members of Clawjob are Mike Gintz, formerly of Clickers, and Nick Burgess. The two formerly played Mega Man soundtrack covers as the unimaginatively-named Project X. The live version of Clawjob usually included various other musicians from the Boston independent music scene, including members of Tristan Da Cunha and Night Rally, but was occasionally stripped down to the two core members as a guitar/drums duo.
Clawjob effectively ceased operations in 2008; both members went on to start a new band called Hex Map.
Free music from Clawjob is available for download at the official Clawjob website.
Horrible Death
Clawjob Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Unhook your airhose,
And float here with me.
Step out of the airlock,
Into the cosmos.
You and me drifting free.
Cause everyone we know back on Earth has died a horrible death.
And everyone I love, except you, has breathed their ultimate breath.
A horrible death.
Step out of the airlock.
Step into the sunshine:
The deadly ultraviolet rays.
Hold your breath and kiss me.
You'll forever be mine.
Together till the end of days.
In space, we'll burn up, and then we'll freeze.
Cause everyone we know back on Earth has died a horrible death.
And everyone I love, except you, has breathed their ultimate breath.
A horrible death.
The lyrics to Clawjob's song Horrible Death are about two people who are the last survivors of a catastrophe that has devastated Earth. The singer of the song, Greg, urges his companion to join him in leaving the safety of their spacecraft and floating out into space together. He wants to share this final, dangerous adventure with the person he loves, even if it means their certain demise. The couple kisses, knowing that they will be together until the end of time.
The song's title, "Horrible Death," sets the tone for the lyrics. It foreshadows the grisly fate that awaits the characters, who will "burn up" and "freeze" in the vacuum of space. This is a stark contrast to the romantic and longing tone of the lyrics, which seem to suggest that dying together is a kind of perverse triumph.
The line "In space, no one can hear you scream" is a reference to the tagline of the 1979 sci-fi movie "Alien," directed by Ridley Scott. In the movie, a team of astronauts is stranded on a desolate planet and hunted by a deadly alien creature. The line suggests the isolation and hopelessness of the characters in the song.
The song ends with a reprise of the chorus, emphasizing the inevitability of the characters' fate. The repetition of the phrase "horrible death" underscores the macabre subject matter of the song.
Line by Line Meaning
Take off your helmet,
Remove the device that provides your space suit with fresh air.
Unhook your airhose,
Detach the tube that supplies your space suit with oxygen.
And float here with me.
Drift freely with me in zero gravity.
Step out of the airlock,
Leave the structure that provides a controlled environment for decompression.
Into the cosmos.
Venture out into the universe.
You and me drifting free.
We will float around untethered in outer space.
In space, no one can hear you scream.
Sound cannot propagate in a vacuum so no one will hear our screams.
Cause everyone we know back on Earth has died a horrible death.
All the people that we knew on Earth have met a tragic end.
And everyone I love, except you, has breathed their ultimate breath.
All the people I care about, except for you, have taken their final breath.
A horrible death.
Their demise was miserable and torturous.
Step into the sunshine:
Move towards the bright star at the center of our solar system.
The deadly ultraviolet rays.
The harmful radiation emanating from the sun that can cause skin cancer.
Hold your breath and kiss me.
Embrace me and hold your breath to avoid inhaling the vacuum of space.
You'll forever be mine.
We will never be separated even in death.
Together till the end of days.
We will spend our remaining days together.
In space, we'll burn up, and then we'll freeze.
Our bodies will first combust and vaporize due to the extreme heat before freezing solid because of the lack of sunlight.
Contributed by Gabriella S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.