Dub Narcotic Sound System (D.N.S.S.) is an indie-funk musical group founded… Read Full Bio ↴Dub Narcotic Sound System (D.N.S.S.) is an indie-funk musical group founded by Calvin Johnson. The group is currently made of three members, Calvin Johnson on vocals and guitar, Heather Dunn on drums and Chris Sutton on bass. The band produced a large number of 7" and 12" singles during the mid to late 1990s. Most contained the title track on the A side and "versions" on the flip. Cassettes were also produced during the early 1990s including "Hands on the Dial" which was a joint release from K Records with the Punk In My Vitamins label.

Exclusive tracks can also be found on a number of compilation releases.

Ship to Shore
Dub Narcotic Sound System Lyrics

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It's hard enough to try not to remember
It's hard enough to write return to sender
It's hard enough to know that its not over when its over

It's hard enough to think you know the reason
You make a list of things not to believe in
It's hard enough to know your getting over that its over

It's ship to shore forever with a message
Indelible with everything that's precious
Part of you that's always looking back to see its over

Not enough that memory you're keeping
We made up and now it's hard to sleep in
It's well enough to keep on going over that its over

January look up to you
Feb what's it to you
March is lovely
Aprils ugly
Over and over and over and over (etc)

It's hard enough to try not to remember
It's hard enough to write return to sender
It's hard enough to know that its not over when its over

It's hard enough to think you know the reason

You make a list of things not to believe in
It's hard enough to know your getting over that its over

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Dub Narcotic Sound System's song "Ship to Shore" seem to center around the difficulty of moving on from a past relationship. The first verse acknowledges how challenging it is to try not to remember, to not dwell on the past but rather to move forward. It's hard enough to try not to live in the past, but it's even harder to see that the relationship is really over. Even after everything has ended, despite the best of intentions, it's possible to become mired in memories and regrets.

The second verse adds to this theme. It's hard to think you know the reason why things ended, and even harder to come up with a way to move past it. One thing that people do in order to try to move on is to make a list of things not to believe in, as if by doing so it will be easier to let go of what has happened. But even this is not enough. It feels like there is a permanent connection between the two people, like a message that is conveyed from a ship to shore, indelible and precious.

The song then repeats the refrain, emphasizing the difficulty of moving on and the constant sense of looking back. The final lines of the song repeat the cycle of the year again and again, as if to suggest that time itself is a form of repetition, and that the past is always with us in some form, no matter how much we wish it was over.

Line by Line Meaning

It's hard enough to try not to remember
It's difficult to stop oneself from recollecting past memories.

It's hard enough to write return to sender
It's challenging to return something or someone to its original source.

It's hard enough to know that its not over when its over
It's tough to accept that something is still affecting us even when it has ended.

It's hard enough to think you know the reason
It's a challenging task to assume that one knows the exact cause.

You make a list of things not to believe in
One starts documenting a catalog of things that they must not believe in.

It's hard enough to know your getting over that its over
It's difficult to realize that one is moving on, and the situation it's finally over.

It's ship to shore forever with a message
Sending a message from one place to another through sea transport with eternal trackability

Indelible with everything that's precious
The message contains things of great value and impossible to forget.

Part of you that's always looking back to see its over
The message carries a part of yourself that continually looks back to recognize that everything is finished.

Not enough that memory you're keeping
The memory you preserve is insufficient to help you overcome the situation.

We made up and now it's hard to sleep in
You reconciled, but it still remains challenging to sleep in peace.

It's well enough to keep on going over that its over
It's better to keep reminding oneself that every situation is now finished.

January look up to you
Referring to the first month of the year that symbolizes seeking guidance from a higher source.

Feb what's it to you
The second month does not hold any significant importance.

March is lovely
The third month is a beautiful and fantastic month.

Aprils ugly
The fourth month is not as attractive or pleasing as the others.

Over and over and over and over (etc)
One goes through the same situation repeatedly.

Contributed by Elijah S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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