Fire Coming Out of a Monkey's Head
Gorillaz Lyrics
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There was a town where the people known as Happyfolk lived
Their very existence a mystery to the rest of the world
Obscured, as it was, by great clouds
Here they played out their peaceful lives
Innocent of the litany of excessive violence that was growing in the world below
To live in harmony with the spirit of the mountain called Monkey was enough
Then one day, Strangefolk arrived in the town
They only saw shadows you see, without the truth to the eyes
The happy folk were blind
Falling out of airplanes and hiding out in holes
Waiting for the sunset to come, people going home
Jump out from behind them and shoot them in the head
Now everybody dancing, the dance of the dead
The dance of the dead, the dance of the dead
In time, the Strangefolk found their way into the higher reaches of the mountain
And it was there that they found the caves of unimaginable sincerity and beauty
By chance, they stumbled upon the place where all good souls come to rest
The Strangefolk, they coveted the jewels in these caves above all things
And soon they began to mine the mountain
It's rich seam fueling the chaos of their own world
Meanwhile, down in the town, the Happyfolk slept restlessly
Their dreams invaded by shadowy figures digging away at their souls
Every day, people would wake and stare at the mountain
Why was it bringing darkness into their lives?
And as the strange folk mined deeper and deeper into the mountain
Holes began to appear
Bringing with them a cold and bitter wind that chilled the very soul of the Monkey
For the first time, the Happyfolk felt fearful
For they knew that soon the monkey would stir from it's deep sleep
Then there came a sound, distant first, that grew into castrophany so immense
That it could be heard far away in space
There were no screams, there was no time
The mountain called monkey had spoken
There was only fire, and then
Nothing
Oh little town in USA, the time has come to see
There's nothing you believe you want
But where were you when it all came down on me?
Did you call me out?
The Gorillaz song "Fire Coming Out of the Monkey's Head" tells the story of a peaceful town called Happyfolk that lived at the foot of a great mountain, where the spirit of the mountain, called Monkey, guided their harmonious existence. However, one day, the town is invaded by Strangefolk in camouflage, who remain unnoticed by the blind happy folk. The Strangefolk starts mining the mountain for its riches, causing holes and a cold bitter wind to appear that chills the soul of the Monkey, causing fear for the first time among the Happyfolk. Then, a sound comes from the mountain, growing in intensity until a catastrophe ensues, leaving nothing.
The song tells the story of environmental destruction, capitalism, and the exploitation of nature's resources by humans in the context of colonialism. The monkey here represents nature, which can only be exploited to a point before it fights back. The song's metaphorical nature is indicative of the Gorillaz's ability to craft politically charged and thought-provoking lyrics. It is a cautionary tale that asks the listener to be aware of humankind's destructive tendencies towards the environment and the consequences of our choices.
Line by Line Meaning
Once upon a time at the foot of a great mountain
There was a town at the base of a great mountain.
There was a town where the people known as Happyfolk lived
The town had a group of people who lived peacefully and innocently.
Their very existence a mystery to the rest of the world
Obscured, as it was, by great clouds
The people were unknown to the rest of the world because they were surrounded by clouds.
Here they played out their peaceful lives
The people lived a peaceful and contented life.
Innocent of the litany of excessive violence that was growing in the world below
To live in harmony with the spirit of the mountain called Monkey was enough
The people were unaware of the increasing violence in the world and focused on living in harmony with the spirit of the mountain.
Then one day, Strangefolk arrived in the town
They came in camouflage, hidden behind dark glasses, but no one noticed them
Strangers came in camouflaged outfits and concealed their identity from the people.
They only saw shadows you see, without the truth to the eyes
The happy folk were blind
The strangers were not recognized by the people, who were naively unaware of the danger in their midst.
Falling out of airplanes and hiding out in holes
Waiting for the sunset to come, people going home
The strangers were hiding, waiting for the night to fall.
Jump out from behind them and shoot them in the head
Now everybody dancing, the dance of the dead
The dance of the dead, the dance of the dead
The strangers attacked the people and killed them, leaving only corpses behind.
In time, the Strangefolk found their way into the higher reaches of the mountain
And it was there that they found the caves of unimaginable sincerity and beauty
The strangers went into the mountain and discovered caves of unparalleled beauty and honesty.
By chance, they stumbled upon the place where all good souls come to rest
The Strangefolk, they coveted the jewels in these caves above all things
They found a place where immortal souls rested, and they coveted the valuables in these caves above all else.
And soon they began to mine the mountain
It's rich seam fueling the chaos of their own world
They started to extract resources from the mountain, using them to fuel the chaos in their world.
Meanwhile, down in the town, the Happyfolk slept restlessly
Their dreams invaded by shadowy figures digging away at their souls
The people in the town experienced troubled sleep, plagued by visions of shadowy beings removing their very souls.
Every day, people would wake and stare at the mountain
Why was it bringing darkness into their lives?
The townspeople would wake up every day and watch the mountain, which seemed to bring darkness into their lives.
And as the strange folk mined deeper and deeper into the mountain
Holes began to appear
Bringing with them a cold and bitter wind that chilled the very soul of the Monkey
The strangers continued to mine the mountain, resulting in holes and a chilling wind that affected the spirit of the mountain called Monkey.
For the first time, the Happyfolk felt fearful
For they knew that soon the monkey would stir from it's deep sleep
The people in the town became scared, as they knew that the sleeping spirit of the mountain would awaken soon.
Then there came a sound, distant first, that grew into castrophany so immense
That it could be heard far away in space
There were no screams, there was no time
The mountain called monkey had spoken
There was only fire, and then
Nothing
A loud noise was heard, which grew into a catastrophic event. The fire was so intense that it could be heard even in space. There were no warnings or time to react, and the mountain had erupted in flames, resulting in a complete annihilation.
Oh little town in USA, the time has come to see
There's nothing you believe you want
But where were you when it all came down on me?
Did you call me out?
The song concludes by questioning the town's ignorance about the impending danger that caused the destruction, and whether they should have stepped in to help.
Lyrics © EMI Music Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: DAMON ALBARN, JAMIE HEWLETT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@joshshoff5027
Then there's the tacky quackie thesis; whom Finally returned, and when Shiitake found me said, 'Ur-za Dragonslayer I've been looking for!'
I said, 'Not yet, not in a while at least. Glad I got your attention 😁.' before I immediately deafened via a prepared catastrophic blast that could deafen those; even in space.
That's when I yelled at the top of my lungs; "Let Our Battle Begin!"
In which I got the reply I was looking for from my opponent, "What did you say?"
I smiled, knowing I had deafened the 🐉, limiting it's casting capabilities.
@herbertgoncalves4345
[Narration: Dennis Hopper]
Once upon a time at the foot of a great mountain
There was a town where the people known as Happyfolk lived
Their very existence a mystery to the rest of the world
Obscured as it was by great clouds
Here they played out their peaceful lives
Innocent of the litany of excess and violence
That was growing in the world below
To live in harmony with the spirit of the mountain called Monkey was enough
Then one day, Strangefolk arrived in the town
They came in camouflage, hidden behind dark glasses
But no one noticed them, they only saw shadows
You see, without the Truth of the Eyes, the Happyfolk were blind
[Interlude: 2D]
Falling out of aeroplanes and hiding out in holes
Waiting for the sunset to come, people going home
Jump back from behind them and shoot them in the head
Now everybody dancing, the dance of the dead
The dance of the dead, the dance of the dead
[Narration: Dennis Hopper]
In time, Strangefolk found their way into the high reaches of the mountain
And it was there that they found the caves of unimaginable, sincerity and beauty
By chance, they stumbled upon the place where all good souls come to rest
The Strangefolk, they coveted the jewels in these caves above all things
And soon they began to mine the mountain
Its rich seam, fueling the chaos of their own world
Meanwhile, down in the town, the Happyfolk slept restlessly
Their dreams invaded by shadowy figures digging away at their souls
Every day, people would wake and stare at the mountain
Why was it bringing darkness into their lives?
And as the Strangefolk mined deeper and deeper into the mountain, holes began to appear
Bringing with them a cold and bitter wind that chilled the very soul of the Monkey
For the first time
The Happyfolk felt fearful
For they knew that soon the Monkey would stir from its deep sleep
And then came a sound, distant first
It grew into castrophany
So immense it could be heard far away in space
There were no screams, there was no time
The mountain called Monkey had spoken, there was only fire
And then...nothing
[Outro: 2D]
O little town in U.S.A., your time has come to see
There's nothing you believe you want
But where were you when it all came down on me?
Did you call me? No...
@firkinflamer8604
I had a nightmare about this once.
Winter, 01:00 AM, nothing to be seen outside the window.
Me and my little brother sat in the couch looking at a movie, hiding under blankets. Then when the movie ended, he told me that he was too tired to watch another. He walked heavily, yet quickly and silently to his room. I did the same, I walked down the stairs just the same way as he walked on the flat wooden floor. I could not care about the shadows haunting me, I was far too tired to notice. I didn't go to bed immediately, I decided instead to sit in my chair, get cozy with a blanket, listen to music and just imagine. I did that, but I didn't turn the music on, I just sat there in my dark room full of shadows reaching out to me.
All of a sudden, I could hear my brother calling my name. The first time, just normally. The second time, fearfully. The third time, screaming and panicking with pain in his voice. But I couldn't get up, no matter how hard I tried. 2 seconds after giving up, I was freed from my chair and started running up the stairs to go see him. Just as I started running, I fell into my bed, forced to sleep. All I did was *blink. I proceeded to hurry up to him, frightened and sweaty, praying that I would be there to meet him before he died. "What would I do without him? He's the one that stayed honest through my life, no matter of the situation or cause."
I reached his room, tears down my face, only to find him laying tired in his bed. I asked him "Did you call on me?" and he responded with "No, why?". That's when I realized that all of it was just a dream.
That dream taught me a thing or two about loving people, I'll tell you that.
@stat_rule444
This is a great story about how our world is
We’re the happy folk but also the dark folk
We’re happy to be alive but we’re slowly digging away at our world because of our happiness
Their for we are the dark folk dig away out our own resources not even realizing because we’re blind because of our happiness
Then when the time comes because of our mistakes we will bring our own downfall and then nothing.
@elcodfather4595
Is this a song or a story?
Gorillaz: yes
@55superdiego
Julio?
@joshshoff5027
Then there's the tacky quackie thesis; whom Finally returned, and when Shiitake found me said, 'Ur-za Dragonslayer I've been looking for!'
I said, 'Not yet, not in a while at least. Glad I got your attention 😁.' before I immediately deafened via a prepared catastrophic blast that could deafen those; even in space.
That's when I yelled at the top of my lungs; "Let Our Battle Begin!"
In which I got the reply I was looking for from my opponent, "What did you say?"
I smiled, knowing I had deafened the 🐉, limiting it's casting capabilities.
@user-wq6vy9xr6t
Damn, i just love memes like this, thanx for them
@Randy.Bobandy
You say this like it's somehow original or unique, music has always been a story.
@dodgersdoon1130
ALWAYS
@Chirpysemperboy
The last narrative bit is always so haunting:
There were no screams
There was no time
The mountain called Monkey had spoken
There was only fire
And then
Nothing.
@fablemercury6434
Gave me chills reading that
@buckdouglas9559
its one of the bestr non halloween songs i've ever heard.
@GHOwenST
When I was little it gave me chills