Claire Elise Boucher, known professionally as Grimes, is a Canadian musicia… Read Full Bio ↴Claire Elise Boucher, known professionally as Grimes, is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, music video director and visual artist. Her music incorporates elements of varied styles and genres including dream pop, synth-pop, art pop, electronic, experimental pop, R&B and hip hop.

Throughout her career, she has released five studio albums, two extended plays, eleven singles, and four promotional singles.

Born and raised in Vancouver, Grimes began releasing music independently late in the first decade of the 2000s, releasing two albums, Geidi Primes and Halfaxa in 2010 on Arbutus Records. She subsequently signed with 4AD and rose to fame with the release of her third studio album Visions in 2012. It produced the singles "Genesis" and "Oblivion", and received the Juno Award for Electronic Album of the Year. Her fourth studio album Art Angels (2015) received critical praise, and was named the best album of the year by several publications. Her fifth studio album, Miss Anthropocene, was released in 2020. Her next album, Book 1, is supposed to be released in early 2023.

Flesh without Blood itemprop=offers
Grimes Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

You claw, you fight, you lose
Got a doll that looks just like you
Remember when we used to say
"I love you" almost every day
I saw a light in you
Going out as I closed our window
You never liked me anyway

I don't see the light I saw in you before
And now I don't, and now I don't
And now I don't care anymore

Baby, believe me
If you had every chance
You'd destroy everything you love
(Uncontrollable)
If you don't need me
Just let me go

You hate, you bite, you lose
After all, I just don't like you
It's nice that you say you like me
But only conditionally
Your voice, it had the perfect flow
It got lost when you gave it up though
'Cause you want money
You want fame

I don't see the light I saw in you before
And now I don't, and now I don't
And now I don't care anymore

Baby, believe me
If you had every chance
You'd destroy everything you love
(Uncontrollable)
If you don't need me
Just let me go

Baby, believe me
I don't know how many times
You destroyed everything that you love
(Uncontrollable)
If you don't need me
Just let me go
Baby, believe me
I don't know how many times
You destroyed everything that you love
(Uncontrollable)
If you don't need me
Just let me go

(Uncontrollable)

Overall Meaning

Grimes's song "Flesh without Blood" is about a tumultuous relationship. The lyrics suggest that the singer's partner is unstable and inconsistent in their affections. The singer reminisces about the past when they used to say "I love you" every day, but now those feelings have faded. The partner is described as clawing and fighting, but ultimately losing the singer's love. The image of a doll that looks like the partner implies that they may be artificial or fake in some way. The singer no longer sees the light in their partner that they once did, and they don't care anymore.

The chorus of "Flesh without Blood" is a warning to the partner that if they had the chance, they would destroy everything they love. The partner's destructive tendencies are described as "uncontrollable." The singer urges the partner to either love them unconditionally or let them go. The second verse continues to describe the partner's negative qualities, including their desire for money and fame. The line "you destroyed everything that you love" suggests that the partner may already be familiar with self-sabotage.

Line by Line Meaning

You claw, you fight, you lose
You struggle and try hard, but ultimately fail

Got a doll that looks just like you
You have a replica who resembles you

Remember when we used to say / "I love you" almost every day
We used to declare our love for each other frequently

I saw a light in you / Going out as I closed our window
I noticed a spark or attraction in you that faded away as our relationship ended

You never liked me anyway
You never had genuine feelings for me

I don't see the light I saw in you before / And now I don't, and now I don't / And now I don't care anymore
I no longer see the qualities in you that I admired before, and as a result, I have stopped caring about you

Baby, believe me / If you had every chance / You'd destroy everything you love / (Uncontrollable)
If given the opportunity, you would ruin the things you hold dear, beyond your control

If you don't need me / Just let me go
If you no longer have a need for me in your life, it's best to let me go

You hate, you bite, you lose / After all, I just don't like you
Your hostility and negativity have resulted in your defeat, and ultimately, I no longer have positive feelings for you

It's nice that you say you like me / But only conditionally
While it's pleasant to hear that you have positive feelings for me, those feelings come with strings attached

Your voice, it had the perfect flow / It got lost when you gave it up though / 'Cause you want money / You want fame
Your speaking voice was incredibly smooth and pleasant, but after giving it up for money and fame, that quality was lost

Baby, believe me / I don't know how many times / You destroyed everything that you love / (Uncontrollable)
Trust me when I say that you have ruined the things you cherish many times, and unfortunately, it is beyond your power to stop

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CLAIRE ELISE BOUCHER

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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