HORSE the band's lyrics are chaotic and colorful metaphors for vocalist Nathan Winneke's life, often with humorous or abstract pop culture reference titles and bases. Winneke has referred to his style on multiple occasions as "lynchian" in reference to his favorite film director David Lynch and his obtuse narrative style.
The band had jokingly labeled themselves "Nintendocore" very early on in their career in reference to the synth sound they had adopted. Some Nintendo characters that are metaphorically referred to include Cut Man from Mega Man, although the song is spelled "Cutsman" because the song was about a childhood friend Winneke grew up with and that was how they had said the character's name in youth; "Birdo", one of the bosses from the NES game Super Mario Bros. 2, in the song "Birdo" which was actually about Winneke's distaste for eggs and traumatic experiences with his stepfather early in his life ; and the rabbit-like nemesis from The Legend of Zelda in the song "Pol's Voice" which is about Winneke's early loathing of the sound of his own voice. Similarly, the song "A Million Exploding Suns" refers to the Marvel Comics character Sentry, a schizophrenic and agoraphobic hero with this abundance of power, pertaining to Winneke's double life as a musician and as a video rental clerk.
2007's A Natural Death featured significant lyrical and musical evolution into the concepts of nature and mortality while moving slightly away from the Nintendo metaphors. The song "Murder" is inspired by the Western novel Lonesome Dove, in which a Native American named Blue Duck stalks and kills white settlers on the plains. "Hyperborea" as a reference to Robert E. Howard's original "Conan" pulp fantasy stories from the 30s, and "The Red Tornado," a DC comics character from the company of which Winneke is such an open enthusiast.
The band's line-up has continuously fluctuated in its 10 year history. In February it was announced that Chris Prophet had been fired and Jon Karel from The Number Twelve Looks Like You would be filling in on drums during Earth Tour. In July, 2008 the band stated that long-time band friend Daniel Pouliot of Bleeding Kansas had joined as the band's full time drummer. On Wednesday, December 3 2008, the band announced that Dash Arkenstone would be leaving the band soon, though he remains on good terms with the other members and has attended local shows.
The band booked its own tours starting the summer of 2002, including a 3-month tour spanning seven countries. With a carefully maintained web presence including their MP3.com and MySpace accounts, they had gained themselves a niche audience. In the summer of 2004, the HORSE the World Tour 2004 included 85 shows in 90 days, spanning 7 countries throughout North America and Europe.
Their latest album, titled Desperate Living, was released on October 6, 2009.
Desperate Living
HORSE the band Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I bought a one way ticket back to July
Quantum
Theory
Breathless
Yet...
Discorporate.
We are alive
We are hostages
Held for ransom
by a gentleman ghost
We are alive living day to day
Building bridges and statues
If I read the whole book
What would I say?
Now there's no mystery
Just a bunch of pages
Crumpled yesterdays
...and I'm not so sure we are together on this anymore
It's like...
Like nothing Matters
Oh, but it does
Woefully
At peace
We start to eat the seeds
Hungry enough to eat tomorrow
TOMORROW
TOMORROW
TOMORROW
Listen breakers
And listen bucks
These are the one-rail hooks
You're looking through garbage
The wealth and filth of our dreams.
The lyrics of HORSE the band's song Desperate Living are quite complex and open to interpretation. The first verse describes a play unfolding on a forest floor, which could signify something new and unexpected happening in the midst of nature. The line "I bought a one way ticket back to July" can be interpreted as a desire to go back to a happier time or memory, but it's impossible to do so since time only moves forward. The lines Quantum Theory, Breathless, Yet... Discorporate could signify a feeling of being overwhelmed or out of body experience. The next verse explains that despite being alive, people can feel like hostages held for ransom by a gentleman ghost, meaning that one feels stuck and powerless in their current situation. The line "We are alive living day to day, building bridges and statues" could mean that despite feeling trapped and powerless, one is still putting in effort to create something meaningful in their life.
The third verse talks about reading a book and losing the mystery that once existed before reading it. Life is compared to a book of crumpled pages and a collection of yesterdays, meaning that it may not be perfect, but it's still worth living. The line "and I'm not so sure we are together on this anymore" suggests that there may be a disconnect or conflict in the relationship between the singer and another person. The next line, "it's like nothing matters, oh but it does", seems like a contradiction indicating that despite feeling like everything is meaningless, it's important to find purpose in life. In the last verse, HORSE the band encourages listeners to be grateful for what they have, even if it feels like nothing at times. The line "these are the one-rail hooks" could mean that one should focus on the important things in life, rather than getting distracted by meaningless priorities.
Line by Line Meaning
A play folds out on the forest floor
The scene is set in a forest where a play unfolds on the ground
I bought a one way ticket back to July
I wish to go back in time to July and stay there permanently
Quantum
Deals with quantum physics, an abstract study of matter and energy
Theory
An explanation for an observed phenomenon or fact
Breathless
Shortness of breath
Yet...
Despite the above, the following is also true
Discorporate.
Without a physical body
We are alive
We are living beings with a beating heart and breath in our lungs
We are hostages
We are being held captive against our will
Held for ransom
A demand for payment is made for our release
by a gentleman ghost
The captor is a well-mannered, polite ghost
We are alive living day to day
We continue to exist one day at a time, struggling to survive
Building bridges and statues
We work hard to create structures as a symbol of hope and progress
If I read the whole book
In the event that I were to read the entire book
What would I say?
What conclusions could I draw?
Now there's no mystery
Now that I have finished the book, everything is clear
Just a bunch of pages
But what I found was nothing more than a collection of pages
Crumpled yesterdays
Past memories and experiences that have been crumpled and forgotten
...and I'm not so sure we are together on this anymore
I am beginning to doubt that we are united in this situation
It's like...
The feeling is similar to
Like nothing matters
As if nothing has any meaning or value
Oh, but it does
Despite feeling insignificant, everything has a purpose and a consequence
Woefully
With great sadness or regret
At peace
Despite the sadness, feeling serene and content
We start to eat the seeds
Begin to consume what little resources we have
Hungry enough to eat tomorrow
Desperately hungry, willing to eat whatever is edible to survive
TOMORROW
Represents the endless struggle, the constant pursuit of survival
Listen breakers
Pay attention, those who break obstacles
And listen bucks
And those who disrupt the norm or resist authority
These are the one-rail hooks
These people are the ones who can provide the necessary leverage for change
You're looking through garbage
You are searching for meaning in something that is worthless or insignificant
The wealth and filth of our dreams.
The discarded remnants of what we once aspired to have and be
Contributed by Benjamin K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.