The River
Holy Mother Lyrics

A quiet night on an endless street
The singer sets the scene of a peaceful night in a never-ending street.

The smell makes me fall to my knees
The scent is so overpowering that the singer feels overwhelmed and kneels down.

Desire strikes, I've been dealt by the hand
The singer feels an intense desire, something that has been given to them by fate.

A tooth for an eye, it's the law of the land
Reciprocity is a law that governs the territory, which could be interpreted both as a warning or invitation to revenge.

I'm defecting your laws, I'm rejecting the sky
The singer does not feel bound to the rules set by society and feels alienated from the sky, possibly meaning from religion or a higher power.

I'm reflecting your face, I'm a victim of crime
The singer sees someone's face mirrored in their own, and feel like a victim of an injustice.

I was sent from the sky
The singer believes they were a gift from above.

I'm destined to die
The singer believes they are fated to die.

I'm the bloodline, the river is rolling
The singer feels connected to life in a deep and profound way, perhaps because they see themselves as a vessel for their ancestors' bloodline. They also use the metaphor of a river, which acknowledges the constant flow of life.

Like a train on the tracks, turn your white into black
The singer compares life to a train journey, where doing the right thing doesn't always mean you end up in a bright place. The distinction between black and white suggests that everything is more complicated than simple distinctions and that there are many shades of gray.

I'm alive, and the pain, it is showing
The singer is alive and present, while the pain they experienced is made clear by the fact that it is visible.

The river, oh, the river
The singer again references the river as a powerful symbol for the flow of life.

It's flowing through my veins
The river, as a metaphor for life and the bloodline, sustains the singer and gives them vitality.

A fight's a fight, it's your last meal
A fight to the death is a final test of survival.

The bulls have returned to the cage
The bulls, a powerful symbol of willpower and strength, have been confined and contained like in the society.

Dust in my eyes, the sweat from the rays
The singer feels overwhelmed by the dust and the heat and makes it visible through sweat and irritation.

My conscious will lead me, my mind it deceived me
The singer trusts their conscience over their mind, as they believe the mind can be deceiving.

The river, oh, the river
The singer repeats the river metaphor, reinforcing the cyclical nature of life.

It slowly brings you down
Life eventually leads to death, as the river leads to the ocean, and the singer is at peace with that fact.