Red Dust
James Vincent McMorrow Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

I will not cave under you
For my heart is an unending tomb
I will not trouble your rest
For my heart is infinity blessed

Ever a hard rot
Cut from an ancient cloth of old
Someone is ringing a bell
It chimes through this shimmering shell
That once was my vision of birth
Now is my vessel and curse

Heat from the tall lamp
Melting the outer wax that holds
Blood from a deep cut
Some of the reddest stuff to flow





Sometimes my hands they don't feel like my own
I need someone to love I need someone to hold

Overall Meaning

The song "Red Dust" by James Vincent McMorrow is a complex and introspective reflection on the nature of humanity and the self. The lyrics suggest a deep sense of personal struggle and search for identity, as the singer declares that they will not be overcome by an outside force, but rather will remain steadfast in their own path. The reference to the heart as an "unending tomb" suggests a sense of both loss and immortality, as if the singer's heart is a repository for memories, emotions, and experiences that will never fade away.


The song continues with a poignant description of the singer's sense of constriction, as if they are trapped in their own body and mind. The image of being cut from an "ancient cloth of old" suggests a deep connection to the past, while also highlighting the singer's sense of isolation from the world around them. The ringing bell serves as a beacon of hope, but also as a reminder of the passage of time and the inevitability of change.


The final lines of the song reveal a deep longing for connection and love, as the singer admits that their hands do not feel like their own and they need someone to hold. This vulnerability is a stark contrast to the earlier declaration of strength and determination, suggesting that the singer is grappling with conflicting emotions and desires.


Line by Line Meaning

I will not cave under you
I will not surrender to you


For my heart is an unending tomb
Because my heart is a tomb that never ends


I will not trouble your rest
I will not disturb your peace


For my heart is infinity blessed
Because my heart is blessed with infinity


Ever a hard rot
Always a tough life


Cut from an ancient cloth of old
Born from an old, traditional way of life


Someone is ringing a bell
Someone is calling out for help


It chimes through this shimmering shell
The sound echoes through my soul


That once was my vision of birth
That was once my purpose in life


Now is my vessel and curse
Now it feels like both a blessing and a curse


Heat from the tall lamp
The warmth from the tall lamp


Melting the outer wax that holds
Melting away the outer shell that holds me together


Blood from a deep cut
Blood from a serious wound


Some of the reddest stuff to flow
Bright red blood flowing out of the wound


Sometimes my hands they don't feel like my own
Sometimes I feel disconnected from myself


I need someone to love I need someone to hold
I need someone to love and hold me




Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JAMES MCMORROW

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found
Most interesting comments from YouTube:

MEHMET KAHRAMAN

I will not cave under you
For my heart is an unending tomb
I will not trouble your rest
For my heart is infinity blessed

Ever a hard rot
Cut from an ancient cloth of old

Someone is ringing a bell
It chimes through this shimmering shell
That once was my vision of birth
Now is my vessel and curse

Heat from the tall lamp
Melting the outer wax that holds
Blood from a deep cut
Some of the reddest stuff to flow

Sometimes my hands they don't feel like my own
I need someone to love I need someone to hold



Phước Nguyễn

Here is my interpretation on the video and the song. I haven t watch any of his other videos except this one. But, by reading comments, and others explanation of the guy s demise in Cavalier. Im convinced this song,and the video alluding to the thoughts of suicidal tendency, abortion.
Firstly, the lyrics starts off with the perspective of the poor girl who just learned the news about her supposed boyfriend (or could be. Husband). She is desolate. Yet, instead of sharing it out, let the wound be remedied. She ended up drowning in her own self destruction. She doesnt need help, she doesnt want help or any type of charity. "I will not cave under you for my heart is an unending tomb"- she doesnt want help from the aged woman. Next lines are about her boyfriend, she doesnt want to bother the departed, what is done is done. But clearly, she is devoted to him- "My heart is infinity blessed.
Continued, she runs to his room, trying on his clothes, pulling out those porno magazines, smoke, drink. She wants to know how he felt, which was explained by others, and I dont have any better insight than this.
From the coming lyrically poetic 2 lines "ever hard rot is cut from an ancient cloth of old", I induce that she is pregnant with his child, meditating on having an abortion here. But, she is asking herself if she ought resist this temptation of sin, since she is like "a cloth of old", the child is the only permanent trace of her boyfriend's existence. The one that presumably makes her feel special, and she is dearly smitten with this guy.
The next four lines is the self counter argument on this child could be a impedance to her new future "shimmering shell...vision of birth...my curse". She is indisputably broken, hurt, lost in this world, believing this could be the termination of her.
Lastly, when she bathe herself in that lake, it represents how she is now completely drown in those twisted, sinister feelings of self destruction, killing her own child. Beyond doubt, that is shown in the video as she attempted to bring an end to this tragic life. Her heart, her senses, and mind are all numb "my hands dont feel like my own." She is primed to carry on that next step.
The finale is quite ambiguous as it resort to the image of a convulsing, near death, striving for breath fish. It symbolize her vitality, and her decision for the future. Should she break everything off as she thought? Or should she withstand these horrors? Will she salvage that fish or she just gonna let it perish and drown herself in that bathtub again?




All comments from YouTube:

T C

"sometimes my hands, they don't feel like my own, I need someone to love... I need someone to hold..." they way he sings those lines does something to my heart

Becky Tierney

+Chido Moyo same

JarnoHealth

+Chido Moyo I could listen to that on repeat for hours !

youtube ,com

sigh lol

A J L

It gets me every time. I feel those words in my jellies.

ennem

I love this song so much, I'm afraid to overplay it.

I'm afraid to fall out of love with it, or get irritated by it.

I don't know, whatever.

MEHMET KAHRAMAN

I will not cave under you
For my heart is an unending tomb
I will not trouble your rest
For my heart is infinity blessed

Ever a hard rot
Cut from an ancient cloth of old

Someone is ringing a bell
It chimes through this shimmering shell
That once was my vision of birth
Now is my vessel and curse

Heat from the tall lamp
Melting the outer wax that holds
Blood from a deep cut
Some of the reddest stuff to flow

Sometimes my hands they don't feel like my own
I need someone to love I need someone to hold

iicy_Hott_x3

This song ... I love hearing the emotion in his voice

ShiaDelCampo

acoustic is better, i cry anytime i hear him

Renato Lustosa

Red Dust and Cavaliers videos are so beautifully connected! The heartbreak of a Woman and a man.

More Comments

More Versions