Hoop has lived all over the map, and her rich life experience is reflected in her distinctive voice and natural gift for inventive song craft. She learned to sing at an early age, harmonising with her musical Mormon family in northern California. She began writing highly idiosyncratic songs at the age of 14 to keep her company on her long walks to school. At 16, Hoop broke away from her strict upbringing and began what she calls her 'life as a racoon', off the grid & close to nature. Rambling through the high mountain deserts of the Southwest and along the coastlines of the Northwest, she worked as a wilderness survival guide and chalked up skills in farming, surveying, and carpentry. Her songwriting continued throughout, shared on porches, in deep river canyons and around campfires.
 In 2004 the desire to share these songs on a broader scale set in. She settled in Los Angeles, where she honed her songwriting craft and developed a reputation as a unique and beguiling live performer of real substance. Though she now resides in Manchester, England, Hoop returned to Los Angeles to record her third album, The House That Jack Built.
 Jesca has quite the collection of fans in high places: Tom Waits described her music as being "like a four sided coin. She is an old soul, like a black pearl, a good witch or red moon. Her music is like going swimming in a lake at night". Peter Gabriel took her to South America to sing with him, and in recent years she has been hand picked to play as support on tour for Eels, Andrew Bird, Punch Brothers, Shearwater and Elbow: Elbow's Guy Garvey has even had her do stints as guest presenter on his BBC radio show, to great reception.
 The follow up to 2009's critically acclaimed Hunting My Dress, "The House That Jack Built" displays a striking duality: light and dark, head and heart, it juxtaposes the macabre and visceral with a disarmingly candid intimacy. The resulting combination is powerfully evocative, with overarching themes of biology, nature and humanity - Hoop's stone-turning observations are mired in the equal beauty and violence of a nature that, for her, is clearly red in tooth and claw.
Pack Animal
Jesca Hoop Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The mirror
There you are again
Wearing my green eyes my brown hair and my aging skin
My body is your bed
Dear reflection your my oldest friend
And where you go i go
End of eternity and back again
And i don’t wanna be here
All by myself in this strange house
It wont let me out
Don’t wanna be here
All by myself in this strange house
It wont let me out
Its a new day
A new day
There you are again
Speakin in my voice
With my tongue
In my brain
My voice is echoin
Dear reflection its a sad refrain
How we endure the hours
And in my arms we sleep alone again
And i don’t wanna be here
All by myself in tis strange house
It wont let me out
Don’t wanna be here
All by myself in this strange house
It wont let me out
Its unnatural
Im a pack animal oh ohhh
I need it heart to heart
Mouth to mouth
And bones to bones
And i don’t wanna be here
all by myself in this strange house
It wont let me out
Don’t wanna be here...
The song "Pack Animal" by Jesca Hoop is a reflection on the loneliness and isolation that comes with being a single person, particularly in a strange living environment. The lyrics describe the singer's relationship with their reflection in the mirror, who they see as a sort of alter ego or companion. The reflection is described as wearing the singer's own physical features, such as their green eyes and brown hair, and even sharing their aging skin. The reflection also echoes the singer's voice and speaks with their tongue in their brain, further emphasizing the close connection between the two.
The chorus of the song emphasizes the singer's feelings of entrapment in their current situation. They do not want to be alone in the strange house, and they feel like they are trapped there against their will. The repetition of the phrase "it won't let me out" adds to the sense of confinement and desperation. Later in the song, the singer describes themselves as a "pack animal" who needs physical connection with others in order to feel complete. The song ends on a somber note, with the singer still alone in the strange house, unable to break free from their isolation.
Overall, "Pack Animal" is a poignant expression of the loneliness and disconnection that can come with being single and living alone in unfamiliar surroundings.
Line by Line Meaning
In the mirror
Looking in the reflective surface shows a projection of oneself.
The mirror
The object which reflects an image of oneself.
There you are again
Seeing oneself reflected in the mirror is a regular occurrence.
Wearing my green eyes my brown hair and my aging skin
The reflection shows features that resemble oneself, including evidence of the aging process.
My body is your bed
The reflection forms on the surface of the body which serves as the 'bed' for the projected image.
Dear reflection your my oldest friend
The mirror has become a familiar companion over time.
And where you go i go
The reflection's presence follows the physical movements of oneself.
End of eternity and back again
The reflection's continuity has persisted through time and space.
And i don’t wanna be here
The current situation is unpleasant.
All by myself in this strange house
The artist is alone in an unfamiliar location.
It wont let me out
The house seems to be preventing the singer from leaving.
Its a new day
Time has progressed to the next day.
Speakin in my voice
The internal monologue is in the singer's own voice.
With my tongue
The words being spoken have the same source as the singer.
In my brain
The thoughts being processed come from the singer's mind.
My voice is echoin
The sound of the voice is resonating.
Dear reflection its a sad refrain
The artist is melancholic about the continued presence of the reflection.
How we endure the hours
The time seems to drag on and on.
And in my arms we sleep alone again
The singer is embracing the reflection that exists only in the mind's eye.
Its unnatural
The continued presence of the reflection is distressing and not part of a typical experience.
Im a pack animal oh ohhh
The artist identifies as a creature that requires social companionship.
I need it heart to heart
The necessary form of companionship requires emotional intimacy.
Mouth to mouth
Physical proximity and interaction is necessary for companionship.
And bones to bones
Physical contact provides a sense of interconnectedness and reassurance.
And i don’t wanna be here
The current situation is still unpleasant.
all by myself in this strange house
The sense of isolation persists in the unfamiliar setting.
It wont let me out
The house continues to feel restrictive and confining.
Don’t wanna be here
The artist continues to express distaste for the current situation.
Contributed by Tyler M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.