Roadkill
Katie Jane Garside Lyrics


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Mother, pick the pieces up
Broken child, a broken cup
Endless journey, big machines
Stolen thunder, stole our dreams

Roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill

Burning headlamp, blinding eyes
Motorway roar in drowning cries
Locked down ginger, standing up
Motorway girl is giving up

Roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill

Found a shoe beside the road
Found no footprint in the snow
Little step I'd beckon home
This one who lost her right to roam

Roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill

Mother, pick the pieces up
Broken child, a broken cup
Foreign pictures foreign frame
Motorway girl without a name





Roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill

Overall Meaning

In Katie Jane Garside's song "Road Kill", the lyrics convey a sense of sadness, despair and hopelessness. The song starts with the line "Mother, pick the pieces up", indicating that someone is trying to fix something that is broken, perhaps a broken child represented by a broken cup. This could be someone who is trying to pick up the pieces of their life, but feeling hopeless as they are caught in an endless journey with big machines that seem to be stealing their dreams. The repetition of "roadkill" echoes the sense of helplessness and despair, as if the individual is stuck in a perpetual cycle of defeat.


The verse "Burning headlamp, blinding eyes, Motorway roar in drowning cries" describes the feeling of being overwhelmed by the chaos of the world around us. The use of the word "drowning" suggests that the individual is suffocating under the weight of their problems. The reference to the "Motorway girl" highlights the sense of isolation and disenfranchisement that can come with being caught in a cycle of poverty and social exclusion.


The final verse of the song, "Foreign pictures foreign frame, Motorway girl without a name" highlights the sense of dislocation and alienation that can come with feeling like an outsider in society. The final "roadkill" reinforces the sense of despair and hopelessness, as if the individual is resigned to their fate.


Line by Line Meaning

Mother, pick the pieces up
The singer is calling out to their mother to try and fix what is broken within themselves.


Broken child, a broken cup
The singer feels like they are broken, like a broken cup, and they are not sure how to fix themselves.


Endless journey, big machines
The singer is describing the monotony of life and how the big machines, like society or capitalism, just keep running no matter what.


Stolen thunder, stole our dreams
The artist feels like their hopes and dreams have been taken away by external forces.


Roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill
The repetition of this phrase serves to emphasize the metaphor of the artist feeling like they are just roadkill on the side of the road, forgotten and alone.


Burning headlamp, blinding eyes
The singer is describing the pain they are feeling, both physically and emotionally.


Motorway roar in drowning cries
The singer feels like they are drowning in the noise and chaos of life.


Locked down ginger, standing up
The artist feels trapped and unable to escape their situation, but they are still trying to stand up and fight back.


Motorway girl is giving up
Despite their efforts to fight back, the artist feels like they are losing and giving up hope.


Found a shoe beside the road
The artist has found something, like a shoe, that has been left behind and forgotten, much like they feel.


Found no footprint in the snow
Despite searching for someone else's footsteps, the singer has found nothing, which adds to their feeling of loneliness and abandonment.


Little step I'd beckon home
The artist is searching for a sense of belonging or a place they can feel safe.


This one who lost her right to roam
The singer feels like they have lost their ability to move and travel freely, and are now stuck in one place.


Foreign pictures foreign frame
The singer feels like they don't belong in the world they are living in, like they are an outsider looking in.


Motorway girl without a name
The singer feels anonymous and unimportant, just like every other person on the motorway.


Roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill, roadkill
The repetition of this phrase at the end of the song serves to reiterate the hopelessness the artist feels.




Contributed by Mackenzie O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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Comments from YouTube:

@James-pw8yl

She's amazing ...as we see no talent hacks make it big. Art 💘

@clockworkcanary

Wonderful. Thank you for uploading.

@alexiamanson5591

Lead Singer of Queen Adreena :)

@Kainlarsen

That picture... I was there.:)

@ryanbarreto1791

YOU ARE A LEGEND