In 2013, while still a teenager, Marshall released the first King Krule album, 6 Feet Beneath the Moon, on XL in the U.K. and True Panther in the U.S. Marshall then collaborated with his brother Jack for the relatively fluid, more electronic A New Place 2 Drown. Released in 2015 and credited to Archy Marshall, its physical edition was packaged with a 208-page book of poetry, photography, and art. King Krule fully reactivated in 2017 with a handful of varied singles -- the dreamlike ballad "Czech One," the mid-tempo rocker "Dum Surfer," and the rumbling "Half Man Half Shark," all featuring saxophone from Ignacio Salvadores -- that led up to The Ooz, an hour-long follow-up written during a three-year period.
Portrait in Black and Blue
King Krule Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Bathing suits see I suit you
Cause I cold be you and I could show you true
Till the cold runs through and through
A portrait you in black and blue
I ain't painting this lie any more since it was all I had to adore of you
And all I have to say is girl you keep??? running away.
I shoulda been there oh you ladybird to my soul
To my world left a hole to despair See what I'm going
Through you never even knew
That's nothing on my plate, trapped in a lizard state,
Minds at the gate, looking for an escape
I ain't painting this lie any more since it was all I had to adore of you
And all I have to say is Giiirl I'm not painting this lie any more
And I'm dark and I'm in awe of you and all you had to say is,
It never hit me the same boy...
In "Portrait in Black and Blue," King Krule sings about a relationship that has ended poorly. He starts by describing how the two of them were a good match, but eventually became too distant from each other. He compares their relationship to a painting and says that he doesn't want to keep pretending that it's something it's not. He also acknowledges that he has been hurt by the situation, but he still holds some admiration for his former partner.
The second verse expresses a sense of regret that he didn't do more to save the relationship. He wishes he had been more present in her life and that he could have helped her through whatever caused her to leave. He reflects on the pain he's experienced since her departure and how he feels stuck in a "lizard state" of mind, unable to move forward emotionally.
Overall, "Portrait in Black and Blue" is a poignant reflection on the complexities of love and loss. King Krule offers an authentic portrayal of the emotional turmoil that comes with the end of a significant relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
Spastic gyrations and abbreviated
Uncontrolled and jerky movements and brief swimsuits
Bathing suits see I suit you
Swimsuits look good on you
Cause I cold be you and I could show you true
I could be like you and I could show you what's really true
Till the cold runs through and through
Until the cold feeling takes over completely
A portrait you in black and blue
A depiction of you in pain and bruised
I ain't painting this lie any more since it was all I had to adore of you
I won't pretend anymore since all I had was my admiration for you
And all I have to say is girl you keep??? running away.
And all I have to say is that you keep running away
Well time never gave me a chance
Time didn't give me a chance to be there for you
I shoulda been there oh you ladybird to my soul
I should have been there for you, my love
To my world left a hole to despair See what I'm going
Your absence left a hole in my world and brought me despair. See what I'm experiencing
Through you never even knew
Even though you never knew
That's nothing on my plate, trapped in a lizard state,
I have nothing on my mind, I feel trapped and stuck like a lizard
Minds at the gate, looking for an escape
My mind is at the gate, searching for a way out
I'm not painting this lie any more
I won't pretend anymore
And I'm dark and I'm in awe of you and all you had to say is,
And I'm feeling gloomy and impressed by you, and all you had to say was...
It never hit me the same boy...
It never affected me the same way, my love...
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Archie Marshall
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
SpaceGorilla46
Spastic gyrations
And abbreviated bathing suits
See I suit you
'Cause I could be you
And I could show you true
Till the cold runs through and through
A portrayal in black and blue
I'm not painting this lie anymore
Since it was all I had to adore of you
And all I had to say
Girl you keep running away
Well time never gave me a chance
I shoulda been there
Well you laid me bare
Took my soul to wear
Left a hole to despair
See what I'm going through
You never even knew
That's nothing on my plate
Trapped in a lizard state
My mind's at the gate
Looking for an escape
Well I ain't painting this lie anymore
Since it was all I had to adore of you
And all I have to say
Girl
Well I'm not painting this lie anymore
And I'm dark and I'm in awe of you
And all you had to say
It never hit me the same, boy
Roland Agambaki
Spastic gyrations
And abbreviated bathing suits
See I suit you
'Cos I could be you
And I could show you true
'Til the cold runs through and through
A portrayal in black and blue
I'm not painting this lie anymore
Since it was all I had to adore of you
And all I had to say
Girl, you keep running away
Well time never gave me a chance
I should of been there
Well you laid me bare
Took my soul to wear
Left a hole to despair
See what I'm going through
You never even knew
That's nothing on my plate
Trapped in a lizard state
My mind's at the gate
Looking for an escape
I'm not painting this lie anymore
Since it was all I had to adore of you
And all I have to say, girl
I'm not painting this lie anymore
I'm in the dark and I'm in awe of you
And all you had to say
It never hit me the same boy
D heb
I really don't want larger, more mainstream record companies getting their hand on this kid. His music is undeniably unique and true to what he wants to create I'm sure. I don't ever want someone this musically innovative to lose any artistic control.
a a
I can't wait to hear what this kid has in store for us in the future. This is great. He's hit on a really nice guitar sound in his recordings.
alessandro rossi
The hell happened to you, man?
ts_xl
@a a how come?
paulisthelegend
@a a man, your reply ruins your original comment so badly
jack_the_breathtaker
@a a you’re quite a sad man
juiccymelon
@a a how do you go from liking music, to not liking music??
r0ygbiv24
jeez how beautiful is that chord progression
Daniel Plemott
there is no thing more beautiful than this in entire world
happyendy
Word.