For more than twenty years he has been releasing, to only marginal commercial and critical success, playful and transgressive albums on labels in the United Kingdom, the United States, and Japan. In his lyrics and his other writing he makes seemingly random use of decontextualized pieces of continental (mostly French) philosophy, and has built up a personal world he says is "dominated by values like diversity, orientalism, and a respect for otherness." He is also known in certain circles outside the U.S. as a producer. He is fascinated by identity, Japan, the avant-garde, time travel and sex. Live Momus shows are rare but when he does perform he often sings the crowd favourite 'maf' from the Stars Forever LP.
He wears a patch over his right eye because he lost the use of it after contracting acanthamoeba keratitis from a contact lens case washed with Greek tap water.
Nick Currie currently resides in Osaka, Japan.
The Mouth Organ
Momus Lyrics
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Her time had come
To describe the screech of tyres
The sudden hit and run
She pulled out from her purse
The mouth organ
Began describing all she'd seen
In an eerie, haunting tune
The cloudy afternoon
The unexpected turn
Resulting in the death
Of the pedestrian
How the accident was caused
How the current war
And all that happens in this world
Has been written in the stars
From the day that they invented the car
She finished up
A little out of breath
The judge stood up
And threw out all her arguments
He had a good mind, so he said
To sentence her to death
But she'd suffered quite enough
Said the counsel for defence
She stepped out of the court
Happy to be freed
Failed to see the laundry van
Bearing down at speed
All that happens in this world
Has been written in the stars
From the day they invented the car
The narrative of Momus's song, The Mouth Organ, is about a woman who takes the stand in court to describe an accident. She describes how a pedestrian was killed by a car, and how the accident was caused by an unexpected turn resulting in a hit-and-run. The woman pulls out a mouth organ from her purse and uses it to describe everything she witnessed during the accident in an eerie, haunting tune. The song connects the accident to larger societal issues like war and its consequences, implying that everything that happens in the world has been written in the stars since the invention of cars.
The song emphasizes the inevitability of accidents and how people are subject to fate. The use of the mouth organ adds a haunting and mournful effect to the narrative. It signifies not only the woman’s testimony but also the sorrow and tragedy attached to the accident. The judge’s decision to initially sentence her to death, only to be overruled by the defense, adds to the theme of fate by suggesting that justice also lies in the stars.
Line by Line Meaning
She took the stand
She spoke in front of a court
Her time had come
It was her moment to speak
To describe the screech of tyres
To recount the sound of vehicle brakes being applied suddenly
The sudden hit and run
A traffic accident where the perpetrator fled the scene
She pulled out from her purse
She retrieved something from her handbag
The mouth organ
A musical instrument shaped like a box with holes
Began describing all she'd seen
She started recounting what she observed
In an eerie, haunting tune
With a melody that was unsettling and spooky
The cloudy afternoon
The day was overcast
The unexpected turn
The unforeseen curve in the road
Resulting in the death
That led to the loss of life
Of the pedestrian
Of the person walking on the street
How the accident was caused
The reason why the crash occurred
How the current war
The ongoing military conflict
And all that happens in this world
Everything that takes place on the planet
Has been written in the stars
It was predetermined by fate
From the day that they invented the car
Ever since the creation of automobiles
She finished up
She concluded her story
A little out of breath
Slightly panting
The judge stood up
The presiding officer rose to their feet
And threw out all her arguments
The judge dismissed her statements as invalid
He had a good mind, so he said
He thought objectively
To sentence her to death
To condemn her to capital punishment
But she'd suffered quite enough
But she had already faced considerable hardship
Said the counsel for defence
The representative of the defendant stated
She stepped out of the court
She left the courtroom
Happy to be freed
Delighted to be released
Failed to see the laundry van
She did not notice the van carrying laundered clothes
Bearing down at speed
Approaching at great velocity
All that happens in this world
All the events on Earth
Has been written in the stars
It was predestined to occur
From the day they invented the car
Since the introduction of automobiles
Contributed by Ella F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Aldo Charles
on Morality Is Vanity
I’ve been listening to this song last two weeks.