The crew augments Theo's book-open vocals and beautiful fingerpicking with a suitably eclectic array of instrumentation. Laura Carter and Robbie Cucchiaro, both formerly of Athens' legendary and notoriously horn-buoyed Neutral Milk Hotel, head up a brass-and-winds section comprised of Laura's celebratory trumpet, Robbie's Baritone Euphonium, a couple clarinets, harmonica, recorder and whatever else you can pack into a touring-trunk and bring along for a blast. Rhythmic backbone comes courtesy of Southern punkrock siren Madeline Adams' bass, Matte Cathcart's drumming and some right-on Fender Rhodes piano provided by Hot New Mexicans' mainman Patrick Jennings.
The catchy, heartfelt crunch of the album's opener, "Circles Round The Moon," segues seamlessly into the brassy, beautiful circus-lullaby, "Tambourine-n-Thyme." Things get sad and stripped down with "Tiny Rainbows" -- a gentle plaint nudged toward the light by the brilliant horns. And "Broken Cityscapes" gets positively naked: Theo's adamant vocal sounds above his acoustic guitar and a couple rattles.
Theo's lyrical voice is ruralist, lovelorn and punkrock in the most primal way: he looks to explicate a world gone way wrong on the most basic, inhumane levels. Experiences gained on the touring road and at his home at the Orange Twin Conservation Community have led him to question the empty life of the modern American, and the disquieting ways the inherent Dystopia have made itself manifest on our own interior landscapes."
-Orange Twin
For Things That Haven't Come Yet
Nana Grizol Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Passed out in their prime
Cuz we were waiting for a suitable time for waking up
I must have looked in your eyes
About two thousand times
But I never saw a sign
No nothing to say, this was a time for giving up
And if somehow you still believe in love try not to let it hurt so bad
Don't you know that you always
Had everything that you need
If there's something in the stars above the sights
Our sentiments, and masses of gasses
I would swear, it still wouldn't have drawn itself to me
But why should it?
I had a dream about parking lots,
And shopping malls, and lines
The only words anyone could muster
Were just lies, and lies, and lies,
And am I ashamed, am I ashamed
To engage in these infantile notions of pain
When we wake up it's always the same
Though I hope everything is okay
I took a walk in your shoes
You know that I got the blues
Thinking bout how there's this wall
They made climbers of us all
Till we eventually fall and
So you talk about your ideals
Like they're not how you feel
Like they're a dream you hold inside
An old plan left unrealized until the day that it died
Well if you're waiting on the world to change
Don't waste you precious heart
Oh, I know that you are too
Smart to think that it will
That sure is one way to live
But one day something has got to live
And if you're not ready
Well you're sure to fancy yourself, oh so still
So don't try so hard
For things that haven't come yet
Don't live your life like it's already gone
Don't listen to the closed set
It's nobody, just trying to make them self feel better with a song
In the first verse of the song “For Things That Haven’t Come Yet,” Nana Grizol references Allen Ginsberg’s “Howl” with the line “I saw the best minds of my generation.” However, instead of seeing them “destroyed by madness,” he sees them “passed out in their prime” from waiting for “a suitable time for waking up.” This suggests a feeling of exhaustion and despair in the wake of waiting for change that never seems to come.
In the second verse, the singer admits to looking in someone’s eyes “about two thousand times” but never seeing any signs of love. This leads him to the conclusion that “this was a time for giving up.” Despite this, he encourages anyone who still believes in love to “try not to let it hurt so bad” and reminds them that they “had everything that you need.”
The third verse references the vastness of the universe and the idea that even if there is something out there that could provide a sense of meaning or purpose, it may never reveal itself. The fourth and final verse encourages the listener not to wait for change to happen, but to live in the present and not become consumed by a sense of hopelessness.
Overall, the song appears to address the frustration of waiting for change and the urge to give up in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles. It encourages listeners to find ways to cope with these feelings and to focus on the present rather than dwelling on the past or waiting for the future.
Line by Line Meaning
I saw the best minds of my generation Passed out in their prime Cuz we were waiting for a suitable time for waking up
I witnessed intelligent people of my generation passing out early because they were waiting for the right time to wake up and take action.
I must have looked in your eyes About two thousand times But I never saw a sign No nothing to say, this was a time for giving up
I looked into your eyes countless times but found no indication of anything to say. It was a time for surrender.
And if somehow you still believe in love try not to let it hurt so bad Don't you know that you always Had everything that you need
If you still hold onto the belief of love, try not to let it hurt you too much. Remember, you always had everything you already needed.
If there's something in the stars above the sights Our sentiments, and masses of gasses I would swear, it still wouldn't have drawn itself to me But why should it?
Even if there is something in the stars that could have brought us together, I doubt it would have happened. But again, why should it?
I had a dream about parking lots, And shopping malls, and lines The only words anyone could muster Were just lies, and lies, and lies, And am I ashamed, am I ashamed To engage in these infantile notions of pain When we wake up it's always the same Though I hope everything is okay
I had a dream about mundane things like parking lots and shopping malls, and all anyone could say were lies upon lies. I feel guilty for indulging in such childish thoughts of pain. But reality always seems repetitive, and I hope everything is still fine.
I took a walk in your shoes You know that I got the blues Thinking bout how there's this wall They made climbers of us all Till we eventually fall and
I empathized with you by putting myself in your shoes, and it made me quite sad. There's a wall that they erected, and it forced all of us to become climbers until we eventually fall.
So you talk about your ideals Like they're not how you feel Like they're a dream you hold inside An old plan left unrealized until the day that it died
You speak of your ideals as if they are not connected to your feelings. They seem like a dream that you keep inside, an old plan that never fulfilled its purpose and died.
Well if you're waiting on the world to change Don't waste you precious heart Oh, I know that you are too Smart to think that it will
If you're waiting for the world to change, don't waste your precious heart on it. I know you're smart enough to realize that it won't change.
That sure is one way to live But one day something has got to live And if you're not ready Well you're sure to fancy yourself, oh so still
That might be one way to live, but something eventually has to come to life. If you're not prepared for it, you'll be stuck in a state of being stagnant.
So don't try so hard For things that haven't come yet Don't live your life like it's already gone Don't listen to the closed set It's nobody, just trying to make them self feel better with a song
Don't put too much effort into things that haven't even happened yet. Don't live your life like it's already over. Don't listen to those who try to make themselves feel better with their closed-minded opinions. It's nobody.
Contributed by Claire I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.