The Sound
O.B.A. Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

Hello darkness, my old friend,
I've come to talk with you again,
Because a vision softly creeping,
Left its seeds while I was sleeping,
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence.
In restless dreams I walked alone
Narrow streets of cobblestone,
'Neath the halo of a street lamp,
I turned my collar to the cold and damp
When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light
That split the night
And touched the sound of silence.

And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people, maybe more.
People talking without speaking,
People hearing without listening,
People writing songs that voices never share
And no one dare
Disturb the sound of silence.

"Fools" said I, "You do not know
Silence like a cancer grows.
Hear my words that I might teach you,
Take my arms that I might reach you."
But my words like silent raindrops fell,
And echoed
In the wells of silence

And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made.
And the sign flashed out its warning,
In the words that it was forming.
And the sign said, "The words of the prophets

Are written on the subway walls




And tenement halls."
And whisper'd in the sounds of silence.

Overall Meaning

The Sound by O.B.A. is a cover of Simon & Garfunkel's The Sound of Silence, a ballad that delves into the themes of isolation, alienation, and the dangers of not listening to one's own inner voice. The song starts with the persona greeting their old friend (darkness) before diving into a recollection of a vision that left a lasting impact on their mind, which they liken to the sound of silence. The vision is of people interacting with each other without genuinely communicating or connecting, and it leaves a feeling of despair and hopelessness. The persona then tries to reach out to these people and teach them the dangers of remaining in this state of sensory deprivation but realizes that his words fall on deaf ears.


The second verse of the song has a prophetic feel to it as the persona warns the people of the dangers of not speaking up and allowing "the cancer" of silence to grow. He offers his words and his arms to them as an alternative to the silent communication they're accustomed to. But again, his attempts at communicating fall on deaf ears. In the end, the people bow and pray to the neon god that they've made and the signs on their walls show the words of the prophets that the persona has been trying to give to them all along. The song's final lines suggest that the sound of silence is not empty but is instead filled with whispers of the truth that people fail to hear.


Line by Line Meaning

Hello darkness, my old friend,
I'm seeking comfort and familiarity in my struggles and confusion.


I've come to talk with you again,
I want to process my thoughts and emotions with you once more.


Because a vision softly creeping,
I've had a dream or idea that's slowly developing.


Left its seeds while I was sleeping,
It's taken root in my subconscious while I was unaware.


And the vision that was planted in my brain
This idea has firmly taken hold in my mind.


Still remains
It hasn't gone away or lost its significance.


Within the sound of silence.
It's something that's only noticeable in quiet moments of contemplation.


In restless dreams I walked alone
I've been feeling adrift and isolated in my thoughts.


Narrow streets of cobblestone,
My mental journey has been rocky and challenging.


'Neath the halo of a street lamp,
I'm surrounded by artificial light that doesn't offer clarity or comfort.


I turned my collar to the cold and damp
I'm trying to protect myself from uncomfortable emotions and situations.


When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light
Suddenly, I'm confronted by a symbol of modern life that's harsh and blinding.


That split the night
The brightness of the light transforms the darkness into something surreal and oppressive.


And touched the sound of silence.
This jarring experience has disrupted the peace and quiet I was experiencing.


And in the naked light I saw
When everything was illuminated, I was able to see the world clearly.


Ten thousand people, maybe more.
I'm surrounded by a crowd of people, all seemingly disconnected from one another.


People talking without speaking,
Despite their words, they're not communicating anything of real value or emotion.


People hearing without listening,
No one is truly listening or empathizing with those around them.


People writing songs that voices never share
Even the art they create isn't able to bridge the gap between people.


And no one dare
No one is willing or able to challenge this silence and disconnection.


Disturb the sound of silence.
The status quo of alienation and lack of communication is too ingrained to break.


"Fools" said I, "You do not know
I'm frustrated with those around me for perpetuating this cycle of isolation and inauthenticity.


Silence like a cancer grows.
This silence and lack of genuine communication is toxic and harmful.


Hear my words that I might teach you,
I have something important to say that I think could improve the situation.


Take my arms that I might reach you."
I want to connect with others and offer comfort or support.


But my words like silent raindrops fell,
My message was lost or ignored amid the noise and dissonance around me.


And echoed
It only echoed back to me.


In the wells of silence
It was swallowed up by the overwhelming silence.


And the people bowed and prayed
People turned to religion or other forms of worship to try to find meaning and connection.


To the neon god they made.
But even their worship was misguided, focused on empty and superficial symbols.


And the sign flashed out its warning,
The bright, artificial symbols they idolize carry a message that is empty, shallow, or even dangerous.


In the words that it was forming.
It's trying to communicate a message, but people aren't really listening.


And the sign said, "The words of the prophets
Even the words of past prophets, or wise voices of the past, are being ignored or misunderstood.


Are written on the subway walls
These messages are hidden or obscured by the chaos and noise of modern life.


And tenement halls."
They can only be found in the forgotten corners of society.


And whisper'd in the sounds of silence.
They're only able to be heard by those who are truly listening and paying attention to the quiet moments of contemplation in life.




Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Paul Simon

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Comments from YouTube:

@BUILTLIGHTWOUNDTIGHT

Decided to leave the hobby 11 months ago. Long story short, I just bought a TRX4 Sport a few days ago.
I'm curious about the Racing and performance side of Traxxas.
Like a sealed gear differential for the 2WD Rustler,Slash, and Bandit. And I would like to keep all the Traxxas rtr rigs, that I am going to be buying. All running reasonably priced Traxxas hop up parts.
I mean have you ever raced a Slash vxl running 100K diff juice?!?! It's pretty impressive to say the least!!
Oh yeah and that new 1/10th scale Summit in orange. I am having a hard time looking up parts for it. If you could bring the Summit 2.0 with all the same bells and whistles as the original Summit. With the exception of the Canyon AT tires, I'm really needing a Scale Trail running Summit!!! Possibly running the 3.8" Chevron tires off the E-Maxx. Then I could take long walks on the Scale Trails with a seriously long runtime. And I am totally down with running a chevron tired monster Summit, for many hours on end!!! What can I say, I love running over stuff with the Monster Truck, Summit style!!!!! 😎

@luisalejandre6637

Thank you soo much for sending those awesome trucks to roman and family 😄 thanks to you guys he is doing another giveaway an awesome giveaway!!! Thank you once again and smile more !😀

@drivingwithsmoke2755

I love these trucks so much, too bad they don't have any stores by me 😑😑

@MPDesign

Roman, it would mean so much to me if you picked me for the rc giveaway. Iv'e been watching you since the Roman & Jon show about 3-4 years ago. I love rc cars and drones but have never had enough money to afford one. You and your family are amazing. Never stop doing what you do. You have helped me through some tough times. Smile More!

@wrcpatrick

OK this is freaking cool. Biggest complaint from Nitro to Electric is the no sound.

@D3nn1s

wrcpatrick biggest advantage is no sound, just drive it wherever you like, plus it sounds just ridiculous, for the price of this thing you get half a nitro motor

@jonathanperez6382

Waste of money for sure i have the nitros for that

@RYNOCIRATOR_V5

Biggest complaint from Nitro is the sound, few things sound as annoying, or as stupidly loud.

@LoXodonte

Bring this back on clipless 4WD!

@brandonplumb330

you guys are the most amazing people in the world because you are giving roman some of your traxxas cars

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