The most striking and consistent aspect of Oneida's music is their use of and fascination with repetition. Their 2002 LP, Each One Teach One, for instance, begins with two especially long tracks, Sheets of Easter and Antibiotics, the former over fourteen minutes long, the latter more than sixteen. Both of these songs are composed of one repeated riff (with a few short interludes on Antibiotics). In addition to the use of repetition Oneida's music can be distinguished by the bandmember's extensive use of and enthusiasm for antique keyboards and analog electric pianos.
Originally recording on Turnbuckle Records (their first two albums in 1997 and 1999), the band now runs Brah Records, an imprint of Jagjaguwar (Jagjaguwar group at Last.fm). In September 2007 the group celebrated 10 years of existence with a concert at the P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center in NYC.
The current lineup is:
* Kid Millions - drums, vocals participated as drummer 53 in the Boredoms 77 Boadrum performance which occurred on July 7th, 2007 at the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park in Brooklyn, New York
* Bobby Matador - organ, guitar, vocals
* Hanoi Jane - guitar, bass
* Double Rainbow (aka Phil Manley of Trans Am and The Fucking Champs) - guitar
* Shahin Motia (of Ex Models) - guitar
Papa Crazy (aka PCRZ) of Oakley Hall is a former member of Oneida, and has revived connections with Oneida by recording OH's most recent album Gypsum Strings on Oneida's Brah Records label.
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The Misfit
Oneida Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Drops beneath the spinning wheels of matter and of purpose
The Misfit's empty presence drags me to the earth and matter
The sun stops my waking dream
Much sadder, much sadder, much sadder.
Alone among assembled souls it's later in the evening
Back on land and holding fast to poisons and their seasons
Now I know that people die by telling themselves fibs.
Climb inside the cockpit and he's hanging on the wing
I look away, he slides inside, I sing I sing I sing.
Floating in the air, my body's still chained to my bed
I wander through the walls; I wonder if I'm dead.
Down below I see my shadow slide across the lake
His hand is on my shoulder, squeeze until, squeeze until it breaks.
The Misfit by Oneida is a song that narrates a dreamlike experience of the singer who seems to be flying a plane. The song opens with the lines “I banked the plane into the clouds the tundra's static surface” suggesting that the singer is flying over a tundra. The Misfit, who is empty in his presence, drags him to the earth and matter which could mean that the singer feels lost and directionless but is brought back to reality by The Misfit's presence. The singer then expresses sadness as he wakes up from his dream stating "Much sadder, much sadder, much sadder."
As the song progresses, the singer seems to have landed on land and is holding onto poisons and their seasons, referring to the dangers of addiction. The Misfit interlaces their fingers round the singer's spine suggesting a form of intimate connection between the two. The singer's realization that people die by telling themselves fibs leads to an interpretation that The Misfit could represent a form of addiction that the singer is grappling with.
The song then shifts to a dreamlike state again with the lines “Climb inside the cockpit and he's hanging on the wing, I look away, he slides inside, I sing I sing I sing”. The singer seems to be floating in the air but his body is still chained to his bed, indicating a sense of entrapment. He wonders if he is dead and sees his shadow slide across the lake with The Misfit's hand on his shoulder, squeezing until it breaks. The final image could be interpreted as the singer's breaking free from addiction but it comes at a cost.
Line by Line Meaning
I banked the plane into the clouds the tundra's static surface
I steered the aircraft into the clouds above the unchanging, barren land
Drops beneath the spinning wheels of matter and of purpose
Objects and intentions move away quickly under the rotating wheels
The Misfit's empty presence drags me to the earth and matter
The outsider's undefined existence pulls me towards earthly things
The sun stops my waking dream
The sunrise interrupts my vivid daydream
Much sadder, much sadder, much sadder.
Very unhappy, in a state of great distress
Alone among assembled souls it's later in the evening
Isolated in a crowd, night-time's making progress
Back on land and holding fast to poisons and their seasons
On solid ground, firmly grasping at destructive habits that recur regularly
He interlaced his fingers round my spine, between my ribs
He entwined his fingers around my backbone, in between my ribcage
Now I know that people die by telling themselves fibs.
I realize that individuals perish due to their own deceits
Climb inside the cockpit and he's hanging on the wing
Enter the plane's compartment and he's holding onto its edge
I look away, he slides inside, I sing I sing I sing.
I avert my gaze, he slips into the vehicle, I repeatedly hum
Floating in the air, my body's still chained to my bed
Drifting in mid-air, but my physical form remains restricted to my sleeping surface
I wander through the walls; I wonder if I'm dead.
I roam freely through the barriers; I question whether I've perished
Down below I see my shadow slide across the lake
Beneath me, I observe my silhouette glide over the water
His hand is on my shoulder, squeeze until, squeeze until it breaks.
He places his hand on my shoulder firmly, presses harder and harder until it fractures
Contributed by Alexander O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.