Band Members
Tony Wakeford- Double Bass, Sounds, Electronics, Voice
… Read Full Bio ↴Band Members
Tony Wakeford- Double Bass, Sounds, Electronics, Voice

M- Percussion, Sounds, Electronics, Vibraphone, Marimba, Jaws harp

Guy Harries- Flute, Recorder, Melodiica

Richard Moult- Piano

Mark Baigent- Oboe

Renee Rosen- Violin

Ben Sansom- Violin

Alexandria Lawrence- Viola

Jessica Constable- Voice

Autumn Grieve- Voice

Emily Ovenden- Voice

Read more: http://www.myspace.com/orchestranoir#ixzz0yOg0w6Ke

What If
Orchestra Noir Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

What if she never totures me anymore?
How would I manage?
What if she never nails my tongue
To the bathroom floor?
What if she walks away
Leaving me a-ok,
Hiding each power tool
Why would she be so cruel?

I could stab my arm myself
Could rip my tonsils out
Could set my hair aflame
I could spray my eyes with mace
But face the fact, without her,
It wouldn't be the same...

Pugsley (Spoken):

Grandma, what if there was this girl who met this person and they're gonna run away and live alone and eat apples.
What would you give her?

Grandma (Spoken):

Nothing. She's your sister. Be happy for her

Pugsley (Spoken):

But what if she doesn't get rid of him? What if all the good time are already behind me?

Grandma (Spoken):

That's life, kid. You lose the thing love.

Wednesday will drink and then
She'll be herself again
Lucas will leave her be
So she can torture me

Just like she always did
'Til then I'm just a strange, fat kid

Overall Meaning

The song "What If" by Orchestra Noir opens with a set of rhythmic lyrics that catches the listener's attention. In the beginning, the singer questions what would happen if his significant other stops torturing him, which signals that he might be in an abusive relationship. The song then describes the gruesome acts that he would willingly do to himself in the event his partner disappeared. The lyrics are emotionally intense, with the singer considering self-harm as an option when the relationship fails. The lines 'I could stab my arm myself, could rip my tonsils out, could set my hair aflame, I could spray my eyes with mace' indicate a deep feeling of hopelessness in the event of separation.

The dialogue between Pugsley and his grandmother in the middle of the song provides a contrasting view to the relationship described in the earlier verses. Pugsley is concerned about his younger sister, who wants to run away and live on her own with her significant other. However, the grandmother's response shows that there is no need for concern since it is a natural process that everyone goes through in life. The song ends with the singer still in the relationship, waiting to be tortured by his partner as always, suggesting that he would rather have her abuse him than be without her.

Line by Line Meaning

What if she never totures me anymore?
If she stops torturing me, I don't know how I'll cope.

How would I manage?
I'm so used to her torture that I don't know how to function without it.

What if she never nails my tongue To the bathroom floor?
What if the extreme things that she does to torture me, cease?

What if she walks away Leaving me a-ok, Hiding each power tool Why would she be so cruel?
What if she leaves me alone and happy, unlike her usual behaviour. It would be suspicious.

I could stab my arm myself Could rip my tonsils out Could set my hair aflame I could spray my eyes with mace But face the fact, without her, It wouldn't be the same...
I could do all sorts of insane and harmful things to myself, but without her, it wouldn't feel like real torture.

"Grandma, what if there was this girl who met this person and they're gonna run away and live alone and eat apples. What would you give her?"
In this fictional situation, Pugsley asks his grandma what she would give a girl who is living in solitude with her partner, eating apples.

"Nothing. She's your sister. Be happy for her"
Grandma refused to offer anything since the girl is Pugsley's sister, hence inviting him to be happy for her.

"But what if she doesn't get rid of him? What if all the good time are already behind me?"
Pugsley is worried that his sister will never leave her partner, and he has already lost his chance of having good times with her.

"That's life, kid. You lose the thing love."
Grandma tells Pugsley that this is just life, and losing something you love is inevitable.

Wednesday will drink and then She'll be herself again Lucas will leave her be So she can torture me Just like she always did 'Til then I'm just a strange, fat kid
Wednesday will drink and become her usual self again, and Lucas will avoid her so that she can continue to torment me. Until then, I remain a weird kid who is subject to violence from Wednesday.

Contributed by Bella O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS