Rainer Maria is an emo band formed in Madison, Wisconsin in 1995. Bassist C… Read Full Bio ↴Rainer Maria is an emo band formed in Madison, Wisconsin in 1995. Bassist Caithlin De Marrais, guitarist Kaia Fischer, and drummer William Kuehn formed the band in the late summer of 1995 and named the band after the German poet Rainer Maria Rilke. They're known for their poetic lyrics and resounding metaphors. The lineup never changed during their eleven-year career.

In its earlier days, the band had duel vocals performed by De Marrais and Fischer; later, De Marrais would become the lead vocalist in the majority of their songs. The band's many tours and intimate live shows at venues such as Brooklyn's Northsix (now Music Hall of Williamsburg), Washington, D.C.'s The Black Cat, Bowery Ballroom in NYC, and Chapel Hill's Cat's Cradle helped to grow its fan base and fuel album sales.

On November 6, 2006, the band announced, through Pitchfork Media, that the December 16th show at New York City's Bowery Ballroom would be their last. They played one more show on December 17th at Northsix, which De Marrais referred to as "home" because it also served as the band's rehearsal space.

The band reformed in 2014 with a reunion show at Bowery Ballroom on December 31. Additional shows were added for February 14 and April 18, 2015 at Lincoln Hall in Chicago and Union Transfer in Philadelphia, respectively.

In 2017 the band released S/T, their first album in 11 years.

Planetary
Rainer Maria Lyrics

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The skyline is two gazes long
And I crane my neck
To take it all in
The skyline is two gazes long
And I bump my head
Against the windshield
And I can see you
I can see you

The skyline is two gazes long
And I bump my head
Against the windshield
And I can see you craning
And I can see you craning

Momentum makes my head
Ponderous and heavy
Planetary rotation
Is time winding down?
Momentum makes my head
Ponderous and heavy
Planetary rotation
Is time winding down?
Is time winding down tonight?

The light from our bodies precedes us
Is time winding down?
And I can see you craning your neck
I can see you craning your neck
I want to go to faraway places
I want to go to faraway places
I want to go to faraway places
I want to go to faraway places

Momentum makes my head
Ponderous and heavy
Planetary rotation
Is time winding down?
Momentum makes my head
Ponderous and heavy

Planetary rotation
Is time winding down?

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Rainer Maria's song "Planetary" express a sense of yearning and longing to escape the mundanity of everyday life and explore faraway places. The imagery of the skyline being two gazes long suggests a vast and expansive world waiting to be discovered. However, the singer seems to be trapped in their current situation, bumping their head against the windshield, unable to fully take in the view. The repetition of the phrase "I can see you craning" suggests that someone else is present, perhaps a partner, who is also yearning for more.

The second verse delves deeper into a philosophical exploration of time and its passage. The singer feels weighed down by momentum and the rotation of the planet, questioning if time is winding down. The line "the light from our bodies precedes us" suggests a sense of longing for immortality, for their light to precede them even after they're gone. Ultimately, the chorus repeats the same musings on momentum and planetary rotation, underscoring the sense of stagnation and the desperate desire to escape it.

Overall, "Planetary" is a poignant reflection on the human desire for exploration and meaning in a world that can often feel overwhelming and mundane.

Line by Line Meaning

The skyline is two gazes long
The skyline is so vast that it takes two looks to fully take it in.

And I crane my neck
The singer has to physically tilt their head up to see the entirety of the skyline.

To take it all in
The singer is making a conscious effort to fully absorb and appreciate the view.

And I bump my head against the windshield
The artist is so focused on the skyline that they accidentally hit their head on the car windshield.

And I can see you
The artist is observing someone else who is also looking at the skyline.

The light from our bodies precedes us
The singer and the other person are casting shadows in the light of the skyline, which move ahead of them as they walk.

Momentum makes my head ponderous and heavy
The singer is becoming weighed down by their own thoughts and feelings as they contemplate the beauty of the skyline.

Planetary rotation is time winding down?
The artist is thinking about the passage of time and whether the Earth's rotation is leading to its eventual end.

And I can see you craning your neck
The other person is also fully taking in the skyline, possibly even more than the artist.

I want to go to faraway places
The artist is feeling a sense of wanderlust and desires to travel to distant, exotic locations.

Is time winding down tonight?
The singer is questioning whether this particular moment in time is significant in some way, perhaps as a turning point or end of an era.

Momentum makes my head ponderous and heavy
The weight of the artist's thoughts is becoming overwhelming as they continue to contemplate the meaning behind the skyline and the passage of time.

Planetary rotation is time winding down?
The singer is fixated on the idea that planetary rotation may signal the end of something significant.

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Frank Iero, Gerard Way, Michael Way, Ray Toro

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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