Founded as "The Hippyshakes" in the 1980s, the band became "Shake" and was characterised by a strawberry logo. In 1991, Jimi Shields joined the band and suggested a name change to "Rollerskate Skinny", chosen from a line in The Catcher in the Rye, by J. D. Salinger:
"She's quite skinny, like me, but nice skinny, rollerskate skinny."
Rollerskate Skinny consisted of Ken Griffin, Ger Griffin (no relation), Jimi Shields and Steve Murray. Shields wrote material and played guitar & drums for much of the band's history but left due to constant media references to his brother which threatened to distract from the band itself.
After the release of "Shoulder Voices" in 1993, to much stateside critical acclaim, Rollerskate Skinny's four original members signed with the Sire imprint of Warner Bros. Records. Following Shields' departure The album Horsedrawn Wishes was recorded and subsequently released in February, 1996 to a great deal of praise, particularly in the Irish music press.
All of those involved with Rollerskate Skinny have gone on to other musical projects: Ken Griffin moved to New York City and formed the band Kid Silver, releasing the album Dead City Sunbeams in 1999. In 2004 Ken joined members of the former Philadelphia band, Aspera, to form his current band, Favourite Sons who are signed to Vice Records. Since Rollerskate Skinny, Ger and Steve worked on the project Walker. Stevie since started the band Empire, now known as The Radio.
Ribbon Fat
Rollerskate Skinny Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The tumbleweed is tracing out your frown the furrow′s on the rise the buried are alive
There's trouble in the seven day dust
Now the veil of beasts have dragged you round
You′ve kissed the hands of strangehold and found
They bruise the neck of songbirds on their way to you
We are the century's ghosts
All ribbon far let loose on
The tangled curse that pierced your eye and will
To carry on
Now the ox has blown the feathers through
The oven door to make the angel wings
The hallelujah sirens are singing to the aspiring
There′s trouble in the seven day dust
Float the bloated butchers on a string
The supper songs are deafening and green
The lucky jaws of time
Are sweetened by the rhyme
We are the century′s ghosts we are the century's ghosts we are the century′s ghosts
All ribbon fat let loose
On the tangled curse that pierced your eye and will
To carry on
To the weeping dogs at ankles we can say could you ring a bell of sense
To shake loose the seven day dust from the plastic trees
Drum terror man take me someplace new
The opening lines of Rollerskate Skinny's "Ribbon Fat" introduces a scene of chaos, where everything around the singer is unraveling. The reins are loose, the tumbleweed is tracing out frowns, and there's trouble in the seven day dust. These lines set up a sense of unease and foreboding, and immediately draw the listener into the odd world that the song is depicting. The singer goes on to speak of a veil of beasts that have dragged you round, and how you've kissed "the hands of strangehold" (which may be a reference to the act of surrendering oneself to a force that is not benevolent). The line "they bruise the neck of songbirds on their way to you" is particularly striking as it describes an act of violence in a very poetic way.
All through the song, there's a sense of disorientation and confusion, with images that are both surreal and unsettling. The chorus repeats the phrase "We are the century's ghosts" several times, which could be interpreted to mean that the singer and those they are with are the remnants of some past time, haunting the present day. The line "ribbon fat let loose on the tangled curse that pierced your eye and will to carry on" is especially haunting, because it speaks to the way that people can be held back from achieving their potential by something that is beyond their control.
Overall, "Ribbon Fat" is a song that's difficult to interpret definitively - it's full of imagery that's both evocative and disorienting, and it's up to the listener to decide what it all means. However, what's clear is that the song creates an atmosphere that is eerie and affecting, drawing the listener into a world that is both recognizable and alien.
Line by Line Meaning
Now the reins are loose and all around
The situation is chaotic and out of control
The tumbleweed is tracing out your frown
The negative energy is evident and tangible
the furrow's on the rise the buried are alive
Things that were buried are now coming to the surface and causing trouble
There's trouble in the seven day dust
There is unrest and danger in the air
Now the veil of beasts have dragged you round
The darkness has overtaken and consumed the subject
You've kissed the hands of strangehold and found
The subject has put trust in something they shouldn't have
They bruise the neck of songbirds on their way to you
Those who are innocent are being harmed in the pursuit of the subject
We are the century's ghosts
We are the remnants of the past, lingering in the present
All ribbon far let loose on
All of the chaos and negativity is coming to the surface
The tangled curse that pierced your eye and will
The source of the subject's troubles is both visible and deeply ingrained
To carry on
Despite the difficulties, the subject must keep going
Now the ox has blown the feathers through
The subject is experiencing a sudden and unexpected change
The oven door to make the angel wings
Something beautiful is being created out of a difficult situation
The hallelujah sirens are singing to the aspiring
Those who seek something better are being encouraged
Float the bloated butchers on a string
Those who have caused harm are being held accountable
The supper songs are deafening and green
The distractions that contribute to the problem are overwhelming
The lucky jaws of time
The passing of time is ultimately unpredictable and uncontrollable
Are sweetened by the rhyme
The art and beauty in the world make the difficulties more bearable
To the weeping dogs at ankles we can say could you ring a bell of sense
Amidst all the chaos, the subject is searching for answers
To shake loose the seven day dust from the plastic trees
To break free from the struggles and distractions of everyday life
Drum terror man take me someplace new
The subject is seeking an escape from their current situation
We are the century's ghosts we are the century's ghosts we are the century's ghosts
The past continues to haunt us and shape our present
All ribbon fat let loose
Everything is coming to the surface and cannot be contained
On the tangled curse that pierced your eye and will
The subject is dealing with a deep-seated problem that runs through their entire being
Writer(s): Ken Griffin, Gerald Griffin, Murra Stephen
Contributed by Makayla W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
k4rg4n
Utterly amazing.