The band tour the U.S. frequently in a renovated vintage Green Tortoise bus, and their live performances have featured puppet shows, pseudo-scientific scholarly presentations, and performances by members of the Butoh group inkBoat. SGM's music has been categorized as anything from avant-prog to art rock to experimental metal to RIO (Rock In Opposition). Many reviewers have remarked that the group is altogether unclassifiable.
The band uses many homemade devices as instruments, such as the viking row-boat and the spring-nail guitar. Rathbun plays a stringed bass instrument of his own construction called The Log which uses piano strings and is perhaps 7 feet long; it is played with two sticks: one in the left hand generally used as a fret, another in the right hand striking the strings. Mellender's percussion instruments consist of restaurant kitchen equipment, trash can lids, and other "found" metal objects, in addition to traditional percussion instruments.
They've announced their imminent end, as their last concerts will be held early April around California. But 2011 will still see a new album, a movie and a live DVD.
FC: The Freedom Club
Sleepytime Gorilla Museum Lyrics
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Let us turn our backs and walk away
Let us close our eyes to the glory of the machine
Let us close our eyes and walk away
The houses are all gone under the sea
The dancers are all gone under the hill
Even when the last tree falls, there will be fire
Even when the last bird is gone, Wooden boxes
Lovingly made by hand, filled up with fire
To blow off the hands of the strong
With wooden boxes
And let us never forget that the human race with technology
Is like an alcoholic with a barrel of wine
Rise up, friends of the freedom club, rise up
Dream your impossible dream
Crawl from your hole in the earth, crawl
The captains of this ship of fools are flesh and softer than wood
The freedom club, rise, wake
The hermit of the woods is gone
The shack taken down
Even though his mind now is drugged
His desperate warning lives on
Blandly titled, industrial society and its future
Rise up, friends of the freedom club, rise up
Dream your impossible dream
Crawl from your hole in the earth, crawl
The captains of this ship of fools are flesh and softer than wood
The freedom club, rise, wake
Let us lay to rest our future dream
Let us leave it to rust and walk away
Let us turn around on the road of progress
Let us go back the way we came
The houses are all gone under the sea
The dancers are all gone under the hill
Because we can
The lyrics of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum's song "FC: The Freedom Club" are a powerful commentary on the destructive nature of technology and industrialization on the environment and on society as a whole. The song begins with a call to reject the comforts of modern society and turn away from its glory, represented by the machines that are rapidly destroying the natural world. The reference to the math professor dreaming an impossible dream seems to suggest that even those who are supposed to be the intellectuals and rational thinkers of society have become caught up in the illusion of progress at any cost.
The middle section of the song is a stark warning about the consequences of our actions. As the natural world is destroyed, we will turn to increasingly desperate and violent means to maintain our power and control. The use of wooden boxes as a weapon is a reference to the tactic used by labor unions in the early 20th century, where striking workers would anonymously mail bombs to their employers. The final warning about the dangers of technology is a powerful metaphor, comparing humankind's relationship to it to that of an alcoholic with an unlimited supply of liquor.
The song concludes with a call to action: to rise up and reject the current path of destruction, to dream impossible dreams, and to crawl out of our holes and take control of our own destinies. The final lines of the song suggest that it's not too late to turn back and start over, but only if we are willing to let go of our attachment to progress and accept the consequences of our actions.
Line by Line Meaning
Let us turn our backs on this world of ease
Let us reject the convenience of modern society
Let us turn our backs and walk away
Let us abandon this path of progress and find another way to live
Let us close our eyes to the glory of the machine
Let us ignore the allure of technology and focus on more important things
The houses are all gone under the sea
Everything we've built is disappearing and we're the ones responsible
The dancers are all gone under the hill
Our culture is dying and we're to blame
And let us dream now the impossible dream of a math professor
Let us pursue lofty ideals and intellectual pursuits, even if they seem impossible
Even when the last tree falls, there will be fire
Even when we destroy everything, we'll find a way to keep destroying ourselves
Even when the last bird is gone, Wooden boxes
Even when we destroy nature completely, we'll still have the tools to destroy ourselves
Lovingly made by hand, filled up with fire
Our tools of destruction are crafted with care and precision
To blow off the hands of the strong
Our obsession with power and destruction will ultimately lead to our own downfall
And let us never forget that the human race with technology
We must always remember that our reliance on technology is dangerous
Is like an alcoholic with a barrel of wine
Our addiction to technology will be our downfall, just as alcoholism destroys those who indulge in it
Rise up, friends of the freedom club, rise up
We must stand up against the forces that seek to control us
Dream your impossible dream
We must pursue our ideals, even when they seem unattainable
Crawl from your hole in the earth, crawl
We must reject the comfort of modern society and struggle to find a new way of living
The captains of this ship of fools are flesh and softer than wood
Those who lead us are weak and easily corrupted
The freedom club, rise, wake
We must band together and fight for our freedom
The hermit of the woods is gone
Those who once lived outside society are disappearing
The shack taken down
Even those who isolated themselves are being forced into the modern world
Even though his mind now is drugged
Even those who resist are being pulled in by the lure of modern society
His desperate warning lives on
We must heed the warnings of those who have fought against this world before us
Blandly titled, industrial society and its future
The industrial society we have built is soulless and destructive
Let us lay to rest our future dream
We must abandon our current view of the future and create a new dream
Let us leave it to rust and walk away
We must let go of our old ideals and seek out something new
Let us turn around on the road of progress
We must reject the path of progress and find another way forward
Let us go back the way we came
We must return to our roots and find a new way of living
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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