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.
Helpless Corpses Enactment
Sleepytime Gorilla Museum Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yet elms leap
Where ashes lay.
Phall if you but will,
Rise you must
A hand
From the cloud
Emerges,
Expanded.
The eversower of the seeds of light
To the cowld owld sowls that are in the domnatory of Defmut
After the night of the carrying of the
Word
Of Nuahs
And the night of making Mehs
To cuddle up in a coddlepot,
Pu Nuseht, lord of risings
In the yonderworld
Of Ntamplin,
Tohp triumphant,
Speaketh.
Mother of moth !
I will
To show
Herword
In flesh.
Of all the stranger things that ever not even in the hundrund and badst pageans of unthowsent and wonst nice
Or in eddas and oddes bokes of tomb, dyke and hollow to be have happened!
The untireties of livesliving
Being the one substrance
Of a streamsbecoming.
Totalled
Toldteld
Teldtold
Ascend
Out of your bed,
Cavern of a trunk,
And shrine!
Vah!
Suvarn Sur!
Scatter brand
To the reneweller of the skies,
Thou who agnitest!
Dah! Arcthuris comeing!
Be! Verb umprincipiant
Through the trancitive spaces!
Kilt by kelt shell kithagain
With kinagain.
We elect for thee,
Tirtangel.
Svadesia salve!
We Durbalanars,
Theeadjure.
A way,
The Margan,
From our
Astamite,
Kilt by kelt shell kithagain
Through dimdom done till light kindling light
Through dimdom done till light kindling light
Has led we hopas but hunt me
The journeyon,
The journeyon,
The journeyon,
The journeyon,
Iteritinerant,
Iteritinerant,
The kal
His course,
Amid the semitary
Of Somnionia
The semitary of Somnionia
Too mult sleepth. Let sleepth.
Phall if you but will, rise you must
Phall if you but will, rise you must
Phall if you but will,
Rise you must
Phall if you but will,
Rise you must
The first verse of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum's "Helpless Corpses Enactment" contains a series of contrasting images of death and resurrection. The oaks of Ald, which now lie in peat, suggest death and decay, while the elms that grow where ashes were laid suggest new life and growth emerging from the remains of the old. The phrase "phall if you but will, rise you must" seems to suggest that even if we resist or deny the forces of change and renewal, they will ultimately prevail. This idea is reinforced by the image of a hand emerging from a cloud holding an expanded chart, which suggests a plan or design that is larger than any individual's will or comprehension.
The middle section of the song is more abstract and metaphorical, and it is difficult to discern a clear narrative or meaning. Phrases such as "eversower of the seeds of light" and "cowld owld sowls that are in the domnatory of Defmut" suggest mythic or spiritual forces at work, and the repeated phrase "kilt by kelt shell kithagain" may suggest the cyclical nature of life and death. The final stanza brings the song back to the theme of resurrection and renewal, urging the listener to rise and continue on a journey that is itinerant and never-ending.
Line by Line Meaning
The oaks of ald now they lie in peat
The ancient oak trees now decay in the peat soil
Yet elms leap
However, new elm trees grow vibrantly
Where ashes lay.
At the locations where ashes were scattered
Phall if you but will,
Choose to falter or not,
Rise you must
but ultimately you must rise
A hand
A symbol of guidance
From the cloud
From the unseen world
Emerges,
Appears suddenly
Holding a chart
Displaying a plan or overview
Expanded.
In a more comprehensive form
The eversower of the seeds of light
The force that spreads enlightenment
To the cowld owld sowls that are in the domnatory of Defmut
To those who struggle in the grip of despair
After the night of the carrying of the Word
After the time of revelation
Of Nuahs
Of a spiritual messenger or entity
And the night of making Mehs
And the time of transformation
To cuddle up in a coddlepot,
To nestle in a warm, comforting place
Pu Nuseht, lord of risings
A deity of renewal and rebirth
In the yonderworld
In the distant realm of the afterlife
Of Ntamplin,
A mystical place
Tohp triumphant,
A victorious force
Speaketh.
Announces with authority
Mother of moth !
A figure of fertility and regeneration
I will
I choose to
To show
To demonstrate or reveal
Herword
The message of the feminine divine
In flesh.
Through a physical manifestation
Of all the stranger things that ever not even in the hundrund and badst pageans of unthowsent and wonst nice
Of all the bizarre occurrences that have never even been imagined
Or in eddas and oddes bokes of tomb, dyke and hollow to be have happened!
Or in ancient books of folklore and myth
The untireties of livesliving
The infinite complexity of existence
Being the one substrance
As one essential entity
Of a streamsbecoming.
Of a constantly evolving flow
Totalled
Summed up
Toldteld
Communicated
Teldtold
Passed on
Ascend
Rise up
Out of your bed,
Wake from slumber
Cavern of a trunk,
Within one's innermost self
And shrine!
And become holy
Vah!
An expression of amazement or awe
Suvarn Sur!
A reference to a celestial being
Scatter brand
Disseminate truth
To the reneweller of the skies,
To the regenerator of the heavens
Thou who agnitest!
You who ignite
Dah! Arcthuris comeing!
A reference to a mythological figure
Be! Verb umprincipiant
An urging to exist without distinction
Through the trancitive spaces!
Across the boundaries between realms
Kilt by kelt shell kithagain
Bound closely and closely related
With kinagain.
With close relations
We elect for thee,
We choose for you
Tirtangel.
A name with uncertain meaning
Svadesia salve!
An invocation of healing
We Durbalanars,
We followers of a particular belief system
Theeadjure.
A word of unclear significance
A way,
A path forward
The Margan,
A symbol of the end of one's journey
From our
From our collective experience
Astamite,
A place or state of being
Through dimdom done till light kindling light
Through darkness until illumination is achieved
Has led we hopas but hunt me
We have hope but still search for meaning
The journeyon,
Our ongoing quest
Iteritinerant,
A way of life characterized by movement
The kal
A measure of time
His course,
His path forward
Amid the semitary
Within the abode of the deceased
Of Somnionia
A place of sleep or dreams
Too mult sleepth. Let sleepth.
Too many are still asleep. Let them slumber.
Phall if you but will, rise you must
Choose to falter or not, but ultimately you must rise
Phall if you but will, rise you must
Choose to falter or not, but ultimately you must rise
Phall if you but will,
Choose to falter or not,
Rise you must
but ultimately you must rise
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Albert Frost
OMG WELCOME BACK! IVE been listening to yall since album 1!!! i was just a wee early teen and im so happy to see new stuff! never got to see yall live!
AZ0960440
LET’S GO! BEST NEWS IN YEARS! WELCOME BACK! 🎉
Jei Cynth
0:24 my FAVORITE SGM Video 🤘🧐🤘