Malkmus knew fellow Pavement songwriter Scott Kannberg (aka Spiral Stairs), of the Preston School of Industry, since childhood in Stockton, California. Malkmus attended the University of Virginia, where his father is also an alumnus. While at UVA, he also met Bob Nastanovich, another member of Pavement.
Malkmus currently resides in Portland, Oregon with his partner, artist Jessica Jackson Hutchins. In 2005, Hutchins gave birth to the couple's first child, a daughter named Lottie.
In 2008 Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks released the album, Real Emotional Trash — the group’s first album with new drummer Janet Weiss from Sleater-Kinney. In 2020, Stephen released Traditional Techniques. Reviewing the album for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine described the album as "an amiably trippy and decisively mellow psych-folk adventure."
Witch Mountain Bridge
Stephen Malkmus Lyrics
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The wine that we threw into a chasm
Came right back at you
Now it's all so straight and narrow
And the skeptics rule the nation
The servants scream, "always wear black."
Give you a skewed impression of the realms of the magic arts
Yes, it's all over your heads so enjoy the dim vacation
The servant reads, "never wear black."
There is no now -- you can tape that to your devil-brow
Time came before the end, my lord, explain your cattle call.
What we need is a soft second serve of your fine approximations
Shepherd read, "always wear black."
You find the grace in true frustration
Time came before the end, my lord, explain ...
The lyrics of Stephen Malkmus's Witch Mountain Bridge speak of the decline of magic and the rise of skepticism in modern times. The opening lines, "In better times, a spell could save you / The wine that we threw into a chasm / Came right back at you," evoke a time when supernatural beliefs and practices had more power and influence. However, the singer acknowledges that now things are different, and the skeptics rule the nation. The line "The servants scream, 'always wear black'" suggests a rebellion against conformity and an embrace of alternative lifestyles, although the reason for this is not clear.
The lyrics then take a more critical tone towards those who believe in the "realms of the magic arts." The line "The stupid sin, romantic wishscapes / Give you a skewed impression of the realms of the magic arts" suggests that the singer sees such beliefs as unrealistic and naive. He encourages his listeners to "enjoy the dim vacation" of their delusions, but with a sense of superiority.
The final lines of the song, "You find the grace in true frustration / Time came before the end, my lord, explain," leave the listener with a sense of ambiguity. Perhaps the singer is suggesting that true enlightenment comes from a sense of frustration and questioning, or maybe he is acknowledging the futility of trying to understand the mysteries of life.
Line by Line Meaning
In better times, a spell could save you
In the past, magic had the power to protect you from harm
The wine that we threw into a chasm
An offering we made to try to impress the mystical forces
Came right back at you
The magic was so powerful that it seemed like it was responding to us
Now it's all so straight and narrow
These days, society's expectations are very specific and limiting
And the skeptics rule the nation
People who don't believe in magic or other supernatural phenomena have the most influence on society
The servants scream, "always wear black."
Even the people who serve us believe in this nonsensical superstitious rule
The stupid sin, romantic wishscapes
The foolish act of wishing for magical solutions to problems
Give you a skewed impression of the realms of the magic arts
These ideas are not accurate reflections of real magical practice
Yes, it's all over your heads so enjoy the dim vacation
The concepts of magic are too complex and abstract for most people to understand, so they can only enjoy a superficial version of it
The servant reads, "never wear black."
Another arbitrary and irrational rule that we are supposed to follow
There is no now -- you can tape that to your devil-brow
The present moment doesn't really exist, so any attempt to pin it down is like marking yourself as a devil
Time came before the end, my lord, explain your cattle call.
Before the apocalypse, the lord must explain why he's summoning all of humanity like livestock
What we need is a soft second serve of your fine approximations
What we really want is a gentler version of the lord's harsh truth
Shepherd read, "always wear black."
Even the most humble and down-to-earth people believe in these meaningless traditions
You find the grace in true frustration
You can only find beauty and wisdom when you're truly struggling
Time came before the end, my lord, explain ...
Once again, people demand answers from the lord before the world ends
Contributed by Adalyn S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.