Devour
Strapping Young Lad Lyrics

The lyrics of Strapping Young Lad's song Devour are intense and provoke deep reflection about the cycle of life and death. The concept of devouring both the living and the dead seems gruesome, but it is a metaphor for the fact that life consumes life, and death comes to all things. The lyrics stress the idea that in life, we learn important lessons through experiences, which shape us into who we are, and when we die, we carry those experiences with us. Therefore, we learn how we live when we die.

The repetition of the word divide in the chorus is significant. It highlights the idea of splitting things, whether it is people, things, or experiences. The singer emphasizes the importance of dividing and multiplying life's experiences to create a meaningful existence. The verse, "Dividing the living, Defining the dead," suggests the idea that the living separate themselves from the dead and define their existence that way. Moreover, the reference to "one hundred or more in the womb" highlights the aching reality that many lives end before they even begin. The verse explains that despite a hundred being in the womb, only one hundred will go, and one hundred below, thus emphasizing the fragility of life.

Overall, Devour's lyrics are a statement about the transience of human beings and their experiences. The song discusses the difficult decisions that people make as they live, and the impact these decisions have on their lives and their eventual transition to the afterlife.