Bed to the Bills
Subtle Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

The next day the exact same nurse
Is standing with her back to me
At every last passing bus stop
Only this time, what looks like a small stack of bills
With bat wings, is hovering just beside her

They're bound together by a narrow wishbone
Beneath it rests a large bowl full
Of some indistinct fruit
Waxen looking still, atop a three quarter
Length Corinthian column

To the left is a rather fit 'Right' woman's left leg
Buried thigh deep in the hallowed and wood-chip
Topped bus stop grounds

The planted lady's leg looking clean shaven and hot
Sweat beading up about its calf in the black
Avenue amplified sun
An eye blue high heel jut in full bloom on its visible end

And so you get off to find two suits arguing silent
Before a double-parked and obviously unmarked cop car
The blown-up head flesh of two big business men
A-hover above them
A good foot or two of twine dangling from their tied off throats
Running down into their hollowed dress shirt collar mouths

You overhear them mutter something serious about
'The second hand emotion'
And then comes something like semi-poetic directions
"A ways down commerce then turn, dead straight into ashes"

And so you walk
Predicting all possible presents in ever to bits, and back
From the bed to the bills you see nothing
But pit within pit within pit, an undeniable feeding on you
And more this

A honey smothered hand
Gun all covered in ants




Trembles on a three quarter
Length Corinthian column

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Subtle's song Bed to the Bills are reflective of a surreal and dystopian world. The singer is describing a scene where he sees a nurse with a small stack of bills with bat wings hovering beside her. The imagery is bizarre yet captivating. The bills are bound together by a narrow wishbone while a large bowl of indistinct fruit rests beneath it on top of a Corinthian column. In contrast, the only body part visible is a woman's left leg, shaven and hot, buried thigh-deep in the hallowed and wood-chip-topped bus stop grounds.


As the singer walks, he overhears two suits arguing silently beside a double-parked cop car. The heads of two big business men with twine dangling from their tied-off throats hover above them. The suits mutter something about the "second-hand emotion" before giving semi-poetic directions to the singer to turn "dead straight into ashes." The imagery evokes a sense of impending doom and a certain kind of disorientation.


Ultimately, the singer is overwhelmed by a sense of being consumed by the world around him. He sees nothing but "pit within pit within pit" and an "undeniable feeding on you." Even the hand on the Corinthian column trembles with ants crawling over it. The lyrics are full of strange and surreal imagery that seems to point to a world that has become grotesque and unrecognizable.


Line by Line Meaning

The next day the exact same nurse
The singer notices the same nurse, who was there yesterday, at the bus stop.


Is standing with her back to me
The nurse is facing away from the singer.


At every last passing bus stop
The nurse is present at every bus stop that the singer passes by.


Only this time, what looks like a small stack of bills
The artist sees what appears to be a pile of bills next to the nurse.


With bat wings, is hovering just beside her
The pile of bills seems to be floating next to the nurse, having bat wings.


They're bound together by a narrow wishbone
The bills are held together by a thin wishbone-like structure.


Beneath it rests a large bowl full
Under the wishbone is a big bowl filled with something.


Of some indistinct fruit
The bowl is full of some kind of fruit that cannot be recognized easily.


Waxen looking still, atop a three quarter
The fruit looks waxen and is kept on top of a column with Corinthian design that is three-quarters in length.


Length Corinthian column
The column with Corinthian design is approximately three-quarters as long as a full-length column.


To the left is a rather fit 'Right' woman's left leg
The singer sees the left leg of a fit woman, which is positioned to the left.


Buried thigh deep in the hallowed and wood-chip
The leg is buried deep into the wood-chip surface of the bus stop area.


Topped bus stop grounds
The leg is found at the top of the bus stop grounds.


The planted lady's leg looking clean shaven and hot
The leg that is stuck on the ground at the bus stop appears to be well-shaved and attractive.


Sweat beading up about its calf in the black
Sweat is accumulated around the calf region of the leg because of the intense heat.


Avenue amplified sun
The heat from the sun gets amplified in the avenue where the artist is.


An eye blue high heel jut in full bloom on its visible end
The leg is wearing a high heel with a blue color that is clearly visible.


And so you get off to find two suits arguing silent
The singer gets off the bus and sees two people in suits who are having a silent argument.


Before a double-parked and obviously unmarked cop car
There is an unmarked cop car parked in front of them, blocking the way.


The blown-up head flesh of two big business men
The heads of two business-looking men have exploded, and the flesh is all over the place.


A-hover above them
The flesh of the men's heads is floating above them somehow.


A good foot or two of twine dangling from their tied off throats
There is a long piece of twine hanging from around the men's necks, tied off tightly.


Running down into their hollowed dress shirt collar mouths
The twine runs down into the empty collar of the dress shirts worn by the men.


You overhear them mutter something serious about
The artist hears the men say something serious.


'The second hand emotion'
The serious thing the men say has to do with the idea of a second-hand emotion.


And then comes something like semi-poetic directions
The directions the singer overhears sound as if they are partially poetic.


"A ways down commerce then turn, dead straight into ashes"
The directions instruct the singer to go down a certain path and turn until they reach ashes.


And so you walk
The artist begins to walk based on the instructions they heard.


Predicting all possible presents in ever to bits, and back
The artist tries to predict what will happen in the future and reminisces about the past.


From the bed to the bills you see nothing
Despite the efforts to predict things, the singer is unable to see anything that connects their bed to the bills they have to pay.


But pit within pit within pit, an undeniable feeding on you
An indescribable feeling of being consumed by some unknown thing is present deep within the singer.


And more this
This consuming feeling is becoming stronger over time.


A honey smothered hand
The artist then sees a hand that is covered in honey.


Gun all covered in ants
The gun held by the hand is also covered in ants.


Trembles on a three quarter
The hand that is holding the gun shakes a little bit and is positioned on a Corinthian column that is three-quarters as long as a normal column.


Length Corinthian column
The column is not a complete and full-length Corinthian column.




Lyrics © WARP MUSIC LIMITED, BMG Rights Management
Written by: ADAM DRUCKER, ALEXANDER WESLEY KORT, DAX PIERSON, JEFFREY LOGAN, JORDAN DALRYMPLE, MARTON DOWERS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Comments from YouTube:

pleuvonics

This album is like my best friend...when you find a album that is so perfect it's the best thing to come home to.

fkykas

I know what you mean :]

prostika1

Yes. Every fan with enough money should be supporting them.

Alexis Muñoz

we should be support to subtle

prostika1

Yes, it's him plus 5 other people.

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