Ever since this hyper-kinetic quartet first landed among us, circa 2002, direct from semi-rural New Zealand, they have been one of rock’s great live attractions. At any given summer festival, thrill-seekers of every colour will flock together from new band tent, or metal stage, or their skate arena, or indeed their own private drunken chaos, to witness Dolf, Christian, Phil and Ben putting their collective boot to the jams, generating their own riff-mangling, speaker-stack-toppling electricity.
The band took their name, rather self-deprecatingly, from the car which is emblematic of the "Jap crap" which floods the Antipodean market. As four kids from Cambridge, New Zealand (population: 12,000), they didn’t feel like their prospects warranted a name like The Cadillacs or The Rolls Royces. Jack White, inspired by a chaotic live show he saw them perform during a White Stripes tour of NZ, duly hired them as a support act in the US in early 2002.
Too metal for garage purists, but also not straight-down-the-line enough for the headbanging crowd, the band have been fighting for their own turf on the world’s stages ever since. Their fans equally defy categorization. The first song Arctic Monkeys ever played together, for instance, apparently, was ‘Harmonic Generator’ off ‘The Datsuns’.
Over the course of the last turbulent eight years the Datsuns have churned out four albums, no mean feat in this lethargic modern age. During that time they managed to circumnavigate the world countless times, playing shows in every country, city and town that had a venue that could contain their raw power. This relentless touring has been key in ensuring that the Datsuns have never strayed far from the public eye or ear.
Finally, feeling ready to commit to tape, or hard drive, the band commenced writing new material for album five during a national tour of New Zealand in the spring of 2010. The tracking is to place in Sweden again at the newly built Gutterview Recorders in Stockholm. Put together by none other than Nicke Andersson (The Hellacopters) & Dolf de Borst himself.
Following the release of album five the Datsuns will embark on another of their lengthy, globe spanning tours.
Blacken My Thumb
The Datsuns Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And it feels like heaven, so divine
Of course you wonder, wonder why
So make it look good then decide
No tin cans tied back of car
Is that the way the story end completely?
'Cause I sure ain't happy girl
Just because we say bitter sweetly
Out of money, now I count in dimes
Of course you wonder, wonder why
So make it look good then decide
And I know
I'll make it look good
And force a smile
Smile
'Cause there's a new way out you see
No sweet reunion, no sweet relief
Of course you wonder, wonder why
So make it look good then decide
And I know
I'll make it look good
And force a smile
Smile
I grind my teeth, bite my tongue
Look at what we've become it's
Got me feeling so low
Got me feeling low
I'll make it look good
And force a smile
Smile
Oh you blacken my thumb
The lyrics of "Blacken My Thumb" by The Datsuns convey the mixed emotions of someone experiencing a last goodbye with their lover. The first stanza clearly expresses a sense of paradise in their love, which is now coming to an end, but the second line also hints that the separation is not completely voluntary. The lines "No tin cans tied back of car / Is that the way the story ends completely?" imply that something is missing, that the relationship hasn't had the proper course. The third line suggests that the other person may have wanted the split, prompting the singer to urge them to make it look good before saying their final goodbye.
The lyrics move on to acknowledge the idea that there is a new way out, a new life, but with that comes no sweet reunion, no relief that they will once again find what they're looking for with somebody new. The chorus is a repeated phrase of the singer stating that they will make it look good and force a smile.
The final lines of the song, "Oh you blacken my thumb" is a metaphorical phrase that symbolizes how the ending has left a mark or a "stain" on the singer, as if they have done something wrong to lead to the failure of the relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
This is the last time I see your smile
I feel a deep sorrow knowing that this will be the last time I see you smile
And it feels like heaven, so divine
Your smile brings me immense joy and feels like a taste of heaven
Of course you wonder, wonder why
It's understandable that you're curious about my feelings and my behavior
So make it look good then decide
Put on a good show for the sake of appearances, but ultimately it's up to you to decide what you want to do
No tin cans tied back of car
There's no happy ending or grand gesture to save this situation
Is that the way the story end completely?
Is this really how our story will end without any chance for reconciliation?
'Cause I sure ain't happy girl
I'm definitely not happy about how things turned out
Just because we say bitter sweetly
Even if we try to sugarcoat it, our situation is pretty bitter and sad
We're outta luck and outta time
There's no hope left for us and it's too late to fix our problems
Out of money, now I count in dimes
Our financial situation is dire and I have to scrounge for every penny
And I know I'll make it look good and force a smile, smile
I'll put on a brave face, even if I have to force myself to do it, and smile
'Cause there's a new way out you see
There's a solution to our problems, even if it's not what we expected or wanted
No sweet reunion, no sweet relief
Our solution won't involve a happy reunion or any real relief from our problems
I grind my teeth, bite my tongue
I'm so frustrated and angry that I'm clenching my jaw and holding back my words
Look at what we've become it's got me feeling so low
Our situation has turned us into something sad and undesirable, which makes me feel even worse
Oh you blacken my thumb
You've tarnished my reputation and brought me down to your level
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Christian Livingstone, Matthew Terrence Osment, Philip Buscke Somervell, Rudolf Christian DeBorst
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
James
4 years late but
This is the last time I see your smile
And it feels like heaven, so divine
Of course you wonder, wonder why
So make it look good then decide
No tin cans tied back of car
Is that the way the story end completely?
'Cause I sure ain't happy girl
Just because we say bitter sweetly
We're outta luck and outta time
Out of money, now I count in dimes
Of course you wonder, wonder why
So make it look good then decide
And I know
I'll make it look good
And force a smile
Smile
'Cause there's a new way out you see
No sweet reunion, no sweet relief
Of course you wonder, wonder why
So make it look good then decide
And I know
I'll make it look good
And force a smile
Smile
I grind my teeth, bite my tongue
Look at what we've become it's
Got me feeling so low
Got me feeling low
I'll make it look good
And force a smile
Smile
Oh you blacken my thumb
Jaedyn Smith
Beard died a horrible death but he took it like a champ
Thierno Diallo
So true
Hoss Uncles
This makes me want to turn up the volume on my sterios volume dial
king_koby
Been looking for this song for 5 years now , and finally my love I've found you
Stephane Guitare
very good song ...good guitar
Amnesia
Came from beard ninja
Stayed because i got addicted to this song :3
Hoss Uncles
Meanwhile. The datsuns are out here killing it!
Nablo
beard ninja
PingProblem
@Thierno Diallo hm I don't think so
Thierno Diallo
So true. Do you think beard ninja 3 will come out.