Kings
The Magnetic Fields Lyrics


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All day snow covered us
Night-time: it was always night
The people on the street were made of meat
Black girl, trucks ran us down
Blue boy...
The people on the sidewalk were traced in chalk
Whale embryos filled your enormous room
Screech-owl kachinas built your spiritual room
We were kings, kings!




We were kings, kings!

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to The Magnetic Fields's song "Kings" are incredibly enigmatic, with each line painting a surreal and disjointed image. The song seems to be exploring themes of mortality and the fleeting nature of existence, with a particular focus on how we construct meaning through our interactions with the world around us.


The first two lines suggest a sense of constant darkness, with the snow covering the singer and their companions throughout the entire day, and night always falling like a curtain. The people on the street being "made of meat" is a particularly chilling image, implying a sense of futility and impermanence to human life. The next two lines describe a violent encounter - a black girl being run down by trucks - which again speaks to the ephemeral nature of human existence.


The second stanza provides even more bizarre and surreal images, with the people on the sidewalk traced in chalk (perhaps implying that they have already passed on) and the singer's room filled with whale embryos (evoking a sense of both wonder and horror). The screech-owl kachinas mentioned in the next line are spiritual figures in Pueblo culture, suggesting that the singer is exploring different spiritual traditions in their search for meaning. The final lines of the song - "We were kings, kings! We were kings, kings!" - can be read in a few different ways, but perhaps suggest a sense of defiance in the face of a indifferent and chaotic universe.


Line by Line Meaning

All day snow covered us
We were constantly in a tough and harsh situation


Night-time: it was always night
In our darkest hour, we persisted and kept going


The people on the street were made of meat
The world around us lacked depth and emotion, and the people in it were mundane and uninteresting


Black girl, trucks ran us down Blue boy...
We faced discrimination and brutal treatment due to our race and skin color


The people on the sidewalk were traced in chalk
We were surrounded by death and the fragility of life


Whale embryos filled your enormous room
You were surrounded by loss and the remnants of what once was


Screech-owl kachinas built your spiritual room
Your spirituality was crafted and molded by elements of nature and ancient traditions


We were kings, kings!
Despite all of the setbacks and struggles we faced, we rose up and possessed a royal, powerful spirit




Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: DAUGHERTY, KILBEY, KOPPES, WILSON-PIPER

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Comments from YouTube:

Sergej Lovrekovic

i love some of their album covers!

chilling beautiful song!

john hatchell

All day snow covered us
Night-time: it was always night
The people on the street were made of meat
Black girl, trucks ran us down
Blue boy...
The people on the sidewalk were traced in chalk
Whale embryos filled your enormous room
Screech-owl kachinas built your spiritual room
We were kings, kings!
We were kings, kings!

L C

i wish everyone knew more magnetic fields songs so we could sing together ewww

TheGiorgiapolly

amazing

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