Darnielle began the new millennium with The Coroner's Gambit for Absolutely Kosher before signing to 4AD for the release of the surprisingly polished Tallahassee in 2002. We Shall All Be Healed followed in 2004, and one year later, Darnielle was back with The Sunset Tree. Remaining as prolific as ever, Darnielle turned away from the intensity of The Sunset Tree for a calmer, more reflective set of songs on 2006's Get Lonely. The accessible and assured Heretic Pride appeared in 2008. Next up was the Bible verse-inspired The Life of the World to Come, the group's sixth album for 4AD, in 2010. Switching to Merge Records in 2011, Darnielle released All Eternals Deck, which was recorded in four different studios in Brooklyn, Boston, North Carolina, and Florida with four different producers -- John Congleton, Scott Solter, Brandon Eggleston, and Morbid Angel guitarist and Hate Eternal frontman Erik Rutan -- helming various tracks. That year the band was also handpicked by Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel to perform at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival that he was curating in Minehead, England, but they were ultimately unable to appear due to scheduling issues.
Dance Music
The Mountain Goats Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
and I'm five years old or six maybe.
and indications there's something wrong with our new house
trip down the wire twice daily
I'm in the living room watching the watergate hearings
while my step father yells at my mother.
launches a glass across the room, straight at her head
and I dash upstairs to take cover.
so this is what the volume knobs for.
I listen to dance music.
dance music.
ok so look I'm seventeen years old,
and you're the last best thing I've got going.
but then the special secret sickness starts to eat through you.
what am I supposed to do?
no way of knowing,
so I follow you down your twisting alleyways,
find a few cul de sacs of my own.
there's only one place where this road ever ends up.
and I don't want to die alone.
let me down, let me down, let me down gently.
when the police come to get me
I'm listening to dance music.
dance music.
The lyrics to The Mountain Goats's song "Dance Music" are rich in storytelling and heartbreaking imagery. It is a song that tells two different stories of different times in the singer's life, with a sense of longing and despair that runs through both.
In the first verse, the singer is a young child of five or six, living in a new house where something is not quite right. He listens to the Watergate hearings on TV while his stepfather yells at his mother and throws a glass at her head. The violence and tension in the air are palpable, and the child retreats to the safety of his room, with only his record player and the music it plays to comfort him.
In the second verse, the singer is now seventeen years old, and the person he is singing to is the "last best thing" he has going in his life. But something is wrong with them, a "special secret sickness" eating away at them. The singer follows this person down dark alleys, but he knows that the road they are on can only end in one place: death. He begs them to let him down gently, but when the police come to get him, he is still listening to dance music, perhaps as a way of trying to escape the pain and sadness that surrounds him.
The juxtaposition of the two stories in "Dance Music" is stark and poignant, emphasizing how the weight of the past can shape the present and the future. The song shows how music can be a refuge in times of turmoil and a way of expressing the things that can't be put into words.
Line by Line Meaning
alright I'm on johnson avenue in san luis obispo
The singer sets the scene for the song by describing their location in San Luis Obispo.
and I'm five years old or six maybe.
The singer establishes their age at the time of this memory.
and indications there's something wrong with our new house
The singer implies that there are hints that their new house is not as it seems.
trip down the wire twice daily
The artist suggests that there are recurring electrical issues in the house that require attention twice a day.
I'm in the living room watching the watergate hearings
The artist is watching historical events on television, such as the Watergate hearings.
while my step father yells at my mother.
The singer's stepfather is presented as being aggressive towards their mother.
launches a glass across the room, straight at her head
The stepfather throws a glass at the mother in a violent outburst.
and I dash upstairs to take cover.
The artist takes evasive action to avoid being caught in the violence.
lean in close to my little record player on the floor.
The artist lowers themselves to hear their record player better.
so this is what the volume knobs for.
The artist is discovering the full range of their stereo system.
I listen to dance music.
The singer finds solace in listening to dance music.
dance music.
The title phrase is repeated as the chorus of the song.
ok so look I'm seventeen years old,
The singer's age jumps ahead to their teenage years.
and you're the last best thing I've got going.
The singer identifies someone as being the singular bright spot in their life at this time.
but then the special secret sickness starts to eat through you.
This person is revealed to be suffering from an undisclosed illness.
what am I supposed to do?
The artist is at a loss for how to cope with this situation.
no way of knowing,
The artist laments the lack of certainty in their future.
so I follow you down your twisting alleyways,
The singer continues their relationship with this person despite the challenges.
find a few cul de sacs of my own.
The singer experiences setbacks in their own life.
there's only one place where this road ever ends up.
The artist recognizes the path they're on is leading towards a dire outcome.
and I don't want to die alone.
The artist expresses a desire for companionship in their final moments.
let me down, let me down, let me down gently.
The artist implores someone to let them go free from their struggles.
when the police come to get me
The singer suggests that their actions may lead to legal consequences.
I'm listening to dance music.
The song concludes with a final mention of the importance of dance music to the artist.
dance music.
The title phrase is repeated one last time to close out the song.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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