The group takes its name from Shakespeare. In particular Hamlet's soliloquy To be, or not to be, where it refers to dying; "coil" is used in its archaic sense of "disturbance, trouble":
"What dreams may come, when we have shuffled off this mortal coil, must give us pause."
Hamlet, Act III, Scene 1, line 67.
Kangaroo
This Mortal Coil Lyrics
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You had on blue jeans.
Your eyes couldn't hide anything.
I saw you breathing.
And I saw you staring out in space.
I next saw you, you was at a party.
Though you was a queen, oh so flirty.
I cam against.
Didn't say excuse.
You knew what I was doing.
We looked very fine 'cause we were leaving.
Like Saint Joan, doing a cool, cool, jerk.
Oh I want you, Oh I want you...
Like a kangaroo...
The lyrics to This Mortal Coil's "Kangaroo" tell the story of a chance encounter between the singer and a woman who catches their eye. The first time they see her, she's wearing blue jeans, and they can tell from her eyes that she's someone who's hard to read. They watch her breathing and staring off into space. Later on, they see her again at a party, where she's acting like a queen and being a bit flirty. The singer tries to make an impression by brushing up against her, but they don't even bother saying "excuse me" because they know she saw what they were trying to do. In the end, the two of them leave the party together, and the singer says they want her like a kangaroo.
Line by Line Meaning
I first saw you.
This Mortal Coil is describing the moment they first met someone.
You had on blue jeans.
The person This Mortal Coil met was wearing blue jeans.
Your eyes couldn't hide anything.
This Mortal Coil noticed that the person they met had very expressive eyes.
I saw you breathing.
This Mortal Coil observed the person breathing.
And I saw you staring out in space.
The person This Mortal Coil met was staring off into the distance.
I next saw you, you was at a party.
This Mortal Coil saw the person again at a party.
Though you was a queen, oh so flirty.
This Mortal Coil noticed that the person was very flirtatious, despite being very regal and classy.
I came against.
This Mortal Coil approached the person.
Didn't say excuse.
This Mortal Coil did not apologize for approaching the person.
You knew what I was doing.
The person understood why This Mortal Coil was approaching them.
We looked very fine 'cause we were leaving.
This Mortal Coil and the person looked good together because they were leaving the party.
Like Saint Joan, doing a cool, cool, jerk.
This Mortal Coil likens their situation to Saint Joan performing a cool dance move.
Oh I want you, Oh I want you...
This Mortal Coil expresses their desire for the person they met.
Like a kangaroo...
This Mortal Coil compares their desire to that of a kangaroo hopping towards something they want.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: William Chilton
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind