For The Workforce Drowning
Thursday Lyrics

Falling from the top floor your lungs Fill like parachutes Windows go rushing by.
The singer feels as if they are falling from a tall building and experiencing a sensory overload as they plummet. Their lungs feel full of air like a parachute, and they see the windows around them going by as they fall.

People inside, Dressed for the funeral in black and white.
The people inside the windows the singer is falling past are dressed in black and white, as if attending a funeral. This imagery suggests a sense of bleakness and despair.

These ties strangle our necks, hanging in the closet, Found in the cubicle; Without a name, just numbers, on the resume stored in the mainframe, marked for delete.
The singer describes the oppressive feeling of the ties they wear to work, which symbolize the lack of autonomy or individuality in their lives. Their existence is reduced to being assigned a number and stored in a computer database.

Please take these hands Throw them in the river, Wash away the things they never held Please take these hands, Throw me in the river, Don't let me drown before the workday ends.
The artist pleads for some kind of release from their monotonous and soul-crushing existence. They want to be freed from the things their hands have never held and to be allowed to drown (metaphorically) only after their workday has ended.

And we're up to our necks, Drowning in the seconds, Ingesting the morning commute Lost in a dead subway sleep
The artist describes feeling overwhelmed and suffocated by the mundanity of a daily routine, such as their morning commute. These activities can make them feel as if they are drowning in time, feeling as if their life is slipping away from them without accomplishing anything meaningful.

Now we lie wide awake in our parents beds, Tossing and turning. Tomorrow we'll get up Drive to work, Single file With everyday It's like the last.
The singer describes how the monotony and stress of their days seep into their nights, causing them to lose sleep and worry about the next day. They know that tomorrow they will have to wake up and repeat the same cycle of driving to work and fitting into their predetermined role.

Waiting for the life to start, is it always just always ahead of the curve?
The singer worries that they will be stuck in a cycle of monotonous work for their entire life, and ultimately never be able to experience a larger sense of purpose or fulfillment.

Just keep making copies Of copies Of copies When will it end?
The artist feels like they are endlessly repeating the same process, without ever finding an endpoint. They are tired of making copies, metaphorically representing the endless nature of their work and the lack of fulfillment they feel.

It'll never end, 'til it gets so bad That the ink fills in our fingerprints And the silhouette of your own face becomes the black cloud of war And even in our dreams we're so afraid the weight will offset who we are All those breaths that you took have now been canceled in your lungs. Last night my teeth fell out like ivory typewriter keys And all the monuments and skyscrapers burned down and filled the sea.
The artist imagines a future where their work has left them bruised and broken, to the point where their fingerprints are filled in and their identity is lost. They worry about what this does to them and the dreams that they have. The artist uses metaphorical language to describe their pain and sadness, such as their teeth falling out and the world itself burning down.

Save our ship The anchor is part of the desk We can't cut free, The water is flooding the decks The memo's sent through the currents Computers spark like flares I can see them. They don't touch me, Touch me.
The artist feels unable to escape the confines of their job, and describes the office like a sinking ship. The memo's that should be sending signals of hope, instead feels like they are dying like a flare in a system. Despite this chaos, the artist feels unable to connect with the people and computers around them.

Please someone, Teach me how to swim. Please, don't let me drown, Please, don't let me drown.
In the final lines, the singer desperately pleads for help or guidance to escape the cycle of monotonous work that is dragging them down. They don't want to feel like they are drowning and feels like they need to learn how to swim in order to survive.