Arms Against Atrophy
Titus Andronicus Lyrics


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A band trip dance, what could be the harm
But a six week vacation from the use of my right arm?
It was just the two hits and I remember nothing more
Only Alex hitting the switch and me hitting the floor
We're taking this lying down
The one thing I can stand up for is resting supine on the ground
Mr. McDermott, won't you help me to my feet?
Because the drumline's going wild in the San Francisco streets

The long walk home, an hour and a half
But quickly turns to three or four with stops at every underpass
But by June 22nd, I have done the math
And it's a hundred and five liters I'll consume of Dr. Path
Some girls will tell their secrets to anyone
The word "love" gets thrown around a lot near graduation
So please don't whisper sweet nothings in my ear
When the sound of shredding vocal chords is what I want to hear
Because we're going to San Francisco
And I forget to wear some flowers in my hair

She's got a secret surname that nobody knows
With the most gorgeous hyphen
You wouldn't believe the way it glows
And I'm the only one who gets to see it way up close
So the rest of you can stick it up your nose

Last night, I had the strangest dream that I have ever known
My mother, in a fit of rage, chases me from our home
My mother, the murderer holds me down in the road
She's got the nail clippers at my throat

Now even though things lately may have been real horrorshow
I'm wishing I was back in utero
I'd like to go back to the way that things were before
But apparently, I'm looking at physical therapy
It won't be exactly how it used to be
It ain't hard to see that it's not that way
Not that way anymore
Jesus Christ is suffering upon his cross tonight
I just sit outside waiting for frost to bite
"It's always this way,"
She says on her way out the door




Just wait and see
The rest is yet to reveal itself to me

Overall Meaning

The song "Arms Against Atrophy" by Titus Andronicus tells a story of a band trip dance that turned tragic when the singer got injured and lost the use of his right arm. He remembers nothing more than two hits and hitting the floor while his friend Alex hit the switch. The singer is now lying down, unable to stand up, and relies on Mr. McDermott for help to get back on his feet. Despite his injury, the drumline is still going wild in the San Francisco streets, and the singer wants to join in.


As he walks home, the singer contemplates his future and the amount of alcohol he plans to consume. He also reflects on the frivolous use of the word "love" during graduation and doesn't want to hear any whisperings of it. The singer then mentions a secret hyphenated surname that only he knows about and brags about being the only one to see it up close.


The song ends with the singer having a strange dream about his mother trying to murder him with nail clippers. He wishes he could go back to the time before his injury and his present life of physical therapy. He sits outside, waiting for the frost to bite, while contemplating what the future holds.


Overall, the lyrics of "Arms Against Atrophy" tell a story of a person struggling with physical and emotional pain and trying to navigate their way through it.


Line by Line Meaning

A band trip dance, what could be the harm
Going on a band trip and dancing, what harm could come from that?


But a six week vacation from the use of my right arm?
But now I am suffering from a six week vacation of not being able to use my right arm.


It was just the two hits and I remember nothing more
All I remember was getting hit twice and then blacking out.


Only Alex hitting the switch and me hitting the floor
Alex hitting me and me falling to the floor was the only memory I have of that night.


We're taking this lying down
We are not fighting back and accepting this situation.


The one thing I can stand up for is resting supine on the ground
The only thing I can do now is lay flat on the ground.


Mr. McDermott, won't you help me to my feet?
Mr. McDermott, could you please help me get off the ground?


Because the drumline's going wild in the San Francisco streets
Because the drumline is making a lot of noise in the streets of San Francisco.


The long walk home, an hour and a half
The walk home was very long, taking an hour and a half.


But quickly turns to three or four with stops at every underpass
With stops at every underpass, the walk home quickly turned into three or four hours.


But by June 22nd, I have done the math
But I have calculated that by June 22nd, I will have consumed 105 liters of Dr. Path.


And it's a hundred and five liters I'll consume of Dr. Path
I will have consumed 105 liters of Dr. Path by June 22nd.


Some girls will tell their secrets to anyone
There are some girls who will tell their secrets to anyone.


The word "love" gets thrown around a lot near graduation
The word "love" is used a lot near graduation.


So please don't whisper sweet nothings in my ear
Please don't say romantic things to me.


When the sound of shredding vocal chords is what I want to hear
I want to hear the sound of someone singing with their vocal chords being pushed to the limit.


Because we're going to San Francisco
We are going to San Francisco.


And I forget to wear some flowers in my hair
I forgot to wear flowers in my hair.


She's got a secret surname that nobody knows
She has a secret last name that nobody knows.


With the most gorgeous hyphen
Her last name has a hyphen that is very beautiful.


You wouldn't believe the way it glows
It is so beautiful that you wouldn't believe how it glows.


And I'm the only one who gets to see it way up close
I am the only one who gets to see it up close.


So the rest of you can stick it up your nose
The rest of you can go find something else to care about.


Last night, I had the strangest dream that I have ever known
I had a very strange dream last night.


My mother, in a fit of rage, chases me from our home
In the dream, my mother was chasing me out of our home in a fit of anger.


My mother, the murderer holds me down in the road
In the dream, my mother was holding me down in the road as a murderer.


She's got the nail clippers at my throat
In the dream, she had nail clippers at my throat.


Now even though things lately may have been real horrorshow
Things have been really terrible lately.


I'm wishing I was back in utero
I wish I was back in my mother's womb.


I'd like to go back to the way that things were before
I would like to go back in time to when things were better.


But apparently, I'm looking at physical therapy
But it seems like I will need physical therapy to recover.


It won't be exactly how it used to be
It won't be exactly like it was before.


It ain't hard to see that it's not that way
It's obvious that things are not like they used to be.


Not that way anymore
Things are not like they were before.


Jesus Christ is suffering upon his cross tonight
A metaphorical statement about someone suffering.


I just sit outside waiting for frost to bite
I am sitting outside waiting for it to get very cold.


"It's always this way,"
This situation is always like this.


She says on her way out the door
Someone says this as they are leaving.


Just wait and see
Wait and see what happens next.


The rest is yet to reveal itself to me
I don't know what will happen next.




Contributed by Makayla G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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Comments from YouTube:

@michaelrothe7804

I love this song so much man

@ThomJGregory

Amazing band, amazing play.

@AdamTurkNumberOne

This is great raw music, not like all of the commercialised rubbish we get served on a daily basis! 

@TheBlister69

From what I can see , this is the best thing to come out of new Jersey.

@patras458

This version is really cool!

@mrGreatBrownHope

So much truth. I LOVE IT!

@Draven0seven

Pretty nice, I'm glad I stumbled upon this band

@stugats1

Saw them open for the Pogues three times recently. liked them more each time I saw them.. Great stuff

@TheConstellation72

this band are amazing.....

@Obakedake

The Airing of Grievances is a great album by them. Check it out!!

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