Friday, April 13, 2007

Prison Sex

OK, so I guess the name of the song should have given it away for me. But when I first started listening to Tool, I didn't know any of the song names. And I also couldn't make out the majority of the lyrics. This song in particular was shocking to me later when I actually read all the lyrics.

Basically what I got out of it early on and what I still really like about the song is a couple of lyrics. Right at the start Maynard says, "I'm breathing so I guess I'm still alive, even if signs seem to tell me otherwise." That is a really depressing line. It makes more sense with respect to what this song is actually about, but less for things in my life like losing to Irmo again or failing a Thermo exam. But basically when some horrible thing happens to me even today, I think of this line and find myself saying it my head. Maynard delivers it really well too. It is this serious yet sarcastic way of singing it. It is just something I would say.

The other line I really like in this song is, "Do unto others what has been done to me" and then later in the song, "Do unto me what has been done to you" I used to find it extremely gratifying to destroy other people. This would typically be in a spiritual sense. To breakdown someone's beliefs and probably humiliate them in the process. It is a pretty horrible thing to do and I would typically pick on people that were easy targets. But one thing I appreciated more than or at least equivalently to tearing someone down was being torn down. I don't do this anymore. I'm not that person anymore. In large part because I've relaxed and don't take things that seriously anymore. Anyway, these lines capture this part of myself pretty well. And sodomy is a pretty decent metaphor for doing this.

I've read some things on the internet saying that Maynard was raped by his stepfather as a kid and this song is kind of therapy for him. I have heard that kids that are molested or beaten severely many times end up doing it themselves to their own children. In this song, Maynard switches to the voice of both parties. And then in the end refers to the circle of it. It is well crafted and again you can hear it in his voice. The desperation, anger, frustration and then an eventual pity and acceptance to the human condition. Yeah, good song.


Prison Sex

It took so long to remember just what happened.
I was so young and vestal then,
you know it hurt me,
but I'm breathing so I guess I'm still alive
even if signs seem to tell me otherwise.
I've got my hands bound,
my head down, my eyes closed,
and my throat wide open.

Do unto others what has been done to me

Do unto others what has been done to you

I'm treading water,
I need to sleep a while.
My lamb and martyr, you look so precious.
Won't you come a bit closer,
close enough so I can smell you.
I need you to feel this,
I can't stand to burn too long.
Released in sodomy.
For one sweet moment I am whole.

Do unto me now, what has been done to you

Do unto me now, what has been done

You're breathing so I guess you're still alive
even if signs seem to tell me otherwise.
Won't you, won’t you come a bit closer,
close enough so I can smell you.
I need you to feel this.
I need this to make me whole.
released in sodomy.
For I am your witness that
blood and flesh can be trusted.
And only this one holy medium brings me piece of mind.

Got your hands bound, your head down,
your eyes closed.
You look so precious now.

I have found some kind of temporary sanity in this
shit blood and cum on my hands.

I've come round full circle.
My lamb and martyr, this will be over soon.
You look so precious.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

do you really think he did that to his son? I never read the lyrics before, now I think it's kind of creepy.

Keith said...

No, I think it may have happened to him and he may have felt the impulse to repeat it with his son and wrote the song. I don't know. you've heard the song and you've seen him perform. He sings in a way that seems to be seriously affecting him. But then again, I don't know how you could do something like this to your son and then sing about it every other night for a whole year of touring. But then I don't know how he can bring that emotion every night anyway. I don't like to think he is faking it.