gl.txt

![Back of Get Lonely](media/gl-back.jpg){: style="float: right; width:
200px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px"} ![Cover of Get Lonely](media/gl-cover.jpg){: style="float: right;
width: 200px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px"}

# Get Lonely #

Title: Get Lonely [^glcover] [^glquote1] [^glquote2] \\
Released: 2006 [^japanesecd]\\
Label: [4AD][4ad]

*[Jump to the table of contents](#contents){: .jump}*

[^glcover]:
    The boxer depicted on the cover is [Eddie Hanlon][hanlon]. The picture is from a card included with The Pet Mouthpiece cigarettes, "around 1910".

[^glquote1]:
    "The new record, uh, people have been calling it a breakup album, which is kind of weird 'cause it's not, uh, but at the same time, uh, I mean, it's about solitude, and, uh, which is something I have the luxury of going through while I'm on tour. It's a great job, but you spend a lot of time by yourself in rooms and if you are a person who, uh, you know, is given to depressed states, you can really carve out some little holes for yourself, uh, in hotel rooms. And since I'm also a bit hypochondriac and don't like to hang out with people, uh, that's sort of, it makes me able to sort of sink into these depths when I'm out there. Which, usually I just sit there and mope, watch Law & Order reruns, but a couple of tours ago, I thought, well, you know, I've seen all these episodes of Law & Order a bunch of times, and so I started writing in the hotel rooms, 'cause that had actually worked really well for [The Sunset Tree][wikiasunsettree]. Four of its songs were written on tour, and so, uh, actually, [the one I just played](#woke), uh, was the first one I wrote, in a hotel room, when I was working on this record. I wrote it in, uh, Evanston, Illinois, at a Hilton Garden Inn." -- [2006-08-21 - KEXP Session - Seattle, WA][2006-08-21]

[^glquote2]:
    "People keep saying that the new album is a breakup album. I don't really know where they got that idea. But at the same time, you don't want to argue with people, in case they're fixing to say good stuff about your record. 'Oh yeah, you like it, and it's a breakup - oh yeah, breakup! Absolutely.' The fellow in [this song](#sage) is more, uh, breaking up with, uh, the basic units of what constitutes him as a person. Uh, he hasn't lost anybody except himself, and that's sort of what makes it a much more solitary place to be than your standard lose-someone-you-love 'cause there will be somebody else but you only have one brain." -- [2006-09-29 - Club Europa - Brooklyn, NY][2006-09-29]

[^japanesecd]:
    The Japanese CD release came with three bonus tracks: 'Naming Day', 'They Are Stone Swallowers', and 'Keeping House'

[hanlon]: https://www.gfg.com/baseball/pet.shtml
[4ad]: http://4ad.com/
[wikiasunsettree]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/The_Sunset_Tree
[2006-08-21]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2006-08-21_-_KEXP_Session_-_Seattle,_WA
[2006-09-29]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2006-09-29_-_Club_Europa_-_Brooklyn,_NY

### Liner notes ### {#liner}

*(none)*

### Table of contents ### {#contents}

1. [Wild Sage](#sage)
2. [New Monster Avenue](#avenue)
3. [Half Dead](#dead)
4. [Get Lonely](#lonely)
5. [Maybe Sprout Wings](#wings)
6. [Moon Over Goldsboro](#moon)
7. [In the Hidden Places](#places)
8. [Song for Lonely Giants](#giants)
9. [Woke Up New](#woke)
10. [If You See Light](#light)
11. [Cobra Tattoo](#tattoo)
12. [In Corolla](#corolla)

* [Naming Day](#naming)
* [They Are Stone Swallowers](#swallowers)
* [Keeping House](#keeping)
{: .none}

* [Credits](#credits)
* [Further reading](#links)
* [Footnotes](#footnotes)
{: .none}

## Wild Sage [^sage1] [^sage2] [^sage3] ## {#sage}

I leave the house as soon as it gets light outside \\
Like a prisoner breaking out of jail \\
And I steal down to Business 15-501 [^sage4] \\
Like I had a bounty hunter on my tail

And somebody stops to pick me up \\
But he drops me off just down the block \\
And along the highway where the empty spirits breathe \\
Wild sage growing in the weeds

Walked down the soft shoulder and I count my steps \\
Headed vaguely eastward, sun in my eyes \\
And I lose my footing and I skin my hands breaking my fall \\
And I laugh to myself and look up at the skies

And then I think I hear angels in my ears \\
Like marbles being thrown against a mirror \\
And along the highway where unlucky stray dogs bleed \\
Wild sage growing in the weeds

And some days I don't miss my family \\
And some days I do \\
Some days I think I'd feel better if I tried harder \\
Most days I know it's not true

I lay down right where I felt cold grass in my face \\
And I hear the traffic like the rhythm of the tides \\
And I stare at the scrape on the heel of my hand \\
'til it doesn't sting so much and until the blood's dried

And when somebody asks if I'm okay \\
I don't know what to say \\
And along the highway, from cast-off innumerable seeds \\
Wild sage growing in the weeds


[^sage1]:
    But this is true, that the fellow who narrates this song, uh, is losing his grip on things as they are. He's going insane, as they would put it. And so that's why he feels like he does. He hasn't lost anybody or anything like that. Uh, he suffers from a sort of solitude that most of us, uh, thank God, can only really imagine, uh, so, I wrote this for a lot of people that I used to work with, and whom I think of from time to time. It's called 'Wild Sage'." -- [2006-08-22 - Amoeba Music - San Francisco, CA][2006-08-22]

[^sage2]:
    "This is a song about mental illness, and how it can be hard to cope sometimes when you don't feel like people understand what's going on with you and it's called 'Wild Sage'." -- [2013-06-08 - Port City Music Hall - Portland, ME][2013-06-08]

[^sage3]:
    Rian Johnson begun making [a video for Wild Sage][sagevid], but did not complete it: \\
    \\
    "Back in 2006 when we shot the Woke Up New music video for the Mountain Goats, I wanted to also make something for my favorite song on the album, "Wild Sage." So I shot John Darnielle singing the song in front of a black background, turned the footage black and white and high contrast, and printed out every frame of it on 8x10 paper. I then took these stacks of paper to Cape Cod and began to animate them as stills, shooting with my Canon 5D. It took much longer than I thought, and my vacation was over before the video was shot, so I took them back to NYC intending to finish the video there. I never did. So this is all there is. \\
    The printouts somehow ended up in my cousin Nathan's possession, and seven years later he found them stacked in a box and asked me what these thousands of bizarre photos of John Darnielle's face were for.
    And I said "oh yeah, that thing. I should upload it to Vimeo or something."

[^sage4]:
    "Take Get Lonely. If you look at 'Dear Lonely,' \[sic] it begins and ends specifically in North Carolina. [The freeway named in 'Wild Sage'][15501wiki] runs literally two blocks from here." -- [AV Club interview][avclub]

[2006-08-22]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2006-08-22_-_Amoeba_Music_-_San_Francisco,_CA
[2013-06-08]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2013-06-08_-_Port_City_Music_Hall_-_Portland,_ME
[sagevid]: https://vimeo.com/59818092
[15501wiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Route_15_in_North_Carolina
[avclub]: http://www.avclub.com/article/the-mountain-goats-john-darnielle-learns-to-trust--35316


## New Monster Avenue [^avenue1] [^avenue2] [^avenue3] ## {#avenue}

Shadows on the broad lawn, canopy of trees \\
Sometime after midnight the ground is gonna freeze \\
Birds in the frosty air \\
What are they doing there?

Greenhouse full of butcher's-brooms [^avenue4] \\
Breezes at my back \\
Sometime before the sun comes up \\
The earth is gonna crack

I look down at my hands \\
Like they were mirrors

Fresh coffee at sunrise \\
Warm my lips against the cup \\
Been waiting such a long time now \\
My number's finally coming up

All the neighbors come on out to their front porches \\
Waving torches


[^avenue1]:
    "But I had this idea when I was digging through my childhood stuff, I remembered how much I really liked monsters. And so I started to write these songs about monsters. Mentioned that on NPR and then I got a lot of mail, 'so are you still working on the monster concept album?' No. But anyway, so, but, but I got a couple of them, a couple of songs about monsters done before I found some other direction, but there was something in them. There's always something -- you know. I assume you're like me, that when you see the monster movie and all the, all the citizens of the town, you know, gather to burn the monster alive, you go, 'Were people in the thirties in favor of the town, in this setup?' Because I would look at it as a kid and go - why, why are they going to kill the innocent monster from the depths? Right? He doesn't -- he was living in a cave under the ocean and then one of your people was swimming because you wanted to get some underwater footage, and, and now he has to die so that you can film people swimming under -- well, that doesn't seem right. That was my position on the monsters. That remains my position on the monsters. This is called 'New Monster Avenue'." -- [2006-08-22 - Amoeba Music - San Francisco, CA][2006-08-22]

[^avenue2]:
    "This song is sort of about the feeling you get if you stay in your house for too long and you feel like maybe you don't, uh, relate to anybody at all. And you sort of resent them, but you're certain they're going to come and get you." -- [2006-09-26 - Middle East Downstairs - Cambridge, MA][2006-09-26]

[^avenue3]:
    In 2005, before it was decided to be included in Get Lonely, this song was sent to a dance troupe in San Francisco who used it to choreograph a dance: \\
    \\
    "There's this dance company called EmSpace Dance. A couple of years ago their director, Erin Mei-Ling Stuart, wrote to me and asked whether they could choreograph some of my songs. I love dance, a lot; it makes my hair stand up on end sometimes. Still, a year later, when Erin sent me a videotape entitled Songs For You, I was shocked by how strong my reaction to it was. I feel that in EmSpace's remarkable work, the inner lives of my songs become real and whole. Seeing them dance this piece in June was the single best hour I've spent this year." -- [mountain-goats.com][everybodydance] \\
    \\
    John also mentions this when introducing the song [at this show in 2005][2005-11-04].

[^avenue4]:
    Butcher's-broom is a plant [that can be used to make medicine][butchers].

[2006-09-26]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2006-09-26_-_Middle_East_Downstairs_-_Cambridge,_MA
[everybodydance]: http://www.mountain-goats.com/everybody_dance/
[2005-11-04]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2005-11-04_-_Duke_Coffeehouse_-_Durham,_NC
[butchers]: http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-320-butcher%27s%20broom.aspx?activeingredientid=320


## Half Dead [^dead1] [^dead2] [^dead3] ## {#dead}

It was raining outside, so I cleaned house today \\
Spent half of the morning throwing old things away \\
Try not to get caught up \\
Try to think like a machine \\
Focus in on the task \\
Try not to think about what it means

Can't get you \\
Out of my head \\
Lost without you \\
Half dead

Took my spot at the window \\
Looked at the road \\
Dots and dashes of traffic \\
Like a message in code

And whole boxes of memories \\
Wrapped up at the curb \\
I sang songs to myself \\
Didn't have any words

Can't get you \\
Out of my head \\
Lost without you \\
Half dead

Stole out to the backyard late last night \\
Pine trees frozen in the silvery moonlight \\
Rising like giants from the cold earth \\
What are the years we gave each other \\
Ever gonna be worth?

Can't get you \\
Out of my head \\
Lost without you \\
Half dead


[^dead1]:
    "This is a song about how you may be running through your books... ...and you may find a bookmark in one of them that may be an ID of a person who is no longer in your daily spirit..." -- [2006-09-29 - Club Europa - Brooklyn, NY][2006-09-29]

[^dead2]:
    "This is a song about a morning that you are gonna have. You'll remember me when that morning comes. You'll say, 'Fuck that guy. He told me that shit was coming, and here it is. This really sucks. I hate it, and I hate knowing that he was right.' But I will take a sort of cynical satisfaction in your pain." -- [2006-09-30 - Bowery Ballroom - New York, NY][2006-09-30]

[^dead3]:
    "This is a song whose explanation is really simple, which I like because sometimes I try to explain to people what the songs are about and "It's not really like anything in my experience John so I don't really know what you're talking about," I say, "well I didn't write it for you anyway;" but this one I suppose is there anybody among us who hasn't at some point been going through their stuff, cleaning the room or looking for something, run across an old student ID or something you hadn't seen in a long long time and you say to yourself, "well I probably shouldn't keep that, what if my wife runs across it ... why do you have that … well I don't know I wasn't saving it, I just didn't know I had it still … well why didn't you throw it away ... well I didn't, I mean there's no reason to really throw it away ... well why are you keeping it ... I'm not keeping it, I just didn't really know it was around;" that sort of thing except subtract the wife and add a lot of emptiness in the spaces around the house: in the fireplace, in the kitchen, in the bedroom, in all the corners of the bedroom, it's remarkable the amount of emptiness you can fit into one of those, and try emptying the house of the presence of a person who was once there and will not be there again and this is called Half Dead." -- [2007-01-02 - Club Capitol - Perth, Australia][2007-01-02]

[2006-09-30]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2006-09-30_-_Bowery_Ballroom_-_New_York,_NY
[2007-01-02]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2007-01-02_-_Club_Capitol_-_Perth,_Australia


## Get Lonely [^lonely1] ## {#lonely}

I will rise up early and dress myself up nice \\
And I will leave the house and check the deadlock twice \\
And I will find a crowd and blend in for a minute \\
And I will try to find a little comfort in it

And I will get lonely \\
And gasp for air \\
And send your name off from my lips \\
Like a signal flare

And I will go downtown, stand in the shadows of the buildings \\
And button up my coat, trying to stay strong - spirit willing \\
And I will come back home, maybe call some friends \\
Maybe paint some pictures, it all depends

And I will get lonely \\
And gasp for air \\
And look up at the high windows \\
And see your face up there


[^lonely1]:
    "This is a song about a kind of, um, loneliness that incapacitates you and makes it impossible for you to function? It's called 'Get Lonely.'" -- [2015-06-03 - The Mayan - Los Angeles, CA][2015-06-03]

[2015-06-03]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2015-06-03_-_The_Mayan_-_Los_Angeles,_CA


## Maybe Sprout Wings [^wings1] [^wings2] ## {#wings}

A bad dream shook me in my sleep \\
And I woke up sweating \\
Ran through the dark to the shower \\
Already forgetting

Try to think good thoughts \\
Trying to find my way clear \\
Let the room fill with steam \\
Trace pictures on the mirror

Ghosts and clouds \\
And nameless things \\
Squint your eyes and hope real hard \\
Maybe sprout wings

I clawed my way to the living room window \\
Stood there in the cold \\
The last bits of my dream like figures in the distance \\
Hard to hold

I thought of old friends \\
the ones who'd gone missing \\
Said all their names three times [^wings3] \\
Phantoms in the early dark \\
Canaries in the mines [^wings4]

Ghosts and clouds \\
And nameless things \\
Squint your eyes and hope real hard \\
Maybe sprout wings


[^wings1]:
    "This is a song about how sometimes you wake up and you say, 'oh, I'm ashamed,' and then you don't really know what it is you're ashamed of. So how would you tell anybody about that? You're not ashamed of any particular thing, just carrying a general sort of shame. It has its own sweetness to it if you live with it long enough." -- [2007-11-02 - Gardner Lounge - Grinnell, IA][2007-11-02]

[^wings2]:
    "You reach a point in the pursuit of solitude where the booze isn't going to do the job anymore. I know, that's sad news for some people, man. But trust me, there comes a point, it's sort of like a, oh, what the hell, book or movie, I don't know. Some book or movie, oh, 'The Iceman Cometh' by Eugene O'Neill.... And in this book, in this play, if you haven't read it, uh, all these drunks are hanging around at the bar and some guy comes in and tells them all that they're never going to make anything of their lives and they should stop pretending that they are. And then the booze stops working. \[audience member: 'More booze!'] No. At that point you have to drink your own helplessness. It's considerably more costly than booze. This song is about drinking your own helplessness." -- [2007-11-03 - The Slowdown - Omaha, NE][2007-11-03]

[^wings3]:
    Possibly a reference to the folklore legend of [Bloody Mary][bloodymarywiki], a spirit who is said to appear in a mirror when her name is called three times.

[^wings4]:
    [Canaries were used][sentinelwiki] to warn miners of carbon monoxide in mine shafts; the bird would die more quickly than the humans, giving the workers time to evacuate.

[2007-11-02]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2007-11-02_-_Gardner_Lounge_-_Grinnell,_IA
[2007-11-03]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2007-11-03_-_The_Slowdown_-_Omaha,_NE
[bloodymarywiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloody_Mary_(folklore)
[sentinelwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sentinel_species


## Moon Over Goldsboro [^moon1] [^moon2] [^moon3] ## {#moon}

I went down to the gas station \\
For no particular reason \\
Heard the screams from the high school \\
It's football season

Empty lot the station faces \\
Will probably be there forever \\
I climbed over the four foot fence \\
I was trying to sever the tether

Moon in the sky \\
Cold as a stone \\
Spend each night in your arms \\
Always wake up alone

I lay down in the weeds \\
It was a real cold night \\
I was happy 'til the overnight attendant \\
Switched on the floodlight

Walking home I was talking to you under my breath \\
Saying things I would never say directly \\
I heard a siren on the highway up ahead \\
Kinda wished they'd come and get me

Frost on the sidewalk \\
White as a bone \\
Tried to get close to you again \\
Always wake up alone

And as I was crossing our doorstep \\
I hesitated just a moment there \\
Remembered the day we moved into our small house \\
'Til the vision got too vivid to bear

You were almost asleep \\
Halfway undressed \\
I lay right down next to you \\
held your head against my chest

And a guy with any kind of courage \\
would maybe stop to think the matter through \\
Maybe hold you still and raise the question \\
Instead of blindly holding onto you

But we crank up the heat \\
And you giggle and moan \\
Spend all night in the company of ghosts \\
Always wake up alone


[^moon1]:
    "Confessing about this song: Its title references a city 45 minutes from where I live in Durham, North Carolina -- that's not really the city it takes place in. I just like the way that sounded in the title. Who would listen to a song called 'Moon Over [Colo][colowiki]' -- which is a small town in Iowa where I used to live. There were 775 people there when my wife and I were there. Now there's 773. -- [2006-09-29 - Club Europa - Brooklyn, NY][2006-09-29]

[^moon2]:
    "This is a long, slow song about a long, slow marriage." -- [2008-10-13 - Park West - Chicago, IL][2008-10-13]

[^moon3]:
    [Goldsboro][goldsborowiki] is a city in North Carolina.

[colowiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colo,_Iowa
[2008-10-13]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2008-10-13_-_Park_West_-_Chicago,_IL
[goldsborowiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goldsboro,_North_Carolina


## In the Hidden Places [^places1] ## {#places}

Autumn came around like a drifter to an on-ramp \\
There were wet leaves floating in gutters full of rain \\
Took to walking barefoot around town \\
Melodies from grade school kicking in my brain

Saw you on the crosstown bus today \\
You were reading a magazine  \\
I turned my face away \\
And I shut my eyes tight \\
Dreamed about the flowers that hide from the light [^places2] \\
On dark hillsides in the hidden places

The brakes howled and the bus pulled up near my house \\
And I got off at the corner \\
Pulled my sleeves down over my hands, over my hands \\
And I wished I was someone else \\
And I wished it was warmer

And when I got home I thought about you \\
Like a desperate policeman searching for clues \\
And I almost passed out just then \\
And I shut my eyes again \\
Headed for the dark hillsides \\
In the hidden places


[^places1]:
    "This is a new song and it's about how sometimes you may find yourself in the city that you moved to from someplace else, wondering if all these people are out to get you, and you've lived there several months now, you have your evidence gathered in notebooks. Notebooks suggest yes, these people have evil on their minds. But every time you confront one of them about it, they look at you like you were crazy." -- [2007-01-02 - Club Capitol - Perth, Australia][2007-01-02]

[^places2]:
    Some flowers, such as those belonging to the [Oenothera][nightbloom] genus, bloom only at night.

[nightbloom]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oenothera


## Song for Lonely Giants [^giants1] [^giants2] ## {#giants}

No one washed behind my ears \\
High in the trees alone for years \\
Practicing my solitary scales 'til they rose like balloons \\
Watching them go where they will go

Face in the leaves  \\
Song in my throat \\
Fall through the air \\
Hoping to float

Practicing my solitary scales 'til they grow heavy \\
Too heavy to carry \\
Watching them go where they will go

[^giants1]:
    "I had this vision of a, of a giant who... but who had no power of any kind, right, you know? Who was sort of a large fellow, but there was no one around to see him. As happens when you allow yourself to dwell on senseless images across your consciousness, I got depressed about it. So I wrote a song about it so I could share that bad feeling with you." -- [2006-09-30 - Bowery Ballroom - New York, NY][2006-09-30]

[^giants2]:
    "This is a song about feeling like you don't fit in anywhere. It's called 'Song for Lonely Giants'." -- [2012-01-21 - Tipitina's - New Orleans, LA][2012-01-21]

[2012-01-21]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2012-01-21_-_Tipitina%27s_-_New_Orleans,_LA


## Woke Up New [^woke1] [^woke2] ## {#woke}

On the morning when I woke up without you for the first time \\
I felt free and I felt lonely and I felt scared \\
And I began to talk to myself almost immediately \\
Not being used to being the only person there

The first time I made coffee for just myself I made too much of it \\
But I drank it all just 'cause you hate it when I let things go to waste \\
And I wandered through the house like a little boy, lost at the mall \\
And an astronaut could've seen the hunger in my eyes from space

And I sang oh, what do I do? \\
What do I do? \\
What do I do? \\
What do I do without you?

On the morning when I woke up without you for the first time \\
I was cold so I put on a sweater and I turned up the heat \\
And the walls began to close in and I felt so sad and frightened \\
I practically ran from the living room out into the street

And the wind began to blow and all the trees began to bend \\
And the world, in its cold way, started coming alive \\
And I stood there like a businessman waiting for a train \\
And I got ready for the future to arrive

And I sang oh, what do I do? \\
What do I do? \\
What do I do? \\
What do I do without you?


[^woke1]:
    [A music video was made for this song][wokevid], directed by Rian Johnson and shot in his apartment.

[^woke2]:
    "As it turns out this song is like a therapeutic touchstone for me, because I have been married for a long time now. So my memories of the feeling this song is about grow more distant by the day. But that doesn't -- I think there's an error that people make that when a feeling becomes distant to them, it loses its reality, but the whole thing about, you know, when you wake up the morning after a breakup, that is like one of the rawest, greatest gifts that you're ever gonna receive; just the most horrible feeling, it's so dark and awful, right, it's the one thing that everybody can go, 'Well no, I may not be a suicidal person but I know what it's like to wanna die,' and you have that blissed-out moment between waking up, and remembering what went down yesterday. And it is the greatest, most horrifying moment, and may I never grow so old that I don't remember that brief, druggy, 'Oh hey, it's June in California, cool...I am alone in the universe, and no-one will ever understand my pain, and it's just going to go on forever and ever and I will never recover, and I will remember this day as the beginning of the endless end.' This is an emo song; it's called Woke Up New." -- [2012-06-30 - McCabe's Guitar Shop - Santa Monica, CA][2012-06-30]

[wokevid]: https://vimeo.com/1552092
[2012-06-30]: http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/2012-06-30_-_McCabe%27s_Guitar_Shop_-_Santa_Monica,_CA


## If You See Light [^light1] ## {#light}

When the villagers come to my door \\
I will hide underneath the table in the dining room \\
Knees drawn to my chest

When the villagers come to my door \\
I will breathe shallow breaths from high up in my stomach \\
Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah

Waiting for the front door to splinter \\
Waiting all winter

When the villagers come to my door \\
I'll be all tucked away with my face to the floor \\
And my eyes closed

And no one knows how to keep secrets 'round here \\
They tell everyone everything soon as they know \\
And then where is there left for poor sinners to go?

Waiting for the front door to splinter \\
Waiting all winter

[^light1]:
    The song's title [is a reference][morgtumblr] to the song "Aus Heiterem Himmel" by [Barbara Morgenstern][morgwiki]: \\
    \\
    If you see the light again \\
    Ride right through it \\
    Catch it and shine within \\
    And ride for a fall with it

[morgtumblr]: http://johndarnielle.tumblr.com/post/119119948521/two-questions-for-you-1-will-we-ever-hear-the
[morgwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Morgenstern


## Cobra Tattoo ## {#tattoo}

Sun just clearing the tree line when my day begins \\
Slippery ice on the bridges, north-eastern wind coming in \\
You will bruise my head, I will strike your heel [^tattoo1] \\
Drive past woods of northern pine, try not to let go of the wheel

Dream at night \\
Girl with the cobra tattoo \\
On her arm \\
Its head flaring out like a parachute

Prisms in the dewdrops in the underbrush \\
Skate-case sailor's-purses [^tattoo2] floating down in the black needlerush [^tattoo3] \\
Higher than the stars I will set my throne [^tattoo4] \\
God does not need Abraham, God can raise children from stones [^tattoo5]

Dream at night \\
Girl with the cobra tattoo \\
And try to hear \\
The garbled transmissions come through


[^tattoo1]:
    This line (and perhaps the whole song) appears to be written from the perspective of the serpent in the Garden of Eden: \\
    \\
    Then the Lord God said to the serpent: \\
    Because you have done this, \\
    you are cursed more than any livestock \\
    and more than any wild animal. \\
    You will move on your belly \\
    and eat dust all the days of your life. \\
    \\
    I will put hostility between you and the woman, \\
    and between your seed and her seed. \\
    He will strike your head, \\
    and you will strike his heel.\\
    \\
    -- [Genesis 3:14-15][genesis31415], Holman Christian Standard Bible, retrieved July 1, 2017.


[^tattoo2]:
    A sailor's-purse, a.k.a. [mermaid's-purse][mermaid], is the egg case of a [skate][skatewiki].

[^tattoo3]:
    [Black needlerush][needlerushwiki] is a grass-like plant that grows in wetland.

[^tattoo4]:
    Shining morning star, \\
    how you have fallen from the heavens! \\
    You destroyer of nations, \\
    you have been cut down to the ground. \\
    \\
    You said to yourself: \\
    "I will ascend to the heavens; \\
    I will set up my throne \\
    above the stars of God. \\
    I will sit on the mount of the gods' assembly, \\
    in the remotest parts of the North. \\
    \\
    I will ascend above the highest clouds; \\
    I will make myself like the Most High." \\
    \\
    -- [Isaiah 14:12-14][isaiah141214], Holman Christian Standard Bible, retrieved July 12, 2017
    
[^tattoo5]:
    A reference to [Matthew 3:9][matthew39]: "And don't presume to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I tell you that God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones!" -- Holman Christian Standard Bible, retrieved July 1, 2017.

[genesis31415]: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+3%3A14-15&version=HCSB
[mermaid]: https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-a-mermaids-purse-2291442
[skatewiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skate_(fish)
[needlerushwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juncus_gerardii
[matthew39]: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+3%3A9&version=HCSB
[isaiah141214]: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah%2014:12-14&version=HCSB

## In Corolla [^corolla1] [^corolla2] ## {#corolla}

The day I turned my back on all you people \\
I felt an itching in my thumbs \\
Salt air like a broadcast from the distant dark beyond \\
When my transformation comes

I went down to the warm, warm water \\
Saw a pelican fly past \\
Waved once at the highway and then left all that behind me \\
I went wading through the grass

And no one was gonna come and get me \\
There wasn't anybody gonna know \\
Even though I leave a trail of burned things in my wake \\
Every single place I go

And it was cool and it was quiet \\
In the humid marsh down there \\
I let my head sink down beneath the brackish water \\
Felt it gumming up my hair

The sun was sinking into the Atlantic \\
The last time that I turned my back on you \\
I tried to summon up a little prayer as I went under \\
It was the best that I could do

And I said let them all fare better than your servant \\
The reeds all pricking at my skin \\
Here's hoping they have better luck than I had down here with you \\
All that water rushing in


[^corolla1]:
    The word 'corolla' could refer to one of several things:
    
    * A [corolla][corollacrownwiki] is "a crown made from branches and twigs of trees worn by victors in sacred contests". Pliny the Elder reports that wearing one unjustly was a punishable crime in ancient times.
    * [Corolla][corollancwiki] is also a town on the coast of North Carolina.
    * Together, all of the petals of a flower are called a [corolla][corollaflowerwiki].
    * [Corolla][corollabutterflywiki] is a genus of water-dwelling gastropods known as "sea butterflies"
    * The [Toyota Corolla][corollacarwiki] is a line of subcompact and compact cars manufactured by Toyota. __\[Kyle: Feel like I'm taking the piss with this one but wanted to include for the sake of completeness - remove at your pleasure. -B]__

[^corolla2]:
    John has stated explicitly that the narrator commits suicide in this song: \\
    \\
    "And then the last song, 'In Corolla,' is at the beach where the narrator goes to drown himself." -- [AV Club interview][avclub]

[corollacrownwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corolla_(chaplet)
[corollancwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corolla,_North_Carolina
[corollaflowerwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petal
[corollabutterflywiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corolla_(gastropod)
[corollacarwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Corolla


## Naming Day [^naming1] ## {#naming}

I am hiding in the house \\
Someone's coming through the gate \\
When the doorbell sounds like an air-raid siren \\
I am lying in wait

People used to come around \\
They fish-eyed and they rubber-necked [^naming2] \\
Anyone who'd come to visit now \\
Is automatically a suspect

I creep up to the window \\
Me and my buzzing brain \\
And we watch two Jehovah's Witnesses \\
Retreating down the lane

I'm not coming out yet \\
It's too cold \\
Leave me alone 'til I learn \\
How to spin straw into gold [^naming3]

I put on night-vision goggles \\
Work my way along the wall into the kitchen \\
As soon as the first snow fell this year \\
My fingers started itching

And I locked up the doors \\
And I sealed up all the windows \\
And friends came by sometimes for a while \\
I never let 'em in though

And then they stopped, and then they stopped at last \\
And now it's just us three \\
These walls and the Church of Jesus Christ \\
Of the Latter Day Saints and me

And I'm not coming out yet \\
It's too cold \\
Leave me alone 'til I learn \\
How to spin straw into gold


[^naming1]:
    This might be a reference to religious [Naming Ceremonies][namingwiki], a celebration at which a person is given their name.

[^naming2]:
    [Rubbernecking][rubberneckwiki] is the act of craning one's neck and is often colloquially used to refer to the act of looking at something morbid, e.g. a car wreck.

[^naming3]:
    A reference to the fairy tale [Rumpelstiltskin][rumpelwiki].

[rubberneckwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubbernecking
[namingwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naming_ceremony
[rumpelwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumpelstiltskin


## They Are Stone Swallowers [^swallowers1] [^swallowers2] ## {#swallowers}

You went away to Stockholm [^swallowers3] for a week \\
You came back with some scratch-marks on your cheeks \\
The towers line the highway and they cry \\
From deep down in their guts until they die

The water tower crew are total devils \\
Toxicity near saturation levels \\
I rise up and greet the day \\
See the serpents rising from the clay

You were headed down to Salzburg [^swallowers4] for the night \\
All my hair was turning white \\
You and your crew were good to go \\
So many people that we'll never really know

I saw the city men, they make me laugh \\
Digging up the cables, cutting them in half \\
I watch the ancient sun until it falls \\
See the serpents coming through the walls


[^swallowers1]:
    This song was recorded on a 4-track recorder gifted to John by John Vanderslice -- [mountain-goats.com forums][swallowforums]

[^swallowers2]:
    Some animals are known to swallow [stones][gastrolithwiki] to aid with digestion, or to weigh them down in the water.

[^swallowers3]:
    [Stockholm][stockholmwiki] is the capital city of Sweden

[^swallowers4]:
    [Salzburg][salzburgwiki] is a city in Austria 

[swallowforums]: http://www.mountain-goats.com/forums/read.php?2,27017,27037#msg-27037
[gastrolithwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gastrolith
[stockholmwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm
[salzburgwiki]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salzburg


## Keeping House ## {#keeping}

You clean out your junk-drawer, you mop up some blood \\
While the first of the new creatures rises from the mud \\
Cursing the moment that saw him draw breath \\
The ghost on your doorstep is starving to death

You spray down the windows, you wipe them all clean \\
And you douse your old clothing with fresh gasoline \\
And the ghost on your doorstep is soaked wet with rain \\
And he clutches his stomach and howls at the pain

And you can stay busy all day \\
He's never going away

So let all the lights blaze, keep your heart light \\
Play really loud music all hours of the night \\
And when you set the table, set it for two \\
The ghost on your doorstep has to eat, same as you \\
Same as you


## Credits ## {#credits}

Thanks to Caliclimber, from whose Flickr we nicked the cover images.


## Further reading ## {#links}

1. [Get Lonely](http://www.themountaingoats.net/music/getlonely.html), Nall, retrieved July 8, 2017.
2. [Get Lonely](http://themountaingoats.wikia.com/wiki/Get_Lonely), the Mountain Goats Wikia, retreived July 15, 2017.

## Footnotes ## {#footnotes}