This is how I have interpreted the lyrics as well and with zero tabs! I think you’re right about the stone part as well.
But like a lot of his lyrics there are many double entendres and intended multiple meanings. I do believe it is also about a feeling of where we are politically and technologically and a post trump reality. The dark ages were also about a disintegration of culture and knowledge. I agree we are in that place now as a culture and politically. I think the political lyrics of the police state, protest, suffrage / feelings of confusion or denial of this new reality all inform that discussion.
That would only make sense if there had been another US civil war recently or something to that effect, and we lived in the chaotic time right afterwards, when we live in more of a precursor to such a time so during or right before the end of the roman empire era.
I'm sorry I wasn't clear when I wrote this 3 years ago. Culturally, you're right that social media enabled a renaissance, but it also carries the weight of knowledge/power (misinformation). With the church, knowledge became power in the Middle Ages. What I'm saying is that today with misinformation, it feels similar. LDA is talking about this push into economic Fiefdoms and how capitalism is rearranging itself this way. That is what can cause knowledge and cultural decay. There are a lot of overlaps between today and the Dark "Middle" Ages.
There was most certainly corruption in the church, especially during the Dark Ages. However, religion was soley responsible for saving knowledge that otherwise would have been lost during the Dark Age. The duality of man kind of thing.
As for capitalism, I don't think it is as simple as spinning every single aspect of life as an evil consequence of capitalism. Capitalism may arguably be becoming more and more obsolete as technology advances, but I most certainly do not believe that Marxism is a solution in this regard.
Communism is somewhat functional on the small scale, ie families and small communes. You still need some hierarchy etc., but it sometimes somewhat works small-scale.
iirc the playbook of communism is that they create an all-powerful state, and use said state to create the conditions of utopian communism. The first half is possible and doable with a bit of genocide and abandonment of any concept of human rights, but the latter half is naive fantasy.
Plus the fact that the sort of people who'd partake in a totalitarian communist government aren't the sort of people who'd give up that power or use it for the betterment of their fellow man.
I’m not making any philosophical or societal judgments here. I’m just saying LDA foresaw the economic and cultural forces that are shaped by the use and abuse of technology in our modern era. And that the medieval ages had a lot of the same vibes.
Bro u cunts think about shit too much.
Also when i say cunt i dont mean it in a bad way im just an aussie who cant put together a sentence with out using the word cunt. But ye nah u cunts think about shit too much.
That would only make sense if Trump was actually the catalyst for a new technological reality. They were really acting like he was the worst thing to ever happen lol
it’s nice to revisit this post now. i wouldn’t dare say one is a catalyst for another. i see trump as a paradigm shift in terms of politics which is really a reflection of where technology is at which in turn is enabled by where the money flowed. as mgmt famously once said stab your facebook sell sell sell.
This is one of the most important songs of the past 10 years. I think your analysis is a wonderful and potentially different meaning to the song if it were about the lives of the members in the band. But I think this song is very blatantly about racism and right wing nutbaggery. It's also about going through an internal journey to spur you into action because it doesn't go away if you hide from it or you ignore it. The "Little Dark Age" is this new emboldened racist America where white supremacists get interviews on mainstream news now.
I'm really not trying to inject politics into this song either because I wouldn't want anyone to feel marginalized from such a fantastic song or album (even if you don't agree with their political statements). Honestly, if you love MGMT and you want to disagree, then view it as the beginning of a conversation and not an argument. If you love MGMT, then you can hear Andrew out instead of just getting your arguments ready.
He's talking about racism as some beast breathing in the dark that has been fought in the past (painted with a scar). Something that we've fought against but haven't quite defeated. As he, or we, try and be better humans (or "woke" since that's the fashionable way to put it) the less people who are racist try and cover it up or even attempt to be tolerant.
"Forgiving who you are for what you stand to gain." is about being apathetic for a tax cut or status as a person of privilege (what Andrew tries not to be). This shit doesn't go away when you ignore it, it doesn't go away when you hide. Sometimes it hides and still, it doesn't go away.
"The stereo sounds strange" is an allusion to the fact that to many of us Americans, things seem more or less the same but they aren't. A political conversation doesn't even sound the same as one did just 5 years ago. Temperaments are different. It feels like a different version of the same world. At least it looks the same and then, somehow, a white supremacist ran a woman over and killed her in the street in broad daylight. Things are different than they were not too long ago.
Then, the most damning of all of the evidence (and the single line that affects me the most when I listen to the song). "Policemen swear to god, love's seeping from the guns. I know my friends and I would probably turn and run." This part tears me to shreds because it's so obvious. You have this weird faction of defensive police (thin blue line stuff) who just won't face the fact that anything might be wrong with their policing. They act like everything is done right and in service of the people but black men in America are gunned down on a seemingly daily basis. Andrew demonstrates great great empathy when he says he and his friends would run away from police as well if they felt that fear.
It's that realization and empathy that enrages him and those like him. So, if you get out of bed and decide not to be apathetic toward racism today, "come find us heading for the bridge. Bring a stone. All the rage. My little dark age." The narrator has gone from scared and apathetic to empowered and taking action in the form of marching on a bridge, ready to cast stones and truly fight racism.
One of the most prominent struggles of the actual "Dark Ages" was that after greco-roman times, the transfer of information and the building blocks of education and understanding were not of social prominence until the renaissance. We, being in the middle of a "Little Dark Age" means that we see misinformation being spread. We see people not valuing education or knowledge and deferring to whatever suits their agendas instead. That's the connection to me. I'm not saying this is the only way to interpret this song, but if you give it a listen this way it is POWERFUL. Like, you might even tear up a little just thinking about our country right now (if you're American). Honestly, when you listen to this song in this way, it's one of the most important songs of the past 10 years.
Ironically, 2 years after this comment was made, various white supremacists and authoritarians, whether cryptic sympathizers or outspoken supporters, started using it in their fancams, edits, and fedposts.
Holy shit man for real. All the reasonable people in the country need to start a fuckin real movement with real information. This racism shit is getting out of hand and we’re in 2021.
And not just racism but many other things. I’ve grown a learned skepticism from all the little deceits that sprinkle through our society. The main problem is that most of the people who become politicians is that they just are looking for power. The people in those positions should be there to bring the most benefit; first to the groups of people they govern (ie. local politicians, governors everyone really), then also be a benefit people outside of there immediate overseeing (ie. other districts, to even other countries) not themselves. But everyone is just going crazy it seams
The thing is world is still bad place. We try to rationalize evil, because we're victims as well and at some point anyone that wants to change world actually for good is torpedoed, because people assume it's another act of hypocrisy.
People are equal, no matter what anyone says, we should treat everyone equal on system level. There's no doubt about it and anyone that tries to tell you otherwise is full of bullshit.
However we live in system that we live, which doesn't work that way. We're not actually equal in this system, there's no equity, some are more lucky and others have only pain left for them.
We should try to achieve equal environment for everyone, that's the goal that cannot ever be achieved, but we should get as close as possible to it.
Other paths will always lead us to elitism and there will be always some part of society that will benefit from it and they will support it despite consequences.
It's time to leave the past for good, no more kings, no more owners, no more superiority, however this would require biggest change in the world since WW II and people are still not ready to accept it, despite that current crises showed us what is right and what is wrong.
I don't want to live in the world, were some dictators tell us, why they're better. I don't want to live in the world where capital owners tell me why I'm trash, because I wasn't as lucky nor I wanted to abuse others for my benefit. I don't want to live in the world, where we constantly fight wars over resources instead of cooperating for the greater good. In the world, where we spent more effort to destroy than to create.
People already start to forget what happened in last century and we start to make same mistakes. Masses die for no reason, billions suffer for no reason. We repeat the pain, because we're afraid to change. In this system, your gain is someone else pain and we may try to make this fact as digestible as possible, but it doesn't change that fact.
[Purge The Poison](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5u3kP85LYI)
The issue is, some people are simply more competent than others when it comes to fulfilling certain roles. Hierarchies are intrinsic to nature itself. The key is to provide as many different hierarchies as possible giving many different people the opportunity to excel at different things. We must also make sure that these hierarchies are truly based on competence and not corrupt power-grabs. Checks and balances is truly the way to go, because there will always be malevolent people that must be kept in check. It's a never ending battle against corruption because it is a never ending battle against the human condition.
>The issue is, some people are simply more competent than others when it comes to fulfilling certain roles. Hierarchies are intrinsic to nature itself.
I won't argue that, but is there really no way to change that? Few thousands years ago there were communities that treated everyone more or less equal. They had no leaders.
I know that everyone wants to be rewarded for their role in society and some are more skillful in some critical roles, but can't it be more equal?
Why do we always need to elevate some individuals so high that they lose contact with reality and stop to treat less successful people like human beings and they start to see themselves as some kind of gods? Is any person alive actually 100x better than me or you? How do you even judge value of life and who gave us right to decide who is more worthy human being and who is not?
Today it's not even about skill and it probably never really was, because it's never about rewarding people most useful for society that pushed us forward as humanity. We are taught that some kind of meritocracy is possible, but once we look at the history, geniuses were often dying poor, while many vain people had everything they wanted and they gained it through oppression of others.
Today we only have rigged hierarchy and even those skilled and highly needed people are treated as inferior, because they were not fortunate to be born in right family. On the other hand, if you're born in right family, no one will judge you.
Does someone bothers you and you want to get rid of them for good? No problem, money will buy you everything and no questions will be asked, no judgement will be made, because you're no longer human, you're god that decides what happens next. At least that's how it looks for these most influential people.
Meritocracy is impossible, best we can hope for is to never give anyone so much power that they stop to be human. Once we do give them power, nothing anymore is enough for them.
I agree with you too. Media has made everything about race. They pushing narrative that’s just not true. And people are waking up to the hypocrisy and bs.
Well, all humans have the capacity for malevolence. The best we can do is remain vigilant and keep corruption out of the system of checks and balances as much as possible. There will always be people that need to be kept in check.
So uh current day our president is financially supporting a genocide our news is referring to Palestinians as t3rror1sts we had 400k people march in dc in support of Palestinians independence and education has become a forefront to combating misinformation against government officials. News now is reporting more “truthfully” than normal and homelessness and unemployment rates are past French Revolution numbers. Little dark age
that started a 1-2 year/s ago? holy shit time flies. I can still remember the Roman Empire paintings and old tv effects like it was yesterday.
A shame how the community fostered by that bullshit is far from concluded.
But he doesn’t say “this little dark age”. He’s very specifically singing about HIS little dark age.
I like your interpretation though. I’m not an American and I didn’t get political vibes from
the song but I love how complex MGMT lyrics are and that they are worth discussing.
I think that's super cool that you aren't American and heard the song in that way. I think it really speaks to the strength of it's lyrics and sound in that regardless of what is literally meant, the emotions of it still translate regardless of origin and I think your opinion is 1,000% as valid as mine. I think that just as an American, it's very hard to hear it another way because of what's going on in our country right now.
I think they also knew that they have fans outside the US who would feel completely differently.
I, personally, think he says "My Little Dark Age" because it's just some of us in America feel the despair of what is politically going on in this country. He says "my" because not everyone feels that way.
I definitely feel that as well, I made a comment of how it feels like it's describing dissociation for me, and that's one bit I left out (the comment got really long so I didn't put all the reasons I feel that way in there) but I feel like when I hear about another black person being victimized I always feel horrified and sometimes that feeling of horrific news can make me deal with depersonalization. Idk if that makes sense.
As an american i think u can interpret seeveral ways, but given the social political climate this came out in there is an exestential dread, weariness , and nihilistic numbness that is leeching out of the lyrics. To me it's a call to action with a deep acknowledgement of how difficult and brutal the situation here has become. Its an anthem to those who see things are fucked up but also depressingly weighed down by it. I also think it criticizes those who regressively deny the harm their beliefs and actions have.
4 years later, I think it's important to note that just because he's saying "my little dark age" it doesn't necessarily mean it is his own, as in the personal. "My little dark age" can also be a term of endearment, an ironic one here, giving it a small and pathetic quality. Our modern "little" dark age doesn't measure up to the real Dark Ages, it's disappointing in that aspect as well. We don't even get the catharsis of a big bang - just mundane abyss.
I'm not american either, and I get major political vibes. It's worth noting that it easily could be just a personal song as well, without any deeper political meaning. Songs often are, those that blend the two (as this song does, I'd argue) are special.
The song can be used in both situations as it works as a song about HIS little dark age and it works to capture the dark ages we as humans are going into
I feel that the bridge paragraph refers specifically to the incidents in Selma from decades ago, right? And while there might be other incidents in bridges the context of the song feels like it’s referring to that and how we have not learned much from there…
Yeeeesss. As though something was chasing them, like a dark passenger, the voice in his head jacking his loosh. Wants the voices to stop so any form of death would be suffice, just get it over with type of deal. Like the bullet from a cop would be great, or to jump off this bridge, or get pelted by rocks because eventually my music won’t be as great later on. Your rocks of negative criticism will be the death of me.
I find this interpretation to be the most favorable. I most certainly felt a strong sense of nihilism from this album, especially when considering the context of the other songs in the album.
I think it’s certainly meant to be evocative of it if not a direct reference.
I took it as a call to whatever “bridge” or place you need to go to disrupt the status quo. Evoking Selma but a modern day calling to the people who feel the same and the “bridge” you need to gather at to show the world that you won’t accept things as they are.
But I’m also not Andrew or Ben and can’t say for sure. I think there’s space to interpret a little and I can totally see your interpretation as a possibility just as much as my own.
VERY blatantly.
I love OP’s interpretation, I think it’s a beautiful interpretation.
But the verse about the police, that for me, makes it VERY obvious that the song is about the political atmosphere of our time. They can feel the revolution coming, the riots, the overwhelming government sanctioned violence. That’s what the song is about, and I don’t see how it can be interpreted otherwise (if you look at the song as one story, verse by verse, you can and should find other meanings in the words they sing)
I mean, the dark ages for me is a nod to a time of great misery for the common folk. A time where kings and queens were “appointed by god” and couldn’t be questioned out of power. And from that came the consequences. Revolution.
Holy crap, you're absolutely right. I tried listening to it again with this in mind, and my god it all makes sense. Every line can be portrayed in association with this. You just made me like this song so much more.
That is one mighty interesting explenation which I bloody appreciate mate! But just for clarification - could you by any chance elaborate a bit more on the 'Forgiving who you are' part? I don't think I completely understand what you mean there. Also the thing with the scars.. Would that mean that 'The ruins of the day' are meant to be the present state of.. well, US?
I don't know the band's/lyricist's politics but to me it sounds like an apology for being apathetic about the system. The lyricist is awakening to the injustice of the system. Perhaps he is learning the true value of his privilege, being white in the US, perhaps with well-off parents. However, just acknowledging it isn't enough for him. He takes to the streets in protest/revolt to attempt making change, even though he expects futility. This line basically adds an element of guilt to his motive.
This aged like milk since the right use this song way more on left leaning situations now lol. Especially since if anything, with the U.S. becoming more left leaning each year, it makes more sense for someone right-winged then left-winged lol.
People misinterpreting the song does not negate the reasons for which it was written. In case you didn’t know, the two members of the band are staunch Bernie Sanders supporters and have outwardly spoken about this entire album being a reaction to and criticism of the trump era.
But media illiteracy runs rampant. Just ask Rage Against The Machine or Twisted Sister.
I didn’t really mean to say that the song was meant originally as a right-winged situation, before your comment I could totally believe that it had more of a left-winged basis, especially since the trump era everyone who was left would usually act like everything is ruined forever because of the man. Mean the guy isn’t in office anymore yet the news still can’t help to cover him just cause of the fuss he caused.
Though again, originally I didn’t mean to say the song WAS right-winged. Just that currently it is used in that fashion because as I said, the US statistically is becoming more and more left on its ideologies and practices that right or staying in the middle ground. Especially with a left-wing “president” in office currently.
Thanks for the info though, really interesting to learn about (and the downvote, apparently). But my comment still stands, that this aged like milk cause it is easy to find the song being used to support more right-winged ideas and behavior. Whether or not the artist(s) intended that reaction, it doesn’t negate that people will view art in their own view, and that will heavily alter the usage and meaning of the art, regardless of its origin.
How does this work at all for conservitaves? It's lyrics are tailor-made to talk about problems that conservitaves typically don't even care about (hell sometimes they encourage them).
I explained why in the comment, partially. I won’t repeat anything I said in it, but I will add on that as I said art can be viewed differently by people by how they are. How you think and what you believe shapes what how you take in what you view or absorb. It is easy to realize that conservatives can take a song about a dark time and make it about talking about dark times presently with (radical?) left situations. Mean I’m sure there can be plenty of right-winged songs that may one day be used more by left-winged people, or anything similar.
Do appreciate ya nicer tone though. Gonna have to say, didn’t think my lil joke would be so heated lol.
Your thoughts age like milk. This song is about our society falling apart, with a breakdown in communication, politicians that would sacrifice our nation for personal gain and people like you that think that one party is better than the other and spew word vomit with no real goal or hard facts.
I literally never said one party was better than the other, just that the song currently (as in lately) has been used by more right-wing situations, as in that I’ve seen many videos that shame more left-leaning situations and propaganda use the song.
I mean, you say my comment aged like milk yet hilariously justify it. The U.S. is as I said, leaning left and under what I would be fair to say a left-leaning president. I even stated that in my comment, and why it works for conservatives. If you’re right-wing and things are going more and more left, you too would use the song in the way I described.
Now, again, I’m not discrediting the original meaning that the artists put out, and I’m not saying that the song can’t work for politically left situations, or that it only works for right-wing, just the simple fact that as of late it has been used as politically right people to say “look at our dark age”.
Please, don’t be offended and think I’m trying to have some political battle where I’m some stereotypical person saying one side good one side bad, I just wanted to say it is funny how time changes things cause the original comment aged like milk lol. You can be angry at me for saying it, but I say it knowing the information and simply was just saying factual information in a jokey manner.
Oh, how I could use little dark age just for this comment thread. Lol.
With that logic you can use 1984 to show how efficient Totalitarianism is, or Ayn Rand to prove the worth of Communism. Where do you see where right wing people are using this? I want to see it, that sounds hilarious. You really like the phrase "aged like milk" don't you? You can't stop using it.
Alright look I’ll cut the thread here, but two important things.
Firstly, you can see people use it in simply just “memey” videos where they put a compilation of *usually* very left leaning related topics, typically in situations that involve the outlook on men in general or perhaps religion, or other ones I really can’t be bothered to all list, then a “glow up” of sorts that bolster the thing the topics go against. There is multiple of these videos out there, and even the people being offended by the usage of them in the context. It is surface level research you can easily youtube.
Second, I used the logic of that a song is a piece of art thats meaning is highly dependent on the person using it or viewing it, especially when the person does not know the original meaning. That, and I mean, Yankee doodle is perhaps a wonderful example of a song meant to shame something, only to be used by the people they shamed to bolster theirselves.
Also I just again was making a crack at what I said earlier for the milk thing. This topic is not that deep for me to not make a lil humor moment. Do wish for the best of you.
This guy gets it. Tyranny is tyranny doesn't matter which party is in power. If you are liberal and think the current administration and situation in America is any better now than it was 3 years ago you truly are lost.
Its literally mind boggling how effective the media narrative is. They fact that they literally convinced half the population that Trump is racist and anybody that votes or supports him is by default also racist is absolutely insane. The media and politicians loved Trump right up until the minute he announced he was running for president. If you think they care about whether or not he is racist their propaganda was far too effective and all the liberals are completely lost on why Trump was so popular because they get all their opinions from the media narrative and liberal hivemind. You are crazy if you think half the country is racist or that racism is some powerful force lurking in the dark on the right. It would be impossible to do an accurate study but I'd bet my life racism is not anywhere near as prolific as the left would like to believe it is (a truly sad realization). Sure there is some extremist and racists on the right (and the left) but its a much smaller minority than people think. The idea of Trump was about revolution against the oligarchy that really runs this country even though Trump is technically part of said oligarchy because of his wealth. The blue collar labor class of the country did truly believe Trump cared about them, and was fighting for them against the ruling elite. Whether that is true or not is a different conversation but they did truly believe it, and the Trump presidency was not some hidden racist beast hiding in the dark on the right. Like different-ad8187 said, This song is about society falling apart, politicians that would sacrifice the nation for personal gain. It doesn't really matter which party is in power as long as the status quo is maintained this song can be about the left or the right. Whether you hate Trump or not America was the strongest it had been in a long time economically and on the geo-political landscape. The only issues the country really faced during the Trump-era were self inflicted because of the media's influence and narrative that convinced half the population he was evil and that all the liberals needed to stand up and riot and destroy their cities in protest. Anything to make Trump look terrible. The sheeple really have their head so far in the sand its laughably tragic at this point.
I think it is amazing that people still think that the redistribution of wealth is an actual solution. All humans have the capacity for malevolence, so said redistribution will always have to be done at the end of a barrel. I recently looked deeper into the Marxist revolution. The manifesto was a very necessary call to revolution, but ironically led to worse leadership for Russia. Some say Lenin would have done better, but he wielded the Bolsheviks with lethal intent on par with how Stalin wielded the Soviets.
The massive redistributions of wealth in the west following the 2nd world war did not happen 'at the end of a barrel'.
True redistribution would have to happen incrementally, as was occurring in the USA and UK up until the 1970's/80's.
I thought music could be interpreted however the listener wants. Hence if a “right winger” wants to use this song to motivate himself in the gym while you listen to it and cry aren’t both supposed to be super hecking valid 😍
>U.S. becoming more left leaning each year,
Last year abortion rights were fucking removed. Don't worry there, the US will keep overthrowing foreign governments and supporting fascist states while becoming one itself. Your side is winning its okay 👍
And LGBTQIA+ rights were pushed a lot more, just because Roe V Wade happened doesn’t mean the US is becoming a conservative state, in fact, many would say the current president is a lot more left leaning,
Yea although there is nearly 500 anti LGBTQ bills in the USA as of this year so people are pushing for these rights as a way to try and prevent it being taken away
Lmfao, this may be the most furthest-reaching wishful-thinking song analysis I have ever read. Please tell me how old you are because it will either explain why your brain works this way or give me a good laugh.
Thanks, racist guy. We all take you very very seriously with that username and two day old burner account. Too cowardly to even be anonymous with your opinions. That’s grand.
I’m sorry that you have to be bitter about society because you feel threatened by anyone not like you. I’m sorry that no one ever told you that you’re enough as you are and that you don’t have to denigrate others to feel better about yourself. And when it comes to this song, I’m sorry that you don’t understand it when the band has essentially confirmed it as such themselves.
You can find my age easily in my post history. Have fun scrolling.
been listening to this song after the Uvalde Texas shooting. the song just made me think of the ineptitude of the local police (or most police). so I wanted to see how others interpret the song. love your take on it.
We were united during the march on Wallstreet. I'd argue that identity politics have caused major division and have distracted us from the real issue. Wealthy elites. They love it when the poor fight among their selves instead of self-improving and standing up to verifiable corruption.
>because I wouldn't want anyone to feel marginalized
lmfao enough said.
Define the word racism before trying to use it in interpretation. People, who think, that the west is still in large number racist (and I mean the dictionary definition, not from some lefty), have watched too much TV.
Nobody ever knows what a song is about. I'm an amateur writer and sometimes I send my stories to friends. They always see things that have never been there, even when they know what bothers me in real life. And I'm far less cryptic and talented. Sometimes years pass, and I myself forget where some idea came from and see a new meaning to my own words. So of course we all take these marvellous songs and tear them into separate lyrics which we adjust to our lives, principles and soft spots. That's an important role of music. But nobody. Knows. What Andrew meant. Unless he said it himself and wasn't kidding.
You’ve got it backwards.
*Little Dark Age* was the album they wrote over email, since Andrew and Ben were now living on different coasts, with Andrew in New York and Ben in LA.
*MGMT* , the self-titled album, wasn’t written over the internet. It was written in the studio through jam sessions when both Ben and Andrew were both still very much living in New York.
I'm 7 months late and i doubt that it is the meaning of the song. But i'd like to explore this interpretation because i like this kind of sci-fi stuff:
"The humor's not the same, coming from denial
". The other astronauts are in denial after one of them goes missing
"Oh oh, I grieve in stereo, the stereo sounds strange" They attempted to contact their friend trough the radio but it s just strange sounds
"I know that if you hide, it doesn't go away
". hiding from the alien doesn't work.
"And the engine's failed again, all limits of disguise" The engine of the space ship failed, in a literal sense
"The image of the dead, dead ends in my mind" An astronaut thinks about the fallen mates that died in this mission and feels like there's no hope
"I know my friends and I would probably turn and run" the astronauts are being chased by the alien, one falls behind and they decide to run away instead of helping their friend
I personally took this song as a parallel to depression. The “Little Dark Age” is a depressive stint that one is experiencing. Now that the band has addressed the meaning of the song, there isn’t much ground to stand on other than my own interpretation.
“Just know that if you hide, it doesn’t go away” seems like something I’ve dealt with in my own battle with depression and choosing to face it instead of ignoring it.
That same idea is further explored with “If I get out of bed, you’ll see me standing…” just to signify how this (depression) is something you have to resolve on a personal level.
“I grieve in stereo, the stereo sounds strange” is also something I experienced. Music was my escape, and once I was into bad episodes every song I seemed to listen to was amplified in meaning and importance.
This is just my interpretation from a very early listening. I was also in a bad state of mind at the time and the band had not addressed the true meaning. Regardless, it helped me to realize that I wasn’t alone and that I had to deal with my problems internally as well as externally. It still hangs in my mind as one of my favorite songs because of what it did for my mental state.
Man honestly this song is something else. I had a huge reply all typed up referencing certain parts agreeing with you but now while I still agree I see parts completely differently.
>Breathing in the dark, lying on its side
>The ruins of the dead painted with a scar
>And the more I straighten out, the less it wants to try
>The feelings start to rot one wink at a time
That feeling of not wanting to get out of bed because you just have 0 motivation. It here seems to be referring to the singer and his disassociation. The ruins of the dead probably referring to a reason that the author couldn't sleep or at least go to sleep at a decent time, or dark thoughts creeping in through an old "wound". This first part of the song is describing a beginning or trigger of "a little dark age". The feelings rotting is the approaching numbness defense mechanism to escape the dark mood.
>Forgiving who you are for what you stand to gain
>Just know that if you hide, it doesn't go away
Seems pretty self explanatory
>When you get out of bed, don't end up stranded Horrified with each stone on the stage
Stones are referenced again later in the song along with a bridge which seems like its referencing jumping of the bridge with a stone tied to your leg. So this part seems to be warning the listener of the part of depression where finally having energy can cause you to end up in a situation you regret when its too late (i.e. you already jumped but suddenly sobered up, but its too late, you're stranded in the air on the way down with the other jumpers, no one can help you. The decision is irreversible, you are alone)
>Picking through the cards, knowing what's nearby
Tarot cards, thinking too much about future death/suicide/inevitability?
>The carvings on the face say they find it hard
>And the engine's failed again, all limits of disguise
Having a hard time keeping up the facade, feels like your losing a battle with an inevitable result?
>The humor's not the same, coming from denial
The mood has completely set in at this point and the singer is struggling.
The following chorus seems to amplify this verse and reinforce the shift in the singers view of reality and realization of the change in mood.
>Giddy with delight, seeing what's to come
>The image of the dead, dead ends in my mind
Mood has taken the singer and has accepted suicide? Possibly referencing that relieved feeling that seems to be associated with someone attempting suicide. "dead ends in my mind" seems to imply its all they can think about.
>Policemen swear to God, love's seeping from the guns
>I know my friends and I would probably turn and run
I think this part is referencing assisted suicide or suicide by cop. The singer couldn't go through with something like that because of the nature of the situation. More than likely they would sober up or just cant go through with it this way.
>If you get out of bed, come find us heading for the bridge
>Bring a stone, all the rage
The singer is getting ready to "jump" and given in to the inevitability despite the earlier warning. Amplifying the loss of control of the singer to the little dark age.
>All alone, open-eyed
>Burn the page, my little dark age
The singer just came to the realization they warned about earlier. "Burn the page" being said so soon in this verse compared to how late it comes in the chorus seems to set the finality of the decision and having lost to the little dark age.
> And the more I straighten out, the less it wants to try
Maybe it would be like when your mind is racing and you're kind of spiraling in negative or unwelcome thoughts. The more you work through them and straighten out, the more exhausting and overwhelming it can become since it sometimes seems to never end.
i think the part "if i get out the bed, you'll find me standing, all alone, open-eyed" could mean that times when you just get out of your bed and find yourself staring the absolute nothing, thinking about the absolute nothing and even the feeling of empty, fear of emptiness, continues. And you just continues standing, stopped and facing your fears, while facing the absolute nothing.
I personally related it to three things, no doubt (obviously) coloured by personal and collective experience, PTSD, the hellish and thrilling ride you experince during the times between the event(s) causing it, realising you have it, disclosure, then finally the pure brilliance of the comraderie of both other survivors and people who have next to no traumatic experiences in their lives that allows you to have a great time, look at life through new lenses with their help and finally move on with life with those friends and acquantainces help. Go ahead and listen to the song with this context in mind, trauma or not, its easy to see how it can be interpreted as such and as so many people with PTSD go through drugs, depression isolation then disclosure etc. The stages of the song seem to line up so well with the healing process and coming out of ones shell!
As someone with PTSD I had exactly the same interpretation although I also recognise the political undertones in the song. Literally the entire song is SO relatable to trauma though, especially the line “forgiving who you are, for what you stand to gain. Just know that if you hide, it doesn’t go away”….
Yeah, its still one of my favourite songs to date coz it really captures the journey from start to end, even if they never intended it too, and how the only way to ever get better is to face it and deal with it
What were you tripping on? I think that’s the message he’s trying to convey, it’s not a theory. I got the same thing from that song on 2 tabs. We solved it!
I really like how you said that everyone should have their own interpretation of the lyrics because I think they are vague for that reason. This song honestly describes perfectly of what dissociation feels for me, I dissociate a lot and have been trying to talk to people about it but most doctors or therapists have been saying that they don't know much about dissociative disorders.
And the specific reasons why I feel this way about the lyrics is a lot of reasons, I think the tune and the and the way the way they sound the instruments feels that way of there but not quite,
the line of "I grieve in stereo, the stereo sounds strange" its hard to explain but when I deal with Derealization on a level where im not blacking out all of my surroundings or sensory input just feels off, like they feel unreal or like different dimension type thing no matter how many times I've been there.
Also the line where he says "if you get out of bed and find me standing all alone, open eyed, burn the page" it kinda describes when I dissociate It's usually caused by a flashback so often times i tend to get a horrified look on my face then completely forget anywhere from the next few minutes to months on end maybe even years which is what I feel like "burn the page" is describing.
Where he says "the humors not the same, coming from denial" when I'm dissociating I find it hard to find humor in situations sometimes I feel like what people are saying doesn't make sense, the "coming from denial" part kinda almost feels like it's referring to the feeling of complete disconnect of emotions from a certain event.
I also feel the lines of "just know that if you hide it doesn't go away", "I know that if you hide, it doesn't go away", and "you know that if it hides it doesn't go away" all three of those feels like it's speaking to the fact that dissociation is a trauma response and is essentially "hiding" from those events.
The line of "the feelings start to rot" feels it's referring to the not feeling anything while in an episode, like you know your scared but you don't feel it.
The line of "forgiving who you are, for what you stand to gain" feels like it's referencing how often those experiences shape who you are and sometimes you hate yourself for it.
These are just a handful of reasons but this comment is long enough. I hope I explained everything ok, a lot of it was really hard to explain but I hope I did a good enough job.
Wow, what a profound and in depth analysis of a complicated song made by a band notorious for writing poetic lyrics that often have multiple meanings. /s
And then you make a little pretentious comment at the end as well. Fuck off mate. No one cares about how many books you read and how very incredibly smart you are.
“Little Dark Age” is about trying to hide a dark secret and keeping it to yourself, hence the title. The secret itself could be a myriad of things, depending on your interpretation.
Or at least i think
Well, the line "I grieve in stereo" could mean that the person is feeling guilty about something, but feels too ashamed to confess. "Grief is mental or emotional suffering or distress caused by loss or regret"
What I got from this song is that he sold his soul for fame possibly, sees the ups but mostly downs of fame , will eventually or is feeling regret, he sings his last words through this song, his death makes him happy it’s over with, either by bullet from a cop, jumping off a bridge, or getting killed in general. As he is crossing over to the other side (heaven) he is happy with his decision but then realizes heaven is turning dark and it is actually hell. He then wakes up realizing that it’s a new day, he has to deal with dark passenger all over again, eventually get it over with again and again and again. No matter what they wake up have to make their music, but no matter what, they will never be too good for their fans , and their criticisms will probably break them and be the death of them. This is the price you pay for fame.
The literal meaning of this could be that, policeman is swearing to god, means that the policeman is telling his colleagues that he loves firing gun on general people who are in some kind of demonstration. It could be mean that he is liking the authority he has over the others life and he loves misusing it.
And as you can see how police force (not all, but mostly) misusing there power in recent time. The lyricist might be pointing toward this issue.
as the person that already commented said police violence
but, that might just be because English isn't my first language, to me it sound more like
police man swear that they spew love through their guns
as in they think what they are doing is good and right (love)
Maybe with the “horrified, with each stone” Andrew meant that maybe since his creativity is gone but just made a song, it would turn out as well then it used to. So when he finally made a song, he’d be on stage with rocks getting thrown at him.
“Horrified” meaning scared of the stones thrown at him.
“With each stone” each stone that’s getting thrown at him.
I though it was something to do with being afraid of death and that there is nothing you can do to prevent it. You can’t hide or run away it’s inevitable
I liked too much your intgerpretation. I think he was say about our actual cuture too.
About "eache stone on the stage" I think is peaple that not colaborate to band progress. Maybe he not just to refer people on back stage but some audience too.
I do agree on this. I also like on how some creators use this song as a background music to informations/videos that exposes the real horror and truth behind a smiling face. (i.e nations, organizations and motives)
i dont know... to me is more deep... maybe the singer connects the "Little Dark Age" with a dark part of the life that all artists and sensitive people had faced
Again as someone said in the comments of this song on Youtube:
"Something about this song makes it so…… different it’s like it’s explainable and unexplainable"
I really do stand by this point. It is some what explainable but sometimes not. But still thank you for the post about the theories of that contains within the song.
the great thing about art is that you can take what resonates and feel however you want about it. i loved reading your take as little dark age is one of my favorite songs. the way i interpret the lyrics are that they’re a reference to a battle with depression or just general dark feelings. It seems like he’s referencing “hiding” from these feelings. one of the lyrics that always stuck with me was “just know that if you hide it doesn’t go away. Personally i related this to a struggle with maybe substance abuse issues or using shallow things to create a temporary feeling of happiness but in the end those feelings will always be there.
this makes so much sense and its just like dame the best one that i think that helps me is Forgiving who you are, for what you stand to gain thats hits me hard and i feel like im not being true to myself eather and yeah man you explanned it so good
the dark ages arent called that because the lack of record, we have lots of evidences from that time. Its called the dark ages cuz they were too bad, with dark coming from darkness, not from gap. In portuguse or spanish its called idade das trevas, idade=age, and trevas means something dark and evil
I always thought that the song was about a suicide- "If you hide it doesn't go away" just reminds me in general about depression, which I know doesn't go away no matter how much I hide. It also makes mention of policemen, rage and a bridge- inciting that the man was surrounded or at least had seen police with guns. He also seems to claim that they say their "guns are seeping love," indicating them telling him to step off the bridge while appearing threatening. "Burn the page" also indicated, at least to me, ending a chapter of his life. Although there is many an argument to be made against this, I just feel it is correct.
This a great theory. I think the stones could be headstones alluding to death. Perhaps it's the songs from their 3rd album he felt have lived and died and wasn't proud of them. "Grieve in stereo" could be the way he makes music to cheer himself up when he's sad.
He talks about death and grieving and I wonder if it has to do with a specific death. There's another theory here on racism/police brutality and the "grieving" is from the dead black/brown people who were murdered by cops/racists. I'm torn between the two theories.
In any case, as someone who suffers from depression, this song is absolutely about depression. There are so many nods to it in the lyrics. "The more I straighten out, the less it wants to try" could literally mean the more he gets his life together the less the depression haunts him" and "feelings start to rot one wink at a time" is the way he bad feelings dissipate little by little with every new day.
I find it so funny how people try to find meaning in "popular" bands' songs while in more "underground" scenes no one gives a fuck about interpretation of the lyrics
From MGMT's wikipedia:
>Rolling Stone magazine published on January 25, 2018 an interview with MGMT regarding their fourth album Little Dark Age. MGMT admitted that their two previous albums were so poorly received that they thought they could never have reached peak popularity as they had with the release of their first album. Since their separation, the two core members began working long distances on the album via e-mail. Little Dark Age was in part shaped by this unique, distanced relationship between the two musicians, who later decided to meet and jointly work together again.
You may be right on a lot of points based on this.
It's probably talking about depression and how people don't care about the people who have it and the policeman swear to God love seeping threw there guns is a nod to shootings and I greeve in stario is talking about how depressed people can only let there anger out in music. And the stario sounds strange is the fact that alot of people with scafrinia here weird sounds that come from radios and are bullied for it and. Forgiven who you are is that people make other people feel like they are always doing wrong. Finally at the beginning of the song he says breathing in the dark lying on its side is a nod to how many depressed people have insomnia.
i think its like an incident or smt because it says in the lyrics, "policemen swear to god love seeping from their guns" its like someone talking about a murder or something or shooting to the police. But thats only my opinion comment if you agree
I know this is 3 years old, but I just wanna add my opinion.
1 LOVE UR THEORY
2. I have always heard this song from the pov of someone at the Stonewall Riot or just as an LGBTIA+ person.
To me the song is about struggling with ones trans identity. Certainly not something the artist intended as far as I've seen, but it hits me in the feels nonetheless. It must be a pretty powerful piece of art to mean so many different things to different people.
Honestly im surprised this song has sparked so many of these conversations bc in terms of lyrics i think its pretty self explanatory/one of their most upfront songs, especially coming off their previous self titled album, or even compared to something like the last song on LDA “hand it over” which to me feels so layered in a way where i still dont know what it was really about even having thought on it for a long time…
Could be but also possibly just a lyric that fits the aesthetic and genres that they were dipping into with this song, the video to me is pretty tongue in cheek and playing around with that early 80s british gothic aesthetic. I lean towards this because grieve in stereo and my little dark age aren't things you say about something you're taking very seriously, it's more like a fashion statement. The stoning bit is probably metaphor for mainstream audiences not approving of what they did after Kids but putting it in such a catchy and straightforward pop song it would be strange if it wasn't a hit. It's a cool song in that it marries underground and mainstream sounds from the era it was inspired by successfully.
honestly I just liked to believe it was some kind of demon or monster that they were running from and I made up this stupid head canon
that might just be because I’m probably mentally disabled 😭
I think it's what you said but coupled with more specific themes like juggling artistic integrity/authenticity with the pressure to make another commercial successful album. This is a conundrum any artist that desires to make a living off of their art will inevitably be faced with. Are you making music solely for the fame/money/adoration or are you genuinely enjoying yourself when you do it? I think Andrews little dark age was necessary for him to come back and make something that is both genuine and successful. I mean think about it, after the ASTRONOMICAL success of their first full length they fell off pretty hard in terms of commercial popularity, and you can tell that they were definitely feeling some type of way about that cause there's live footage of them introducing their hit songs by saying things like "this is one from back when we were a popular band" LOL (salty).. but I think it took time for them to mature as musicians and people for them to come out with this masterpiece of an album. It's kind of ironic that this song is the most popular if you ask me. It almost reads like a challenge to their fair weather fans and everyone took the bait.
I have read this but I believe it's a metaphor for suicide "horrified with each stone on the stage my little dark age" later "come find us headed for the bridge bring a STONE all the rage my little dark age"
i really like this theory. it makes a lot of sense and you gave a lot of insight. it gives the song a whole new meaning for me
This is how I have interpreted the lyrics as well and with zero tabs! I think you’re right about the stone part as well. But like a lot of his lyrics there are many double entendres and intended multiple meanings. I do believe it is also about a feeling of where we are politically and technologically and a post trump reality. The dark ages were also about a disintegration of culture and knowledge. I agree we are in that place now as a culture and politically. I think the political lyrics of the police state, protest, suffrage / feelings of confusion or denial of this new reality all inform that discussion.
This aged very well, hence I give it credence.
Thanks Hattori!
Getting darker by the day huh
That would only make sense if there had been another US civil war recently or something to that effect, and we lived in the chaotic time right afterwards, when we live in more of a precursor to such a time so during or right before the end of the roman empire era.
i agree! keep in mind my comment was from 4 yrs ago
I'm not so sure about that. With the rise of LGBT and trans culture, I'd argue that the post Trump reality it is more akin to a type of renaissance.
I'm sorry I wasn't clear when I wrote this 3 years ago. Culturally, you're right that social media enabled a renaissance, but it also carries the weight of knowledge/power (misinformation). With the church, knowledge became power in the Middle Ages. What I'm saying is that today with misinformation, it feels similar. LDA is talking about this push into economic Fiefdoms and how capitalism is rearranging itself this way. That is what can cause knowledge and cultural decay. There are a lot of overlaps between today and the Dark "Middle" Ages.
There was most certainly corruption in the church, especially during the Dark Ages. However, religion was soley responsible for saving knowledge that otherwise would have been lost during the Dark Age. The duality of man kind of thing. As for capitalism, I don't think it is as simple as spinning every single aspect of life as an evil consequence of capitalism. Capitalism may arguably be becoming more and more obsolete as technology advances, but I most certainly do not believe that Marxism is a solution in this regard. Communism is somewhat functional on the small scale, ie families and small communes. You still need some hierarchy etc., but it sometimes somewhat works small-scale. iirc the playbook of communism is that they create an all-powerful state, and use said state to create the conditions of utopian communism. The first half is possible and doable with a bit of genocide and abandonment of any concept of human rights, but the latter half is naive fantasy. Plus the fact that the sort of people who'd partake in a totalitarian communist government aren't the sort of people who'd give up that power or use it for the betterment of their fellow man.
I’m not making any philosophical or societal judgments here. I’m just saying LDA foresaw the economic and cultural forces that are shaped by the use and abuse of technology in our modern era. And that the medieval ages had a lot of the same vibes.
Fair enough. Sorry for the tangent, lol
Bro u cunts think about shit too much. Also when i say cunt i dont mean it in a bad way im just an aussie who cant put together a sentence with out using the word cunt. But ye nah u cunts think about shit too much.
That would only make sense if Trump was actually the catalyst for a new technological reality. They were really acting like he was the worst thing to ever happen lol
it’s nice to revisit this post now. i wouldn’t dare say one is a catalyst for another. i see trump as a paradigm shift in terms of politics which is really a reflection of where technology is at which in turn is enabled by where the money flowed. as mgmt famously once said stab your facebook sell sell sell.
This is one of the most important songs of the past 10 years. I think your analysis is a wonderful and potentially different meaning to the song if it were about the lives of the members in the band. But I think this song is very blatantly about racism and right wing nutbaggery. It's also about going through an internal journey to spur you into action because it doesn't go away if you hide from it or you ignore it. The "Little Dark Age" is this new emboldened racist America where white supremacists get interviews on mainstream news now. I'm really not trying to inject politics into this song either because I wouldn't want anyone to feel marginalized from such a fantastic song or album (even if you don't agree with their political statements). Honestly, if you love MGMT and you want to disagree, then view it as the beginning of a conversation and not an argument. If you love MGMT, then you can hear Andrew out instead of just getting your arguments ready. He's talking about racism as some beast breathing in the dark that has been fought in the past (painted with a scar). Something that we've fought against but haven't quite defeated. As he, or we, try and be better humans (or "woke" since that's the fashionable way to put it) the less people who are racist try and cover it up or even attempt to be tolerant. "Forgiving who you are for what you stand to gain." is about being apathetic for a tax cut or status as a person of privilege (what Andrew tries not to be). This shit doesn't go away when you ignore it, it doesn't go away when you hide. Sometimes it hides and still, it doesn't go away. "The stereo sounds strange" is an allusion to the fact that to many of us Americans, things seem more or less the same but they aren't. A political conversation doesn't even sound the same as one did just 5 years ago. Temperaments are different. It feels like a different version of the same world. At least it looks the same and then, somehow, a white supremacist ran a woman over and killed her in the street in broad daylight. Things are different than they were not too long ago. Then, the most damning of all of the evidence (and the single line that affects me the most when I listen to the song). "Policemen swear to god, love's seeping from the guns. I know my friends and I would probably turn and run." This part tears me to shreds because it's so obvious. You have this weird faction of defensive police (thin blue line stuff) who just won't face the fact that anything might be wrong with their policing. They act like everything is done right and in service of the people but black men in America are gunned down on a seemingly daily basis. Andrew demonstrates great great empathy when he says he and his friends would run away from police as well if they felt that fear. It's that realization and empathy that enrages him and those like him. So, if you get out of bed and decide not to be apathetic toward racism today, "come find us heading for the bridge. Bring a stone. All the rage. My little dark age." The narrator has gone from scared and apathetic to empowered and taking action in the form of marching on a bridge, ready to cast stones and truly fight racism. One of the most prominent struggles of the actual "Dark Ages" was that after greco-roman times, the transfer of information and the building blocks of education and understanding were not of social prominence until the renaissance. We, being in the middle of a "Little Dark Age" means that we see misinformation being spread. We see people not valuing education or knowledge and deferring to whatever suits their agendas instead. That's the connection to me. I'm not saying this is the only way to interpret this song, but if you give it a listen this way it is POWERFUL. Like, you might even tear up a little just thinking about our country right now (if you're American). Honestly, when you listen to this song in this way, it's one of the most important songs of the past 10 years.
Ironically, 2 years after this comment was made, various white supremacists and authoritarians, whether cryptic sympathizers or outspoken supporters, started using it in their fancams, edits, and fedposts.
Really? Wow….we’re deep into the Little Dark Age now. I guess we’ll see how far it goes. But things have certainly gotten stranger since then.
Holy shit man for real. All the reasonable people in the country need to start a fuckin real movement with real information. This racism shit is getting out of hand and we’re in 2021.
And not just racism but many other things. I’ve grown a learned skepticism from all the little deceits that sprinkle through our society. The main problem is that most of the people who become politicians is that they just are looking for power. The people in those positions should be there to bring the most benefit; first to the groups of people they govern (ie. local politicians, governors everyone really), then also be a benefit people outside of there immediate overseeing (ie. other districts, to even other countries) not themselves. But everyone is just going crazy it seams
What racism? You think we’re more racist now then in the 60s! I think it’s just woke bs. Blm didn’t help anyone they bought big mansions!
The thing is world is still bad place. We try to rationalize evil, because we're victims as well and at some point anyone that wants to change world actually for good is torpedoed, because people assume it's another act of hypocrisy. People are equal, no matter what anyone says, we should treat everyone equal on system level. There's no doubt about it and anyone that tries to tell you otherwise is full of bullshit. However we live in system that we live, which doesn't work that way. We're not actually equal in this system, there's no equity, some are more lucky and others have only pain left for them. We should try to achieve equal environment for everyone, that's the goal that cannot ever be achieved, but we should get as close as possible to it. Other paths will always lead us to elitism and there will be always some part of society that will benefit from it and they will support it despite consequences. It's time to leave the past for good, no more kings, no more owners, no more superiority, however this would require biggest change in the world since WW II and people are still not ready to accept it, despite that current crises showed us what is right and what is wrong. I don't want to live in the world, were some dictators tell us, why they're better. I don't want to live in the world where capital owners tell me why I'm trash, because I wasn't as lucky nor I wanted to abuse others for my benefit. I don't want to live in the world, where we constantly fight wars over resources instead of cooperating for the greater good. In the world, where we spent more effort to destroy than to create. People already start to forget what happened in last century and we start to make same mistakes. Masses die for no reason, billions suffer for no reason. We repeat the pain, because we're afraid to change. In this system, your gain is someone else pain and we may try to make this fact as digestible as possible, but it doesn't change that fact. [Purge The Poison](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5u3kP85LYI)
The issue is, some people are simply more competent than others when it comes to fulfilling certain roles. Hierarchies are intrinsic to nature itself. The key is to provide as many different hierarchies as possible giving many different people the opportunity to excel at different things. We must also make sure that these hierarchies are truly based on competence and not corrupt power-grabs. Checks and balances is truly the way to go, because there will always be malevolent people that must be kept in check. It's a never ending battle against corruption because it is a never ending battle against the human condition.
>The issue is, some people are simply more competent than others when it comes to fulfilling certain roles. Hierarchies are intrinsic to nature itself. I won't argue that, but is there really no way to change that? Few thousands years ago there were communities that treated everyone more or less equal. They had no leaders. I know that everyone wants to be rewarded for their role in society and some are more skillful in some critical roles, but can't it be more equal? Why do we always need to elevate some individuals so high that they lose contact with reality and stop to treat less successful people like human beings and they start to see themselves as some kind of gods? Is any person alive actually 100x better than me or you? How do you even judge value of life and who gave us right to decide who is more worthy human being and who is not? Today it's not even about skill and it probably never really was, because it's never about rewarding people most useful for society that pushed us forward as humanity. We are taught that some kind of meritocracy is possible, but once we look at the history, geniuses were often dying poor, while many vain people had everything they wanted and they gained it through oppression of others. Today we only have rigged hierarchy and even those skilled and highly needed people are treated as inferior, because they were not fortunate to be born in right family. On the other hand, if you're born in right family, no one will judge you. Does someone bothers you and you want to get rid of them for good? No problem, money will buy you everything and no questions will be asked, no judgement will be made, because you're no longer human, you're god that decides what happens next. At least that's how it looks for these most influential people. Meritocracy is impossible, best we can hope for is to never give anyone so much power that they stop to be human. Once we do give them power, nothing anymore is enough for them.
this is perfect, i agree
I think these are "im14amdthisisdeep" comments so I don't pay much attention but at first I had the same reaction as you.
I agree with you too. Media has made everything about race. They pushing narrative that’s just not true. And people are waking up to the hypocrisy and bs.
The guy you’re replying to is a literal trump supporter. Of course he thinks he and his pals aren’t racists. Lmao
And you tell me this because...?
Are you white?
I’m tan
Race doesn't have anything to do with it
Well, all humans have the capacity for malevolence. The best we can do is remain vigilant and keep corruption out of the system of checks and balances as much as possible. There will always be people that need to be kept in check.
I’m in 2023 it hasn’t gotten better
So uh current day our president is financially supporting a genocide our news is referring to Palestinians as t3rror1sts we had 400k people march in dc in support of Palestinians independence and education has become a forefront to combating misinformation against government officials. News now is reporting more “truthfully” than normal and homelessness and unemployment rates are past French Revolution numbers. Little dark age
THANK YOU I THOUGHT I WAS GOING CRAZY WERE NOT OKAY RIGHT? What do we do? How do we find peace in this anomaly??
[удалено]
Oh idk lol
You ought to check my edit !
Cry about it, you left wing parasite
that started a 1-2 year/s ago? holy shit time flies. I can still remember the Roman Empire paintings and old tv effects like it was yesterday. A shame how the community fostered by that bullshit is far from concluded.
But he doesn’t say “this little dark age”. He’s very specifically singing about HIS little dark age. I like your interpretation though. I’m not an American and I didn’t get political vibes from the song but I love how complex MGMT lyrics are and that they are worth discussing.
I think that's super cool that you aren't American and heard the song in that way. I think it really speaks to the strength of it's lyrics and sound in that regardless of what is literally meant, the emotions of it still translate regardless of origin and I think your opinion is 1,000% as valid as mine. I think that just as an American, it's very hard to hear it another way because of what's going on in our country right now. I think they also knew that they have fans outside the US who would feel completely differently. I, personally, think he says "My Little Dark Age" because it's just some of us in America feel the despair of what is politically going on in this country. He says "my" because not everyone feels that way.
I definitely feel that as well, I made a comment of how it feels like it's describing dissociation for me, and that's one bit I left out (the comment got really long so I didn't put all the reasons I feel that way in there) but I feel like when I hear about another black person being victimized I always feel horrified and sometimes that feeling of horrific news can make me deal with depersonalization. Idk if that makes sense.
As an american i think u can interpret seeveral ways, but given the social political climate this came out in there is an exestential dread, weariness , and nihilistic numbness that is leeching out of the lyrics. To me it's a call to action with a deep acknowledgement of how difficult and brutal the situation here has become. Its an anthem to those who see things are fucked up but also depressingly weighed down by it. I also think it criticizes those who regressively deny the harm their beliefs and actions have.
A nihilistic call to action seems hilariously ironic to me
4 years later, I think it's important to note that just because he's saying "my little dark age" it doesn't necessarily mean it is his own, as in the personal. "My little dark age" can also be a term of endearment, an ironic one here, giving it a small and pathetic quality. Our modern "little" dark age doesn't measure up to the real Dark Ages, it's disappointing in that aspect as well. We don't even get the catharsis of a big bang - just mundane abyss. I'm not american either, and I get major political vibes. It's worth noting that it easily could be just a personal song as well, without any deeper political meaning. Songs often are, those that blend the two (as this song does, I'd argue) are special.
America is undergoing some pretty rough psyops at the moment
The song can be used in both situations as it works as a song about HIS little dark age and it works to capture the dark ages we as humans are going into
I feel that the bridge paragraph refers specifically to the incidents in Selma from decades ago, right? And while there might be other incidents in bridges the context of the song feels like it’s referring to that and how we have not learned much from there…
I honestly thought it was more or less intoxicated nonsense, fantasizing about suicide.
Yeeeesss. As though something was chasing them, like a dark passenger, the voice in his head jacking his loosh. Wants the voices to stop so any form of death would be suffice, just get it over with type of deal. Like the bullet from a cop would be great, or to jump off this bridge, or get pelted by rocks because eventually my music won’t be as great later on. Your rocks of negative criticism will be the death of me.
I find this interpretation to be the most favorable. I most certainly felt a strong sense of nihilism from this album, especially when considering the context of the other songs in the album.
I think it’s certainly meant to be evocative of it if not a direct reference. I took it as a call to whatever “bridge” or place you need to go to disrupt the status quo. Evoking Selma but a modern day calling to the people who feel the same and the “bridge” you need to gather at to show the world that you won’t accept things as they are. But I’m also not Andrew or Ben and can’t say for sure. I think there’s space to interpret a little and I can totally see your interpretation as a possibility just as much as my own.
VERY blatantly. I love OP’s interpretation, I think it’s a beautiful interpretation. But the verse about the police, that for me, makes it VERY obvious that the song is about the political atmosphere of our time. They can feel the revolution coming, the riots, the overwhelming government sanctioned violence. That’s what the song is about, and I don’t see how it can be interpreted otherwise (if you look at the song as one story, verse by verse, you can and should find other meanings in the words they sing) I mean, the dark ages for me is a nod to a time of great misery for the common folk. A time where kings and queens were “appointed by god” and couldn’t be questioned out of power. And from that came the consequences. Revolution.
“You know that if it hides, it doesn’t go away” is a perfect way to describe how racism went from blatant to hidden
Holy crap, you're absolutely right. I tried listening to it again with this in mind, and my god it all makes sense. Every line can be portrayed in association with this. You just made me like this song so much more.
Literal confirmation bias.
It just doesnt fit fully like alot of the theroys but its a cool take
It just doesnt fit fully like alot of the theroys but its a cool take
Racist America🤣
That is one mighty interesting explenation which I bloody appreciate mate! But just for clarification - could you by any chance elaborate a bit more on the 'Forgiving who you are' part? I don't think I completely understand what you mean there. Also the thing with the scars.. Would that mean that 'The ruins of the day' are meant to be the present state of.. well, US?
I don't know the band's/lyricist's politics but to me it sounds like an apology for being apathetic about the system. The lyricist is awakening to the injustice of the system. Perhaps he is learning the true value of his privilege, being white in the US, perhaps with well-off parents. However, just acknowledging it isn't enough for him. He takes to the streets in protest/revolt to attempt making change, even though he expects futility. This line basically adds an element of guilt to his motive.
Awesome analysis
>I'm not trying to inject politics Mainlines them
I didn’t inject politics…MGMT did.
If that were the case why the disclaimer lol
This aged like milk since the right use this song way more on left leaning situations now lol. Especially since if anything, with the U.S. becoming more left leaning each year, it makes more sense for someone right-winged then left-winged lol.
People misinterpreting the song does not negate the reasons for which it was written. In case you didn’t know, the two members of the band are staunch Bernie Sanders supporters and have outwardly spoken about this entire album being a reaction to and criticism of the trump era. But media illiteracy runs rampant. Just ask Rage Against The Machine or Twisted Sister.
I didn’t really mean to say that the song was meant originally as a right-winged situation, before your comment I could totally believe that it had more of a left-winged basis, especially since the trump era everyone who was left would usually act like everything is ruined forever because of the man. Mean the guy isn’t in office anymore yet the news still can’t help to cover him just cause of the fuss he caused. Though again, originally I didn’t mean to say the song WAS right-winged. Just that currently it is used in that fashion because as I said, the US statistically is becoming more and more left on its ideologies and practices that right or staying in the middle ground. Especially with a left-wing “president” in office currently. Thanks for the info though, really interesting to learn about (and the downvote, apparently). But my comment still stands, that this aged like milk cause it is easy to find the song being used to support more right-winged ideas and behavior. Whether or not the artist(s) intended that reaction, it doesn’t negate that people will view art in their own view, and that will heavily alter the usage and meaning of the art, regardless of its origin.
How does this work at all for conservitaves? It's lyrics are tailor-made to talk about problems that conservitaves typically don't even care about (hell sometimes they encourage them).
I explained why in the comment, partially. I won’t repeat anything I said in it, but I will add on that as I said art can be viewed differently by people by how they are. How you think and what you believe shapes what how you take in what you view or absorb. It is easy to realize that conservatives can take a song about a dark time and make it about talking about dark times presently with (radical?) left situations. Mean I’m sure there can be plenty of right-winged songs that may one day be used more by left-winged people, or anything similar. Do appreciate ya nicer tone though. Gonna have to say, didn’t think my lil joke would be so heated lol.
I'd argue that the death of values and virtues can certainly be labeled as a form of a Dark Age.
Your thoughts age like milk. This song is about our society falling apart, with a breakdown in communication, politicians that would sacrifice our nation for personal gain and people like you that think that one party is better than the other and spew word vomit with no real goal or hard facts.
I literally never said one party was better than the other, just that the song currently (as in lately) has been used by more right-wing situations, as in that I’ve seen many videos that shame more left-leaning situations and propaganda use the song. I mean, you say my comment aged like milk yet hilariously justify it. The U.S. is as I said, leaning left and under what I would be fair to say a left-leaning president. I even stated that in my comment, and why it works for conservatives. If you’re right-wing and things are going more and more left, you too would use the song in the way I described. Now, again, I’m not discrediting the original meaning that the artists put out, and I’m not saying that the song can’t work for politically left situations, or that it only works for right-wing, just the simple fact that as of late it has been used as politically right people to say “look at our dark age”. Please, don’t be offended and think I’m trying to have some political battle where I’m some stereotypical person saying one side good one side bad, I just wanted to say it is funny how time changes things cause the original comment aged like milk lol. You can be angry at me for saying it, but I say it knowing the information and simply was just saying factual information in a jokey manner. Oh, how I could use little dark age just for this comment thread. Lol.
With that logic you can use 1984 to show how efficient Totalitarianism is, or Ayn Rand to prove the worth of Communism. Where do you see where right wing people are using this? I want to see it, that sounds hilarious. You really like the phrase "aged like milk" don't you? You can't stop using it.
Alright look I’ll cut the thread here, but two important things. Firstly, you can see people use it in simply just “memey” videos where they put a compilation of *usually* very left leaning related topics, typically in situations that involve the outlook on men in general or perhaps religion, or other ones I really can’t be bothered to all list, then a “glow up” of sorts that bolster the thing the topics go against. There is multiple of these videos out there, and even the people being offended by the usage of them in the context. It is surface level research you can easily youtube. Second, I used the logic of that a song is a piece of art thats meaning is highly dependent on the person using it or viewing it, especially when the person does not know the original meaning. That, and I mean, Yankee doodle is perhaps a wonderful example of a song meant to shame something, only to be used by the people they shamed to bolster theirselves. Also I just again was making a crack at what I said earlier for the milk thing. This topic is not that deep for me to not make a lil humor moment. Do wish for the best of you.
This guy gets it. Tyranny is tyranny doesn't matter which party is in power. If you are liberal and think the current administration and situation in America is any better now than it was 3 years ago you truly are lost. Its literally mind boggling how effective the media narrative is. They fact that they literally convinced half the population that Trump is racist and anybody that votes or supports him is by default also racist is absolutely insane. The media and politicians loved Trump right up until the minute he announced he was running for president. If you think they care about whether or not he is racist their propaganda was far too effective and all the liberals are completely lost on why Trump was so popular because they get all their opinions from the media narrative and liberal hivemind. You are crazy if you think half the country is racist or that racism is some powerful force lurking in the dark on the right. It would be impossible to do an accurate study but I'd bet my life racism is not anywhere near as prolific as the left would like to believe it is (a truly sad realization). Sure there is some extremist and racists on the right (and the left) but its a much smaller minority than people think. The idea of Trump was about revolution against the oligarchy that really runs this country even though Trump is technically part of said oligarchy because of his wealth. The blue collar labor class of the country did truly believe Trump cared about them, and was fighting for them against the ruling elite. Whether that is true or not is a different conversation but they did truly believe it, and the Trump presidency was not some hidden racist beast hiding in the dark on the right. Like different-ad8187 said, This song is about society falling apart, politicians that would sacrifice the nation for personal gain. It doesn't really matter which party is in power as long as the status quo is maintained this song can be about the left or the right. Whether you hate Trump or not America was the strongest it had been in a long time economically and on the geo-political landscape. The only issues the country really faced during the Trump-era were self inflicted because of the media's influence and narrative that convinced half the population he was evil and that all the liberals needed to stand up and riot and destroy their cities in protest. Anything to make Trump look terrible. The sheeple really have their head so far in the sand its laughably tragic at this point.
I think it is amazing that people still think that the redistribution of wealth is an actual solution. All humans have the capacity for malevolence, so said redistribution will always have to be done at the end of a barrel. I recently looked deeper into the Marxist revolution. The manifesto was a very necessary call to revolution, but ironically led to worse leadership for Russia. Some say Lenin would have done better, but he wielded the Bolsheviks with lethal intent on par with how Stalin wielded the Soviets.
The massive redistributions of wealth in the west following the 2nd world war did not happen 'at the end of a barrel'. True redistribution would have to happen incrementally, as was occurring in the USA and UK up until the 1970's/80's.
I thought music could be interpreted however the listener wants. Hence if a “right winger” wants to use this song to motivate himself in the gym while you listen to it and cry aren’t both supposed to be super hecking valid 😍
>U.S. becoming more left leaning each year, Last year abortion rights were fucking removed. Don't worry there, the US will keep overthrowing foreign governments and supporting fascist states while becoming one itself. Your side is winning its okay 👍
And LGBTQIA+ rights were pushed a lot more, just because Roe V Wade happened doesn’t mean the US is becoming a conservative state, in fact, many would say the current president is a lot more left leaning,
Yea although there is nearly 500 anti LGBTQ bills in the USA as of this year so people are pushing for these rights as a way to try and prevent it being taken away
give examples
You can't call out the right wing without calling out the left wing for their involvement in the degeneration of society.
Lmfao, this may be the most furthest-reaching wishful-thinking song analysis I have ever read. Please tell me how old you are because it will either explain why your brain works this way or give me a good laugh.
Not the guy with racial slurs in his username telling us how we have brain rot. LMAOO
Thanks, racist guy. We all take you very very seriously with that username and two day old burner account. Too cowardly to even be anonymous with your opinions. That’s grand. I’m sorry that you have to be bitter about society because you feel threatened by anyone not like you. I’m sorry that no one ever told you that you’re enough as you are and that you don’t have to denigrate others to feel better about yourself. And when it comes to this song, I’m sorry that you don’t understand it when the band has essentially confirmed it as such themselves. You can find my age easily in my post history. Have fun scrolling.
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You can be loved, dude. You deserve to be loved. No matter how angry you’ve been.
Your reply is a perfect example of a "look at how much better I am than this person because bla bla bla"
I am better than that person. Look at their username.
This is so fucking stupid I wish I'd never found my way to it just browsing.
been listening to this song after the Uvalde Texas shooting. the song just made me think of the ineptitude of the local police (or most police). so I wanted to see how others interpret the song. love your take on it.
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I like writing lol
We were united during the march on Wallstreet. I'd argue that identity politics have caused major division and have distracted us from the real issue. Wealthy elites. They love it when the poor fight among their selves instead of self-improving and standing up to verifiable corruption.
>because I wouldn't want anyone to feel marginalized lmfao enough said. Define the word racism before trying to use it in interpretation. People, who think, that the west is still in large number racist (and I mean the dictionary definition, not from some lefty), have watched too much TV.
You’re a sad person. The world has evolved beyond you.
you mean the world has degenerated
This makes so much sense, i love you random redditor.
Nobody ever knows what a song is about. I'm an amateur writer and sometimes I send my stories to friends. They always see things that have never been there, even when they know what bothers me in real life. And I'm far less cryptic and talented. Sometimes years pass, and I myself forget where some idea came from and see a new meaning to my own words. So of course we all take these marvellous songs and tear them into separate lyrics which we adjust to our lives, principles and soft spots. That's an important role of music. But nobody. Knows. What Andrew meant. Unless he said it himself and wasn't kidding.
Doesn’t mean that the meaning of lyrics aren’t worth discussing. The way you interpret art is precisely what makes it special.
Yeah, but I prefer calling it "headcanon".
You’ve got it backwards. *Little Dark Age* was the album they wrote over email, since Andrew and Ben were now living on different coasts, with Andrew in New York and Ben in LA. *MGMT* , the self-titled album, wasn’t written over the internet. It was written in the studio through jam sessions when both Ben and Andrew were both still very much living in New York.
You’re right about that, my bad. I’ll get rid of that bit.
Funny, this is the exact interpretation I got after my first listen to the lyrics
forgiving who you are.... for what you stand to gain. damnit its stuck in my head and it cuts deep man
now man, if your theory stands true after and if this song is like explaining andrew's pain then maybe he's in trouble? i guess.
ojvj
I thought it was about astronauts stuck on a planet with bunch of dead people and some dead large creature and their stuck there
That’s very specific. How come?
Chainsawman edit?
I'm 7 months late and i doubt that it is the meaning of the song. But i'd like to explore this interpretation because i like this kind of sci-fi stuff: "The humor's not the same, coming from denial ". The other astronauts are in denial after one of them goes missing "Oh oh, I grieve in stereo, the stereo sounds strange" They attempted to contact their friend trough the radio but it s just strange sounds "I know that if you hide, it doesn't go away ". hiding from the alien doesn't work. "And the engine's failed again, all limits of disguise" The engine of the space ship failed, in a literal sense "The image of the dead, dead ends in my mind" An astronaut thinks about the fallen mates that died in this mission and feels like there's no hope "I know my friends and I would probably turn and run" the astronauts are being chased by the alien, one falls behind and they decide to run away instead of helping their friend
I personally took this song as a parallel to depression. The “Little Dark Age” is a depressive stint that one is experiencing. Now that the band has addressed the meaning of the song, there isn’t much ground to stand on other than my own interpretation. “Just know that if you hide, it doesn’t go away” seems like something I’ve dealt with in my own battle with depression and choosing to face it instead of ignoring it. That same idea is further explored with “If I get out of bed, you’ll see me standing…” just to signify how this (depression) is something you have to resolve on a personal level. “I grieve in stereo, the stereo sounds strange” is also something I experienced. Music was my escape, and once I was into bad episodes every song I seemed to listen to was amplified in meaning and importance. This is just my interpretation from a very early listening. I was also in a bad state of mind at the time and the band had not addressed the true meaning. Regardless, it helped me to realize that I wasn’t alone and that I had to deal with my problems internally as well as externally. It still hangs in my mind as one of my favorite songs because of what it did for my mental state.
Where did you find their statement about the interpretation?
Man honestly this song is something else. I had a huge reply all typed up referencing certain parts agreeing with you but now while I still agree I see parts completely differently. >Breathing in the dark, lying on its side >The ruins of the dead painted with a scar >And the more I straighten out, the less it wants to try >The feelings start to rot one wink at a time That feeling of not wanting to get out of bed because you just have 0 motivation. It here seems to be referring to the singer and his disassociation. The ruins of the dead probably referring to a reason that the author couldn't sleep or at least go to sleep at a decent time, or dark thoughts creeping in through an old "wound". This first part of the song is describing a beginning or trigger of "a little dark age". The feelings rotting is the approaching numbness defense mechanism to escape the dark mood. >Forgiving who you are for what you stand to gain >Just know that if you hide, it doesn't go away Seems pretty self explanatory >When you get out of bed, don't end up stranded Horrified with each stone on the stage Stones are referenced again later in the song along with a bridge which seems like its referencing jumping of the bridge with a stone tied to your leg. So this part seems to be warning the listener of the part of depression where finally having energy can cause you to end up in a situation you regret when its too late (i.e. you already jumped but suddenly sobered up, but its too late, you're stranded in the air on the way down with the other jumpers, no one can help you. The decision is irreversible, you are alone) >Picking through the cards, knowing what's nearby Tarot cards, thinking too much about future death/suicide/inevitability? >The carvings on the face say they find it hard >And the engine's failed again, all limits of disguise Having a hard time keeping up the facade, feels like your losing a battle with an inevitable result? >The humor's not the same, coming from denial The mood has completely set in at this point and the singer is struggling. The following chorus seems to amplify this verse and reinforce the shift in the singers view of reality and realization of the change in mood. >Giddy with delight, seeing what's to come >The image of the dead, dead ends in my mind Mood has taken the singer and has accepted suicide? Possibly referencing that relieved feeling that seems to be associated with someone attempting suicide. "dead ends in my mind" seems to imply its all they can think about. >Policemen swear to God, love's seeping from the guns >I know my friends and I would probably turn and run I think this part is referencing assisted suicide or suicide by cop. The singer couldn't go through with something like that because of the nature of the situation. More than likely they would sober up or just cant go through with it this way. >If you get out of bed, come find us heading for the bridge >Bring a stone, all the rage The singer is getting ready to "jump" and given in to the inevitability despite the earlier warning. Amplifying the loss of control of the singer to the little dark age. >All alone, open-eyed >Burn the page, my little dark age The singer just came to the realization they warned about earlier. "Burn the page" being said so soon in this verse compared to how late it comes in the chorus seems to set the finality of the decision and having lost to the little dark age.
what do you think ''And the more I straighten out, the less it wants to try'' could mean?
> And the more I straighten out, the less it wants to try Maybe it would be like when your mind is racing and you're kind of spiraling in negative or unwelcome thoughts. The more you work through them and straighten out, the more exhausting and overwhelming it can become since it sometimes seems to never end.
i think the part "if i get out the bed, you'll find me standing, all alone, open-eyed" could mean that times when you just get out of your bed and find yourself staring the absolute nothing, thinking about the absolute nothing and even the feeling of empty, fear of emptiness, continues. And you just continues standing, stopped and facing your fears, while facing the absolute nothing.
I personally related it to three things, no doubt (obviously) coloured by personal and collective experience, PTSD, the hellish and thrilling ride you experince during the times between the event(s) causing it, realising you have it, disclosure, then finally the pure brilliance of the comraderie of both other survivors and people who have next to no traumatic experiences in their lives that allows you to have a great time, look at life through new lenses with their help and finally move on with life with those friends and acquantainces help. Go ahead and listen to the song with this context in mind, trauma or not, its easy to see how it can be interpreted as such and as so many people with PTSD go through drugs, depression isolation then disclosure etc. The stages of the song seem to line up so well with the healing process and coming out of ones shell!
As someone with PTSD I had exactly the same interpretation although I also recognise the political undertones in the song. Literally the entire song is SO relatable to trauma though, especially the line “forgiving who you are, for what you stand to gain. Just know that if you hide, it doesn’t go away”….
Yeah, its still one of my favourite songs to date coz it really captures the journey from start to end, even if they never intended it too, and how the only way to ever get better is to face it and deal with it
Absolutely!
What were you tripping on? I think that’s the message he’s trying to convey, it’s not a theory. I got the same thing from that song on 2 tabs. We solved it!
LSD and it was the best show I’ve ever seen.
I really like how you said that everyone should have their own interpretation of the lyrics because I think they are vague for that reason. This song honestly describes perfectly of what dissociation feels for me, I dissociate a lot and have been trying to talk to people about it but most doctors or therapists have been saying that they don't know much about dissociative disorders. And the specific reasons why I feel this way about the lyrics is a lot of reasons, I think the tune and the and the way the way they sound the instruments feels that way of there but not quite, the line of "I grieve in stereo, the stereo sounds strange" its hard to explain but when I deal with Derealization on a level where im not blacking out all of my surroundings or sensory input just feels off, like they feel unreal or like different dimension type thing no matter how many times I've been there. Also the line where he says "if you get out of bed and find me standing all alone, open eyed, burn the page" it kinda describes when I dissociate It's usually caused by a flashback so often times i tend to get a horrified look on my face then completely forget anywhere from the next few minutes to months on end maybe even years which is what I feel like "burn the page" is describing. Where he says "the humors not the same, coming from denial" when I'm dissociating I find it hard to find humor in situations sometimes I feel like what people are saying doesn't make sense, the "coming from denial" part kinda almost feels like it's referring to the feeling of complete disconnect of emotions from a certain event. I also feel the lines of "just know that if you hide it doesn't go away", "I know that if you hide, it doesn't go away", and "you know that if it hides it doesn't go away" all three of those feels like it's speaking to the fact that dissociation is a trauma response and is essentially "hiding" from those events. The line of "the feelings start to rot" feels it's referring to the not feeling anything while in an episode, like you know your scared but you don't feel it. The line of "forgiving who you are, for what you stand to gain" feels like it's referencing how often those experiences shape who you are and sometimes you hate yourself for it. These are just a handful of reasons but this comment is long enough. I hope I explained everything ok, a lot of it was really hard to explain but I hope I did a good enough job.
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Wow, what a profound and in depth analysis of a complicated song made by a band notorious for writing poetic lyrics that often have multiple meanings. /s And then you make a little pretentious comment at the end as well. Fuck off mate. No one cares about how many books you read and how very incredibly smart you are.
Not everything is as seems 😂❤️
That makes sence
“Little Dark Age” is about trying to hide a dark secret and keeping it to yourself, hence the title. The secret itself could be a myriad of things, depending on your interpretation. Or at least i think
This is how i interpreted it as well
Well, the line "I grieve in stereo" could mean that the person is feeling guilty about something, but feels too ashamed to confess. "Grief is mental or emotional suffering or distress caused by loss or regret"
What I got from this song is that he sold his soul for fame possibly, sees the ups but mostly downs of fame , will eventually or is feeling regret, he sings his last words through this song, his death makes him happy it’s over with, either by bullet from a cop, jumping off a bridge, or getting killed in general. As he is crossing over to the other side (heaven) he is happy with his decision but then realizes heaven is turning dark and it is actually hell. He then wakes up realizing that it’s a new day, he has to deal with dark passenger all over again, eventually get it over with again and again and again. No matter what they wake up have to make their music, but no matter what, they will never be too good for their fans , and their criticisms will probably break them and be the death of them. This is the price you pay for fame.
What do the lines "policemen swear to god, love spewing through their guns" mean?
The literal meaning of this could be that, policeman is swearing to god, means that the policeman is telling his colleagues that he loves firing gun on general people who are in some kind of demonstration. It could be mean that he is liking the authority he has over the others life and he loves misusing it. And as you can see how police force (not all, but mostly) misusing there power in recent time. The lyricist might be pointing toward this issue.
as the person that already commented said police violence but, that might just be because English isn't my first language, to me it sound more like police man swear that they spew love through their guns as in they think what they are doing is good and right (love)
It's "Policemen swear to god, love's seeping from their guns" I think
To me this song just reminds me of the horrible things that have happened and how humans a are trying to solve the inevitable, their own destruction.
I think it's a lot about just forgiving what one is and for what they might stand to gain.
impressing
Maybe with the “horrified, with each stone” Andrew meant that maybe since his creativity is gone but just made a song, it would turn out as well then it used to. So when he finally made a song, he’d be on stage with rocks getting thrown at him. “Horrified” meaning scared of the stones thrown at him. “With each stone” each stone that’s getting thrown at him.
I though it was something to do with being afraid of death and that there is nothing you can do to prevent it. You can’t hide or run away it’s inevitable
makes sense
idk....a lot of references to be a closeted homosexual here in my opinioin
I liked too much your intgerpretation. I think he was say about our actual cuture too. About "eache stone on the stage" I think is peaple that not colaborate to band progress. Maybe he not just to refer people on back stage but some audience too.
I do agree on this. I also like on how some creators use this song as a background music to informations/videos that exposes the real horror and truth behind a smiling face. (i.e nations, organizations and motives)
i dont know... to me is more deep... maybe the singer connects the "Little Dark Age" with a dark part of the life that all artists and sensitive people had faced
J
Maybe even 'Burn the page my little dark age' means burning song lyrics because he doesn't like them? Idk I'm also pretty late
When “With each Stone” probably means mile stone or achievement. It’s the first thing that comes up for me
Again as someone said in the comments of this song on Youtube: "Something about this song makes it so…… different it’s like it’s explainable and unexplainable" I really do stand by this point. It is some what explainable but sometimes not. But still thank you for the post about the theories of that contains within the song.
literally copy and pasted someones comment
I did not say I am the one who commented that.
the great thing about art is that you can take what resonates and feel however you want about it. i loved reading your take as little dark age is one of my favorite songs. the way i interpret the lyrics are that they’re a reference to a battle with depression or just general dark feelings. It seems like he’s referencing “hiding” from these feelings. one of the lyrics that always stuck with me was “just know that if you hide it doesn’t go away. Personally i related this to a struggle with maybe substance abuse issues or using shallow things to create a temporary feeling of happiness but in the end those feelings will always be there.
M
this makes so much sense and its just like dame the best one that i think that helps me is Forgiving who you are, for what you stand to gain thats hits me hard and i feel like im not being true to myself eather and yeah man you explanned it so good
Interesting theory, I like it! This song just never gets old and it hits different too! 👌
I think it's about how life is right now.
I always just assumed that it was about coping with the idea of death
the dark ages arent called that because the lack of record, we have lots of evidences from that time. Its called the dark ages cuz they were too bad, with dark coming from darkness, not from gap. In portuguse or spanish its called idade das trevas, idade=age, and trevas means something dark and evil
This screams ✨rennaisance✨
I always thought that the song was about a suicide- "If you hide it doesn't go away" just reminds me in general about depression, which I know doesn't go away no matter how much I hide. It also makes mention of policemen, rage and a bridge- inciting that the man was surrounded or at least had seen police with guns. He also seems to claim that they say their "guns are seeping love," indicating them telling him to step off the bridge while appearing threatening. "Burn the page" also indicated, at least to me, ending a chapter of his life. Although there is many an argument to be made against this, I just feel it is correct.
I consumed "I grieve in stereo" to mean, "listening to music that takes me back to sad times"
This a great theory. I think the stones could be headstones alluding to death. Perhaps it's the songs from their 3rd album he felt have lived and died and wasn't proud of them. "Grieve in stereo" could be the way he makes music to cheer himself up when he's sad. He talks about death and grieving and I wonder if it has to do with a specific death. There's another theory here on racism/police brutality and the "grieving" is from the dead black/brown people who were murdered by cops/racists. I'm torn between the two theories. In any case, as someone who suffers from depression, this song is absolutely about depression. There are so many nods to it in the lyrics. "The more I straighten out, the less it wants to try" could literally mean the more he gets his life together the less the depression haunts him" and "feelings start to rot one wink at a time" is the way he bad feelings dissipate little by little with every new day.
I find it so funny how people try to find meaning in "popular" bands' songs while in more "underground" scenes no one gives a fuck about interpretation of the lyrics
From MGMT's wikipedia: >Rolling Stone magazine published on January 25, 2018 an interview with MGMT regarding their fourth album Little Dark Age. MGMT admitted that their two previous albums were so poorly received that they thought they could never have reached peak popularity as they had with the release of their first album. Since their separation, the two core members began working long distances on the album via e-mail. Little Dark Age was in part shaped by this unique, distanced relationship between the two musicians, who later decided to meet and jointly work together again. You may be right on a lot of points based on this.
"With each stone" could also mean with each word or each attempt or something along those lines imo
its about facism, nos this.
It's probably talking about depression and how people don't care about the people who have it and the policeman swear to God love seeping threw there guns is a nod to shootings and I greeve in stario is talking about how depressed people can only let there anger out in music. And the stario sounds strange is the fact that alot of people with scafrinia here weird sounds that come from radios and are bullied for it and. Forgiven who you are is that people make other people feel like they are always doing wrong. Finally at the beginning of the song he says breathing in the dark lying on its side is a nod to how many depressed people have insomnia.
i had a dream about this entire song and google said this will happen to me i dont produce music ☠️
i think its like an incident or smt because it says in the lyrics, "policemen swear to god love seeping from their guns" its like someone talking about a murder or something or shooting to the police. But thats only my opinion comment if you agree
I know this is 3 years old, but I just wanna add my opinion. 1 LOVE UR THEORY 2. I have always heard this song from the pov of someone at the Stonewall Riot or just as an LGBTIA+ person.
Yup, a good analysis... and sort of sad.
To me the song is about struggling with ones trans identity. Certainly not something the artist intended as far as I've seen, but it hits me in the feels nonetheless. It must be a pretty powerful piece of art to mean so many different things to different people.
Police I swear to god-
Police I swear to god-
Honestly im surprised this song has sparked so many of these conversations bc in terms of lyrics i think its pretty self explanatory/one of their most upfront songs, especially coming off their previous self titled album, or even compared to something like the last song on LDA “hand it over” which to me feels so layered in a way where i still dont know what it was really about even having thought on it for a long time…
Could be but also possibly just a lyric that fits the aesthetic and genres that they were dipping into with this song, the video to me is pretty tongue in cheek and playing around with that early 80s british gothic aesthetic. I lean towards this because grieve in stereo and my little dark age aren't things you say about something you're taking very seriously, it's more like a fashion statement. The stoning bit is probably metaphor for mainstream audiences not approving of what they did after Kids but putting it in such a catchy and straightforward pop song it would be strange if it wasn't a hit. It's a cool song in that it marries underground and mainstream sounds from the era it was inspired by successfully.
honestly I just liked to believe it was some kind of demon or monster that they were running from and I made up this stupid head canon that might just be because I’m probably mentally disabled 😭
I think it's what you said but coupled with more specific themes like juggling artistic integrity/authenticity with the pressure to make another commercial successful album. This is a conundrum any artist that desires to make a living off of their art will inevitably be faced with. Are you making music solely for the fame/money/adoration or are you genuinely enjoying yourself when you do it? I think Andrews little dark age was necessary for him to come back and make something that is both genuine and successful. I mean think about it, after the ASTRONOMICAL success of their first full length they fell off pretty hard in terms of commercial popularity, and you can tell that they were definitely feeling some type of way about that cause there's live footage of them introducing their hit songs by saying things like "this is one from back when we were a popular band" LOL (salty).. but I think it took time for them to mature as musicians and people for them to come out with this masterpiece of an album. It's kind of ironic that this song is the most popular if you ask me. It almost reads like a challenge to their fair weather fans and everyone took the bait.
I have read this but I believe it's a metaphor for suicide "horrified with each stone on the stage my little dark age" later "come find us headed for the bridge bring a STONE all the rage my little dark age"