Alarum
BACKGROUND
The lyrics line ”I took a slide, slipping down a staircase, a piranesian dream” is a reference to the work of Giovanni Battista Piranesi, a 16th century Italian engraver known for creating dramatic architectural drawings by using unusual angels and chiaroscuro (light and shadow) techniques.
Martin has acknowledged Piranesi in regards to penning lyrics to the album, saying “he was a gifted artist but at the end of his life, all he could do was sketch stairwells leading down to what he considered hell.”
SPECIAL FACTS:
- The song was written around a drum-part, Jeff Burrows came up with
LYRICS
I took a slide,
slipping down a staircase
A piranesian dream
My senses reeled,
distorted by the darkness
I lit my way with a scream
And in the rave an alarum
caused a cracked mirror
I got confused by the sound
I turned around and touched it from a distance
And then it fell to the ground
Loud cry from the shallows
Lust feeds on the fear
Walls crack under pressure
I think the end is getting near
And in my mind was the fury of a madness
That consecrated the dirt
I stumbled through
the enigma of the reason
And celebrated the hurt
And then I found through an act of desperation
A subtle rip in the heart
I was seduced by the fear of devastation
And then it tore me apart
Oh no, nothing matters
When it takes me
When it rapes me, breaks me
Shakes me down
A quick escape from the edge of commination
I slept the night with my spleen
A vain excuse, I was searching for some answers
I broke away from the scene
Because after all animility’s an instinct
And it’s Luxuria’s slave
To taste the truth,
it’s a seizure of the senses
And it’s a foot in the grave
BACKGROUND
The lyrics line ”I took a slide, slipping down a staircase, a piranesian dream” is probably a reference to the work of Giovanni Battista Piranesi, a 16th century Italian engraver known for creating dramatic architectural drawings by using unusual angels and chiaroscuro (light and shadow) techniques.
Martin has acknowledged Piranesi in regards to penning lyrics to the album, saying “he was a gifted artist but at the end of his life, all he could do was sketch stairwells leading down to what he considered hell.”
SPECIAL FACTS:
- The song was written around a drum-part, Jeff Burrows came up with
LYRICS
I took a slide,
slipping down a staircase
A piranesian dream
My senses reeled,
distorted by the darkness
I lit my way with a scream
And in the rave an alarum
caused a cracked mirror
I got confused by the sound
I turned around and touched it from a distance
And then it fell to the ground
Loud cry from the shallows
Lust feeds on the fear
Walls crack under pressure
I think the end is getting near
And in my mind was the fury of a madness
That consecrated the dirt
I stumbled through
the enigma of the reason
And celebrated the hurt
And then I found through an act of desperation
A subtle rip in the heart
I was seduced by the fear of devastation
And then it tore me apart
Oh no, nothing matters
When it takes me
When it rapes me, breaks me
Shakes me down
A quick escape from the edge of commination
I slept the night with my spleen
A vain excuse, I was searching for some answers
I broke away from the scene
Because after all animility’s an instinct
And it’s Luxuria’s slave
To taste the truth,
it’s a seizure of the senses
And it’s a foot in the grave
