ControlledChaos
Nature is analog, ever flowing and continuous.
Hello, I figured a post like this would be appropriate to a psychedelic forum so I'm going to take on the task of analyzing every song by the seminal psychedelic rock band 13th Floor Elevators. I've been listening to this band for a few years now and as I listened and learned the lyrics, I realized this band really nailed the psychedelic experience unlike any other, both sonically and lyrically.
While many psychedelic bands tried to depict the psychedelic experience mainly through colorful Alice In Wonderland imagery, the Elevator's lyrics were very honed in on the type of philosophy that can emerge from the psychedelic experience. It is rife with synesthesiac metaphors about ego, self-realization, vibrations, and other concepts common in psychedelic discussions, and they did it in a way that is very authentic and fresh. It should be noted that this band recorded every song while actively tripping om acid.
So without further ado, I'll start this thread by taking a look at their first song from their first album, aptly named Roller Coaster.
Roller Coaster- 13th Floor Elevators
"Once, somewhere, sometime ago
His eyes were clear to see
He put his thoughts into my mind
And gave my self to be
He stopped me from living so unsane
I could be just what I want to be
Things appear as they really are
I can see just what I wanted to see"
I think the interesting thing to ask in this verse is, who exactly is the "he" the speaker is referring to? It seems to be some sort of enlightening entity. A machine elf? A higher self? It doesn't make it exactly clear, but it's probably something like that. Whatever it is, this presence gave the speaker mental clarity and brought him a sense of freedom. Before he was living "so unsane", possibly living a lie based off of ego and delusion. This experience with the "he" cleared all that away.
Come on, and let it happen to you
I say, I say come on, and let it happen to you
You gotta open up your mind
And let everything come through...
Come on, yeah!
Here in the chorus the speaker is daring the listener to let go, saying "let it happen to you". What exactly should we let happen to us? He goes on to say "you gotta open up your mind and let everything come through". I think this clues us in on what he is saying we should let happen to us. Too often, people allow mental misperceptions to block a clear vision of the world and people around them. The speaker dares us to, like him, drop our precepts and allow life to shine through in clarity.
Well, it starts like a roller coaster ride
So real it takes your breath away
It slides you through your point of view
You look back to where you thought you'd stayed
Your ride changes outside view
While it glides you like a neon ray
And you find you don't have to search for words
For there's nothing to be said
At this point, it is clear this song could be about some sort of psychedelic experience, which it likely is due to the fact they recorded this music on acid. Here the speaker describes a jarring experience, a "roller coaster ride so real it takes your breath away". During this experience, the speaker takes a look at their worldview as it "slides them through" and causes them to question what they thought they knew as they "go back to where they though they stayed". They also experience visual hallucinations as they are "glided like a neon ray". All in all, this experience both enlightens them and leaves them speechless as there's "nothing to be said". This may also hark to the fact that psychedelics often awaken us to a reality so complex it is hard to actually describe in concrete words.
After you trip life opens up
You start doing what you want to do
And you find out that the world that you once feared
Gets what it has from you
No one can ever hurt you
But you know more than you thought you knew
And you're looking at the world
With brand new eyes
And no one can ever spoil the view
This verse brings it all back home. It is made clear that this song is describing a "trip" upon which after, "life opens up". These lyrics should resonate strongly with those who had a particularly enlightening psychedelic experience and came out of it very refreshed and with a new viewpoint. In a world that often makes it hard to hold onto these sentiments and remember them, this verse serves as a potent reminder of what psychedelics can teach us.
Anyway guys I hope you enjoyed this analysis. I would like to do more in this thread in the future if I have time. Peace!
While many psychedelic bands tried to depict the psychedelic experience mainly through colorful Alice In Wonderland imagery, the Elevator's lyrics were very honed in on the type of philosophy that can emerge from the psychedelic experience. It is rife with synesthesiac metaphors about ego, self-realization, vibrations, and other concepts common in psychedelic discussions, and they did it in a way that is very authentic and fresh. It should be noted that this band recorded every song while actively tripping om acid.
So without further ado, I'll start this thread by taking a look at their first song from their first album, aptly named Roller Coaster.
Roller Coaster- 13th Floor Elevators
"Once, somewhere, sometime ago
His eyes were clear to see
He put his thoughts into my mind
And gave my self to be
He stopped me from living so unsane
I could be just what I want to be
Things appear as they really are
I can see just what I wanted to see"
I think the interesting thing to ask in this verse is, who exactly is the "he" the speaker is referring to? It seems to be some sort of enlightening entity. A machine elf? A higher self? It doesn't make it exactly clear, but it's probably something like that. Whatever it is, this presence gave the speaker mental clarity and brought him a sense of freedom. Before he was living "so unsane", possibly living a lie based off of ego and delusion. This experience with the "he" cleared all that away.
Come on, and let it happen to you
I say, I say come on, and let it happen to you
You gotta open up your mind
And let everything come through...
Come on, yeah!
Here in the chorus the speaker is daring the listener to let go, saying "let it happen to you". What exactly should we let happen to us? He goes on to say "you gotta open up your mind and let everything come through". I think this clues us in on what he is saying we should let happen to us. Too often, people allow mental misperceptions to block a clear vision of the world and people around them. The speaker dares us to, like him, drop our precepts and allow life to shine through in clarity.
Well, it starts like a roller coaster ride
So real it takes your breath away
It slides you through your point of view
You look back to where you thought you'd stayed
Your ride changes outside view
While it glides you like a neon ray
And you find you don't have to search for words
For there's nothing to be said
At this point, it is clear this song could be about some sort of psychedelic experience, which it likely is due to the fact they recorded this music on acid. Here the speaker describes a jarring experience, a "roller coaster ride so real it takes your breath away". During this experience, the speaker takes a look at their worldview as it "slides them through" and causes them to question what they thought they knew as they "go back to where they though they stayed". They also experience visual hallucinations as they are "glided like a neon ray". All in all, this experience both enlightens them and leaves them speechless as there's "nothing to be said". This may also hark to the fact that psychedelics often awaken us to a reality so complex it is hard to actually describe in concrete words.
After you trip life opens up
You start doing what you want to do
And you find out that the world that you once feared
Gets what it has from you
No one can ever hurt you
But you know more than you thought you knew
And you're looking at the world
With brand new eyes
And no one can ever spoil the view
This verse brings it all back home. It is made clear that this song is describing a "trip" upon which after, "life opens up". These lyrics should resonate strongly with those who had a particularly enlightening psychedelic experience and came out of it very refreshed and with a new viewpoint. In a world that often makes it hard to hold onto these sentiments and remember them, this verse serves as a potent reminder of what psychedelics can teach us.
Anyway guys I hope you enjoyed this analysis. I would like to do more in this thread in the future if I have time. Peace!