The Waves

Lyrics and discussion questions for the song "The Waves" by Villagers

There are waves
Up in the diamond sky
Stronger than you and I
Am a wave
I break through the barrier reef
Cut through the carbon sea
Approaching the shore

Look at the sky, look at the trees
Man, it’s all the same to me
Look at the cars, look at the birds
And all of these invented words
One body’s dying breath is another’s birth
What are you running from?
What are you running from?

Sister jury, brother judge, in you I recognize this grudge
Buried deep beneath the sands of these ridiculous demands
No time for innocence, or sitting on the fence
What are you gonna do?
What are you gonna (do?)

When the waves
Cover the coastal plains
The tents and the cars and the trains
And the trace of honeybee cemeteries
Of well insulated dignitaries
All screaming of the memory of the human love
For anything, or anyone

Look at the birds, look at the bees
Madame, it’s all the same to me
Look at the girls, look at the gold
Gathered, beaten, bought and sold
One man’s innocence is another’s chance
What were you thinking of?
What were you thinking of?

Now please let me boil it down to this, my son
This party’s getting wet, but it ain’t over yet
So what is it gonna be?
What is it gonna be?
What is it gonna be?
(What is it gonna be?)

Just let the waves
Cover the coastal plains
The fear and guilt and the pain
And the trace of honeybee jealousy
Of well-insulated bigotry
And if you don’t agree
You better get back inside your cave
’cause we’re all dancing with the waves

Up in the diamond sky
Stronger than you and I
Am a wave
I break through the barrier reef
Cut through the carbon sea
Approaching the shore

Questions for Discussion and Writing

1. Discuss the symbolic meaning(s) of waves in the song. What could waves be in the context of the line “There are waves up in the diamond sky,” and what other meanings might the term have in the song?

2. Collectively, what do the references to the following things suggest about the primary meaning of the song?

  • waves
  • diamond sky (line 2)—hint: What are diamonds made of?
  • barrier reef (line 5)
  • carbon sea (line 6)
  • inundation of the coastal plain (line 21)
  • honeybees (lines 23 and 43)

3. Discuss the tone and mood created by the music in combination with the lyrics. What do the speaker’s repeated questions seem to suggest?

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Questions © 2013 C. Brantley Collins, Jr.