TMBTE takes us on one last ride into the sunset on this cathartic closer. The whole album has been a journey and I'm thankful to all of you who have shared the experience with me. Join me for one last rambling analysis from this album!
Jesus Christ dude you're something different. Your analysis of not only this song but the entire album, is so incredibly insightful. Up your production and mic quality and you have something special here. Thank you for all of these videos.
Euclid was a Greek mathematician that was known as the father of geometry hence the call back to the first song of their first album making a full circle
We are in agreement again, it sounds happier than the lyrics imply. So my personal interpretation is that he has accepted that there is no going back (but there is still this tiny bit of unrealistic hope, wishful thinking) but the moving on part is like 1 step forward and 2 steps back when the memories are haunting him (even in the most complicated relationships there are some good moments or memories). This song is absolute brilliance. The lyrics, all the callbacks, everything is coming full circle with TNDNBTG, the bough, give me 5 more min. at the beginning (the song is just a bit over 5 min.), the drums, the whites of your eyes (call back to Jaws? "The whites of your eyes burn from across the room"), we tangle endlessly (like branches in a flood), ... It is so bitter-sweet. We have a resolve now, a breakthrough. It gives me hope that Vessel and everybody who listens to his music who is dealing with almost impossible issues to deal with, will be ok. I'm trying to type while pausing your video because there is so much to talk about! So it's stop and go. The lyrics: the twilight 2-way vision I see as maybe hindsight, being removed or past the relationship now, the dark part, he has a different perspective, he can see sunlight (hope). Give me one last ride on the sunset skylane: he's looking back at the trauma with a different perspective so he can move on or it was just a happy memory that he is reliving one more time. The car crash: I was really skeptical about this at first but the more I go through all the lyrics, the more it makes sense, including the marks on the dashboard, scars he didn't ask for, pretty much all of Atlantic and Granite. And damn, my imagination is running wild, curiosity is killing me and I really would like to sit down with Vessel and get the whole story from him. Not that it's any of my business. Back to the lyrics: I like your theory of Vessel going away and Euclid taking over. That would fit in with the character (he's got Vessel's cut-off head in his hand!). And Vessel says in the lyrics "I must be someone new" so he is saying goodbye to his old self, the trauma has changed him a lot, he is a different person (Euclid) now, the vicious cycle is over. And you mentioned the 3 holes in the forehead of the character at the end of your video: after going down a google rabbit hole I found out that these 3 dots mean "therefore" and are used to introduce a logical consequence. So that would fit nicely here. It's also used in Freemasonry. The vocoder parts: maybe Vessel is falling into an old behavior pattern ("call me when you get a chance" ... but that's not happening) that he disassociates from now? I can't believe that Vessel actually made a reference to his past here and also in another song! That's not bread-crumbing anymore, that's dropping a whole fucking loaf!!!! He obviously knows what he's doing because he is incredibly detail-oriented and mindful of everything. The line "I know for the last time that you will not be mine. So give me the night." was difficult. Been there, done that, got one more night, was left with a shattered heart. The realization, coming to grips with it, taking/making one last memory, and trying to move on with nothing left but that bitter-sweet memory. What's going to happen with the band? I believe that it's just going to be a new era for them (similar to Ghost), this painful chapter is over, a mask change for Vessel, maybe II, III & IV are going to unmask, maybe even Vessel is going to leave the mask behind. Anything is possible and we're here for it. I found out by accident about the identities, too, and it hasn't changed anything for me but I really hate it when I see comments everywhere that spoil it for people who'd rather not know. Yes, the song title of TNDNBTG never really sat right with me either. Such a great ending to the trilogy. Or is it an end? Hopefully, we will find out in 2 years when they drop a new album? Keeping my fingers crossed. TMBTE is definitely AOTY for me, it's actually the one and only album that has pushed me to reflect on my past and brought up painful memories that I had buried deep down in a junk drawer in my brain. Therapy that I didn't know I needed. Ever since its release I have barely listened to anything else and every time I find a new layer in the music or the lyrics. It's like the gift that keeps on giving. Thank you again for a fantastic interpretation and I am so sorry that I wrote a novel here. I hope it's not too scattered (like my brain right now).
No worries about writing a novel, that's basically what I spew out in video form for these songs! lol And yeah...the thing that is so special about the band is that there is a lot to uncover if you dig deeper into the music. New production elements you miss on a first listen, new meaning to the lyrics, and even new connotations given to older songs and albums. The lyrical content is somehow simultaneously cryptic and totally relatable. It really does feel like Vessel can choose the words to unlock parts of the listener's brain that they didn't know were there.
I'm a bit late on this, but I like the analysis and had a little thought to add. Your analysis of the imagery for this song seems spot on, that the emergence of Euclid killing off Vessel is a rebirth. The image appears to be based on Caravaggio's "David with the Head of Goliath" circa 1605, where a depicted David is holding the severed head of Goliath. It was later revealed that Goliath's head was a self-portrait of the artist, and hypothesized that the young David was meant to represent the artist rejuvenated, maining it a double self-portrait. This exactly fits the Vessel rebirth as Euclid as parts of the same artist. Further, the painting has long been understood to also represent good defeating bad, God defeating Satan. This also fits the story of Vessel becoming toxic and in pain, replaced by a good Euclid. Also in this context, the Night Does Not Belong to God at the beginning of the trilogy implies Satan / bad being in control at that point, and now at the end, "the night belongs to you", meaning Euclid, representing God defeating Satan, the good part defeating the bad part of him. I disagree about the car crash part, which I don't take as literal, but more like their toxic romantic relationship became a metaphorical "car crash" in "Granite".
This was a great video, dude. This song still almost brings me to tears every time. There is a ton of pain and then the acceptance of that pain (to me). I hope that Sleep Token continues in an evolved form, but this was a huge, amazing ending if that is where this project ends. Awesome analysis. Keep up the content.
This is fascinating. You might have something here. Toward the end of Ascencionism he says, "youre going to watch me ascend" I love this band and this album might be my favorite. Euclid seems like a bittersweet yet hopeful end to the trilogy.
I want to believe that it marks a new beginning for Vessel that is free of the intense suffering the rest of the trilogy portrays. However, I also can't shake the feeling that the 3 albums are a cycle that implies that Vessel will eventually fall back into grief and have to fight this whole fight again. Grief and trauma can definitely have this cyclical pattern.
This certainly feels like the end of...a chapter, at least. Wistfully sad, yet hopeful and, as you said, triumphant. I think there are some interesting difference between the final section here and its counterpart in TNDNBTG. The latter (from TNDNBTG) seems more...desperate? Unhinged? The intervals between the vocal layers seem wider and less consistent (Vessel really gets up there on some of those notes). The version in Euclid seems overall lower in pitch and more harmonically "compact." It feels more resigned and resolute. Also--though I don't have a great musical ear--it sounds to me like the instrumental melody during this part in Euclid is an inversion or reversal of the 4-note motif from TNDNBTG. As if he's looking back on it (twilight two-way vision, etc.).
I totally agree on the differences in tone you spotted. The vocals feel more forward and "confident" sounding in Euclid, like a true resolution. I also picked out the notes from each song on piano, and while the 4-note motif is not inverted, it is a whole step higher in key on Euclid. This could also explain why it sounds more triumphant to someone who has also listened to TNDNBTG. The key change "lifts" the melody we were expecting!
Another great reaction/analysis. With the way this song "feels", it will be an injustice if it is never chosen for the ending credits of some epic movie!! Strangely enough, my first thoughts after hearing the whole album were the same. Are they finished with the anonymity? The fact that Vessel confirms his identity by mentioning his previous band within the lyrics to a couple of songs seems to allude to this. I, too, discovered their identities by accident while researching something else entirely. Even though it meant I got to hear both Vessels and II's previous groups, (videos of both are available on RU-vid), I still in a way wish I didnt know. The fact that Vessel's previous band consisted of just two members, him and a female vocalist, has led some people to speculate whether she is the subject behind the songs. I won't name who she is but she now has a career as a vocal coach and session singer. Stay safe 🤘 ✌️
Their anonymity is part of what makes them special, so I felt much the same way about accidentally stumbling upon their identities. I guess it's just nice to see a frontman who foregoes their ego in favor of the music. That's pretty rare!
I'm sorry that I can't give you thousands of "likes". And I don't speak English well enough to express admiration for your personality and soul. A virtual hug to you, with gratitude and best wishes ^-^
I think I will actually go through Sundowning sooner rather than later. I've listened to the album again a few times since TMBTE released, and I think a lot of the songs are even more interesting now that we have the long view of the entire trilogy!
Ive been adding a similar comment to a lot of these reactions. But, Euclid was a greek mathematician and considered the father of geometry........ which adds a new layer to the run it back, running forward, symmetry, and parellel references. It is a cycle.
In the time since making this video, I have kind of landed on the possibility that the trilogy is broadly hinting at the cycle of dealing with grief and trauma. Even with a hopeful ending, nobody can ever be truly free from the grief and will contend with it over and over again.
I know you mentioned the wreck in Granite but I do believe the car wreck that ended with the car in the ocean was "Atlantic". He woke up in the hospital with eyes on him and he couldn't move. Call me when they bury bodies underwater It's blue light over murder for me Crumble like a temple built from future daughters To wasteland when the oceans recede Marry in the morning, earn your bitter father It's easier to try not to eat So flood me like Atlantic, bandage up the trenches Anything to get me to sleep I woke up surrounded, eyes like frozen planets Just orbiting the vacuum I am They talk me through the damage, consequence And how it's a pain they know they don't understand Sobbing as they turn to statues at the bedside I'm trying not to crush into sand So flood me like Atlantic, weather me to nothing Wash away the blood on my hands Call me when they bury bodies underwater It's blue light over murder for me Crumble like a temple built from future daughters To wasteland when the oceans recede Don't wake me Don't wake me Don't wake me up Don't you wake (don't wake me) me up Don't wake me Oh (don't wake me up)
I hadn't considered that might be the case. I think I still maintain that Atlantic depicts the aftermath of a suicide attempt though, mainly with the lines "it's a pain they know they don't understand" and the plethora of self-harm lyrics throughout Sundowning. But that's the cool thing about this band: it's all open to interpretation!
@@BreakingBeard-yv2qt “it’s murder over blue lights for me”. Police lights are blue over there and the fact he uses the word murder. It’s murder/suicide. 😉
Spoiler warning: im going to talk about some of V's past, but won't mention specifics. Don't read this if you are avoiding that kind of information. . . . . As someone who also has stumbled upon his real identity, and listened to all of his material with BC, it seems obvious (maybe too obvious) that this is all about his partner in that project. There's not much to support that they were involved romantically, but i havent done an proper amount of investigation (and won't, out of respect; if he or she wants to talk about it publicly, that's up to them). If we assume they were though, I could imagine a scenario in which someone who maybe as introverted as he is talented (V) finally opening up to someone (G) and commencing a relationship that is passionate not only intimately, but artistically. V, who hypothetically may have struggled with personal connection in his past, would feel an overwhelming amount of love and bonding in this type of relationship. Then it didn't work out, for...who knows why. I won't even bother guessing. This is why I don't necessarily subscribe to the car crash idea. I think it's more likely that he's heartbroken...on a cosmic scale. People with depression tend to catastrophize; I know. Add in a once in generation song writing and vocal ability, and V is born. Finally, lyrically, there's such an abundance of spite in his music. Yes, he could be directing that inwards on some occasions, but i think it's more consistent with that which one experiences in a toxic romantic relationship. V went out of his way to put "B" in one song, and "C" in this one. That can't be overlooked
Thanks for including the spoiler warning, as I have also avoided looking into Vessel's past out of respect for his anonymity. As such, the information about his past was not a factor in my analysis. But the thing that makes his music powerful, in my opinion, is this blurring of the real and the metaphorical. Even if the underlying reality is that he suffered a relatively "normal" heartbreak/break up...it's clear that his internal world was thrown into complete turmoil. And I think a lot of people can map that very relatable feeling onto their own experiences and share in Vessel's suffering...sometimes people in your life "die" before they stop breathing.
@@BreakingBeard-yv2qt I've only just started actually paying attention to his lyrics, and I've been a fan since their (ST) second EP. I'm 38, obsessed with music, and this is the first artist that's inspired me to do that. Also wanted to express my agreement with your take on how this puts the bands future in a precarious spot. Moving on from whatever this is - that which has inspired this monumentally creative and beautiful trilogy of albums - what does that mean? Take the masks off and just go back to work? What does he write about? What will inspire him? Will we hear and feel the same passion going forward? Does he re-identify as Euclid like you hypothesized? Does he just end ST here? Once this tour cycle is complete, we might very well be floored by what LGF has up his sleeves
