Please help me figure out some lyrics (warning: indie rock content)

Bit of an obscure song, but i'm just trying to figure out the lyrics to this record:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kg4mabKjmxU

The song is 'So Blind' by the Minneapolis indie band Dragnet, I've must've listened to this song about 2,000 since I bought it in 1988 and I'm still no closer to deciphering what he's singing in the second verse (starts at 1:44). I'm hearing this:

Suddenly
Frustrations mount
Ah ??? ??? ???
Yeah ??? ??? ???
Clockwork
??? ??? ???
I'm sad and blue
So sad and blue

If you have a couple of minutes I would greatly appreciate some new ears!

I missed the train?
Watchin' my shoe?

haha, could be!

Washing machine?

a clockwork washing machine? no wonder his frustrations are mounting

Sounds like 'I missed the train, yeah I missed the train... walk to work'

Walk to work, yes.

Will have to reconsider washing machine. Unless he works at a laundromat

I'm getting flavours of '...clockwork watch might steal' for that second bit? Doesn't make a lot of sense though

I'm pretty sure it's miss(ed) the train/walk(ed) to work, and something about a shoe.

"What's on my shoe?"

?

getting a 'steal' or a 'still' or even a 'shield' at the end of that line rather than an 'shoe'. 'words might shield'?

(Note to God: please don't let it be 'what's on my shoe?', thanks big entity)

What's *in* my shoe?

'warts might heal'?

'what's my deal'?

I dunno, "shoe" rhymes with "blue", and also would fit in to the travelling vibe if we're assuming that missing the train and walking to work are correct (and I am assuming that). So I'm sticking with something about a shoe. Keep trying to make "shit on my shoe" work but it's not that.

youngest reckons it's 'missile train' / 'what's at the zoo', think i'm probably gonna get his ears syringed on monday

I'm fairly sure it's the accent but it also sounds like it could be "I messed the train" - maybe the whole thing is about poop?

hitting rhymezone to see if i can find any good alternatives to 'train', currently favouring 'egyptian henbane', 'tympanic membrane' or 'polyurethane'. would love it to be 'superficial middle cerebral vein' but that doesn't quite scan

http://www.rhymezone.com/r/rhyme.cgi?Word=rain&typeofrhyme=perfect

please don't let this be a poop song, i have all my other records for that

I was always told that you can go blind if you touch animal faeces, the song is called 'So Blind' -> there was shit on his shoe and he touched it, that's what the song is about.

godammit emily, now i'm hearing 'there's no chain' for the first bit. it's all poo isn't it? entire world has turned to poo

ah this'll change / yeah this'll change

everything i've ever loved! *weeps tears of shit*

xp

ooh i definitely prefer that option!

this'll change - yeah could be
what should i do? Maybe?

nah it's not "what should i do"

thanks! i think it's something along those lines. the rest of the song is just general though ambiguous stuff about shifting emotional states and believing in the promises you make to yourself that things will get better one day. no mention of any specific events, places, trains, shoes, or indeed losing your vision due to toxocariasis.

first verse: i feel oblivious / what's going on? / backwards / i feel so tense / it's okay, yeah it's okay
third verse: all at once / i feel so good / what an illusion / expecting the best to come / i know it will / i'm waiting still

according to Schaeffer himself, second verse goes like that (and because i suck uploading images here, otherwise i would post a scan, you'll have to trust my transcription ipsis verbis)

Suddenly frustrations mount, there so tame
Yeah there so tame
Clockwork whats my scheme
Sad and blue,so sad and blue

Hmm realizing this is a cool way to trick people into listening to obscure bands/songs they otherwise might not be motivated to check out on recommendation alone!

novel pronunciation of 'scheme'!

oh wow, thank you very much gaudio! :)

you're welcome!

This may not be as much fun as the OP because I haven't identified blanks to fill in among the lyrics, but this is one of my favorite songs that is great to sing along with for as much of it is intelligible. This is the case with most of their material, as it's really tuneful and catchy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xy9tUNIHX9c

OP song is great! The drummer seems like he's trying to make up his mind whether he wants to do a fill and then changes his mind mid-fill... an unusual balance of restraint and excess, id/ego.

Yeah agreed on the creative drumming

it is so great! i bought unheard it on the strength of a review in 'sounds' magazine that promised it was a cross between husker du and joy division. not far off, but it's that lovely wistful keyboard thing that really does it for me and they definitely get that from either of those two bands

definitely *didn't* get that from either of those two bands

The bassline alone gave me the Joy Division vibe but not enough to describe it as sounding like them overall.

evan, i got the first line of your song but after that i was struggling. sounds like someone yelling something from a passing car!

"you said to me why don't you like meeee, i hayyyay vallley aaaaa waheeeeyyyyy..."

*smiles* *waves back*

Hahaha yes exactly!

FWIW that second line is “I haven’t thought about it in that way”, but from there on it’s all “something something fucking asshole something something” etc

starkweather444 said...

Does anyone have the "So Blind/Around The World" single? I am desperate!!!!
June 27, 2011 at 2:41 PM

shimpala said...

@starkweather444, I could probably help you get the single if you're still looking for it. The drummer is my husband.
April 30, 2012 at 7:54 AM

life partner of dragnet drummer is a good soul - official