Seventh Wonder Song Meanings

[Shadowsoul]

Yeah that's really interesting, one of the things i love about seventh wonder is the various ways in which things can be interpreted. Shows how much thought and intellect is behind each song

 

[Detective Clarence Beauregard]

Anyone know the meaning behind Wiseman?

 

[mad_taffer]

My immediate thought was that it has something to do with Nostradamus...but i'm not sure he used a crystal ball...i think he just used mirrors in a dark room. But most of what he saw was destruction, hence my thoughts.

 

[Bronnen]

I have a feeling that most of the songs on this album are mythological based.

King of Whitewater makes me think of the Fisher king. Wiseman makes me think of Merlin.

Actually, when I think about it, almost all of the songs other than Alley Cat make me think of Arthurian legends.

 

[luke1304]

I have a feeling that most of the songs on this album are mythological based.

King of Whitewater makes me think of the Fisher king. Wiseman makes me think of Merlin.

Actually, when I think about it, almost all of the songs other than Alley Cat make me think of Arthurian legends.

move on through ans long way home have pretty "normal" everyday life lyrics i would say. LOng way home is the classic "i feel bad" ballad and move on through is about the different situations one can be in in life and how music can "ease up all of the rashes inside"

i would not consider them mythological in any way.
thoughts?

PS: alley cat is just a big question mark still

 

[sirclansman]

Anyone know the meaning behind Wiseman?

I would guess Andreas wrote that song about himself..?

Ok, seriously, I like to think like luke1304 over here:

move on through ans long way home have pretty "normal" everyday life lyrics i would say. LOng way home is the classic "i feel bad" ballad and move on through is about the different situations one can be in in life and how music can "ease up all of the rashes inside"

Those songs, which are quite catchy also, seems to tell about normal ordinary life, and I guess band like to be it that way.

 

[Shadowsoul]

Anyone know the meaning behind Wiseman?

Aside from TGE, i think Wiseman has the best concept of the album. The story behind it is quite obvious from the lyrics, although the Wiseman himself is a mysterious entity. I'm guessing he's some sort of supreme being, watching over everybody whilst they go down with the ship. "While he cries, utopia dies" somewhat implies this, he's watching from afar whilst everyone's life ends.

 

[Kazar]

Regarding 'Wiseman': you don't need to look that far away like you've all done...

 

[Kazar]

Sorry Shadowsoul, but 'Wiseman' is not about a tragedy on a ship.
The lyrics "....The band still playing but the captain resigns. And as we're all going down...." symbolises a much bigger problem.

We talked about (the lack of) cohesion between the songs in another thread (Forum reviews) but there definitely is a connection between 'Wiseman' and another song on the album - and I'm not even talking about the two songs that are really 'personally' connected.
I think that the problems told in the story of Wiseman can be seen as a reason for 'an enourmous undertaking' later on!
Simply amazing songconnection!

The capital T in Tellus (look in your booklet) is there for a reason. Google it and try to make a connection with the other song.
By the way; I found two great references to the other song in the lyrics from the soft part in 'Wiseman'.

 

[luke1304]

By the way; I found two great references to the other song in the lyrics from the soft part in 'Wiseman'.

spot on, exactly my thoughts. It just crossed my mind as i read the Wiseman lyrics again.

how cool is that? I always couldn't get any sense out of Wiseman, but seeing it in the light of The Great Escape it makes perfect sense. Genius songwriting

I think "the band's still playing while the captain resigns" is only a metaphor for a situation like it was on the titanic. Meaning something bad happens ("Utopia dies") but people keep on pretending everything is allright ("you keep [your eyes] closed with all your might").


Let's imagine this beautiful paradise before us rise
Now open your eyes
Watching this land
Once majestic and grand
Still I can't feel the truth in my hand
I keep spreading this bad disease
And fall down on my knees
Because I'm here to confess
And I'm sorry goddess!
But she's quiet today
Silent as if to say;
-Fly away!

Perfectly resembles the problem that mankind has hurt the earth and the earth (the goddess in this case, other than Mima in TGE itsself) tells the people to "fly away"

 

[RuRoRul]

I always thought that from the soft part in Wiseman too - the "Fly away" at the end really makes it seem similar. I never noticed the Tellus thing - that probably makes it even more likely that that's what Wiseman is talking about. Didn't Andreas say at one point that even though the album wasn't a concept album, some of the songs were related to the TGE concept in some way and that there was a general theme? I always thought Wiseman was kind of like an introduction to that theme.

 

[Shadowsoul]

Oh wow, i'd never really looked into wiseman, i just took it for what it was and assumed the simple obvious concept. That's really quite cool. When i'm sat concentrating on the music, i try to imagine the song playing out in my head and always just imagined what i said earlier. With lines like "when your children turn to you, asking when the world is gone, will we go to" aswell as some of the other lines which i now realize are metaphors rather than descriptions of the tragedy, i always just saw families struggling for survival onboard a sinking ship and whatnot.

So Kazar, what is your full explanation of Wiseman? Is it not so much telling it's own story, but instead describing the process of the earths death as a prelude to TGE? If so, who or what do you interpret as being Wiseman?

 

[sirclansman]

but there definitely is a connection between 'Wiseman' and another song on the album - and I'm not even talking about the two songs that are really 'personally' connected.
I think that the problems told in the story of Wiseman can be seen as a reason for 'an enourmous undertaking' later on!
Simply amazing songconnection!
:

Lot has been said in this topic, but I guess there's a third song connected with Wiseman and TGE also.. But like Kazar said, simply amazing songconnection.

 

[Kazar]

.....So Kazar, what is your full explanation of Wiseman? Is it not so much telling it's own story, but instead describing the process of the earths death as a prelude to TGE? If so, who or what do you interpret as being Wiseman?

It definitely is a prelude to TGE but I guess it can be seen as a seperate story as well. We all know damn well that we are killing the earth, but the question is, 'what do we do about that?'

"Fallen....by the hands of your lies"
YOU are the 'Wiseman', I am the 'Wiseman', we are all responsible.
We look, we see and we cry but we 'sway in silence and don't want to believe what we know is true'.

 

[RuRoRul]

I never realised that was what the Wiseman part meant... though I never thought too much about it but it explains what Andreas said at one point. I have a new appreciation for Wiseman thinking of that - and the song has grown on me anyway since I got the album. I always loved the soft part, and I especially love the verses, the slow lead guitar bit towards the end of the verses, and the instrumental which even sounds like A Day Away at times.

Since we've had talk of King Of Whitewater, The Angelmaker and Wiseman, what about Long Way Home? The lyrics seemed like they were simple and self explanatory at first, but now I'm not so sure. Seems to be about an abusive family, but what's with the "how can keys just disappear?" Are they afraid because they've lost their keys or something?

 

[mad_taffer]

I think "how can key's just disappear", could be referring to an argument between spouses or boyfriend/girlfriend. The song seems to be surrounded by the idea that the protagonist of the song has made mistakes. This a typical thing that people get in fights over..."have you seen my keys", "No I haven't touched them", "How can keys just disappear?!!!" Home is where you lay your head, which doesn't necessarily mean it's the home you want to be in. It seems to suggest that he had doubts that he will ever have that perfect family..."now do you think that's going to happen to me".

 

[Kazar]

Lot has been said in this topic, but I guess there's a third song connected with Wiseman and TGE also.. But like Kazar said, simply amazing songconnection.

Can you elaborate on your third song connected with Wiseman and TGE?

Andreas already explained two songs in your interview: 'The Angelmaker' and 'King of Whitewater'.
'The Angelmaker': In Sweden during the late eighteen hundreds a lot of children were born by poor, unwed young women. They were often forced to hand their children away because they could not care for them. The government then paid for orphanages to care for the children. Some privately run such institution made a routine of abusing the children and not feeding them properly etc. until they finally died, and turned into angels supposedly. This song deals with a famous Swedish, such angelmaker, that was ultimately sentenced to death.

'King of Whitewater': It is based on Swedish folklore, about a being who plays the violins in the rapids in the woods, luring people into the water and then drowns them.

Reading your thoughts about 'Move on through' and 'Long way home' - see top of page 2 - can only mean that you see a connection between 'Alley Cat' and 'Wiseman/The Great Escape' and that is in my opinion not the case.
Share your thoughts, I'm curious

 

[Kazar]

I'm gonna give a little hint about 'Long way home', just to show you (eventually) what an amazing writer Tommy is:
The word 'belly' is there for a reason!

 

[RuRoRul]

They're pregnant? Which is why they're afraid their family is going to be bad just like the one they came from?

Also how do you know so much about the songs? Are you just that good at interpreting them?

Also honestly the only song other than TGE that I thought of as being connected to Wiseman in any way (before discussing this) was King Of Whitewater because of the "she's trying not to drown". A spurious connection I know, but I just remember thinking of King Of Whitewater during it.

 

[dr_petter]

Also how do you know so much about the songs? Are you just that good at interpreting them?

Travelling across Europe to talk to Tommy helps!

There are hints for pregnancy. The "aching belly" and "building a perfect family".

Personally - and not having spoken with Tommy about it - I think these lyrics are about somebody who's regretting something bad he/she has done. Knowing that he/she will destroy the family life back home once the truth is out, hesitating to go there.

Cheers!

Explain to us, Lord Kazar!