Reply To: Artificial Heart discussion
As far as Jonathan Coulton’s record Artificial Heart by Jonathan Coulton from the Jonathan Coulton record Artificial Heart by Jonathan Coulton goes…
My interpretation is something along the lines of a guy who’s got his heart broken – or worn down or otherwise damaged. Possibly literally and metaphorically.
And then, by the way of complicated medical science-procedures, he’s given a new heart, an artificial robotic one which doesn’t have to care (but which possibly simulates caring in a cardiovascular operating environment). “Now I can imagine how I’d feel,” “I don’t need to think at all if I don’t care for you” and all.
It’s a song about killing your emotions, or destroying old feelings that you don’t want to have anymore, and possibly destroying yourself a bit in the process.
At least, that’s how I hear it.
In other news, The World Belongs To You, am I the only one who hears it as a searing indictment of celebrity-culture, especially of the X-Factor and Some Country’s Got Talent variety?
Starts out with, BOOM, someone becomes the center the world, angels sing their name, they’re “who all the stars revolve around,” then cut to the limousines and a world that’s looking darker. I mean, they tend to do that through tinted windows, obviously, and also through the celebrity-fatigue that JoCo’s covered before.
Then “your time is almost through and even your angels think you’re done,” and the character in question is getting “bigger every day,” as in going to seed or, well, pulling a classic Elvis.
Again, that’s just how I hear it.