Lyrics
[Verse 1]
Achilles, Achilles, Achilles, come down
Won’t you get up off, get up off the roof?
You’re scaring us and all of us, some of us love you
Achilles, it’s not much but there’s proof
You crazy-ass cosmonaut, remember your virtue
Redemption lies plainly in truth
Just humour us, Achilles, Achilles, come down
Won’t you get up off, get up off the roof?
[Sample]
1. Je vois que beaucoup de gens meurent, parce qu’ils estiment que la vie ne vaut pas la peine d’être vécue. J’en vois d’autres, qui se font paradoxalement tuer pour des idées, pour des illusions, qui leurs donnent une raison de vivre (ce, qu’on appelle une raison de vivre est en même temps une excellente raison de mourir)
[Verse 2]
Achilles, Achilles, Achilles, come down
Won’t you get up off, get up off the roof?
The self is not so weightless, nor whole and unbroken
Remember the pact of our youth
Where you go, I’m going, so jump and I’m jumping
Since there is no me without you
Soldier on, Achilles, Achilles, come down
Won’t you get up off, get up off the roof?
[Pre-Chorus]
Loathe the way they light candles in Rome
But love the sweet air of the votives
Hurt and grieve but don’t suffer alone
Engage with the pain as a motive
[Chorus]
Today, of all days, see
How the most dangerous thing is to love
How you will heal and you’ll rise above
[Sample]
2. D’un gérant d’immeuble qui s’était tué on disait un jour qu’il avait perdu sa fille depuis cinq ans, qu’il avait beaucoup changé depuis et que cette histoire l’avait-
[Verse 3]
Achilles, Achilles, Achilles, jump now
You are absent of cause or excuse
So self-indulgent and self-referential
No audience could ever want you
You crave the applause yet hate the attention
Then miss it, your act is a ruse
It is empty, Achilles, so end it all now
It’s a pointless resistance for you
[Sample]
3. Ce qui déclenche la crise est presque toujours incontrôlable. Les journaux parlent souvent de « chagrins intimes » ou de « maladie incurable ». Ces explications sont valables, mais il faudrait savoir si le jour même un ami du désespéré ne lui a pas parlé sur un ton indifférent. Celui‑là est le-
[Verse 4]
Achilles, Achilles, just put down the bottle
Don’t listen to what you’ve consumed
It’s chaos, confusion and wholly unworthy
Of feeding and it’s wholly untrue
You may feel no purpose nor a point for existing
It’s all just conjecture and gloom
And there may not be meaning, so find one and seize it
Do not waste yourself on this roof
[Pre-Chorus]
Hear those bells ring deep in the soul
Chiming away for a moment
Feel your breath course frankly below
And see life as a worthy opponent
[Chorus]
Today, of all days, see
How the most dangerous thing is to love
How you will heal and you’ll rise above
Crowned by an overture bold and beyond
Ah, it’s more courageous to overcome
[Sample]
4. Memories of a lost homeland, the hope of a promised land. This divorce between the man of her life-
[Bridge]
You want the acclaim, the mother of mothers
(It’s not worth it, Achilles)
More poignant than fame or the taste of another
(Don’t listen, Achilles)
But be real and just jump, you dense motherfucker
(You’re worth more, Achilles)
You will not be more than a rat in the gutter
(So much more than a rat)
You want my opinion, my opinion you’ve got
(No one asked your opinion)
You asked for my counsel, I gave you my thoughts
(No one asked for your thoughts)
Be done with this now and jump off the roof
(Be done with this now and get off the roof)
Can you hear me, Achilles? I’m talking to you
I’m talking to you
I’m talking to you
I’m talking to you
Achilles, come down
Achilles, come down
[Sample]
5. Celle du oui et celle du non. Ce serait trop beau. Mais il faut faire la part de ceux qui, sans conclure, interrogent toujours. Ici, j’ironise à peine : il s’agit de la majorité. Je vois également que ceux qui répondent non agissent comme s’ils pensaient oui. De fait-
[Pre-Chorus]
Throw yourself into the unknown
With pace and a fury defiant
Clothe yourself in beauty untold
And see life as a means to a triumph
[Chorus]
Today, of all days, see
How the most dangerous thing is to love
How you will heal and you’ll rise above
Crowned by an overture bold and beyond
Ah, it’s more courageous to overcome
Artist(s):
Gang of Youths is an Australian alternative rock band that founded in 2011 in Sydney, Australia. The group is comprised of David Le’aupepe as the lead vocalist and guitarist, Max Dunn as the lead bassist, Jung Kim on keyboard and backup guitar, Tom Hobden on keyboard, and Donnie Borzestowski as the lead drummer. Their top songs include “Achilles Come Down” (at over five million more streams than their second most popular song), “Let Me Down Easy”, “Magnolia”, and “the angel of 8th ave.”. They now reside in London.
Questions:
Who is Achilles?
Achilles (or Achilleus) was a Greek hero, thought to be the demigod son of Thetis, a sea nymph (or according to some, goddess), and Peleus, a demigod son of Zeus. He was raised by his father in the kingdom of Phthia. In his teenage years, he was taught, along with his close friend (or lover) Patroclus, by a centaur named Chiron on Mount Pelion. He was a key warrior and general in the Trojan War, ultimately facing his demise in one of the final battles of it. He is a key figure in Homer’s Iliad.
What is with the French?
There are multiple instances in the song where you can hear French prominently. These snippets of French are from an essay by French philosopher Albert Camus, “The Legend of Sisyphus.” This essay explores human existence, suicide, and the ability of humankind to search for a meaning for existence. He goes into depth about human nature, specifically relating to suicide, and attempts to highlight the absurdity of it.
The direct translations of each paragraph are:
- I see that many people die because they believe that life is not worth living. I see others who, paradoxically, are killed for ideas, for illusions that give them a reason to live (what we call a reason to live is, at the same time, an excellent reason to die).
- It was once said of a building manager who had killed himself that he had lost his daughter five years earlier, that he had changed a lot since then, and that the story had-
- What triggers the crisis is almost always uncontrollable. Newspapers often speak of “intimate sorrows” or “incurable illness”. These explanations are valid, but we need to know whether a friend of the despairing person has spoken to him or her in an indifferent tone. This one is the-
- Memories of a lost homeland, the hope of a promised land. This divorce between the man of her life-
- Yes and no. That would be too good. But we have to take into account those who, without coming to a conclusion, always ask questions. In this case, I’m hardly being ironic: we’re talking about the majority. I also see that those who answer no act as if they think yes. In fact-
My personal take:
Gang of Youths did a wonderful job of taking a historical event and using it as a metaphor for suicide. It is worth noting that “suicide” in this instance does not refer to just the act of taking your own life. It can also refer to letting your life devolve into such a state where you are not truly living, only surviving. For example, (and the reason i believe Achilles was such a good example to use) Achilles did not kill himself. Instead, he put himself in a position in which he knew he was to be killed due to his recklessness that surfaced after the loss of his relationship with Patroclus, for Patroclus had died to keep Achilles’s reputation in tact and to not loose the war. The song portrays the many voices that may have been talking to him, from his enemies to his friends, and fades in and out of each fighting voice. The bridge is a wonderful example of this.
Music For Millions - Music Interpreting 