Stop Breathin
| Title | Stop Breathin |
|---|---|
| Artist | Pavement |
| Album | Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain |
| Release Date | 1994-02-14 |
| Description | “Stop Breathin'” has been hailed as one of the top 100 indie songs of the 1990’s by multiple critics such as Pitchfork and Guitar World. It is the third track off of Pavement’s most successful album, Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain. In high school, lead singer Stephen Malkmus played tennis competitively, and “Stop Breathin'” makes several references to this one-on-one sport. “Stop Breathin” also relates a soldier’s emotional struggle. The phrase “Stop breathing” suggests death, but with the shortening of “breathing” to “breathin',” a tone of apathy towards the loss of life becomes apparent. The song begins with references to war and the act of killing and later transitions into a song about the emotional toll of these acts on an individual. |
| Lyrics | [Verse 1] Got struck by the first volley Of the war in the court Never held my serve Send 'em a wire, give 'em my best This ammunition never rests No one serves coffee, no one wakes up [Chorus] Stop breathin' Stop breathin' Breathin' for me now Write it on a postcard Dad, they broke me Dad, they broke me [Chorus] Stop breathin' Stop breathin' Breathin' for me now Write it on a postcard Dad, they broke me Dad, they broke me [Verse 2] I can see the lines open shutters And the leaves flocked on a grid That's what they made my hero say Nothing gets me off so completely Then when you put it down, ten feet down in the ground Call it response, negative home [Chorus] Stop breathin' Stop breathin' Breathin' for me now Write it on a postcard Dad, they broke me Dad, they broke me [Chorus] Stop breathin' Stop breathin' Breathin' for me now Write it on a postcard Dad, they broke me You might also like[Guitar Solo] |