"pushit" (iAMtheMA!'s take)

[iAMtheMA!]

(please be unwilling to quote the following in it's entirety as it is the thread's main statement - and a lengthy one at that)


heh, "take this as you will"... it's a whole lot of random. if you're familiar with the track (and tool's entire discography), i'm sure you'll have no problem.

first of all, in "the patient", "a groan of tedium escapes me" refers to "i sold my soul to make a record". think about it. and tool has indeed presented a test for all of us...

(now get vulnerable)

i imagine this track ("pushit") as the thoughts of maynard (possibly while on tour). the day-in and day-out grind of their efforts. another night goes by, another show of maynard reflecting upon US ("while i smile and laugh and dance and sing your praise and glory"), another night of connecting with his fans (on a level that we could comprehend) - it's very spiritual to him; he is quite vulnerable, and absolutely open to all of us willing to recieve. in all this time, (and feel free to take the following idea throughout tool's entire discography) he has been trying to convert our perversed humanization into an awareness of our light bodies (merkaba) so that we can go beyond and rediscover communication through compassion and LOVE. and after each show, he thinks to himself, "i saw the gap again today" - notice how faint and deep within the track it sounds. and their shows fuckin' kick ass, so of course we praise 'em - "you were begging me to stay". then he warns, maybe while looking directly at us (as if we were meant to FEEL his thoughts), "take care not to make me enter" ...'cause i imagine someone as spiritually connected to the source, as he apparently is, could easily give THIS shithole up (if not for desire to save all of us), "'cause if i do, we both may disappear" - maynard could easily depart from this wavelength of consciousness, at any given moment, but "what are they going to do when the lights go down?", we'd be left without instruction; to "tremble incessantly". what are we to do? well, due to the evident changes ahead of us, many of us would be doomed to repeat and potentially increase our self-destructive ways within this new reality ...if not for tool. they're trying to prepare us for the next shift in consciousness - to forty-six & 2 - which is coming whether you're ready for it or not! everything is already in place for it to happen RIGHT NOW! and once you're on the other side of this shift (see "aenema" and "the grudge"), you're either fearful (and creating a world based on fear), or you're absolutely ready to embrace peace and love - it's a simple matter of perception (inner sight or whatnot). preparation for this takes MUCH discipline and meditation. the egyptians dedicated an entire school to multiple trials and endurance runs in order prepare for accension, to destroy the limitations of fear, to master love. it isn't as difficult as it seems, just go with your intuition and the rest usually falls into place. imagine a void, nothingness, what would go through your mind? well, as with most people i know, fear often replaces what's unknown; if love was the way, however... ready? NOW consider the lyrics: "saturn (the god of harvest, btw) comes back around to SHOW you everything, let's you choose what you will or will not SEE and then drags you down like a stone OR LIFTS YOU UP AGAIN, spits you out like a child, LIGHT and innocent" - the ultimate warning and truth for all of us to consider, to get us moving - "lie dead beneath the undertow" and "learn to swim" - basically. something is indeed coming, and sooner than later. heh, "mom's gonna fix it all soon". but, really, it's not a time to fear. it's merely a time to move, to prepare. maynard surely notices the amount of sold-out venues around the world, and probably feels a certain oneness with the audience (it's his reflection) - so, if you're really worried about any of this, just skip to "the patient" (he's gonna wait it out ...maybe). but above all else, remember that he doesn't want to be here, this is his ultimate sacrifice. he's doing this for all of us and even lets us know starting at "(you) put me somewhere i don't wanna be" which sounds distance and unconnected to us, right? he's whining, yes, but it's absolutely warranted. my suggestion to everyone: when the beat gets really fuckin' heavy, violently harsh and pounding, MOVE TO IT!, get into the song, and FEEL maynard's frustration - 'cause it's a tantrum. the voice behind the words in this track are of pain, of feeling vvvvvvery incomplete. i often cry to this idea, breaking down into a state of guilt and compassion (i could never wish to keep someone so pure from reaching whatever they deserve - and the compassion only makes me want to help him along, get him going). to get us off our asses, here's the reminder: "if when i say i might fade like a sigh if i stay" as a divine creature with infinite possibilites realized, maynard presents to us: "you minimize my movement anyway". as amazing as tool has affected all of us (and i think people need to investigate WHY they've been drawn to it), it's nothing special to him and only holds him back ("a groan of tedium escapes me"). there's more for him somewhere beyond all of us, and who are we to keep him from any of it? again, we keep taking away from his being. "i must persuade you another way: THERE'S NO LOVE IN FEAR!" <- "and soooo loud!" now, this is the part of the song where he pushes us back, and it's soooo effective: "(yeah) staring down the hole again hands upon my back again, survival is my only friend ...i'm terrified of what may come (oh yeah)" and the departing words, words to live by: "remember i will always love you even as i tear your fuckin' throat away, it'll end no other way, it'll end no other way". "learn to swim i'll see you down in arizona bay" ...meditate and connect, that's all that means. he's waiting for us even now, i'm sure of it.

[mjkajdcjc]

Damn, that's elaborate...

[HelenA]

Crikey. I will have to give this some more thought. I thought GTCrace had it all sorted:

http://toolnavy.com/showthread.php?t=9039

But now I am not so sure. I certainly is an amazing song. Mmmm - going to listen again and think about it a bit more.

[iAMtheMA!]

well, what's nice about many of my interpretations is that the lyrical analysis' i present are almost perfectly confirmed by the music behind it, it's all connected and to be felt as a complete composition. and as with my ideas behind "undertow", this is a track that clearly marks a person's stride, or stance (which is actually more precise here). the song is to be felt through maynard. you need to understand what he has been going through for us, what it means to remain on this wavelength or consciousness - that is the reason for this track. also, this guy is so spiritually connected that he's able to completely disconnect from our ground and travel beyond the random (probably through the regular utilization of his merkaba meditations). "what's holding up is a mirror" (h.), "what is this but my reflection" (pushit). now, imagine that maynard could peacefully float before us and all we seem to want to do is push and shove him around; even though it is out of deep appreciation and "totally void of hate". up until 1:25, you're to feel his natural movement and the thought process that goes with it. but then comes the "pushing and shoving" effect we've created. to the left, the right, inconsistent, and harsh; this is not the movement he'd feel comfortable with. at 1:48 he finally pushes us back, and even suggests that IF we truely loved him, we probably wouldn't show such appreciation through pushing and shoving ..."find another way to express yourself, fan". at 2:00, maynard pushes us away completely, let's go, and continues into his original stride and flow. but then, at 2:34, the "pushing and shoving" effect starts up yet again! ten seconds in, and as before, he tries to remind us of what it means to love. kinda like, "hey, you dumb and belligerent fucker - just choose to let go already ...you'll like this!" but this time it only intensifies. he draws the situation out, large enough for us to see it clearly - to understand how he feels, that "it's killing me just the same", especially since he's compromising his time with his son, to here for us. we are the snake, and "the snake behind me hisses what my damage could have been", an image of what it is to be human, the "damaged and broken". a snake would "lie, cheat, and steal". again, by doing all of this for us, not only is it taking away from his self and into a state of true incompletion, but "my blood before me begs me to open up my heart again" - he's juggling the two forces and it's "considerately killing" him. 2:57. we're at another show, i imagine, and in keeping with my initial take of this track, this locks in with "slipping back into the gap again", when he's alive for us. it's happening and in the moment, we've caught up to the present time (after the show, he'll think to himself "i saw the gap again today", but that's in the future). at the show, he hears us screaming HIS praise and glory instead of reflecting upon ourselves. 3:30. "but i'd trade it all for just a little piece of mind", to cure the tension that's "considerately killing" him. at this time he's holding on to us, trying to turn us around, trying to see eye to eye, and yelling "something has got to go!" ...and it certainly won't be his son (devo). this new effort or plea pushes us back in the same way as before, just let him go, listen to the music, and find it for yourself already. we keep grabbing for him through praise, "you're pushing and shoving, and scrambling to keep my feet flat on the ground!" BAM!!! it is in THAT violent downbeat that our spiritual and free-floating maynard is held onto by the masses, tight, painfully, and enough to pull him onto the ground. 3:53 is the tandrum. maynard fuckin' hates it on the ground, he had already run away, he has already climbed "to a new place". ..."never want to see that place again". yeah. witness manyard's violent struggle against this reality. after all, 44+2, or polar consciousness, is but a stepping stone - we should not want to remain here for long; get to the other side already - again, maynard's waiting.

questions?

[HelenA]

Why don't you believe in paragraphs? Lol. What did you think of GTCrace's interpretation? I have been listening to it all afternoon but I am still struggling...

[iAMtheMA!]

heh, i also don't capitalize letters (every letter is just as unimportant).

i clearly see this track as a struggle between himself and the fans he has created ("what is this but my reflection, who am i to judge or strike you down?"), just as devo is a reflection of maynard as well - "h." is the comparison of two maynard-created entities fighting for maynard's attention and love (psst! devo will win this one, fellas). he realizes that he probably shouldn't push on us because he could never misinterpret "do unto others" in such a way. "love your friends, love your enemy" is probably where he's at. but it's beyond excuse now, flat out, "you minimize my movement". i just can't seem to find an ounce of his mother in this entire track, and i'm trying for the life of me. we could go line for line, sure, but the "reflection" line makes this obvious enough. what does maynard's light bounce off of? us and devo. his reflections. skip to "10,000 days" for a moment - judith's light is unto maynard, maynard is a relfection of her ...and so it is proclaimed to his being "you are the light and way that they will only read about" before he's tossed from the ethereal planes or whatever, before being tossed into this world, before "saturn...spits you out like a child, LIGHT and innocent". light, not as in weight, mind you. the oedipal complex does not apply to this song, i assure you. but please, if necessary, come at me with your thought process, maybe certain adaptations can be adopted.

[iAMtheMA!]

upon further review of JTCrace's entire "pushit" thread, i am indeed pleased that someone else is as passionate as i've been in disclosing a truth ...nevertheless, the interpretation seemed synthesized from the very base "maybe an oedipal complex fits!" theory - and then scrambling to prove it, taking us into a womb that doesn't exist, quoting movies like fight club, and degrading each person who tries to disprove him/her - saying things like: "i understand that the oedipal drama is a difficult one to swallow", "of course another reason why some of you may reject my interpretation is because you have repressed oedipal desires yourself", "i believe it to be very easy to glean a general interpretation of this tune", and "by using the translation excuse you have completely avoided any sort of real discussion" (whatever that means). the oedipus complex is not that difficult at all; fuck, they got us to read that shit in the sixth grade (when i was 12 years old!). i'd rather create interpretations based on context and educated filtering than base theories, i expect much more from a band as powerfully connected. and absolute props to paraflux in that thread; the dude had an amazing feel for the track (i'm very proud of his interpretation), i've realized this despite the few times we've run up against each other (the reason i've got the "hush" line in the signature, mind you).

[TurdEye13]

too complicated for my simple mind.

[iAMtheMA!]

i'd be glad to walk people through the following lyrics, but are there any changes necessary before i do so (just in case)?



"pushit"

i saw the gap again today (yeah) while you were begging me to stay
take care not to make me enter ('cause?) if i do we both may disappear

you now that i will choke until i swallow choke this infant here before me
what is this but my reflection who am i to judge or strike you down
but you were pushing and shoving me pushing and shoving me
pushing and shoving me pushing and shoving me and
pushing and shoving me pushing and shoving me and
pushing and shoving me pushing and shoving me
you still love me you still love me pu'shit on me push it on me
you still love me you still love me pu'shit on me push it on me

rest your trigger on my finger bang my head upon the fault line
you better take care not to make me enter 'cause if i do we both may disappear
but you were pushing and shoving me you were pushing and shoving me
(yeah) pushing and shoving me pushing and shoving me
you still love me you still love me pu'shit on me pushit on me
you're pushing and shoving me pushing and shoving me

(yeah) i'm slipping back into the gap again
i'm alive when you're touching me alive when you're shoving me down
(hey) but i'd trade it all for just a little piece of mind
pushit on me pushit on me pushit on me pushit on me
you're pushing and shoving and scrambling to keep my feet flat on the ground

i am somewhere i don't want to be (yeah) you pushed me somewhere i don't wanna be
you put me someplace i don't want to be seeing someplace i don't wanna see
i never wanna see that place again

i saw the gap again today (yeah) while you were begging me to stay
managed to push myself away and you as well my dear
if when i say i may fade like a sigh if i stay you minimize my movement anyway
well i must persuade you another way pushing and shoving
and pushing and shoving and pushing me there's no love in fear

(yeah) i'm staring down the hole again hands are on my back again
survival is my only friend i'm terrified of what may come (oh yeah)
remember i will always love you if i claw your fucking throat away
it will end no other way it will end no other way

[rintoot]

i dont know where ive been, but i never found this song to be great or anything, ive started listening to it because of the resounding obsession with it on this board...now i understand

[notregistered]

I think it's a song about an ex of his. They felt love for eachother but she loved him a lot more than he loved her. He tried to push her away because he could no longer reciprocate her feelings for him. I think it might be about Devo's mom, since this was written around when she would have gotten pregnant. She might have been trying to get him to make a commitment to her... hence "you minimized my movement anyway".
As maynard said before playing the song on the second show of the 98 tour;
"This song is uhh... Kinda a special dedication to a very special person who has uhh... come an incredible distance since this song was written. Uhh... It's not really relevant to this person anymore. We're not even the same people we were when it was written. But, this kind of a tribute to her because she worked so hard and come so far. This song goes out to Quiet."

Maynrd's not Jesus. He's not the messiah and he's not better than everyone else. He doesn't know some grand secret and he's not trying to enlighten us all through his words. I swear some people think he should be worshipped.

[iAMtheMA!]

Maynrd's not Jesus. He's not the messiah and he's not better than everyone else. He doesn't know some grand secret and he's not trying to enlighten us all through his words. I swear some people think he should be worshipped.
moron.

[notregistered]

That's just my opinion. I don't give half a fuck if you want to start a church following him or whatever. I don't think he's a martyr and he wouldn't want to be one anyway.
But please tell me why you think that's a moronic statement.

[iAMtheMA!]

well, i mean, after reading in and out of these brilliant compositions (and reflecting), it becomes clear to me that too many of us are still completely reliant upon whatever authorities tool has been trying to sway the collective from since before opiate. according to maynard (and the mars volta, meshuggah, et al.), there is a deep secret hidden beyond the lies (and beneath our skin). and despite suffering, a man of pure intention is indeed trying to change the world's collective unconscious ...so, if not "disappointing", what's a tool fan who doesn't get into the music?

"maybe you're better off this way"

[notregistered]

I do agree with you that Maynard must be fustrated with his fans. He has always said "think for yourself and question authority" but so few of them actually do it. He has always wanted people to evolve, not physically but mentally, but people are still docile, complacent and sheep-like.
So he may be dissapointed with us. But I don't think that's what this song is about. Some songs are just a lot more complicated than others in meaning.

[HelenA]

As maynard said before playing the song on the second show of the 98 tour;
"This song is uhh... Kinda a special dedication to a very special person who has uhh... come an incredible distance since this song was written. Uhh... It's not really relevant to this person anymore. We're not even the same people we were when it was written. But, this kind of a tribute to her because she worked so hard and come so far. This song goes out to Quiet."


Mmmm - this is interesting - casts a whole new light on the situation - it sould easily be about someone he is trying to evict from his life. Ever so gently - of course!! I have been in this position and Pushit does ring very true from this perspective.

It would be awful to hear Maynard sing this song and know that it is about you - there are some harsh thoughts in there.

Try as I may I cannot seem to see this song being about Maynard's relationship with us - his fans.

I do agree with you that Maynard must be fustrated with his fans. He has always said "think for yourself and question authority" but so few of them actually do it. He has always wanted people to evolve, not physically but mentally, but people are still docile, complacent and sheep-like.
So he may be dissapointed with us. But I don't think that's what this song is about. Some songs are just a lot more complicated than others in meaning.

I wonder about this as well. Surely the bell curve traps us again: there are a few fans who have embraced the Tool "message" and created something new and wonderful; and a few fans have not heard the "message" at all and then there are a lot of fans in between. At varying levels we have all listened with some level of response. I just cannot see Maynard as the musical redeemer of the world. Although, if I DID have to nominate someone he would be right up there.

I also doubt if he spends his evenings getting cranky with us. I think he is watching the news, drinking wine, gardening, playing with his boy, buying Christmas presents etc.

[UtUmNo1]

well, i mean, after reading in and out of these brilliant compositions (and reflecting), it becomes clear to me that too many of us are still completely reliant upon whatever authorities tool has been trying to sway the collective from since before opiate. according to maynard (and the mars volta, meshuggah, et al.), there is a deep secret hidden beyond the lies (and beneath our skin). and despite suffering, a man of pure intention is indeed trying to change the world's collective unconscious ...so, if not "disappointing", what's a tool fan who doesn't get into the music?

"maybe you're better off this way"

I may be in the wrong section here but, can you be serious???!

I even thought about quoting a Tool lyric at you but then I realised how lame that would be.

So The Matrix actually exists right and a couple of douchebags called Omar Rodriguez and Bazaar la cokaroche Sandalwood in some shitty band know all about it, but I don't???

That's what your implying, isn't it?

[iAMtheMA!]

my posts haven't been all that indirect, UtUmNo1, and who the fuck ever mentioned the matrix? also, if tmv is "shitty", then what bands do you consider to be "not shitty"?

edit: as i've said before, i'm nearly certain that my interpretations are wrong ...so, there's no real point in mentioning that it could or couldn't be a certain way without something to back it up. all of these little bits of information (including what was known of "quiet"), led me to the above translation. as far as i can tell, it fits, it's in context, and it's still probably wrong. certainly, the message behind my interpretations could inspire, and it wouldn't be such a bad song to write or listen to (it'd be better than "passive").

i don't think that maynard would ever watch the news or celebrate christmas.

[HelenA]

i don't think that maynard would ever watch the news or celebrate christmas.

Why?

[UtUmNo1]

I mentioned The Matrix as an example of the big secret that some douchebag in a band apparently knows and I do not...

I'm also intrigued as to why a specific band member wouldn't be concerned with current affairs???

[iAMtheMA!]

good job, "the matrix" was an excellent example of what maynard, bill hicks, chomsky, et al (let's not "specify" here - oh shit!) know beyond you're capacities. (i'm wondering now if you even saw the movie - but, even more so, why would someone compare anything if they have no fuckin idea about either issue)...

and "why" don't i think that maynard would ever watch the news or celebrate christmas???

why do you think? ...think. pure information will always be compromised when greed is involved. i'd hate to do something "lame" like quote people, but "it has been... the political, the religious, the educational authorities who've attempted to comfort us by giving us order, rules, regulations, informing, forming in our minds their view of reality." how could someone possibly think he'd pay any attention to christmas or the news with this in mind? those two events will make you stupid.

and no one wants to become another UtUmNo1. (heh, easy now)

[HelenA]

good job, "the matrix" was an excellent example of what maynard, bill hicks, chomsky, et al (let's not "specify" here - oh shit!) know beyond you're capacities. (i'm wondering now if you even saw the movie - but, even more so, why would someone compare anything if they have no fuckin idea about either issue)...

and "why" don't i think that maynard would ever watch the news or celebrate christmas???

why do you think? ...think. pure information will always be compromised when greed is involved. i'd hate to do something "lame" like quote people, but "it has been... the political, the religious, the educational authorities who've attempted to comfort us by giving us order, rules, regulations, informing, forming in our minds their view of reality." how could someone possibly think he'd pay any attention to christmas or the news with this in mind? those two events will make you stupid.

and no one wants to become another UtUmNo1. (heh, easy now)

I cannot follow your logic at all.

[UtUmNo1]

good job, "the matrix" was an excellent example of what maynard, bill hicks, chomsky, et al (let's not "specify" here - oh shit!) know beyond you're capacities. (i'm wondering now if you even saw the movie - but, even more so, why would someone compare anything if they have no fuckin idea about either issue)...

and "why" don't i think that maynard would ever watch the news or celebrate christmas???

why do you think? ...think. pure information will always be compromised when greed is involved. i'd hate to do something "lame" like quote people, but "it has been... the political, the religious, the educational authorities who've attempted to comfort us by giving us order, rules, regulations, informing, forming in our minds their view of reality." how could someone possibly think he'd pay any attention to christmas or the news with this in mind? those two events will make you stupid.

and no one wants to become another UtUmNo1. (heh, easy now)

I remember when I was fourteen....

[UtUmNo1]

good job, "the matrix" was an excellent example of what maynard, bill hicks, chomsky, et al [...]. (heh, easy now)

I'm also interested in the 'et al' portion of your rant and who you believe also has the ignominy of being included in your list of 'potentially more informed beings'??

[]v[edusa]

iAMtheMA!....... wow!!!!! i was thinking the same exact thing and i was going to post something about this for this song but u did it first and explained it many times better then i ever would!!! im very happy to see someone like you on here. much love!!!!

ill just say this to people here just read drunvalo melchizedek or bob frissell books for a start cause it explains everything of this!!! it is very hard to explain all this in one post!!!!! if u read, then u will better understand. they are the best books ive ever read in my life and i bet that if it werent for drunvalo or thoth, tool wouldnt exsist right now

ps... fuck christmas.... DID YOU KNOW that santa frightens the hopi people in the southwest because they understand that it is huk-tuk-tu, the "red-cloaked" entity that sweeps the world in the last days bringing the long feared cleansing. The red cloaked entity long ago entered the christian mythology in the form of Satan who rules over Hell and spends his time trapping unwary humans with gifts in exchange for their souls.~~~~~~ kinda weird eh!!!????

[HelenA]

iAMtheMA!....... wow!!!!! i was thinking the same exact thing and i was going to post something about this for this song but u did it first and explained it many times better then i ever would!!! im very happy to see someone like you on here. much love!!!!

ill just say this to people here just read drunvalo melchizedek or bob frissell books for a start cause it explains everything of this!!! it is very hard to explain all this in one post!!!!! if u read, then u will better understand. they are the best books ive ever read in my life and i bet that if it werent for drunvalo or thoth, tool wouldnt exsist right now

ps... fuck christmas.... DID YOU KNOW that santa frightens the hopi people in the southwest because they understand that it is huk-tuk-tu, the "red-cloaked" entity that sweeps the world in the last days bringing the long feared cleansing. The red cloaked entity long ago entered the christian mythology in the form of Satan who rules over Hell and spends his time trapping unwary humans with gifts in exchange for their souls.~~~~~~ kinda weird eh!!!????

Well - you are both way too smart for me - I'll leave you to it.

[iAMtheMA!]

I cannot follow your logic at all.
neither can i. sometimes these rants are late-night-can't-sleep-and-probably-high affairs, so ...well, i apologize.

[UtUmNo1]

That makes it all so much better.

[iAMtheMA!]

"learn to swim i'll see you down in arizona bay" ...meditate and connect, that's all that means. he's waiting for us even now, i'm sure of it.

now that i think of it, does this have anything to do with the group (outta cali) mentioned within the dual commentary of the "parabola" dvd? hmmmmmmmmmm...