The Watchtower - analysis

Verse 1

I’m sick of myself, blood drips down my foundations

I have to watch their bodies fold, under the pressure

A shattered spine a broken skull, the least of my expectations

If I had a pound for each one id be made of gold, of f'ing gold

Reference to violence, anger and death. 'A shattered spine a broken skull, the least of my expectations' shows aggression to a person. 'I'm sick of myself', tells us that this is about a troubled person or thing, who can do little about the goings-on around them.

Pre chorus 1

The elevator goes up, but only bodies fall down

They’re falling off of my head, and losing theirs on the ground

Reference to suicide, 'they're falling off my head', perhaps people are jumping from the tower.

Chorus

I am, I am the watch tower

I watch, but I only watch them die

The irony is that I’m suicidal

But I can't jump off myself

Clear indication that this is from the watchtowers perspective. We now know that the tower is helpless to watch people jump off, but the tower can't, despite being suicidal.

Verse 2

I’m sick of plain corpses crash and burn, no face no recognition

Just empty eyes and clotted blood, with no expression

From new born child to rotting man, to just conceived make the incision

Sign here to have your name engraved in bold, in f'ing bold

We hear of the towers contact with the people, and how they mean nothing, and are just 'empty eyes and clotted blood'. We also understand that these people are 'from new born child to rotting man'.

Pre chorus 2

The elevator goes up but only bodies fall down

They’re falling off of my head, and losing theirs on the ground

Chorus (as previous)

Bridge

This is: manslaughter, mass murder

You’re not a f’ing martyr

Constrain you, I’d brain you

But I don’t have limbs and neither

Will you when you hit the floor

Fake gods won’t save you anymore

'Constrain you, i'd brain you but i don't have the limbs and neither will you when you hit the floor'. We understand that the watchtower would help to save these people, if it had to ability to do so. Reference to the amount of people dying, 'manslaughter, mass murder'.

Outro Chorus (as previous)