The Radiator Hums

By Cursive

On Domestica

Released on June 20, 2000

5K Views

Thumbnail


[Verse 1]

Dinner's getting cold

You haven't touched a thing

So what's it gonna be?

I can hold out much longer than you

When it's steady, I'm just acting out my roles

When you're ready, I'll be walking out that door

And don't call me Pretty Baby anymore

Oh, foolish worker bee

I'm your fucking queen

Uh-huh


[Chorus]

I threw out the phone to try to get through to you

The lines are down, drowned by the hum of the radiator

This house is the hole that you could never fill

With rose-blossomed bouquets

Vanities and love seats


[Verse 2]

Sad little boy

I know you get confused

But everyone goes through

These trials of self-truth and self-abuse

When you're selfless, you're so hard not to adore

When you're selfish, I just love you even more

I want to help you, but you've got to say the words

"I want to be cured", drowned

Deep in this hole we've dug for ourselves

Throw me in

Headfirst, submerged in this great depression

Impoverished and impotent

And don't call me Pretty Baby


[Chorus]

I threw out the phone to try to get through to you (The radiator hums)

The lines are down, drowned by the hum of the radiator (This house is the hole)

This house is the hole that you could never fill

With shattered dinner plates

That's how we'll communicate

Hey, Pretty Baby, are you ready for bed?

“I threw out the phone to try to get through to you The lines are down, drowned by the hum of the radiator This house is the hole that you could never fill”
👍 4
×

The phone in this section is a reference to a line in the first track of the album, “The Casualty”, where Kasher sings “And there’s still a hole where the phone was thrown.” The throwing of the phone and the hole it creates represent both a literal event that happened during a fight and a metaphor for their lack of communication and the damage they’re done to their relationship.

“With shattered dinner plates That’s how we’ll communicate”
👍 4
×

The couple in the song no longer talks to each other like a normal, healthy couple. They communicate exclusively through shattered plates, thrown phones, and other exhibitions of anger.

“And don’t call me Pretty Baby anymore”
👍 5
×

Speaking as his ex-wife here, Kasher refers back to an earlier song in the album, “The Lament of Pretty Baby”, where she’s referred to by that name repeatedly. Apparently, she’s not a fan of the pet name.