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When You Die Lyrics

[Verse 1]
I'm not that nice
I'm mean and I'm evil
Don't call me nice
I'm gonna eat your heart out
I've got some work to do
Baby, I'm ready, I'm ready, ready, ready to blow my lid off

[Verse 2]
Go fuck yourself
You heard me right
Don't call me nice again
Don't you have somewhere to be at seven thirty?
Baby, I'm ready, I'm ready, ready, ready to blow my brains out

[Chorus 1]
You die
And words won't do anything
It's permanently night
And I won't feel anything
We'll all be laughing with you when you die

[Chorus 2]
Words won't do anything
It's permanently night
And I won't feel anything
We'll all be laughing with you when you die

[Verse 3]
Go fuck yourself
I'm mean, not nice
You said it twice
You said it twice
Don't you have somewhere to be at seven thirty?

[Interlude]
I've got some work to do
I'm gonna eat your heart out
I heard you the first time
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4 Meanings

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Cover art for When You Die lyrics by MGMT

My interpretation of this song is that it is about MGMT's story as a band.

Within the song they repeat the line "I'm not that nice". I believe in this line they are referring to (as I refer to them) "The big 3" (Electric Feel, Time to Pretend and Kids). People say MGMT is a "nice" band because they know these three songs. However MGMT made these songs to mock the genre. That isn't their actual musical interest, or where they saw the band going (the psychdedelic genre) which they refer to in the song as "Mean and evil"

Overall there are many references to this throughout the song such as "Words don't do anything" meaning, they won't go back to making the pop music that they started with, nothing anyone can say will change that.

"Go fuck yourself" shows their anger towards people who are trying to get them to quit playing the type of music that they love, and go back to the music they played as a joke.

"Don't you have somewhere to be at seven thirty" could either be a thinly veiled attempt at getting someone to leave them alone or alternatively it could be an attempt to make sure that the fans know that their plans aren't changing, they are going to keep doing what they love.

I don't know about everyone else, but I would love for them to continue doing what they love. "Little dark age" as an album has been able to restore my love in modern psych-rock. Keep going Andrew and Ben!

My Interpretation

@Sweaney could be. I think this is a very sarcastic song. Have you ever been into a fight with someone who does something very bad to you and somehow you end up being the bad person? ...I interpret this to be a "you know what? yeah, sure, I'm not nice. Go f*ck yourself" kind of sarcastic lyric. It's full of hate. It is a nice song.

Cover art for When You Die lyrics by MGMT

To me this song is a guy's call for help as he screams at those who love him. He wants to kill himself to feel "nothing" and "permanent night"

@taverner yeah, I never listened to the words until just now. That\'s what I thought too.

Cover art for When You Die lyrics by MGMT

Im interpretting this as a fourth wall break. In an interesting way. If you know Mgmt, they have fans that are drug addicts. So they'll buy their new album, find a hallucinogen, and go listen to that album after they start peaking. I am not a drug addict, but i do enjoy hallucinating every once in a while. With that said, If you have watched the music video, you would know its not trip friendly, but acts like it is at first.

The song is referencing several things that would set off a bad trip, but its sung in a catchy way. Like the "Dont you have somewhere to be at 730!" line. If you are a responsible person, you'll make sure you have nothing important to do before you trip. "You said it twice, You said it twice" is an easy way to mess with someone tripping. MGMT are purposely trolling these drug users, mentioning mainly death. If you have a drug problem, you must be "ready ready ready to blow your lid off." But still why? There has to be more context.

Well, its been proven that your body releases DMT in your brain WHEN YOU DIE (haha). If you dont know, DMT is the mother of all hallucinogens, it is the strongest trip you will ever have. Thats more or less what they are pointing out. Yeah, you're gonna be tripping so hard, but youre gonna be gone permanently, so it really isn't worth it.

Subjective
Subjective
Enjoyment
Fear
Disgust
Drug Use
Bad Trip
Trolling
Death
DMT
Cover art for When You Die lyrics by MGMT

Im interpretting this as a fourth wall break. In an interesting way. If you know Mgmt, they have fans that are drug addicts. So they'll buy their new album, find a hallucinogen, and go listen to that album after they start peaking. I am not a drug addict, but i do enjoy hallucinating every once in a while. With that said, If you have watched the music video, you would know its not trip friendly, but acts like it is at first. The song is referencing several things that would set off a bad trip, but its sung in a catchy way. Like the "Dont you have somewhere to be at 730!" line. If you are a responsible person, you'll make sure you have nothing important to do before you trip. "You said it twice, You said it twice" is an easy way to mess with someone tripping. MGMT are purposely trolling these drug users, mentioning mainly death. If you have a drug problem, you must be "ready ready ready to blow your lid off." But still why? There has to be more context. Well, its been proven that your body releases DMT in your brain WHEN YOU DIE (haha). If you dont know, DMT is the mother of all hallucinogens, it is the strongest trip you will ever have. Thats more or less what they are pointing out. Yeah, you're gonna be tripping so hard, but youre gonna be gone permanently, so it really isn't worth it.

My Interpretation
Negative
Subjective
Disgust
Fear
Drug Use
Death
Hallucinogens