Kraken – English Lyrics

• By: Florence + The Machine
• Album: Everybody Scream

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the raw emotional language of Florence + The Machine's "Kraken." This song, steeped in themes of transformation and reckoning, uses the powerful imagery of a mythical sea monster to explore internal conflict and reclaiming power. By studying these intense, poetic English lyrics, you can grasp an elevated vocabulary for expressing deep-seated emotion and catharsis.

[English]

Sometimes my body seems so alien to me

I quiet it down by watching TV

Grow restless and grow hungry, as the water rises up around me

You come onscreen so good-looking, it's obscene

I put my fist into my mouth and scream

Some things it seems are catching up with me

And as it rises to my chin, I should really stop watching

And as I reach for the remote, it is rushing down my throat

I let it in, I start to swim

I grow many arms and legs, and then I start to sing

And all of my peers, they had such potential

The swamp, it took them down

And my love, I have to tell you

I kissed them all and let them drown, oh

You didn't see me, just another drunken groupie

So when your hand reached out

I just pushed you further down

Well, do you see me now?

Ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah (do you see me?)

Ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah

Ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah (do you see me now?)

Creature from the deep, do I haunt you in your sleep?

My tentacles so tender, as I caress your cheek

Did you know how big I would become?

And how much I would eat?

So glamorous and ravenous as I drag you off your feet

There's nothing you can do

Some things it seems are catching up with you

Ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah (do you see me?)

Ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah

Ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah

You said I would be nothing, but look, I'm really something

Many arms around the mast as your ship starts cracking

Will you see me through the pain?

Have you changed? Well, so have I

As I fix you in the gaze of my one unblinking eye

Do I terrify?

And all of my peers, they had such potential

The swamp, it took them down

And my love, I have to tell you

I kissed them all and let them drown, oh

You didn't see me, just another drunken groupie

So when your hand reached out

I just pushed you further down

Well, do you see me now?

Ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah (do you see me?)

Ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah

Ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah (do you see me now?)

Ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah (do you see me?)

Ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah

Ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah (do you see me now?)

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
scream /skriːm/ A1	verb - to shout loudly in a high voice, especially because of fear noun - a loud, high-pitched sound made by someone who is in pain or frightened
seem /siːm/ A1	verb - to appear to be true or to happen
catch /kætʃ/ A1	verb - to capture or seize something in motion verb - to become affected by an illness or start to suffer from something
remote /rɪˈmoʊt/ A2	adjective - far away in distance or time noun - a device used to control a TV from a distance
throat /θroʊt/ A2	noun - the passage at the back of the mouth leading to the stomach
swim /swɪm/ A1	verb - to move through water using arms and legs noun - an act of swimming
arms /ɑːrmz/ A1	noun - the part of the body from the shoulder to the hand
legs /lɛgz/ A1	noun - the part of the body used for standing and walking
sing /sɪŋ/ A1	verb - to produce musical sounds with the voice
peers /pɪrz/ B1	noun - people who are the same age or have the same social status
potential /poʊˈtɛnʃəl/ B1	noun - the possibility or ability to develop into something adjective - possible or likely to become something
swamp /swɑːmp/ B1	noun - an area of wet, muddy land verb - to overload or inundate someone with something
kiss /kɪs/ A1	verb - to show affection by touching with the lips noun - an act of kissing
drown /draʊn/ A2	verb - to die by being unable to breathe underwater
creature /ˈkriːtʃər/ A2	noun - any living thing
haunt /hɔːnt/ B1	verb - to appear frequently in the mind of someone in a painful way noun - a place frequently visited by someone
tentacles /ˈtɛntəkəlz/ B2	noun - long, flexible limbs of some sea animals
caress /kəˈrɛs/ B2	verb - to touch something gently in a loving way noun - a gentle touch expressing affection
ravenous /ˈrævənəs/ C1	adjective - extremely hungry
drag /dræɡ/ B1	verb - to pull something along the ground with effort
crack /kræk/ A2	verb - to break or split something with a sharp sound noun - a line in something where it has broken but not separated
terrify /ˈtɛrɪfaɪ/ B1	verb - to fill someone with extreme fear

Key Grammar Structures

• Some things it seems are catching up with me

  ➔ Inversion for emphasis

  ➔ The structure "it seems" inverts the normal subject-verb order to emphasize "are catching up," creating a rhetorical or poetic effect.

• Grow restless and grow hungry, as the water rises up around me

  ➔ Progressive aspect with parallelism

  ➔ The progressive verbs "grow restless" and "grow hungry" show ongoing states, paralleled for emphasis, while the "as" clause indicates simultaneity with "rises up around me."

• I let it in, I start to swim

  ➔ Simple present for dramatic narration

  ➔ The simple present tense in "let" and "start" creates a dramatic, immediate effect, as if recounting events in real-time.

• And all of my peers, they had such potential

  ➔ Past simple tense

  ➔ The past simple "had" indicates a completed action in the past, using "such" for intensifying the adjective "potential."

• You didn't see me, just another drunken groupie

  ➔ Negative past simple

  ➔ The negative past simple "didn't see" contrasts with the present implication, with "just another" idiomatically downplaying the subject.

• Creature from the deep, do I haunt you in your sleep?

  ➔ Rhetorical question inversion

  ➔ The inversion structure "do I" inverts the question word order, creating a rhetorical flourish without expecting an answer.

• You said I would be nothing, but look, I'm really something

  ➔ Unreal conditional with would

  ➔ The "would" in "would be nothing" expresses hypothetical or projected impossibility, contrasted with the present "I'm really something" for dramatic irony.

• Do I terrify?

  ➔ Question subject-auxiliary inversion

  ➔ The inversion "Do I" follows the pattern of wh-questions or yes-no questions, emphasizing the subject for rhetorical impact.

• Many arms around the mast as your ship starts cracking

  ➔ As-clause for simultaneous actions

  ➔ The "as" clause "as your ship starts cracking" indicates simultaneity with the main clause "many arms around the mast," creating a vivid image.

• So when your hand reached out

  ➔ When-clause for sequential events

  ➔ The "when" in "when your hand reached out" links past events sequentially, implying cause and effect with the following actions.