Stillness Is The Move – English Lyrics

• By: Dirty Projectors
• Album: Bitte Orca

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the captivating world of Dirty Projectors with "Stillness Is The Move," a song celebrated for its intricate vocal harmonies and a blend of indie rock with West African polyrhythms and R&B. Learning this song's lyrics and exploring its themes offers a unique gateway into understanding complex English expressions, poetic imagery, and philosophical questions about existence and human connection, delivered through Amber Coffman's distinctive vocal performance.

[English]

When the child was just a child

It did not know what it was

Like a child it had no habits

No opinion about anything

Maybe i will get a job

Get a job as a waitress

Maybe waiting tables in a diner

In some remote city down the highway

After all that we've been through

I know we'll make it after the wait

The question is a truth

There is nothing we can't do

I'll see you along the way baby

The stillness is the move

On top of every mountain

There was a great longing

For another even higher mountain

In each city longing for a bigger city

After all that we've been through

I know that i will always love you

From now until forever baby

I can't imagine anything better

After all that we've been through

I know we'll make it after the wait

The question is a truth

There is nothing we can't do

I'll see you along the way baby

Isn't life under the sun just a crazy, crazy, crazy dream?

Isn't life just a mirage of the world before the world, before the world?

Why am i here and not over, over, over there?

Where did time begin

Where does space end

Where do you and i, where do you and i begin?

After all that we've been through

I know we'll make it after the wait

The question is a truth

There is nothing we can't do

I'll see you along the way baby

The stillness is the move

After all that we've been through

I know we'll make it after the wait

The question is a truth

There is nothing we can't do

I'll see you along the way baby

The stillness is the move

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
child /tʃaɪld/ A1	noun - a young human being below the age of puberty or full physical development.
job /dʒɒb/ A1	noun - a task or piece of work, especially one that is paid.
waitress /ˈweɪtrəs/ A2	noun - a woman whose job is to serve customers at their tables in a restaurant.
city /ˈsɪti/ A1	noun - a large town.
highway /ˈhaɪweɪ/ A2	noun - a main road, especially one connecting major towns or cities.
truth /truːθ/ B1	noun - the quality or state of being true.
mountain /ˈmaʊntɪn/ A2	noun - a large natural elevation of the earth's surface rising abruptly from the surrounding level; a large steep hill.
longing /ˈlɒŋɪŋ/ B2	noun - a yearning desire.
life /laɪf/ A1	noun - the condition that distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death.
dream /driːm/ A2	noun - a series of thoughts, images, and sensations occurring in a person's mind during sleep.
mirage /məˈrɑːʒ/ C1	noun - an optical illusion caused by atmospheric conditions, especially the appearance of a sheet of water in a desert or on a hot road.
time /taɪm/ A1	noun - the indefinite continued progress of existence and events in the past, present, and future regarded as a whole.
space /speɪs/ A2	noun - a continuous area or expanse which is free, available, or unoccupied.
stillness /ˈstɪlnəs/ B2	noun - the quality of being calm and quiet.
remote /rɪˈməʊt/ B2	adjective - situated far from the main centres of population; distant.

Key Grammar Structures

• It did not know what it was

  ➔ Past simple tense with 'did not' (negation)

  ➔ 'Did not' indicates negation in the past simple tense.

• There is nothing we can't do

  ➔ Modal verb 'can't' (cannot) expressing ability or possibility

  ➔ 'Can't' is a contraction of 'cannot', indicating inability or impossibility.

• After all that we've been through

  ➔ Present perfect tense ('have been') to describe experiences up to now

  ➔ 'Have been' indicates an experience or situation occurring up to the present moment.

• The stillness is the move

  ➔ Definite article 'the' used to specify a particular noun

  ➔ 'The' is used before a noun to indicate a specific thing known to the speaker and listener.

• Where did time begin

  ➔ Past simple tense with 'did' to form a question

  ➔ 'Did' is used to form questions in the past simple tense.

• There is nothing we can't do

  ➔ Modal verb 'can't' (cannot) expressing ability or possibility

  ➔ 'Can't' is a contraction of 'cannot', used to express inability or impossibility.