Hot Chip Explains The Meaning Of The Lyrics In Their Song “Eleanor”

With Hot Chip’s eighth album release just around the corner, news, content, and updates surrounding the British electronic pop legends are in heavy circulation.

But with the overindulgence of this content, it can be all too easy to gloss over the deeper meaning of the art and music being released. We get so excited about the darker emotions Hot Chip explores in their upcoming album that we pay no mind to the songs’ words, lyrics, and music.

So we sat down with the group and unpacked the meanings hiding in plain sight in the lyrics of their single “Eleanor” from their upcoming album Freakout/Release.

Full Lyrics To ‘Eleanor’ By Hot Chip

When you’re standing there can you really
Just ignore his prayers to be reunited
With that child that has lost its
Father standing there, by his side and…

…When I walk out in the sea
All the waves crash over me
When the world smashes into you
Let it be a central part of you

If you choose to remember me
Hold me gently as you fall asleep
Even if you believe that there’s nothing more
I feel heaven knocking at our door
Eleanor – evermore,
Eleanor – evermore
Eleanor
Eleanor – evermore

When you’re standing there can you really (Eleanor)
Just ignore the call of memory (Eleanor)
To be back in those arms and walk again (Eleanor)
In the moment when you were still friends

Don’t you know we’re not roving free
We’re just a part of ecology
And when the words are escaping me
I try to speak with economy

You’re a like a river flowing
That will never stop
You’re like the toughest tree
That withstands the chop
You’re like Andre the Giant
On his way to school
Beckett gave him a ride
Before there was carpool
He knew to pick him up
Show him the way to go
But I bet he learned a thing or two
Riding with Andre in tow

If you choose to remember me
Hold me gently as you fall asleep
Even if you believe that there’s nothing more
I feel heaven knocking at our door
Eleanor

I see you forming in my Marazion memories
I see you calling in these Marazion memories

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I see you forming in my Marazion memories
I see you calling in these Marazion memories

The Meaning Behind ‘Eleanor’ By Hot Chip

Now that you’ve had a chance to glance over the entire lyrics of Hot Chip’s single let’s dive into the meaning and symbolism in the lyrics. We sat down with Alexis, a group member, who walked us through every line so that nothing went unnoticed or unenlightened.

When you’re standing there can you really
Just ignore his prayers to be reunited
With that child that has lost its
Father standing there, by his side and…

This is about a family forced apart by circumstances and how difficult it is for those who are separated in this way. – Alexis

…When I walk out in the sea
All the waves crash over me
When the world smashes into you
Let it be a central part of you

This is about accepting that you are small in the universe, and sometimes you have to let the difficult times that smash straight into you be a part of who you are, and live with that, just as you might be able to survive the waves in the sea crashing into and over the top of you. Submit to the forces that are overwhelming sometimes, and then move forward. – Alexis

If you choose to remember me
Hold me gently as you fall asleep
Even if you believe that there’s nothing more
I feel heaven knocking at our door
Eleanor – evermore, Eleanor – evermore
Eleanor
Eleanor – evermore
When you’re standing there can you really (Eleanor)
Just ignore the call of memory (Eleanor)
To be back in those arms and walk again (Eleanor)
In the moment when you were still friends

We’re back with the family divided again – looking back on memories of a time when they were happy and together still. This verse and the first verse ask the question to the one who has decided the other party must be forced away, “How can you do this to another human being?” “Can you really…?” cause this division. – Alexis

Don’t you know we’re not roving free
We’re just a part of ecology
And when the words are escaping me
I try to speak with economy

We are part of a broader world in which we play our roles in the ecosystem. Try to speak plainly when all other poetry evades you. Maybe this is a mantra, a way to tell me how to operate. – Alexis

If you choose to remember me
Hold me gently as you fall asleep
Even if you believe that there’s nothing more
I feel heaven knocking at our door
Eleanor – evermore, Eleanor – evermore
Eleanor
Eleanor
You’re a like a river flowing
That will never stop
You’re like the toughest tree
That withstands the chop
You’re like Andre the Giant
On his way to school
Beckett gave him a ride
Before there was carpool
He knew to pick him up
Show him the way to go
But I bet he learned a thing or two
Riding with Andre in tow

I sat behind Joe in the studio, thinking about how he had brought this musical idea to the band, geeing us up and getting us into gear, guiding us to join in and make a great pop song (or try). I felt he’s like something solid and sublime and everlasting – and when he is encouraging in that way, we can all, as a band, be something more significant than the sum of our parts. I was comparing him to an ever-flowing river, a strong tree that can take it when things are stacked against it, or it is up against attack, Andre, the Giant – someone wise and strong, and by this point had moved into more of a flight of fancy – imagining the journeys together with Samuel Beckett who used to give Andre a lift, driving him to school. Beckett perhaps learning things from the young boy. – Alexis