everything was totally fucked, and I was just like, What can I do? "The Past Is a Grotesque Animal" is about that. The lyrics tell the story of what was really going on and the music sort of represents this other emotion that I wish existed. The music was really happy because I wanted to make something that would lift my spirits."Heimdalsgate" is the name of the street in Oslo on which Barnes lived; the suffix "-gate" translates from the Norwegian language to mean "street." The name of the street is more precisely Heimdalsgata, Heimdalsgate with the article "the" before it. "Promethean Curse" alludes to the ancient myth of Prometheus; Barnes is thought to be employing the curse as it pertains to "the burdens of consciousness and creativity" inflicted upon mankind when, against the demands of Zeus, Prometheus brought fire to earth. Heimdal is the Norse god that guards the frozen rainbow bridge between Asgård, where the gods live and Jotunheim (or Udgård) where the Jötnar (jætter) live. At the Norse Armageddon, Ragnarok, he will blow his horn. External links Music video, posted by Polyvinyl Records, January 19, 2007 References 2007 singles Of Montreal songs 2006 songs