Forbidden

Song Meaning

“Forbidden” opens with a stark, unsettling image: "Everyone is floating by the graveside." This immediately establishes a detached, almost ethereal observation of death. The world feels alien, with "everyone foreign when you're in another world." Yet, a strange constant persists: "the translation of sound is the same," hinting at a primal, shared experience amidst the disorientation. This initial sense of alienation quickly gives way to a chilling, direct threat. The lyrics shift from observation to a stark prediction: "You'll be made irrelevant by a suicide machine." This mechanical force isn't just destructive; it's "mechanically modified to muffle out the screams," suggesting a calculated silencing of suffering, or perhaps, a deliberate enabling of a quiet end. The tension lies in this inevitable, dehumanizing fate. The most unsettling craft element is how this destructive force is framed. The "suicide machine" is described as "Your novel grand possession, enrapturing soon." This perverse allure transforms an instrument of self-erasure into something desirable, even captivating. The subsequent image, "Tasting the festering, forbidden fruit," deepens this dark temptation, juxtaposing biblical sin with a visceral sense of decay. It's a seduction towards something inherently corrupt. Ultimately, these lyrics are effective because they blend surreal observation with a chilling, technological dread. The direct address in the chorus makes the abstract threat deeply personal, pulling the listener into the impending doom.