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Home M Modest Mouse Dark Center Of The Universe Guitar Tab

#-----------------------------------PLEASE NOTE------------------------------#
# This file is the author's own work and represents their interpretation #
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Dark Centre of the Universe - Modest Mouse

Tabbed by: Truly Ninja
Email: trulyninja@hotmail.com

Tuning:EADGBe

Riff One:
e|--0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0--0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0--0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0--0-0-0h2-0h2-0h2-0h2---|
B|--5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5--3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3--2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2--0-0-0---0---0---0-----|
G|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
D|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
A|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Riff Deux:
e|--0-0-7-7-0-0-7-7--0-0-5-5-0-0-5-5--0-0-4-4-0-0-4-4--0-0-0h2-0h2-0h2-0h2---|
B|--5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5--3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3--2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2--0-0-0---0---0---0-----|
G|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
D|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
A|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Riff Three:
e|-0-0-5h7p5-0-0-0-5h7p5-0--0-0-4h5p4-0--0-0-4h5p4-0-------------------------|
B|-5-5-------5-5-5-------5--3-3-------3--3-3-------3-------------------------|
G|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
D|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
A|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Riff Three Continued:
e|-0-0-2h4p2-0--0-0-2h4p2-0---0-0-0h2-0h2-0h2-0h2-0h2-0h2--------------------|
B|-2-2-------2--2-2-------2---0-0-0---0---0---0---0---0----------------------|
G|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
D|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
A|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|

For the "crunchy" part play these chords with a palm mute or a regular
left-hand mute (or right hand if you are left handed):

E5/D5/C#5/B5

That's basically it! And, like I say with all the other mouse songs, PLAY IT LOOSE!

Brought to you by the GUITARMASTA - http://www.guitarmasta.net

Source: http://www.guitarmasta.net/m/modest_mouse/282594.html

Tab Discussion, Comments, and Critiques
 
 
No Picture

Jesus
Average
#1 by Jesus Christ at Jul 4, 1971 at 9:53 PM EST
Madmouser, my interpretation is that "it took a lot of negative and bad life experiences to make me the jaded jerk/asshole that i have become, but at the same time, i don't think my experiences are unique to me, and therefor most everybody else is a jaded jerk/asshole too and could easily and equally fuck you over just like i would.
 
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Green Day rocks
Average
#2 by Green Day rocks!!!! at Aug 15, 1971 at 11:46 AM EST
sumo on, pal! I'll fight to the almost-death for 'em. Just as long as my hearing is intact ;)
 
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Abe
Lead Player
#3 by Abe Watson at Dec 22, 1972 at 8:00 PM EST
I love the line "Everyone's life ends but no one ever completes it " idk its a great line tho
 
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Average
#4 by nirvana at Oct 12, 1973 at 6:15 PM EST
"If you can't see the thin air then what the hell is in your way?" I try to live my life more or less by this...
 
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Flash
Average
#5 by Flash Jaxon at Dec 17, 1973 at 7:06 PM EST
i love this song
 
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CHUNK ZIZZLE
Rhythm Player
#6 by CHUNK ZIZZLE at May 6, 1974 at 5:25 AM EST
I love the dry/wet ice line. I never thought of life that way. This song is about a stubborn bastard who went his own way in life and turned out to be even more of a stubborn bastard. I dont know.. I like 3rd Planet better.
 
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Mr. Always Mezm
Average
#7 by Mr. Always Mezmerized (o)(o) at May 26, 1974 at 3:42 AM EST
"Well it took a lot of work to be the ass that I am And I'm pretty damn sure that anyone can Easily, equally fuck ya over" It means, it's not that hard to be an asshole--anyone else could have easily screwed you over just as I did.
 
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Mike
Average
#8 by Mike Dawgg at May 2, 1976 at 12:22 AM EST
Can anyone tel me what the line: 'Well it took a lot of work to be the ass that I am And I'm pretty damn sure that anyone can Easily, equally fuck ya over' means???
 
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Zach
Rhythm Player
#9 by Zach at Sep 7, 1977 at 8:35 AM EST
Somehow i enjoy the line especially much indeed even though i don't actually know what the hell it is about.
 
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Ben
Rhythm Player
#10 by Ben at Aug 8, 1982 at 2:52 PM EST
Ok, when I first heard this song, it reminded me of something that has happened to me, and I don't know if it's what it was meant to be about, but to me this is what it is, and what it will always be: I was in a situation once where this guitarist whom I used to play bass with had a girlfriend...you hear all the time that the guitarists get the girls, but because of this I've come to believe what they *don't* say; the bassists take 'em away. This guys girlfriend was attracted to me, he didn't treat her well, and he was an ass. Well, long story short, I started seeing her, (without him present) and she broke up with him soon after. When he found out about that little affair he eventually was, well- not happy about it. True he was an ass, be that as it may, I felt bad about it. I was the asshole in that situation. That's what I think about. "It took a lot of work to be the ass that I am, and I'm pretty damn sure that anyone can, equally easily fuck ya over". That was true, it took a lot of decision to do what I did, and the relationship was bound to end anyhow. This type of situation, when you do something that would happen anyhow, could also explain "dry or wet ice both melt and you're equally cheated". Then what's the "dark center of the universe"? Well, how I saw that, as it applies to this, is that I'm not so terrible as he probably now thinks of me, I apologised endlessly, and said I'd understand if he didn't want to talk to either of us. "I might disintegrate into the thinair if you'd like".
 
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Jay the Hellrac
Average
#11 by Jay the Hellracer... at Sep 14, 1983 at 7:00 AM EST
beautiful.
 
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Ale
Wanna Be
#12 by Ale Rosado at Oct 7, 1983 at 2:31 AM EST
I think the line "If you can't see the thin air then what the hell is in your way?" is a different meaning for the term "ignorance is bliss." If you can't see anything in your way, why should it stop you?
 
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paddy
Average
#13 by paddy coscoran at Jan 20, 1984 at 6:42 PM EST
I may very well be completely off my rocker here, but I had a bit of an epiphany, so bear with me. He says in the beginning: "I might disintegrate into thin air if you like" Then later he says: "If you can't see the thin air then why the hell should you care?" TO ME THIS MEANT - HE'S THE "THIN AIR". IF YOU CAN'T SEE ME FOR WHAT/WHO I AM, THEN WHAT DOES IT MATTER WHAT YOU THINK OF ME. Then again later: "If you can't see the thin air then what the hell's in your way?" MEANING - HE'S THE "THIN AIR" (AGAIN), WHAT'S STOPPING YOU FROM SEEING WHO/WHAT I AM. TO ME, IT'S ALL METAPHORICAL. HE ISN'T THE FIRST TO BE AN ASS, WON'T BE THE LAST. THE PERSON BEING "F*ED OVER", AGAIN, NOT THE FIRST, NOR THE LAST TIME THIS WILL HAPPEN. EITHER WAY, BRILLIANTLY WRITTEN!
 
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bec
Average
#14 by bec madden at Jun 1, 1986 at 3:22 AM EST
i think this song is about a bad breakup where one person thought the universe revolved around the other
 
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brad
Rhythm Player
#15 by brad music at Feb 23, 1987 at 3:38 AM EST
i'm going to marry modest mouse. anyone who tried to challenge me, i'll sumo you to death.
 
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Joshua
Wanna Be
#16 by Joshua graham at Feb 26, 1987 at 9:26 PM EST
This song has alot of meaning to me b/c this is the song that got me into modest mouse. 1 year later i have 9 of thier cds!
 
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Jason
Rhythm Player
#17 by Jason ...... at Apr 6, 1991 at 6:48 AM EST
yep, great song. :)
 
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Secondhand Smok
Wanna Be
#18 by Secondhand Smoka at Aug 22, 1991 at 4:17 PM EST
"You can't see the thin air so why the hell should you care?" I think thin air might refer to some sort of heaven or afterlife. He's saying that since you can't see any evidence for heaven or an afterlife why should you bother thinking about it or worrying about what happens after tou die. It's preceded by the line "Well and endless ocean landing on an endless desert, well it's funny as hell but no one laughs when they get there" I think the merging of the desert and ocean might represent the merging of your body after death with the earth (in other words, the decay of your body). He then says that this death is funny as hell, but nobody laughs when they die. That's some deep shit for a pop song if you ask me.
 
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Kornowski -
Wanna Be
#19 by Kornowski - Im не русский, Бог Черт возьми! at Jan 7, 1992 at 1:31 PM EST
"I'm not the dark center of the universe like you thought." Some people think at the center of our galaxy, is a black hole "dark center". Black holes suck things up. Could this line be the man not wanting to believe/arguing against the fact that he has taken on other people's facets (sucked them up like a black hole)?
 
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Conar
Wanna Be
#20 by Conar Gillard at Oct 6, 1992 at 10:07 AM EST
when dry ice "melts" doesn't it become carbon dioxide or something? o_o
 
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Chris
Wanna Be
#21 by Chris H at Aug 14, 1994 at 4:51 PM EST
"'Dark Center of the Universe' is an introduction to the frustration and social isolation felt by a man whose potential search for his own soul resulted in the adoption of all the facets of another’s life. Consequently, the song stands as a realization of the fragility and futility of his situation." From the Modest Mouse website. Gotta love this song. I just spent the last hour thinking about it and trying to figure it out.
 
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Jordan
Wanna Be
#22 by Jordan Ivory-Marcotte at Jul 25, 1995 at 6:27 PM EST
nicely put synergistic any idea what the line "you cant see the thin air so why the hell should you care" might mean? i think it means that since you dont know all of the answers, and its not feasible (atleast in the relativily near future) to ever obtain the answers to every question asked, why should anyone care about knowing! wasted energy/time/thought.
 
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Robyn
Average
#23 by Robyn Paul at Dec 21, 1999 at 12:31 PM EST
Yeah, it does...either way, it's a great song.
 
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Chase
Wanna Be
#24 by Chase Hendrix at Jun 1, 2001 at 10:30 PM EST
I love this song just because of the whacked vibe and astonishing lyrics...Wet and dry ice, when it melts you're cheated either way...that's good shit Isaac Brock is one of the best lyricists of all time.
 
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Dale :D
Average
#25 by Dale :D O' Mondo Of DOOM!!! at Sep 11, 2006 at 11:33 PM EST
"Everyone's life ends but no one ever completes it" Everyone is put into life with no clear goal or "end", but regardless, they still eventually stop living. "Dry or wet ice, they both melt and you're equally cheated" Regardless of whether someone lives a sad life (dry ice) or a happy one (wet ice), both lives will end, and the result will be the same.