Parasites Guitar Tab

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Tabbed by:CMM
Email:colin_michael_muppet@hotmail.com

Tuning:Standard

(Acoustic guitar)(Backbone of whole song)
e|--------------------------------------------------------------------|
B|--------------------------------------------------------------------|
G|-5--5--5--5-5--5/12--12--12--12-12--7--7--7--7-7--75--5--5--5-5----|
D|-5--5--5--5-5--5/12--12--12--12-12--7--7--7--7-7--75--5--5--5-5----|
A|-3--3--3--3-3--3/10--10--10--10-10--5--5--5--5-5--53--3--3--3-3----|
E|--------------------------------------------------------------------|

(Overdriven Electric guitar) (starting notably at 0:25)
e|------------------------------------------------------------|
B|------------------------------------------------------------|
G|-5--5------------12--12-------------7--7------------5--5----|
D|-5--5------------12--12-------------7--7------------5--5----|
A|-3--3------------10--10-------------5--5------------3--3----|
E|------------------------------------------------------------|

(Small Interlude) (played at 1:08)
e|--------------------------------------------|
B|-87----------------------------------------|
G|-----74-4----------7--7--7-4--4-5----------|
D|-----------75------------------------------|
A|--------------------------------------------|
E|--------------------------------------------|

(Outro) (played at 2:17)
e|--------------------------------------------|
B|-87----------------------------------------|
G|-----4/7-7----42--2--0-----------5/7-------|
D|--------------------------------------------|
A|--------------------------------------------|
E|--------------------------------------------|

NOTE: This part played really slowly on, truth be told, I doubt is a guitar.
But here is it tabbed anyways.

Song notes: 
- Throughout the entire song a G is played continuously which can be easily
(and obviously) played by just continuously picking the G string. 
- Horn section plays G GG G D G G        D G G
- Near the end of the song another G (an octave higher) is played with a different
rhythm in the background.

| /  slide up
|   slide down
===============================================================================

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Source: http://www.guitarmasta.net/u/ugly_casanova/321624.html

Tab Discussion, Comments, and Critiques


No Picture rockman Average	#1 by rockman the sequel at Aug 17, 1970 at 9:13 PM EST
	What about the second half of this song, in the 15 minute version? That's the good stuff

No Picture marc Professional	#2 by marc at Nov 28, 1970 at 11:20 PM EST
	don't know what this song means, but i know modest mouse did an early demo of the song entitled "the parasites will be excited when you're dead".

No Picture Jay the Hellrac Average	#3 by Jay the Hellracer... at Jan 1, 1974 at 6:34 PM EST
	Actually, I heard that some crazy homeless guy gave this to them as a poem and wanted them to make a song out of it. He eventually heard it but has recently died, I think.

No Picture Murders in the Average	#4 by Murders in the Rue Morgue at Aug 7, 1974 at 4:39 AM EST
	'god and satan gamble when you're dead, beams of light one's bright the other's burnin instead' don't know how you got sprite and bourbon out of that, but i'm sure it has something to do with Isaac's lisp.

No Picture Mauro Wanna Be	#5 by Mauro Leon at May 19, 1976 at 8:50 PM EST
	does anybody know what cd "parasites are excited when ur dead" is on by modest mouse. Ive got like all their cds and im still not able to find it.

No Picture Joe Average	#6 by Joe Blurton at Jun 22, 1976 at 3:39 PM EST
	I really like this song, both by Modest Mouse and Ugly Casanova... it seems to me to communicate a bit of an existentialist outlook. "and all your thoughts, yeah, they rot." seems to say that it really doesnt matter what you think, or what you do, as you are going to die anyway. "we're all the punch line to the joke that they won't let us in on." seems to say that you really cant understand life or what is really happening. It might be very depressing to some people but I find it liberating... overall I think the song is saying you should enjoy life becuase its short and when you die, nothings going to matter anyway...

No Picture Eric Average	#7 by Eric Boozer at Nov 7, 1976 at 1:21 PM EST
	I agree with JSMc247. I think it's pretty much an atheist's theme song. .

No Picture patrick Average	#8 by patrick chamberland at Jun 13, 1977 at 8:42 PM EST
	it was recorded as I demo, its not on any album released by a label as far as I know.

No Picture claireus Wanna Be	#9 by claireus s at Feb 14, 1981 at 5:45 AM EST
	My interpretation: There is no afterlife. God and Satan have fooled us into believeing there is life after death (We're the punchline to the joke they wont let us in on). In the end, we just rot, our bodies, and our minds, and our souls.

No Picture NIK Average	#10 by NIK blaszczyszyn at Feb 11, 1982 at 12:17 PM EST
	'The paritsites are excited when your dead, eyes buldging, ants are in your head' once again im not so sure, but I think thats how it is

No Picture Nic Rhythm Player	#11 by Nic F at May 29, 1985 at 2:08 PM EST
	the sprite and bourban is 100% correct besides when brock sings you can't hear his lisp

No Picture john Average	#12 by john at Nov 8, 1989 at 3:50 AM EST
	welll, isaac brock doesn't believe in God, sooo .. i think it's from an atheist's point of view. how life is just a game, and we are the pawns. and when we die .. we rot. there is no after life ..

No Picture Zach Wanna Be	#13 by Zach Honeycutt at Jan 6, 1991 at 6:57 AM EST
	i love this song, for some reason it makes me happy. the whole song kinda says that it really doesn't matter what you think or do, and that no matter who you are there's going to be people that talk about you ("we're all the punchline to the joke that they won't let us in on"), and that when we all die we're basicly bug food ("the parasites are excited when you die, eyes bulging entering your head").

No Picture Bobby Lead Player	#14 by Bobby Parker at Mar 19, 1992 at 1:45 AM EST
	It's a wonder that before Ugly Casanova (and Modest Mouse) that no one wrote a song about parasites crawling through your insides after you die. You'd think that this would be a common topic for songs. :-)

No Picture Gabe Average	#15 by Gabe Hawkins at May 31, 1992 at 10:37 AM EST
	I'm not even gonna think about the meaning to this song, because I completely agree with enter.

No Picture Frost Wanna Be	#16 by Frost Bite at Mar 4, 1997 at 3:49 AM EST
	There actually is another song that deals with parasites (actually not parasites; parasites feed off the living) and worms eating you after your dead. Worms by The Pogues !!!

No Picture NICK Wanna Be	#17 by NICK COGHLAN at Dec 15, 1998 at 3:00 PM EST
	this song is self explanitory if you did'nt catch it, damn

No Picture Lee Professional Badass	#18 by Lee the bass player, known as blacktooth90™ at Dec 30, 2000 at 4:30 AM EST
	woah this song kicks my ass.... its super good. I think its just a theory on the point of life.. I dont know how to explain it but the line "we're all the punch line to the joke that they won't let us in on. " is so good.

No Picture ian Average	#19 by ian mckinly at Oct 25, 2003 at 10:37 AM EST
	Actually, I heard that some crazy homeless guy gave this to them as a poem and wanted them to make a song out of it. He eventually heard it but has recently died, I think.

No Picture katie Average	#20 by katie focner at Dec 16, 2003 at 7:02 PM EST
	At about 2:23-... Chewie is that you? Wonderful song, by the way. And goddamn no it is not "ants are in your head", what.