Deftones – Pompeji: Lyrics and Meanings

Pompeji is Track 06 on Deftones’ album Ohms.

Pompeji Song Lyrics:

Deep in the bottomless depths of the ocean
Empty bodies, we sink
Open your eyes
You smile and release me
We slip down beneath and
Jesus Christ, you watch us fail
We raise our glasses and drink in hell
Oooh, ooh
Locked in the core of the tower, I’m patient
In no hurry to leave
Life has been lonely, it might be forever
Making hard to believe in
Jesus Christ, we hold you to blame
You gave your life, but we died in vain
And ooh, we drink from the fountain of intent
And ooh, we choke on the water then repent
In the street, violent behavior
In chaos, where it’s warm
Black omens call, our cage is electric
So we signal, we wait for
Jesus Christ, God raised you as
We raised our glasses and drank in hell
Ooh, we sip from the fountain of intent
And ooh, we choke on the water then repent
Ooh, we drink from the fountain of intent
Ooh, we choke on the water then repent

Pompeji Song Meaning:

At this point in the album if you are unsure if Chino is using biblical words and Christian mythology as lyric content, then here is your clue. This song plays really heavy on the water lyrics. Water is often used in the bible as a symbol of life giving, rebirth, and also chaos. As this album has much to do with the yin and yang of life and opposites, its a very fitting track.

The music ties well into the lyric content by using watery sounds, relating to the much used phrases of drinking, and fountains, and the ocean. The watery sounds of this song and vocal styling also compare greatly to the older hit Deftones song Digital Bath.

I have yet to find any meaning of Pompeji, beside a possible different spelling of Pompeii.