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About

Genius Annotation

This song is also known as “Interlude 1” or “Interlude I”.

The fleuron character or “printer’s flower” (❦) used in the title of this song is used in book printing to divide paragraphs – or in the case of this song, an interlude to divide the album into segments. Use of a non-alphanumeric character is reminiscent of the band’s name itself, a Greek delta symbol (Δ) pronounced as “alt-J” because of the keyboard combination needed to type it on an Apple keyboard.

The song seems to present us with a woman caught in a schedule and living day-by-day, hoping and praying for the best, but failing to grasp the ‘fruit’ of life whilst she’s young enough to do so.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did ​​alt-J say about "❦ (Ripe & Ruin)"?
Genius Answer

On their Soundcloud, alt-J added two annotations to The Ripe and Ruin:

Interlude 1 talks about a young woman who dreams desperately of a carefree life – with no hiccups, trauma or obstacles.

She prays to only ever be happy and hidden from worry and her cries are answered by barking dogs.

Credits
Produced By
Mixing Engineer
Cover Photographer
String Arrangements
Mastering
Recorded At
Iguana Studio, London, UK.
Release Date
May 25, 2012
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