Interpretations:Seven

Interpretation 1

I'm seeing the green house at the end of the block being swarmed by 7 year olds for a birthday party; the main narrator is the parent, noticing their house is filling up with kids, and there's no more cake.

Could this just be a funny little song about what it's like to run a child's birthday party? The weirdness of dozens of kids all the same age flooding in?

--Christina Miller, 14:45, 6 February 2008 (UTC)

I thought the same thing. Possibly because Henry's voice is on the song and he might have been about 7 years old when it was written. --dogonfire 10:22, February 6, 2008

Interpretation 2

Prepare to have your mind's blown, hehehe. I take this as TMBG's subtle attempt to talk about America/USA's international economic policy. Think of the narrator as the American people, the 7's as immigrants/other countries, and the cake as a symbol of money/work. The basic moral stays the same, if you give out something for free someone is going to try to take advantage of it. Until you get wiser, or run out of "the cake". --Vespaholic 04:59, March 20, 2008

Ha, if you're going to get metaphorical on a kid's song, then you can say it's about anybody or any group wanting anything. -- DominEl 09:37, April 13, 2008

Interpretation 3

Does anyone think "Let them eat up all the cake." pays homage to Marie Antoinette, who was famous for saying "Let them eat cake."? --JasonDeLima 01:13, 23 May 2008 (UTC)

Interpretation 4

So, I doubt it is, but I like to think Linnell wrote this about what he felt at Henry's 7th birthday party. In which case all I have to say to him is: "Just wait for seventeen." My friends and I were skilled at making the contents of the cupboards in our parents' houses disappear over the last couple of years. --MichelleMaBelle 01:22, May 23, 2008

I guess your parents all kept cake in the cupboards, huh? ;] -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 07:14, 23 May 2008 (UTC)

Well, it was really my one friend's house that we would converge upon (hell I got so comfortable there I just walk right in - still), and his parents finally relenquished the cupboard full of baking supplies and snack food to us. We like Hot Pockets and making brownies. :) --MichelleMaBelle 20:24, May 23, 2008

Interpretation 5

After hearing this song, a coworker had an interesting take on it as a kids version of "Night of the Living Dead". Instead of Human Flesh, they're after cake.... --CaptainCaustic 16:49, January 8, 2009

Cake for Cake

I hear a slight similarity, perhaps unintentional homage to the band Cake with the vocal style and phrasing....not to mention We want cake! Where's our cake? --xxxxxCanManxxxxx 20:34, February 13, 2010

Agreed! I thought Cake played on this track. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.240.52.254 (talk) 19:30, December 5, 2010

Only missing a vibraslap hit every 8.5 seconds. Jibblies108 (talk) 09:13, 21 February 2024 (EST)

Forgiveness

Obviously it's a kids song, and I realize Linnell isn't often open about his religion (or lack thereof), but I was thinking about the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant. In Matthew 18:21-35, Peter comes to Jesus asking how many times you have to forgive someone who offends you--"Until seven times?" Depending on the translation, Jesus might respond, "I don't tell you until seven times, but until seventy times seven." Then he launches into a parable that doesn't have any relevance here. There's also a similar verse in Luke^[1]. The number seven is used across religions as a significant symbol. So perhaps unconsciously Linnell incorporated all that into this song as all these sevens come barging into his home making demands.

Or, it could be just about hungry kids wanting cake... --MisterMe (talk) 15:55, 24 October 2016 (EDT)

Henry's party

The song is about Henry's seventh birthday party, and this is why I think so:

• The seven ringing the doorbell is a seven year-old Henry coming home from school.
• The sevens flooding the house are all of Henry's seven year-old friends.
• They're eating cake. Birthday cake, perhaps?

Jibblies108 (talk) 19:15, 13 April 2024 (EDT)