Zoolander, the Ben Stiller film about a male model of the same name, followed the journey from celebrity to role model and teacher. Derek, the main character, eventually opened a school for “kids who can’t read good and want to learn to do other stuff good too,” being the “model” for their learning.

Like Zoolander, Jay’s music is a new “model” for how music should sound. Yet, unlike Zoolander, he isn’t soft: this is aggressive domination.

Blue steel!

Also note: Will Ferrell’s character was trying to use Derek Zoolander to bring down the prime Minister of Malaysia in the movie.

Stuck on a Louisiana riverboat casino, Tweedy has little else to do beside gamble. Addicted to the green felt of the tables and the thrill of the risk, he burns through his money. The way he interacts with the gambling, he seems to idolize the system and love the “Queen” of the cards.

Tweedy’s “blue sky” is only that he has not yet died. With so little to look forward to, he must trust only that merely being alive is a good thing. Continuing the sarcastic trend, he knows that looking toward non-death as a good sign is anything but.

The sadness of watching home fall apart and moving away from what you know is nearly impossible to mitigate. Tweedy is not serious here; a blue sky would do little to change his sadness. Instead, he is sarcastically noting now even a tiny change would play contrast against what seems an immense sadness.

Poets generally try to abstract and rationalize the world around them. Seeing only chaos, Tweedy does not understand why anyone would waste time attempting the impossible. With nobody giving a “fuck” about order, why seek it?

Not much unique can come out of a love song. Guessing at the plot and music, Tweedy’s love is not impressed. His best efforts are no better than every other song on the topic. For Tweedy, putting effort into something futile is a waste, but he tries anyway.

No matter how Tweedy phrases his love song, it sounds like words already sung by someone else. With his lover becoming more and more annoyed at his slipped-up lyrics, he watches all of his efforts go to nothing. With love dying, anything sounds like a played-out song.

A play on the American “red, white, and blue,” normally a sign of happiness and prosperity, Tweedy is worn out and sad. “Red-eyed” from a long night of drugs and “blue” from longing and depression, he sees his desire to rekindle love die in front of him.

Instead of getting flowers, chocolates, and other misplaced attempts at making up, Tweedy would rather just pay for it and move on. Like the rest of the song, he sees no point in trying to use symbols to say what he means, when he can just sing it.

The CTA is the Chicago Transit Authority, the public transportation outlet for Wilco’s hometown. Riding the train late into the night, Tweedy dreams of spending the time with his lover, kissing for the ride.