Stumpwork

I am not in charge of what I do The only thing I could think to ask was "Do you like stumpwork?" Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo "Stumpwork" refers to a type of embroidery that is done on fabric stiffened with glue or starch. This technique is often used to create three-dimensional effects and can be used to create realistic representations of objects or people. Singer Florence Shaw uses stumpwork as a metaphor for her sense of disconnection. She feels adrift in a world that is unfamiliar and hostile as she struggles to find her place.

The song contains an intriguingly petulant lyric: What I really love is to not use something to its full capacity That kind of anti-optimization feels "subversive," Shaw told Mojo magazine. "And it's counter to what my life is actually like, which is a lot of hard work. It's been on my mind a lot. It's meant to be a bit of a f--k you. I'm not sure who to. Maybe myself."

This is the title track of Dry Cleaning's second studio album. Shaw gleaned quite a lot of the record's cut-and-paste lyrics from an archive of newspaper clippings she went through in Woolwich Arsenal. They include these lines from "Stumpwork": A ceremonial crawl-through Designed to keep toads off the roads "It's millions and millions of newspaper clippings on different subjects," Shaw told Apple Music. "There's a bit about toads crossing roads from this little article I found about a special tunnel being built, so that toads could traverse the street without being run over."