Song history written by TimelandIsWacky

Coming out of the dark ending of “Lonely Cosmos,” “Eternal Return” brightens things up with large choruses and jazzy verses featuring baritone vocals from Stu. While it shares its name with Nietzsche’s famous thought experiment about reliving your life again and again, “Eternal Return” details the ways Gizzard’s rigorous touring schedule affects the lives of Cook, Stu, Lucas, Ambrose, and Joey. Each band member talks through their own experiences: Stu goes over the moment he says goodbye to his family and the reasons he goes on the road, Ambrose describes how he misses home despite the beauty of America's northwest, Joey talks about how fast life goes by and how he misses his partner, and Cook describes his life through references to The Wizard of Oz. Despite all of these complications, the band always manages to return home to their loved ones. The touring is perpetual but so are the moments that reunite everyone. The song’s themes about touring appear throughout Phantom Island and the concept of eternal return reappears on “Silent Spirit” with the line “eternally we return to cycle through the song we learnt.”