Songfacts®:

• Raised Catholic, Of Montreal leader Kevin Barnes had a hard time with the rigid strictures of the religion as well as its concepts, which didn't suit his beliefs. "Get God's Attention By Being An Atheist" is about seeking joy without fear of religious retribution.
  
  "It's a cheeky song playing with these different ideas of whether or not you can have blind faith or whether you need to antagonize God into believing in you," Barnes said in a Songfacts interview. "We're always worried about us believing in God, but it's more important that God believes in you. So it's playing off that idea, and also with the carpe diem chants in the choruses it's about not being afraid of life: not letting society or conventionality prevent you from exploring your psyche, exploring your sexuality, exploring all levels of your human experience."
• Many Of Montreal songs touch on religion. Their 2007 track "Gronlandic Edit," one of their most popular songs, finds Kevin Barnes singing about how no matter which religion you choose, science will win in the end. The Ur Fun track "Gypsy That Remains" contains the line, "Going mental brings us closer to God," and another song on the album, "St. Sebastian," references a Christian saint.
• This song has a more rousing, repetitive chorus than most Of Montreal songs, but there is no shortage of off-center references to books and music, something that pervades their lyrics. Here are two we found in this track:
  
  "Gary Indiana's Horse Crazy" - A 1990 novel by the author Gary Indiana about a man who falls in love with another man as his partner is dying of AIDS.
  
  "They high-kicked me like Sly Stone on the cover of Fresh" - On the cover of the 1973 Sly & the Family Stone album Fresh, Sly Stone is seen doing an impressive high kick while wearing platform boots.
• The video was directed by Barnes' girlfriend, Christina Schneider, and shows children interacting with various costumed creatures. "Anybody who's spent any time around 5-year-olds knows that they are the embodiment of punk rock élan," Barnes said. "My brother's son plays the role of Baby Lanc, a sort of Pied Piper character that teaches other kids how to conquer their demons, and have a blast while doing it!"