Techno Ted may be a person who caused Chris incredible emotional pain & trepidation as well as moments of peace & happiness but now is removed and awaiting his fate. Darling may be a different person who is also free of him and can live her life free of Ted's tyranny. "In between all the laughing, and daydreams ... lies: a desert of truth" Lies are like a desert or the omission of Truth: Where there were Lies then Truth was absent. The song, "Techno Ted", may be a cathartic celebration of the downfall of this person.
JAMIE, talking to his friend.
JAMIE:
Did I just hear an alarm start ringing?
Did I see sirens go flying past?
Though I don't know what tomorrow's bringing,
I've got a singular sensation things are moving too fast.
I'm gliding smooth as a figure skater,
I'm riding hot as a rocket blast--
I just expected it ten years later.
I've got a singular impression things are moving too fast.
And you say, "Oh, no,
Step on the brakes,
Do whatever it takes,
But stop this train!
Slow, slow! The light's turning red!"
But I say: No! No!
Whatever I do,
I barrell on through
And I don't complain.
No matter what I try,
I'm flyin' full speed ahead!
I'm never worried to walk the wire.
I won't do anything just "half-assed,"
But with the stakes getting somewhat higher,
I've got a singular impression things are moving too fast.
I found a woman I love,
And I found an agent who loves me--
Things might get bumpy, but
Some people analyze ev'ry detail,
Some people stall when they can't see the trail,
Some people freeze out of fear that they'll fail,
But I keep rollin' on.
Some people can't get success with their art,
Some people never feel love in their heart,
Some people can't tell the two things apart,
But I keep rollin' on.
Oh, oh--maybe I can't follow through,
But oh, oh--what else am I s'pposed to do?
I dreamed of writing like the high and mighty--
Now I'm the subject of a bidding war!
I met my personal Aphrodite--
I'm doing things I never dreamed of before!
We start to take the next step together--
Found an apartment on Seventy-Third!
The Atlantic Monthly's printing my first chapter--
Two thousand bucks without re-writing one word!
I left Columbia and I don't regret it--
I wrote a book and Sonny Mehta read it!
My heart's been stolen!
My ego's swollen!
I just keep rollin' along!
And I think, "Well, well, what else is in store?
Got all this and more
Before twenty-four!"
It's hard not to be sure
I'm spinning out of control!
Out of control!
I'm feeling panicked and rushed and hurried!
I'm feeling outmaneuvered and outclassed,
But I'm so happy
I can't get worried
About this singular impression--
I've got a singular impression
Things are moving too fast!
JAMIE:
Did I just hear an alarm start ringing?
Did I see sirens go flying past?
Though I don't know what tomorrow's bringing,
I've got a singular sensation things are moving too fast.
I'm gliding smooth as a figure skater,
I'm riding hot as a rocket blast--
I just expected it ten years later.
I've got a singular impression things are moving too fast.
And you say, "Oh, no,
Step on the brakes,
Do whatever it takes,
But stop this train!
Slow, slow! The light's turning red!"
But I say: No! No!
Whatever I do,
I barrell on through
And I don't complain.
No matter what I try,
I'm flyin' full speed ahead!
I'm never worried to walk the wire.
I won't do anything just "half-assed,"
But with the stakes getting somewhat higher,
I've got a singular impression things are moving too fast.
I found a woman I love,
And I found an agent who loves me--
Things might get bumpy, but
Some people analyze ev'ry detail,
Some people stall when they can't see the trail,
Some people freeze out of fear that they'll fail,
But I keep rollin' on.
Some people can't get success with their art,
Some people never feel love in their heart,
Some people can't tell the two things apart,
But I keep rollin' on.
Oh, oh--maybe I can't follow through,
But oh, oh--what else am I s'pposed to do?
I dreamed of writing like the high and mighty--
Now I'm the subject of a bidding war!
I met my personal Aphrodite--
I'm doing things I never dreamed of before!
We start to take the next step together--
Found an apartment on Seventy-Third!
The Atlantic Monthly's printing my first chapter--
Two thousand bucks without re-writing one word!
I left Columbia and I don't regret it--
I wrote a book and Sonny Mehta read it!
My heart's been stolen!
My ego's swollen!
I just keep rollin' along!
And I think, "Well, well, what else is in store?
Got all this and more
Before twenty-four!"
It's hard not to be sure
I'm spinning out of control!
Out of control!
I'm feeling panicked and rushed and hurried!
I'm feeling outmaneuvered and outclassed,
But I'm so happy
I can't get worried
About this singular impression--
I've got a singular impression
Things are moving too fast!
Lyrics submitted by BroadwayBratt
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Techno Ted
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In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Cajun Girl
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Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
When We Were Young
Blink-182
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This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
No Surprises
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Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.