"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
What do I do to ignore what's behind me
Do I follow my fate to escape blindly
Do I hide my pride away from these bad dreams
And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening
Do I let it go and try to stand it
Or do I try to catch them red-handed
Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness
Or do I trust none and live life in loneliness
Because sunlight burns the skin of sleeping men
I make the right turns but I'm lost within
I put on my daily facade but then
I just end up getting hurt again by myself (myself)
I ask why (but in my mind, I find)
I can't rely on myself (myself)
I ask why (but in my mind, I find)
I can't rely on myself
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(When put against you, I cant win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in
If I turn my back I'm defenseless
And to give in to fate seems senseless
If I hide my pride and lie sleepless
I wont be able to cope with my weakness
If I let them go I'll be outdone
But if I try to catch them I'll be outrun
If I'm killed by the questions like a cancer
Then I'll be buried in the silence of the answer
By myself (myself)
I ask why (but in my mind, I find)
I can't rely on myself (myself)
I ask why (but in my mind, I find)
I can't rely on myself
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(When put against you i can't win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in
How do you think that I've lost so much
I'm always afraid that I'm now out of touch
How do you expect that I will know what to do
When all I know is what you tell me to
Don't you (know)
I can't tell you how to make it (go)
No matter what I do, how hard I (try)
I can't seem to convince myself (why)
I'm stuck on the outside
Don't you (know)
I can't tell you how to make it (go)
No matter what I do, how hard I (try)
I can't seem to convince myself (why)
I'm stuck on the outside
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(When put against you, I can't win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(when put against me, i can't win)
With thoughts of failure from with...
Do I follow my fate to escape blindly
Do I hide my pride away from these bad dreams
And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening
Do I let it go and try to stand it
Or do I try to catch them red-handed
Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness
Or do I trust none and live life in loneliness
Because sunlight burns the skin of sleeping men
I make the right turns but I'm lost within
I put on my daily facade but then
I just end up getting hurt again by myself (myself)
I ask why (but in my mind, I find)
I can't rely on myself (myself)
I ask why (but in my mind, I find)
I can't rely on myself
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(When put against you, I cant win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in
If I turn my back I'm defenseless
And to give in to fate seems senseless
If I hide my pride and lie sleepless
I wont be able to cope with my weakness
If I let them go I'll be outdone
But if I try to catch them I'll be outrun
If I'm killed by the questions like a cancer
Then I'll be buried in the silence of the answer
By myself (myself)
I ask why (but in my mind, I find)
I can't rely on myself (myself)
I ask why (but in my mind, I find)
I can't rely on myself
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(When put against you i can't win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in
How do you think that I've lost so much
I'm always afraid that I'm now out of touch
How do you expect that I will know what to do
When all I know is what you tell me to
Don't you (know)
I can't tell you how to make it (go)
No matter what I do, how hard I (try)
I can't seem to convince myself (why)
I'm stuck on the outside
Don't you (know)
I can't tell you how to make it (go)
No matter what I do, how hard I (try)
I can't seem to convince myself (why)
I'm stuck on the outside
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(When put against you, I can't win)
With thoughts of failure sinking in
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(when put against me, i can't win)
With thoughts of failure from with...
Lyrics submitted by ChrisLPfan1
Super Xero (By Myself Demo) Lyrics as written by Chester Charles Bennington Brad Delson
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
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.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
Great song. I do like it. I wonder, was this done while they were Hybrid Theory, or while they were Xero? Or is this an actual LP song? Could someone clarify?
xero only did four songs. this is a demo that lp did when they were hybrid theory, it was on a very early demo tape that also had esaul (a place for my head demo) on it, that was sent around to record labels.
this song sez to me: "WTF?!? cant i do anything right? i love you but at the same time i hate you?"
the singer sounds different, is it Chester singing?
who else would be singing?
Mike Shinoda and Chester are singing in this song. Hm, I like the lyrics from this song better than "By Myself" but the way this song sounds... it just sounds better on "By Myself"
no, i dont think its chester singing. only because when linkin park was named 'xero' they had a different singer. but in by myself, chester sings.
Hmm this song is originally writen by Mark Wakefield I think. But he's not the vocalist on it, like in the Rhinestone, reading my eyes, and Stick n' Move tracks.
So yeah, it is Chester. Though Mark and Chester sound alot alike.