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.
Legacy will never burn
Hard to breathe, I'll never learn
And it moves me towards where I want to leave
In the silence we all speak
Laying down and suffering
And I move nothing and embrace what I don't need
So I stand, all alone
With this trance, on my own
And I just sustain moving on in vain
Cause this glow, you and I
Have come to know, is a lie
And I must move on
[Chorus]
I can see past these fine lines that you stepped through
I can see through these glass eyes that led me on
I'm in this room, You're in that and you play hearts like instruments
Listen deep, you're hell the sound
Whispering, it's all around
Echoes grasping in, echoes lasting sin
Out of this, please open up
Move from this, it's taken us
And I need to change, and I need to say
So I stand, all alone
With this trance, on my own
And I just sustain, moving on in vain
Cause this glow, you and I
Have come to know, is a lie
And I must move on
Tell me the things that I need to keep my heart
From breaking clean
Leave me with numbness and watch me lock
Myself in a disbelief
Where does this movement come from, I'm holding on so desperately
This love is so intricate it leaves me taking
Hard to breathe, I'll never learn
And it moves me towards where I want to leave
In the silence we all speak
Laying down and suffering
And I move nothing and embrace what I don't need
So I stand, all alone
With this trance, on my own
And I just sustain moving on in vain
Cause this glow, you and I
Have come to know, is a lie
And I must move on
[Chorus]
I can see past these fine lines that you stepped through
I can see through these glass eyes that led me on
I'm in this room, You're in that and you play hearts like instruments
Listen deep, you're hell the sound
Whispering, it's all around
Echoes grasping in, echoes lasting sin
Out of this, please open up
Move from this, it's taken us
And I need to change, and I need to say
So I stand, all alone
With this trance, on my own
And I just sustain, moving on in vain
Cause this glow, you and I
Have come to know, is a lie
And I must move on
Tell me the things that I need to keep my heart
From breaking clean
Leave me with numbness and watch me lock
Myself in a disbelief
Where does this movement come from, I'm holding on so desperately
This love is so intricate it leaves me taking
Lyrics submitted by the_bing_thing
Ambience Lyrics as written by
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Capitol CMG Publishing
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More Featured Meanings
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
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/
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
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.
II Corinthians 11:13-14
“For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, discussing themselves as apostles of Christ. No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.”
That's the verse that Falling Up gives for this song.
In my opinion:
This song is about a person or the devil who has decieved someone else. The person who was decieved is having a hard time "Hard to breathe, I'll never learn" The person who decieved them was probably close to them "'cause the glow you and I have come to know is a lie, and I must move on" This line also implies it is a past lover (that's what happened to me). They realize they have been decieved "I can see past the fine lines you stepped through. I can see through these glass eyes that led me on." They have moved away from the deciever "I'm in this room, you're in that." The line "You play hearts like instruments" has a strong impact on me, because the deciever in my life does play hearts very well. Oh yeah, "hell the sound" should be "hear the sound". Pain can reach a point where you don't know how you mange to put one foot in front of the other, and keep breathing in and out. "Tell me the things I need to keep my heart from breaking clean" Simply asking God to provide enough information to keep from giving up. "Leave me with numbness and watch me lock myself in disbelief" Sometimes the only way you can get through something horrible, is to be numb and not to believe what is happening right in front of your eyes. "Where does this movement come from, I'm holding on so despertly" Simply being amazed that inspite of the pain, you're still livng"
This is long, but this song means soooooo much to me and I have listened to it so many times right before school, tears streaming down my face as I'm trying to muster enough strength to go on just one more day and face the person who has decieved me.