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.
I was happy in my harbor
When you cut me loose
Floating on an ocean
And confused
Winds are whipping waves up
Like sky scrapers
And the harder they hit me
The less I seem to bruise
And when I
Find the controls
I'll go where I like
I'll know where I want to be
But maybe for now
I'll stay right here
On a silent sea
On a silent sea
I was happy in my harbor
When you cut me loose
Floating on an ocean
And confused
Oh when I
Find the controls
I'll go where I like
I'll know where I want to be
But maybe for now
I'll stay right here
On a silent sea
On a silent sea, oh whoa
I'll stay right here
On a silent sea
On a silent sea
Oh when I
Find the controls
I'll go where I like
I'll know where I want to be
But maybe for now
I'll stay right here
On a silent sea
When you cut me loose
Floating on an ocean
And confused
Winds are whipping waves up
Like sky scrapers
And the harder they hit me
The less I seem to bruise
And when I
Find the controls
I'll go where I like
I'll know where I want to be
But maybe for now
I'll stay right here
On a silent sea
On a silent sea
I was happy in my harbor
When you cut me loose
Floating on an ocean
And confused
Oh when I
Find the controls
I'll go where I like
I'll know where I want to be
But maybe for now
I'll stay right here
On a silent sea
On a silent sea, oh whoa
I'll stay right here
On a silent sea
On a silent sea
Oh when I
Find the controls
I'll go where I like
I'll know where I want to be
But maybe for now
I'll stay right here
On a silent sea
Lyrics submitted by LillyDarko
Silent Sea Lyrics as written by Katie Victoria Tunstall James Dearness Hogarth
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
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
Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
Thursday
Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
Hayalperest
Hayalperest
This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
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.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
I have a bit of a different take on this song... I've been single my whole life (somewhere in the vicinity of two decades), and about a month ago I met a boy who has become my first boyfriend... and I used this song to describe to him how odd I felt. I was "happy in my harbour" when he came in and my world's gone upside down and I'm definitely "floating on an ocean and confused." I've always been so independent, even as a baby. I had my own world, my own harbour, and I don't know what to make of things now, and he seems confident things are fine and he's had several girlfriends before me, and I'm out here with no understanding of things. Maybe soon I'll find a sense of equipoise, and I'll "know where I want to be" with him. But for now, I'll have to content myself with this silent sea of confusion. It's not like it's all that bad - just such a flood of uncertainty. Anyway.. that's how I take this song.
I just love how the music sounds like the rocking of a boat on the ocean.
I think this song is so beautiful...I think (amongst all the sea imagery) that it's about the break up of a relationship that she wasn't expecting...she just now wants to get her life back and head into the future, but she knows it'll take time so she'll be sticking around whilst she figures out what to do with next with her life...if that makes sense!
i love this song so so much. it's impossible to get tired of.
and the harder they hit me the less i seem to bruise.
what does that mean?
i think it means that the more hurt she gets the less she feels it
It makes perfect sense to me: eventually, you become desensitized to people hurting you, and so you stop trying for a time, while you are dealing with the frustration of letting this happen to you AGAIN. I think the Silent Sea maybe means that she will be silent--not talk to another man who will inevitably do this to her.
yeah. i think you're right. i think that she just got so sick of it that she's never wants to feel that way again. she's trying to find the way to get rid of her feelings. you know?
for me this is about a girl who got dumped and did not see it coming and it broke her heart. She knows that eventually she'll fall in love again with someone else but that takes time so she'll stay alone for a while.
I don't know where any of the more angry interpretations come from...I don't get a hint of angriness in this song. I get bewilderment and shock in the beginning, but also a sense of 'Yeah, but I knew it was coming'. As she's shaking the shock off she's getting hit by the reality of it and of what that means for her future. It hurts at first but after a while she begins to get used to it; and as you get into the refrain you can see that she's regaining control and her sense of self; albeit she might not be prepared for a new relationship any time soon. She's currently more comfortable being semi-safe and single. It's got a calm, soothing vibe of acceptance.
i like this laidback, breezy song about kt being left by her boyfriend. It's great