The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
Cleared the fog that was veiled around me
And blurred my sights
Suddenly, I'm no longer aching
To honor my plights
Rising moon and my skin is peeling
Past undone
Suddenly, I can't justify
What I had become
And blurred my sights
Suddenly, I'm no longer aching
To honor my plights
Rising moon and my skin is peeling
Past undone
Suddenly, I can't justify
What I had become
Lyrics submitted by pan_ziebys(:
Atonement Lyrics as written by Mikael Lars Akerfeldt
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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This is a great song off the new album. I dont know what its about, it could be about death, but that doesnt suit the mood of the song
Well I didn't know what it meant at first. But I looked it up off dictionary.com and it said its expiation, or "The reconciliation of God and humans brought about by the redemptive life and death of Jesus. "
he realizes that his turn to evil was wrong. he killed his mother and turned to satan. read my post on ghost of perdition
see my post on "beneath the mire..."
Here, in trying to commit suicide, he no longer feels the inmpulse to carry out satans will.
He attempts to end his life because he cant justify his actions...
He decides to not serve Satan anymore, thus atoning and repenting, but in the very next song, Reverie/Harlequin Forest, Satan wreaks his revenge upon and chases him through the forest. The terror that the devil puts him through leads up to Hours of Wealth, in which he returns to Satan, which culminates in The Grand Conjuration.
...werewolf...?
First verse seems like he's come "down to Earth" ("Cleared the fog that was veiled around me and blurred my sights") and realising what he was doing was wrong. He doesn't feel the need to carry out what he promised to do for Satan ("Suddenly I'm no longer aching to honor my plights"). For those of you who don't know, a plight is a promise of some kind (I think...).
Although in the second verse, as percussivemassacre said, it seems to relate to a werewolf. Hmm.
Atonement. He's redeemed from whatever bad things he did. It's just poetically written.
" Suddenly, I can't justify What I had become" just doesn't fit in. It says I CANT justify what I had become. Which to me seems like a bad thing... right?
"what i had become" is a reference to Ghost Reveries, The Baying of the Hounds and Beneath the Mire. The death or killing of his Mother and his path towards Satan (or the general evil side of life)
This relaxing for an Opeth song... Opeth is the best Death Metal band eva