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"
She says you're a masochist for falling for me
So roll up your sleeves
And I think that I like her, 'cause she tells me things I don't want to hear
Medicinal tongue in my ear
When will it stop? When will it stop?
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel soft, soft?
You say that my skin feels like no one else's
That it's different somehow
But I don't understand, isn't a hand just a hand?
No you don't understand
When will it start? My broken part?
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel soft, soft?
Ooh
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel soft, soft?
She says you're a masochist for falling for me
So roll up your sleeves
And I think that I like her, 'cause she tells me things I don't want to hear
Medicinal tongue in my ear
When will it stop? When will it stop?
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel soft, soft?
You say that my skin feels like no one else's
That it's different somehow
But I don't understand, isn't a hand just a hand?
No you don't understand
When will it start? My broken part?
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel soft, soft?
Ooh
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel all soft on the inside?
When will I feel soft, soft?
She says you're a masochist for falling for me
Lyrics submitted by ggollysandraa
Masochist Lyrics as written by Ingrid Michaelson
Lyrics © Spirit Music Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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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.
Just A Little Lovin'
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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/
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Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
i sort of think that this song is about being unable to love somebody back. it's like, this guy is really into her and she just can't get herself to see it. she doesn't understand because she hasn't been in love, so she can't return what he tells her (i.e. my skin feels like no one else's...but i don't understand, isn't a hand just a hand?). also i think the "she" that ingrid talks about may be sort of like an...inner voice. or like her conscience or something, telling her that he's a masochist for falling for her.
i absolutely love this song. it sounds to me like she doesn't know how to love someone without hurting them, because she has a wall up and she doesn't know how to get it down. like when she says "when will i feel all soft on the inside". and when she says "your a masochist for falling for me so roll up your sleeves", it's kind of saying get ready to get hurt, the rolling up of the sleeves being a metaphor for cuts on your arm. sounds really morbid, but that's what the song means to me. someone who wants to love, but doesn't know how without hurting the other person.
oh gosh you just opened my eyes to the meaing of this song...and its me :/ i wish i could love w/o hurting them but i just dont know how b/c i have so many walls up...
"Roll up your sleeves" is a common English saying, meaning "Get ready for hard work" or "get ready to get dirty". It came from people who worked farms and had to roll up their sleeves when they had to do a particularly dirty or difficult task. It doesn't have anything to do with cutting your arms?? Yikes! Haha :)
The line "So roll up your sleeves" to me means "Get ready, coz this will involve a lot of work"
i don't think shes talking about a boy. shes talking about a girl/woman.
"And I think that I like her, 'cuz she tells me things I don't want to hear, Medicinal tongue in my ear."
shes talking about the girl. she likes that she tells her things she dosent want to hear. some people like that and its kinda a turn on for them.
she seems to be in love but new at it and unsure of things.
like this line: "You say that my skin feels like no one else's, That it's different somehow. But I don't understand, isn't a hand just a hand? No you don't understand. "
"She says you're a masochist for falling for me, So roll up your sleeves."
meaning be cautious, you must like getting hurt if you decide to be with me. "so roll up your sleeves"is meaning show me your scars
I love this song have been listening to it for days. Ingrid's voice is so soft yet clear and her expressions are full i just love the way she sings. Her lyrics are so beautiful i can relate so perfectly to them ... isn't love an act of masochism painful yet so satisfying
i love everything about this song "you're a masochist for falling for me" to me that sorta feels like shes trying to say - when you let yourself fall for someone or in love you might just be setting yourself up to get hurt.
i think that the 'she' that's referred to is her therapist, hence the "medicinal tongue in her ear", and the saying things that she doesn't want to hear. Also since she is asking in the song, 'when will it stop" that seems like a plea to get better. perhaps she is there because she has intimacy issues and can't feel 'soft' about anyone anymore.
I like this interpretation -- it makes the most sense. I love this song but couldn't get around the concept of the "she".
Yep. I agree with jellybean. I think the term masochist here means that girl A (the one singing) is in love with girl B and is constantly pursuing her despite rejection (maybe girl B is straight). The unending pursuance is due to the fact that she is a masochist and she doesn't mind getting hurt, in fact finds it pleasurable. Although that fact hurts girl A she still lover her.. "You're a masochist for falling for me"
I don't know. Some people are like that, they love people who can't reciprocate their love. Don't you people feel that same way, that when you finally get the person you have desired..the interest fades away?
I interpret it as: she says, "you're a masochist...so roll up your sleeves." then it switches to first person for "And I think that I like her..." and the chorus.
then it switches back to dialogue: "you say that my skin...isn't a hand just a hand?" Then "no you don't understand..." is in first person.
and I don't think "medicinal tongue" is supposed to be literal. It's metaphorical, like her words soothe, heal like medicine does.
And the speaker doesn't have to be a girl, which means this doesn't have to be a lesbian relationship (although it could be, and there's nothing wrong with that.)
It's all about how someone feels inadequate or undeserving for another person's love, that's all. And I don't think the love is unrequited; she--not the speaker--says "so roll up your sleeves." That means they'll try to make it work, but it's going to be difficult. And when the speaker says that he/she likes her because she tells him/her things she doesn't want to hear, I interpret that as the speaker enjoying this challenge as he/she waits for love, or the softness on the inside.
I agree
I agree with SARAHbellum. I don't think that the singer is in love with the first "she" Ingrid mentions. I think that it is her conscience or inner voice. And the person she's in love with is a third party. Usually we portray ourselves on the outside differently than whats on the inside, like "'cuz she tells me things I don't want to hear". We don't always want to acknowledge the truth about ourselves, so we stow it away in the back of our minds.