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"
Why'd you put your dress shoes on if you didn't come to dance?
Frankly, I'd be on my own if I thought I'd stand a chance
Why'd you take your glasses off if you don't intend to fight?
Frankly, I'd be on my own if I thought I'd last the night
No screaming or fighting, no scratching or biting
We're just shaking hands goodnight
Sullen and silent, emotionally violent
I waited a while and nothing, nothing
Why say anything nice when you can say nothing at all?
Why say anything nice when you can say nothing at all?
Why'd you put your backpack on if you won't just take a hike?
Frankly, I'd be out the door if you hadn't sold my bike
No fencing or sparring, no bruising or scarring
And no 'au revoiring' yet
No communication, just alienation
I've tried to be patient but nothing, nothing
Why say anything nice when you can say nothing at all?
Why say anything nice?
Say anything nice, a simple device
That makes everything beautiful just ordinary
Nice can come at a price, forever imbued with all this boredom
Sacrifice can only suffice when something is beautiful
After all the resentment, all the discontentment
The flowers you sent meant nothing, nothing
Why say anything nice when you can say nothing at all?
Why say anything nice when you can say nothing at all?
(Why say anything nice?)
You can say nothing at all
Woo hoo hoo
Nothing at all
Woo hoo hoo
You can say nothing at all
Woo hoo hoo
Nothing at all
Frankly, I'd be on my own if I thought I'd stand a chance
Why'd you take your glasses off if you don't intend to fight?
Frankly, I'd be on my own if I thought I'd last the night
No screaming or fighting, no scratching or biting
We're just shaking hands goodnight
Sullen and silent, emotionally violent
I waited a while and nothing, nothing
Why say anything nice when you can say nothing at all?
Why say anything nice when you can say nothing at all?
Why'd you put your backpack on if you won't just take a hike?
Frankly, I'd be out the door if you hadn't sold my bike
No fencing or sparring, no bruising or scarring
And no 'au revoiring' yet
No communication, just alienation
I've tried to be patient but nothing, nothing
Why say anything nice when you can say nothing at all?
Why say anything nice?
Say anything nice, a simple device
That makes everything beautiful just ordinary
Nice can come at a price, forever imbued with all this boredom
Sacrifice can only suffice when something is beautiful
After all the resentment, all the discontentment
The flowers you sent meant nothing, nothing
Why say anything nice when you can say nothing at all?
Why say anything nice when you can say nothing at all?
(Why say anything nice?)
You can say nothing at all
Woo hoo hoo
Nothing at all
Woo hoo hoo
You can say nothing at all
Woo hoo hoo
Nothing at all
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The Night We Met
Lord Huron
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Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
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.
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
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.
can't believe no one has commented on this song yet...and tyler stewart co-wrote it! How long has it been since he co-wrote something? anyway, this song is amazing!! A play off of the saying one teaches to litte kids "If you can't say nothing nice, don't say nothing at all" he he maked me think the Bambi movie...you know, Thumper says that...okay i'll shut up about that now... All the sayings about if BLANK hadn't happened I'd BLANK right now is playing off the saying again! Does anyone else see that?
This song is about two people who had a major falling out, and won't talk to each other, despite living together. It speaks about how people can feel very angry, very emotional and violent, yet just not say anything at all, resorting to the silent treatment.
Basically, it's about being passive-aggressive, pretending that the other person doesn't exist. Believe me, I've had this problem before, and this song describes exactly what it feels like.
I think Occams_Harmony has a point in there.. but with my opinion and with what I notice most of the time..people always talk, even they don;t have nothing right to say, such hypocrites, they just want to criticize and everything..so I want to dedicated tis song to all the people who keep on saying non-sense thing to anyone who they think oes wrong, I'm a Filipino but it's a shame most of us do things like that. Every morning most of them gather around and keep frying on other's lives that has basically nothing to do with theirs.
I use to be like that sometimes, but at least...I'm trying to change.