The song "Fortnight" by Taylor Swift and Post Malone tells a story about strong feelings, complicated relationships, and secret wishes. It talks about love, betrayal, and wanting someone who doesn't feel the same. The word "fortnight" shows short-lived happiness and guilty pleasures, leading to sadness. It shows how messy relationships can be and the results of hiding emotions. “I was supposed to be sent away / But they forgot to come and get me,” she kickstarts the song in the first verse with lines suggesting an admission to a hospital for people with mental illnesses. She goes in the verse admitting her lover is the reason why she is like this. In the chorus, she sings about their time in love and reflects on how he has now settled with someone else. “I took the miracle move-on drug, the effects were temporary / And I love you, it’s ruining my life,” on the second verse she details her struggles to forget about him and the negative effects of her failure. “Thought of callin’ ya, but you won’t pick up / ‘Nother fortnight lost in America,” Post Malone sings in the outro.
Remember the morning we dug up your gun
The worms in the barrel, the hanging sun
Those first nervous evenings of perfume and gin
The lost smell on your breath as I helped you get it in
The rush of your lips, the feel of your name
The beat in your heart, the devil's arcade
You said "Heroes are needed, so heroes get made"
Somebody made a bet, somebody paid
The cool desert morning and nothing to save
Just metal and plastic where your body caved
The slow games of poker with Lieutenant Ray
In the ward with the blue walls, a sea with no name
Where you lie adrift with the heroes of the devil's arcade
You sleep and you dream, your buddies Charlie and James
And wake with a thick desert dust on your skin
Voice says "don't worry, I'm here
Just whisper the word tomorrow in my ear"
House on a quiet street, a home for the brave
A glorious kingdom with the sun on your face
Rising from a long night as dark as the grave
On a thin chain of next moments and something like faith
On a morning to order a breakfast to make
A bed draped in sunshine, a body that waits
For the touch of your fingers, the end of the day
The beat of your heart, the beat of your heart
The beat of your heart, the beat of your heart
The beat of your heart, the beat of her heart
The beat of your heart, the slow burning away
Of the bitter fires of the devil's arcade
[Terri's Song Begins]
Well they built the Titanic to be one of a kind, but many ships have ruled the seas
They built the Eiffel Tower to stand alone, but they could build another if they please
Taj Mahal, the pyramids of Egypt, are unique I suppose
But when they built you, brother, they broke the mold
Now the world is filled with many wonders under the passing sun
And sometimes something comes along and you know it's for sure the only one
The Mona Lisa, the David, the Sistine Chapel, Jesus, Mary, and Joe
And when they built you, brother, they broke the mold
When they built you, brother, they turned dust into gold
When they built you, brother, they broke the mold
They say you can't take it with you, but I think that they're wrong
'Cause all I know is I woke up this morning, and something big was gone
Gone into that dark ether where you're still young and hard and cold
Just like when they built you, brother, they broke the mold
Now your death is upon us and we'll return your ashes to the earth
And I know you'll take comfort in knowing you've been roundly blessed and cursed
But love is a power greater than death, just like the songs and stories told
And when she built you, brother, she broke the mold
That attitude's a power stronger than death, alive and burning her stone cold
When they built you, brother
The worms in the barrel, the hanging sun
Those first nervous evenings of perfume and gin
The lost smell on your breath as I helped you get it in
The rush of your lips, the feel of your name
The beat in your heart, the devil's arcade
You said "Heroes are needed, so heroes get made"
Somebody made a bet, somebody paid
The cool desert morning and nothing to save
Just metal and plastic where your body caved
The slow games of poker with Lieutenant Ray
In the ward with the blue walls, a sea with no name
Where you lie adrift with the heroes of the devil's arcade
You sleep and you dream, your buddies Charlie and James
And wake with a thick desert dust on your skin
Voice says "don't worry, I'm here
Just whisper the word tomorrow in my ear"
House on a quiet street, a home for the brave
A glorious kingdom with the sun on your face
Rising from a long night as dark as the grave
On a thin chain of next moments and something like faith
On a morning to order a breakfast to make
A bed draped in sunshine, a body that waits
For the touch of your fingers, the end of the day
The beat of your heart, the beat of your heart
The beat of your heart, the beat of your heart
The beat of your heart, the beat of her heart
The beat of your heart, the slow burning away
Of the bitter fires of the devil's arcade
[Terri's Song Begins]
Well they built the Titanic to be one of a kind, but many ships have ruled the seas
They built the Eiffel Tower to stand alone, but they could build another if they please
Taj Mahal, the pyramids of Egypt, are unique I suppose
But when they built you, brother, they broke the mold
Now the world is filled with many wonders under the passing sun
And sometimes something comes along and you know it's for sure the only one
The Mona Lisa, the David, the Sistine Chapel, Jesus, Mary, and Joe
And when they built you, brother, they broke the mold
When they built you, brother, they turned dust into gold
When they built you, brother, they broke the mold
They say you can't take it with you, but I think that they're wrong
'Cause all I know is I woke up this morning, and something big was gone
Gone into that dark ether where you're still young and hard and cold
Just like when they built you, brother, they broke the mold
Now your death is upon us and we'll return your ashes to the earth
And I know you'll take comfort in knowing you've been roundly blessed and cursed
But love is a power greater than death, just like the songs and stories told
And when she built you, brother, she broke the mold
That attitude's a power stronger than death, alive and burning her stone cold
When they built you, brother
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Fortnight
Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
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.
I need to point out more errors...it's thick desert dust on your skin.
also Where you lie adrift with the heroes
and The cool desert morning, then nothin' to save Just metal and plastic where your body caved
I think this song is about a lover lost in Iraq. There's "nothin' to save", this person was killed. They're drifting, dreaming of the life they should have had were it not for their death in the war. I don't see redemption here, just sad unnecessary death.
To me the song is about a soldier lost in Iraq, written from the point of view of his partner. Heard in that context, it's one incredibly moving and powerful song.
I'm a veteran and not really a big anti-war guy; but I love Bruce and know that he is. To me this is pretty much a flat out condemnation of the Iraq war. The Devil's Arcade is the game of war played by the pezzonovante (to borrow from Don Corleone) or the playground of big shots with soldiers as pawns.
The song is tough to unravel flow wise as the first paragraph seems to indicate a female with the inclusion of perfume in the lyric. Heroes getting made and bets getting paid all point to Iraq--slow poker games with Lt Ray in the "ward with blue walls" sounds like someone in a military hospital doing an arduous rehab/recovery. Metal and plastic where your body caved perhaps intimates a prosthesis of some type?
Buddys Charlie and Jim sound like fallen comrades. I somewhat concur with Barknoq except i think sex is involved only in the first paragraph. That's my dos centavos.
@cubfever7 <br /> thank you. definitely one of my favorite springsteen songs; a real gem. you helped me with a few ideas here; much appreciated.
I am 100% sure it's about a soldier who's dying of combat wounds (narrated by his friend):
Remember the morning we dug up your gun The worms in the barrel, the hangin' sun
Somebody made a bet, somebody paid The cool desert morning, then nothin' to save Just metal and plastic where your body caved
In the ward with the blue walls, a sea with no name Where you lie adrift with the heroes Of the devil's arcade
Then, his lover visits him, promising him he'll recover:
A voice says "Don't worry, I'm here" Just whisper the word 'tomorrow' in my ear
His condition worsens as the song goes on:
Rising from a long night as dark as the grave On a thin chain of next moments And something like faith
At the end of the song, he dies:
A bed draped in sunshine, a body that waits For the touch of your fingers The end of a day
The beat of your heart, the beat of her heart The beat of her heart, the slow burning away Of the bitter fires of the devil's arcade
I think it's about the phases of romance and sex throughout life.
"[T]hose first nervous evenings" are about the early years of sex, the experimentation. Not to mention the weirdness of it, of helping her "get it in."
The "metal and plastic" thing, I imagine, is metaphor for sex in a car, OR, could be about an empty feeling of the college years, the drifting, meaningless one-night stands.
"A voice says 'Don't worry, I'm here,'" is about marriage, and the comfort of having a loved one by your side, someone who can keep things "mum" and keep your secrets and assuage your worries and insecurities.
"A house on a quiet street," talks about the later years. Sex is sporadic because it's now the twilight years. There's a fear of death, so there's hope for something after ("something like faith")
Finally, he speaks of "the touch of your fingers / At the end of the day." Perhaps this is about the ending. Sex is no more, but you still have each other, he still has "the beat of your heart," even though the "sun [is] burning away."
i think it is chronicling the thoughts of someone after a war.
The first three paragraphs are all about sex - that much can't really be denied. the third paragraph ends and sets the stage: the devil's arcade.
Next it speaks of heroes. the person gives his/her reasoning for joining hte service and fighting the war. "somebody made a bet, somebody paid" is a crack at the administration for betting on a war, and the person paying the price is the soldier.
Paragraphs 5 through 8 color in the scene- the "metal and plastic where your body caved" (the lyric came is incorrect as per the lyrics in the album booklet) talk about where he was injured, where he needed to be replaced with artificial parts of some sort. then it details the recovery in a military hospital among all the other heroes in the devil's arcade.
the final paragraphs detail all the little things our hero fights for, especially his/her lover.
the final line: "The beat of your heart, the slow burning away Of the bitter fires of the devil’s arcade" shows us that the hell that injured our hero was put through was, in the end, worth the price
not sure about the rest but pretty sure that the lines: You sleep in a dream Your buddies Charlie and gin And wake with a faint desert dust On your skin
A voice says "Don't worry, I'm here," Just whisper the word to mum In my ear. sounds like someone waking screaming from nightmares, possibly PTSD from combat. also charlie(slang for cocaine) and gin to medicate enough to sleep.
The lyrics are wrong in three points: original is: You sleep and dream of your buddies Charlie and Jim ... and then Just whisper the word 'tomorrow' in my ear ... finally the slow burning away ...
I think it's about a veteran whose soul has been lost to the devil during the war and menages to get it through thanks to love, that burns away the bitter fires of the devil's arcade
I agree with you TheMinstrelBoy. What a song. I got shivers once I realized what it was about.
And "get it in" probably refers to their first night together.