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.
Well, I met you at the blood bank
We were looking at the bags
Wondering if any of the colors
Matched any of the names we knew on the tags
You said "see lookit, that's yours
Stacked on top with your brother's
See how they resemble one another
Even in their plastic little covers"
And I said I know it well
That secret that you knew
But don't know how to tell
It fucks with your honor
And it teases your head
But you know that it's good, girl
'Cause its running you with red
Then the snow started falling
We were stuck out in your car
You were rubbing both of my hands
Chewing on a candy bar
You said "ain't this just like the present
To be showing up like this"
As a moon waned to crescent
We started to kiss
And I said I know it well
That secret that we know
That we don't know how to tell
I'm in love with your honor
I'm in love with your cheeks
What's that noise up the stairs babe?
Is that Christmas morning creaks?
And I said I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
We were looking at the bags
Wondering if any of the colors
Matched any of the names we knew on the tags
You said "see lookit, that's yours
Stacked on top with your brother's
See how they resemble one another
Even in their plastic little covers"
And I said I know it well
That secret that you knew
But don't know how to tell
It fucks with your honor
And it teases your head
But you know that it's good, girl
'Cause its running you with red
Then the snow started falling
We were stuck out in your car
You were rubbing both of my hands
Chewing on a candy bar
You said "ain't this just like the present
To be showing up like this"
As a moon waned to crescent
We started to kiss
And I said I know it well
That secret that we know
That we don't know how to tell
I'm in love with your honor
I'm in love with your cheeks
What's that noise up the stairs babe?
Is that Christmas morning creaks?
And I said I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
And I know it well
Lyrics submitted by sidelinedseason, edited by benapere
Blood Bank Lyrics as written by Justin Deyarmond Edison Vernon
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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I Saw Bon Iver in September last year at the end of the road festival. Before he played this song he said "This song is about being stuck in a car in the snow, with somebody new" I really dont think there is much more to it than that. Admitadly Most of Justin's lyrics are very subtle and oblique. Never trying to be to specific. But i think essentially its about two people who meet at a Blood bank and find them selves stuck in a car. The realisations that happen when you start thinking about whats happening at the present time like you do if you meet somone special. Your thoughts begin to work differently. So much of peoples time is spent thinking about the past and the future. Its very strange when you meet someone special and there is a conection when you start thinking about the moment and what it means to you now. You kind of know your going to look back fondly on whats happening.
this is the best interpretation for this song i have read. i completely agree with you.
That's the stuff. In my opinion, a perfect explanation. This song is more like a haiku than a complex web-- just a set of wonderful imagery caught up in a realization of the moment. I totally agree.
Perfect. The way you defined how you think when meeting someone special is something i've been trying to define for months. Couldn't agree more.
best interpretation! sometimes the simplest solutions make the most the sense.
I must agree, this interpretation is spot on in my opinion.