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.
I ponder of something great
My lungs will fill and then deflate
They fill with fire, exhale desire
I know it's dire, my time today
I have these thoughts so often, I ought
To replace that slot with what I once bought
'Cause somebody stole my car radio
And now I just sit in silence
Sometimes quiet is violent
I find it hard to hide it, my pride is no longer inside
It's on my sleeve, my skin will scream
Reminding me of who I killed inside my dream
I hate this car that I'm driving, there's no hiding for me
I'm forced to deal with what I feel
There is no distraction to mask what is real
I could pull the steering wheel
I have these thoughts so often, I ought
To replace that slot with what I once bought
'Cause somebody stole my car radio
And now I just sit in silence
I ponder of something terrifying
'Cause this time there's no sound to hide behind
I find over the course of our human existence
One thing consists of consistence
And it's that we're all battling fear
Oh dear, I don't know if we know why we're here
Oh my, too deep, please stop thinking
I liked it better when my car had sound
There are things we can do
But from the things that work there are only two
And from the two that we choose to do
Peace will win and fear will lose
And there's faith and there's sleep
We need to pick one please because
Faith is to be awake and to be awake is for us to think
And for us to think is to be alive
And I will try with every rhyme
To come across like I am dying
To let you know you need to try to think
I have these thoughts so often, I ought
To replace that slot with what I once bought
'Cause somebody stole my car radio
And now I just sit in silence
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
And now I just sit in silence
And now I just sit in silence
And now I just sit
And now I just sit in silence
And now I just sit in silence
And now I just sit in silence
And now I just sit
I ponder of something great
My lungs will fill and then deflate
They fill with fire, exhale desire
I know it's dire, my time today
I have these thoughts so often, I ought
To replace that slot with what I once bought
'Cause somebody stole my car radio
And now I just sit in silence
My lungs will fill and then deflate
They fill with fire, exhale desire
I know it's dire, my time today
I have these thoughts so often, I ought
To replace that slot with what I once bought
'Cause somebody stole my car radio
And now I just sit in silence
Sometimes quiet is violent
I find it hard to hide it, my pride is no longer inside
It's on my sleeve, my skin will scream
Reminding me of who I killed inside my dream
I hate this car that I'm driving, there's no hiding for me
I'm forced to deal with what I feel
There is no distraction to mask what is real
I could pull the steering wheel
I have these thoughts so often, I ought
To replace that slot with what I once bought
'Cause somebody stole my car radio
And now I just sit in silence
I ponder of something terrifying
'Cause this time there's no sound to hide behind
I find over the course of our human existence
One thing consists of consistence
And it's that we're all battling fear
Oh dear, I don't know if we know why we're here
Oh my, too deep, please stop thinking
I liked it better when my car had sound
There are things we can do
But from the things that work there are only two
And from the two that we choose to do
Peace will win and fear will lose
And there's faith and there's sleep
We need to pick one please because
Faith is to be awake and to be awake is for us to think
And for us to think is to be alive
And I will try with every rhyme
To come across like I am dying
To let you know you need to try to think
I have these thoughts so often, I ought
To replace that slot with what I once bought
'Cause somebody stole my car radio
And now I just sit in silence
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
Whoa, oh-whoa-oh
And now I just sit in silence
And now I just sit in silence
And now I just sit
And now I just sit in silence
And now I just sit in silence
And now I just sit in silence
And now I just sit
I ponder of something great
My lungs will fill and then deflate
They fill with fire, exhale desire
I know it's dire, my time today
I have these thoughts so often, I ought
To replace that slot with what I once bought
'Cause somebody stole my car radio
And now I just sit in silence
Lyrics submitted by tavman, edited by raveman001, Whetever, chloehasalife, thinge123, kirstenv
Car Radio Lyrics as written by Tyler Joseph
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I read through the comments, and I really don't think this song is about him getting his car radio stolen. I think it's about him running out of distractions and having to actually deal with his problems and emotions. I think it's about him learning how to be alive. But that's just me.
I'm pretty sure it's actually both, the car radio is a metaphor for what you said. They don't call these guys artists for nothing.
I agree with Keith: it's probably kinda that having his car radio stolen lead to this moment: He DID have his radio stolen, that's a fact. But after hours and hours without it, he was forced to really think about his life, and what he's doing here: how much time he has left, and what he'll do within that time.
@CaptiveL It can be about the real radio but when I first listened to this song, I had the same opinion.
@CaptiveL Definitely. He convinces other people to think about how valuable their life can be: "To come across like I am dying To let you know you need to try to think."<br />
@CaptiveL completely agree<br />
@CaptiveL I agree that he's trying to tell us to think. I thought for hours but I was better off having distractions and listening to the car radio.
@CaptiveL in one of his shows he states that the song was a true story.
@CaptiveL I think you nailed it sir.
@CaptiveL I honestly agree with you, because Twenty-One pilots don't make they're lyrics blunt, they're lyrics make you think a while, before you understand the true meaning
@CaptiveL As Keith and others note, it's both literal and a metaphor. And as metaphors go, I think this one is unusually brilliant. Unlike just about every other component of a car, the radio serves no functional purpose -- it is solely there to entertain and provide distraction from the tedium of driving. And if it gets stolen, it leaves an empty slot in the dash, and one must then drive in silence. Metaphorically, the car is his life, and the radio was something that provided distraction. But now that something is gone, leaving a hole in his life, and freeing his mind to think thoughts both deep ("something great") and depressing ("something terrifying").<br /> <br /> One recurring thought involves refilling the hole in his life by going back to the old distraction ("replace that slot with what I once bought"). This is suggestive of an addiction of some sort, but it doesn't have to be.<br /> <br /> But the ultimate message of the song involves "the things we can do" about our lives, of which "there are only two" that matter: we can choose "faith" or "sleep," which he goes on to develop as life vs death, being full of life and thinking vs being mindless or even literally dead (suicide). We can pay attention and drive the car safely, or we can "pull the steering wheel" and crash it. The plea is for faith = life = thought, a similar message to "Holding on to You".
@CaptiveL But he literally wrote the song because "My car radio actually got stolen when I was going to college, and since I'm an emotional dude, I wrote a song about it."
@CaptiveL it's really a both. it can be interpreted as a metaphor for what you have said, but the person who wrote the song, Tyler Joseph said in a interview that somebody actually stole his car radio and he just turned it into a deep meaning because he's "emo"
@CaptiveL I think this is further shown by him shaving his head in the music video. Hair is often shaved by those seeking enlightenment as it removes one more worldly distraction and source of vanity.
@CaptiveL yes and no. Mainly because music can actually help you get away from all of the emotions and horrible thoughts you have. Without music a lot of people think and usually music is an escape, so it could be a car radio. But yes, it could just possibly any distractions. Honestly no distraction compares to music.
@CaptiveL i think you're right. good job c;
@CaptiveL yeah, pretty sure
kroq.cbslocal.com/twenty-one-pilots-discuss-their-rising-popularity-and-grassroots-approach-to-music/
"Joseph said that while he was going to college to major in Communications (or in his words, a fancy way of saying undecided), he pulled his “horribly beat up car to the place” where he’s “supposed to learn for thousands of dollars” and because he was late, didn’t lock the door. As one might suspect, when Joseph left class his car was gutted with his CD Player, GPS, and car radio stolen. “And because I’m super emo and all about looking for inspiration, I wrote a song about that moment.” Joseph said that sans car radio, he had more time to be introspective. “That song kind of just documents where you let your mind go when you don’t have a distraction to keep it in its box.”
a great way to explain this song.
@Moonbeam86 Yes, BUT, it's also an excuse for what @CaptiveL said
@Moonbeam86 Finally someone who refrenced that!!
i like this song because its easy for me to relate -
"I ponder of something great My lungs will fill and then deflate They fill with fire Exhale desire I know it's dire My time today"
basically explains how i feel, i feel like i have limited time on this planet which equates to a finite time inwhich i have to conquer all of what i want to accomplsh with my life. "i ponder of something great" i have all these great ideas and the ambition to conquer them, but i have to keep in mind that time waits for no man, no matter how great he. or his ideas are
"I have these thoughts So often I ought To replace that slot With what I once bought 'Cause somebody stole My car radio And now I just sit in silence"
basically explains how he suffers from "racing thoughts", he can't turn his brain off because he's constantly thinking about anything and everything in every scenario possible. he can escape this feeling by sleeping, but when he's not sleeping the only way to preoccupy his mind is with music. with no radio he has no way to block out his thoughts
"Sometimes quiet is violent I find it hard to hide it My pride is no longer inside It's on my sleeve My skin will scream Reminding me of Who I killed inside my dream I hate this car that I'm driving There's no hiding for me I'm forced to deal with what I feel There is no distraction to mask what is real I could pull the steering wheel"
now he hints that even though some of his thoughts are pleasant and hopeful, he also has negative feelings in the same, quiet, thoughtful manner. this verse is further explaining the point that without music, he is forced to deal with his thoughts. serving as a constant reminder for everything. he feels so lost and helpless that he even goes as far as saying "i could pull the steering wheel" hinting that he could run himself off the road (suicide) and end this constant feeling of not being able to escape the monsters in your head
"I ponder of something terrifying 'Cause this time there's no sound to hide behind I find over the course of our human existence One thing consists of consistence And it's that we're all battling fear Oh dear, I don't know if we know why we're here Oh my, Too deep Please stop thinking I liked it better when my car had sound"
further explaining the negative side of his constantly racing thoughts
i think this song is basically about how when someone stole his car radio, his thoughts drove him to have suicidal ideation, because he has an overactive imagination
@herestolife1000 Maybe they could be racing thoughts or maybe they are the same thoughts over and over. So yeah, they lead to suicidal ideation but it could be a depressed way too, not just manic as you say. Nice analysis though, this is just my point of view.
@herestolife1000 Do you actually think anyone is going to stop and read all that? because-i did.
@herestolife1000 I hear the song the same way, but the one thing you may have missed was <br /> <br /> My pride is no longer inside<br /> It's on my sleeve<br /> My skin will scream<br /> Reminding me of<br /> Who I killed inside my dream<br /> <br /> This is where I think he's talking about cutting himself because he can't the depression anymore which is why his skin is literally screaming... just my opinion
@herestolife1000 That is exactly what I was going to comment. That is actually what first caught my ear- that his mind is racing, he is depressed, and can't deal with life to the point he is screaming on the inside and letting it out through his skin... This is deep stuff <3
I feel like this song is pretty self-explanatory. When you are just alone in silence, your thoughts can consume you. Especially, when you have dark thoughts, it can be easy to get overwhelmed by them. Tyler (the singer and writer) can't find anymore distractions, and he is left alone with his thoughts.
My pride is no longer inside It's on my sleeve My skin will scream Reminding me of Who I killed inside my dream I hate this car that I'm driving
I feel like this is one of the most significant parts that all the comments I've read are missing. Basically what I think is that he's using the word pride as more negative as in depression and his sleeve is his wrists where (sorry I couldn't think of a nicer way to say this) he cuts himself which is why his skin is screaming and in this case, his "car" is his body.
@PATDPhan
@PATDPhan I completely agree with this comment. I was reading through this thinking, where are the things about cutting. I personally cut, and that is the first thing that went to my mind. Also the part where it says<br /> Oh my, too deep<br /> Please stop thinking<br /> Also reminded me of it. He could be saying his thoughts are too deep or he could be once again referring to cutting and how he cut too deep. I use cutting to forget about my thoughts and he could be saying he is cutting while begging himself to stop thinking. It would also explain the way my head is, I think of one thing, then I remember soemthing else and then I'm thinking about the first thing again for a split second before I remember something else. Twenty one pilots had really put words to everything I feel. Without them I don't know where I would be.
@PATDPhan I have always thought it was symbolizing death. I feel that he is describing the last moments of his life and how he feels at that time.
@PATDPhan holy crap
I ponder of something great My lungs will fill and then deflate They fill with fire Exhale desire I know it's dire My time today
Think about something better than reality. Breathe and breathe while taking misery and still hoping to end up with something incredible. Everyday is important.
I have these thoughts So often I ought To replace that slot With what I once bought 'Cause somebody stole My car radio And now I just sit in silence
He keeps thinking and thinking about the bad things but knows he should be thinking about happy memories he holds. His distractions have left him, which causes silence, which causes overthinking and depression. Sometimes quiet is violent I find it hard to hide it My pride is no longer inside It's on my sleeve My skin will scream Reminding me of Who I killed inside my dream I hate this car that I'm driving There's no hiding for me I'm forced to deal with what I feel There is no distraction to mask what is real I could pull the steering wheel
Quiet leads to thinking which leads to bad thoughts which can inflict emotion. His pride can be destroyed by other people, rather than before when he could stay proud no matter who tried to bring him down. His looks remind him of something not beautiful, screaming at him that he isn’t perfect. His appearance reminds him of people who insult him, which is who he wishes to die. He hates his life and the road he is taking with it. There is nothing to stop his train of terrible thoughts. He realizes he can take a sharp turn with his life and change.
I ponder of something terrifying 'Cause this time there's no sound to hide behind I find over the course of our human existence One thing consists of consistence And it's that we're all battling fear Oh dear, I don't know if we know why we're here Oh my, Too deep Please stop thinking I liked it better when my car had sound
He thinks of terrible things because there are no distractions. He finds that the one thing that connects to everyone is that everyone battles with the idea that they don’t control their fate. His thoughts are becoming deeper and deeper, as he struggles with the thought of why he was ever born. He realizes that his thoughts are inducing a kind of sadness, which is why he wishes for his train to be cut off.
There are things we can do But from the things that work there are only two And from the two that we choose to do Peace will win And fear will lose There's faith and there's sleep We need to pick one please because Faith is to be awake And to be awake is for us to think And for us to think is to be alive And I will try with every rhyme To come across like I am dying To let you know you need to try to think
There are only two basic things in life, peace and fear. In the end, death is peace, so peace conquers. Peace is made up of faith that life will get better. Fear is made of sleep because sleeping is more like hiding from life. You must choose one or the other, because to have faith you must be awake to believe. Once awake, a human thinks. Once thinking, you are alive in the simplest terms. He speaks as though he is dying for people to really believe him.
Just what I think.
As someone who has gone through and overcome depression, this song is incredibly powerful to me.
Music was always my escape. My thoughts were terrifying when left to their own path, so I needed something to funnel or focus them. Music was that focus. This was when I was in middle school, 2003-2006, so most of what I listened to was Relient K, Switchfoot, and Thousand Foot Krutch. I cannot explain how vital those bands were to me overcoming that struggle.
But there were days were I couldn't listen to music. Say I forgot to charge my ipod, or I forgot my headphones. I would get my ipod taken away from me by teachers constantly for listening in class. Those days when I didn't have that distraction were brutal. My parents could literally tell what days I didn't have music based on what mood I was in after school.
This is how I relate to this song. I obviously couldn't drive back then, but sitting in a car alone with my thoughts during that time would have been terrible. That's what I feel like this song is conveying. Yeah it sucks to get your radio stolen but this is way deeper than that. It's the void that is left when you are alone in silence.
I think it's about him losing the radio and music (a distraction) from his suicidal thoughts, and how he gets worse without it, "I hate this car that I'm driving" shows that driving is a pain without music.
"I hate this car that I'm driving There's no hiding for me (distraction) I'm forced to deal with what I feel (suicidal thoughts) There is no distraction to mask what is real I could pull the steering wheel (could kill myself)"
Trust me, this song is literally about someone stealing his car radio. If you've ever lived through this, you know the unbearable silence that comes when you lose the distraction of the radio. There's nothing that will let you escape the screaming silence other than pulling the steering wheel (killing yourself) and you debate it for the entire time you're driving. It feels like hours driving, even if it's only 10 minutes. I know the 15-20 minute drives home every night used to scare my boyfriend to death because he didn't know if I would make it home or not. He gave me his iPod every night if mine was dead so I would have a distraction. The music saved my life. That's why he's going insane, someone stole his car radio and he's just sitting in silence. Silence is violent.
ok..i can get behind the idea that not having a car radio might cause you to think more..but to kill yourself? I think the idea of the song isn't that unbearable silence leads him to 'pulling the steering wheel' but his deep thoughts about the world/society does it.
Who is to say the song can't take both a literal and a deeper meaning? He really did have his car radio stolen- that happened. But the whole event inspired him to think of the whole situation as a metaphor with a deeper meaning that involves each and every one of us.
That's the thing though.. the literal meaning IS the deeper meaning. And the loss of his car radio wasn't the CAUSE of his suicidal thoughts, he already had them in him. The radio had been his only escape in an otherwise desperate situation. Whatever was the cause of his depression is irrelevant, he had it from the start. The silence is what pushed him over the edge.
@k4love1 i think its more a metaphor. Yes when he doesnt have it, it's silent, but i personally interpret it as when there's no distractions youre stuck with your thoughts and they can be dangerous. Apparently there is a story of a car radio being stolen but i think that just made him get the inspiration. Music gave tyler something to d with his life when he was bored and had nothing and i think it's more linked with when he doesn't have his music, he is nothing and he is left with ust his emotions and can't escape it
i believe that thing song is about how he now has nothing to distract him from his problems. he used to have the car radio, which has songs, to take him to a different place and save him from what is really happening but now that it is stolen, he now has to deal with those problems because without the music to distract him, it makes him think about what is really happening to him. and his thoughts are taken over.
'I'm forced to deal with what I feel There is no distraction to mask what is real I could pull the steering wheel'
this line indicates that because he doesn't have the music to distract him, he feels like his mind is taking over and the only way to make it stop is to just end it; crashing the car (pulling the steering wheel).
'Oh my, too deep, please stop thinking I liked it better when my car had sound'
in this part of the song, he begins to think too deeply causing his to panic. he then wants his car radio back to put the distraction back so he doesn't need to think like this.