"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Drown you out
And left you with a sound
We'll spoil good-nights
Replacing lullabies
How could they never notice
What they planted in your space
See you laughing in our picture
But I know it's out of frame
We barely cried
But she made it out alive
And I'm so proud
That you're in my hands now
If we grew up together
You will find it's not the same
I wanna jump inside that picture
Show you what you gave
If we stay long enough
We can play with Bloody Mary
Say her name into the dark
Activate our nerve endings
If we stay long enough
We can play with Bloody Mary
She'll chase us though the dark
Activate our nerve endings
If we stay
I'll never let them get closer
Or shower you with any blame
Now we dance in our own picture
Where the rules have changed
If we stay long enough
We can play with Bloody Mary
Say her name into the dark
Activate our nerve endings
If we stay long enough
We can play with Bloody Mary
She'll chase us though the dark
Activate our nerve endings
If we stay
And left you with a sound
We'll spoil good-nights
Replacing lullabies
How could they never notice
What they planted in your space
See you laughing in our picture
But I know it's out of frame
We barely cried
But she made it out alive
And I'm so proud
That you're in my hands now
If we grew up together
You will find it's not the same
I wanna jump inside that picture
Show you what you gave
If we stay long enough
We can play with Bloody Mary
Say her name into the dark
Activate our nerve endings
If we stay long enough
We can play with Bloody Mary
She'll chase us though the dark
Activate our nerve endings
If we stay
I'll never let them get closer
Or shower you with any blame
Now we dance in our own picture
Where the rules have changed
If we stay long enough
We can play with Bloody Mary
Say her name into the dark
Activate our nerve endings
If we stay long enough
We can play with Bloody Mary
She'll chase us though the dark
Activate our nerve endings
If we stay
Lyrics submitted by Thylacine, edited by LucasCorso
Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings) Lyrics as written by Christopher Andrew Guanlao Brian Nolan Kalei Aubert
Lyrics © Word Collections Publishing
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I feel like this song could be about growing up, and then realizing that you want to remain a child. I think the first couple of verses are about being an adult and seeing the problems that people have that they never had as a child, and then remembering when they were younger and playing Bloody Mary. The "we'll stay" thing is pretty obvious with my interpretation - like he doesn't like being an adult and just wants the simplicity and simple thrills of childhood again.