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.
We describe the sensation
As a tearing in our chests
And there is a quality
In Feiburg's father's
Post-war wail that reaches
Through the world's worst speakers
And beseeches
Anyone who happens by,
On their way to somewhere else -
Clicking through the endless screens
For the garbage on the shelves
Reflections of ourselves -
To consider the cost
Of all this shit we seem to think
Will fill our perforated souls.
We're more hole than human being,
Can't wash away that stink.
13 billion years in the making:
A live, unfiltered moment.
An unscripted encroachment
Upon the province of routine evil -
Of all-too-human people.
So pious, so peaceful.
So quick to turn on you.
Thought I was fucking outta here
With two middle fingers in the air.
Then like a mile-wide meteor,
He came crashing through my door.
That's just how it goes.
And everybody knows
Ain't too much can be done.
All the avarice and greed
And puny human hatreds
That dare to come between two human hearts.
I try not to live in fear
And I'm truly grateful
For every happy moment here.
Upstairs I hear her voice
She softly singing
To him and I come undone.
Something wicked this way comes.
And that's just how it goes
And everybody knows
Ain't too much can be done.
As a tearing in our chests
And there is a quality
In Feiburg's father's
Post-war wail that reaches
Through the world's worst speakers
And beseeches
Anyone who happens by,
On their way to somewhere else -
Clicking through the endless screens
For the garbage on the shelves
Reflections of ourselves -
To consider the cost
Of all this shit we seem to think
Will fill our perforated souls.
We're more hole than human being,
Can't wash away that stink.
13 billion years in the making:
A live, unfiltered moment.
An unscripted encroachment
Upon the province of routine evil -
Of all-too-human people.
So pious, so peaceful.
So quick to turn on you.
Thought I was fucking outta here
With two middle fingers in the air.
Then like a mile-wide meteor,
He came crashing through my door.
That's just how it goes.
And everybody knows
Ain't too much can be done.
All the avarice and greed
And puny human hatreds
That dare to come between two human hearts.
I try not to live in fear
And I'm truly grateful
For every happy moment here.
Upstairs I hear her voice
She softly singing
To him and I come undone.
Something wicked this way comes.
And that's just how it goes
And everybody knows
Ain't too much can be done.
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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.
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"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
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Todd Kowalski: That’s about finding meaning in a world that seems harsh and empty. Whether that’s art, your family or volunteering – whatever you’re interested in. The world can be bleak and dark and you gotta find something that makes you tick, so you don’t become too much of an empty hole. And as the song says, if you become too much of an empty hole, you can’t wipe away the stink. How many people are there who’ve lulled themselves into a hole they can’t fathom or conceive getting out of? That again will make people turn on each other. Who can admit to themselves that, while they’re personally failing, other people are going hard and doing it?
music.cbc.ca/