"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.
I could hear the church bells ringing
They pealed aloud your praise
The members faces were smiling
With their hands outstretched to shake
It's true they did not move me
My heart was hard and tired
Their perfect fire annoyed me
I could not find you anywhere
Could someone please tell me the story
Of sinners ransomed from the fall
I still have never seen you
And some days I don't love you at all
The devoted were wearing bracelets
To remind them why they came
Some concrete motivation
When the abstract could not do the same
But if all that's left is duty
I'm falling on my sword
At least then I would not serve
An unseen distant lord
Could someone please tell me the story
Of sinners ransomed from the fall
I still have never seen you
And some days I don't love you at all
If this is only a test
I hope that I'm passing
'Cause I'm losing steam
And I still want to trust you
Peace be still
Peace be still
Peace be still
Peace be still
They pealed aloud your praise
The members faces were smiling
With their hands outstretched to shake
It's true they did not move me
My heart was hard and tired
Their perfect fire annoyed me
I could not find you anywhere
Could someone please tell me the story
Of sinners ransomed from the fall
I still have never seen you
And some days I don't love you at all
The devoted were wearing bracelets
To remind them why they came
Some concrete motivation
When the abstract could not do the same
But if all that's left is duty
I'm falling on my sword
At least then I would not serve
An unseen distant lord
Could someone please tell me the story
Of sinners ransomed from the fall
I still have never seen you
And some days I don't love you at all
If this is only a test
I hope that I'm passing
'Cause I'm losing steam
And I still want to trust you
Peace be still
Peace be still
Peace be still
Peace be still
Lyrics submitted by ScreamingInfidelity
Secret of the Easy Yoke Lyrics as written by David Shannon Bazan
Lyrics © DOMINO PUBLISHING COMPANY
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Dreamwalker
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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.
Midnight
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“Midnight” is a song about finding a love that is so true that it provides a calming feeling through every storm. Ed Sheeran reflects on his good fortunes in landing someone with such peace and support and speaks of not fearing the dark days because he knows they’ll all end in the safety nets of her arms.
“Well, good morning there / What a way to start the day / With everything laid bare,” Ed Sheeran sings in the first verse, enthusiastic to be waking up beside his woman. He apologizes for missing her calls in the second verse and promises to return them because for him, speaking to her is the most important thing. “Well, I get lost inside my head / In this chaos, you’re my calm / And I will find my feet again / ‘Cause еven the worst days of my life will always еnd / At midnight in your arms,” sings Ed Sheeran in the chorus, revelling in his good luck.
hey genius, read the song lyrics again. this isn't even close to being about losing faith. it's about losing faith in religion and it's followers. it's about realizing that most of the christian community is hurting inside while they project perfection. it's about buying physical things to profess their faith instead of professing it in their own way and through their lives. i strongly urge you to read this again and think about it that way. it is quite possibly the best pedro the lion song ever written by David Bazan. next to almost there of course.
This song describes in painful detail the events surrounding me as I gave up Christianity. It amazes me that he could write lyrics so personally applicable. "If all that's left is duty, I'm falling on my sword." Bazan is incredible.
this song says everything that I just want to scream at Christians. don't get me wrong, I am one. I've just become rather disillusioned with religion.
what some fail to understand is the difference between God and religion. for someone who has never realized the difference between the two, this song would totally seem about loosing faith in God. Bazan I suspect (along with myself and others) is often disgusted by the social institution of religion, but he understands that Christ exists as an eternal spiritual truth totally apart from the flawed religious institutions that us flawed human beings create.
God often has little or nothing to do with what we think of as "religion."
i'm a lapsed catholic. went to mass when the 'monsigneur' (the 'head' priest') swung the encensoir to infuse the church with the smell of incense. the mass was in latin, it cocooned me as a young child in a secure feeling of safety, mystery, and the magic of ritual. <br /> after the catholic mass was modernized, and conducted in English, and the trappings of the 'mystery' fell away, i was still a kid, and i went to church, received all the 'sacraments' and attended weekly 'catechism' which is like bible study, for teens. <br /> i stopped going to mass when i graduated from high school. <br /> <br /> HERE'S WHAT i notice about this mesmerizing song about 'crisis of faith' in my opinion:<br /> we used to turn to one another at one point in the mass and were expected to earnestly take the hand of those to our left and right and say:<br /> "peace be with you" <br /> i always felt like such a phony doing that. <br /> of course i hoped in my teenage self absorption, that there could be 'world peace' but i was way too selfish and at war with a very dictatorial and philandering father to really care about whether anyone there was at peace. <br /> <br /> peace, be still. <br /> peace be with you. and also with you. that was the exchange. <br /> <br /> peace, be still is the way to go. still point, balance point. stillness. silence. solitude. society. <br /> society is tough. <br /> full of poseurs. <br /> hard to pierce the veil.<br /> <br /> better to be silent, as hedwig schmidt, the mother of hansel, (who assumes his mother's name) in "hedwig and the angry inch." (an award winning indie movie you all should see if you don't mind some camp and sexual identity crisis tossed in with great rock and roll) <br /> hansel is watching a religious tv show as a youth, and says to his mother in german:<br /> "jesus said the darndest things!"<br /> she gives him a smack on the head, not hard but corrective and declares with horror:<br /> "so did hitler! (da hitler auch!) <br /> better to be silent my son......"<br /> <br /> i currently live in Seattle. MY fourth month. I live in Ballard, a town where, when founded, for every bar built, a church had to be built as well. i live in a converted church warehouse with the weirdest married couple and their bevvy of kids from 4 previous marriages. they are the creepiest, 'nicest' people. <br /> <br /> my fiance and i have never been more wary of anyone in our lives. and my fiance knows the husband for over 25 years, most of which were spent without an active faith. <br /> <br /> let me tell you, i gotta get OUT of Ballard. <br /> <br /> my own personal jesus, he's there in the music of Pedro the Lion, Jesus Christ Superstar....and i find jesus in any song about redemption or self doubt. i think of his struggle in Gethsemane. <br /> <br /> i'm NOT an active church-goer. i'm not a 'joiner'. i was in the 'rave scene' for 6 years, and jeez, did it ever remind me of a bunch of glazed eyed christian fanatics. <br /> <br /> i did attend episcopal mass for about 6 months when i was 24, and i went to bible studies, to try to resurrect my faith in organized religion. the bible studies made me nauseous. all about how sex outside of marriage was essentially, having sex with satan. <br /> <br /> i pretty much wanted to vomit right then and there. <br /> <br /> god is within and around you. <br /> love is all. <br /> love. the way you treat each other, stranger or friend or beloved. <br /> human or animal.<br /> <br /> the way we respond to each others' posts so often seems puerile to me. <br /> <br /> this board is a blessing. <br /> <br /> so....bless up and peace OUT to all of you. <br /> i welcome wishes for a happy relocation from Sf to Seattle. it's been really tough on us so far. we're looking for our own rent to own house as i write. <br /> if any one is inclined to hold intention (or pray) for our success, i will do the same for you if you leave me a message. <br /> <br /> hey, this post wasn't meant to garner prayer or promote our home search. i just thought it couldn't hurt. <br /> <br /> it's sunday. <br /> rejoice over someone, something, share some love, and be glad. <br /> <br /> eyzovblu
"all about how sex outside of marriage was essentially, having sex with satan." That is not part of either the Episcopal of Catholic faith, both of which I have belonged and studied. It's not part of scripture nor the teachings of either religion. Ya wanna come clean of your true religious "faith" or lack thereof.
Additionally, "Peace be still" is NOT part of the Catholic exchange. You'll find it a hymn, but NOT in the mass. "Peace be with you" is standard in all Catholic secs.
If ya gonna pose, pick a different topic than the faith of believers. It's like insulting the children of a couple, which a secular humanist/atheist would hopefully never do. I just love the hypocricy of so-called "progressives"
Study your old, dusty bible better, n0anesthetic, a known atheist who parades as a Christian on this site to confuse people and insult organized religion. God was very clear in the Bible about worshipping in community. It's why there is the Eucharist...the sharing of the body of Christ no different than the Last Supper shared in community. God has everything to do with "religion." He built his church and appointed its first leader. And from there religious faiths spread. More work (and money given) for the poor is done in this country and others via the church than by foundations; charities; private individuals; governments, etc. Get the facts; study them; and be HONEST about them. Your bias is showing and it's shameful.
i couldn't believe my eyes when i read the lyrics to this song. blessed me more than any hymn, let me tell you. his brash honesty is amazing.
Notice how he says:
"But if all that's left is duty I'm falling on my sword At least then I would not serve An unseen, distant Lord"
So, he's not necessairly saying that those "duties" or actions are useless or uninspired, but that if that's ALL that's left, if it all just boils down to duty to a distant unseen lord, then he doesn't want a part of that.
Everybody needs to get close before pretending to be.
This song is inspiring. I discovered it 2 days after I felt really down and far from God. I still want to believe in Him, but I'm losing faith...
This is my favorite Pedro the Lion song- and that statement carries a lot of weight because I enjoy so many of his songs.
I have to disagree with the previous poster who feels that this song is from the perspective of an outsider, but it really is just a matter of perspective either way! To me, this song is not about an outsider at all, rather, the person who was raised up and inundated in the church life but didn't find God there(and not for lack of trying).
The hard fact that we as Christians struggle with day-by-day is that Christians are human too. We can't quite seem to wrap our minds simultaneously around the non-performance based concept of redeeming grace in light of the everyday, tough, cutthroat experience of dealing with other Christians. This dichotomy of spiritual truth and physical experience lends itself to bitterness and the emotional boundaries that come from betrayed trust.
Trust me, I go to Valley Forge Christian College, and I know too many who are so racked with guilt, they can't seperate God from their feelings of inadequacy and guilt. Too often, this manifests itself through defensiveness and protective legalism. So many in the school admin trip over themselves to prove that they are morally upright- and the self righteous learn that they too can excersize power through the enforcement of rules. Have we learned nothing?
Real spirituality is not something you incidentally stumble across. It's not something that happens because you were raised up in the church or went to Bible college. Some might say it could happen IN SPITE of such things. To find truly authentic, real spirituality you need to dig for it, and pursue it as the absolute highest priority. You need to love a genuine relationship with God- like you would love the most precious commodity imaginable. It's a life work- your singular and lasting magnum opus. It needs to be your first pursuit instead of pursuing the feel good affirmation of other Christians who themselves are just scared enough and just hurt enough to do a lot of damage(both to professing believers or staunch atheists).
But what could I say that Pedro hasn't himself expressed with greater eloquence?
Likely the greatest wisdom to endure the tumultuous experience of corporate religion is simply: "Be still, and know that I am God."
Thus spoke Zarathustra:
God is dead.
The question of relativity is where it all lies - When logic dictates that universal morality and even absolute epistemology isn't an instrinsic part of the universe, how can one be even close to any kind certainty about the existence of god.
As an athiest, what makes David Bazan so interesting is seeing the same questions that us godless heathens are in constant turmoil with, raised from the perspective of a "christian".
Although I dont quite think that a christian ideology can be aplied to Pedro the Lion. He obviously agrees that organized religion is a farse and that individuals need to deal with all the metaphysical problems, inconsistancies and irrationalities, that have plagued mankind since the enlightenment, on our own, rather than being indocrinated by some propaganda artist in the form of a priest or preacher with his bullshit rhetoric.
David Bazan kind of bridges the gap between those of us who find our beliefs closer to those of Descartes and Neitzsche and those of us who dont ever question what we read in the Bible or Torah or Koran.
I see this as a prayer. An ernest prayer to God from a Christian who's burnt out on the current Christian movement (you know, the one with little focus on God).
If you look at the lyrics closely, he's speaking directly to God the whole time. At the end, considering the melody, timing, vocal style, et al, it could very well be the last 4 words are spoken by Jesus to the character praying.
Just like he did to the storm. The character got his answer, but it wasn't the answer he was looking for, of course. It was just a message of peace, faith and hope. "Peace, be still."
i agree with the prayer context. david bazan is writing a psalm, a lament in the true style of David. He is speaking to God, look at the lyrics again. he is lamenting at his situation (feelings) and his surroundings (fake people) but just like the psalms it comes back to i still want to trust you. peace, be still.
thanks david bazan for writing something real
i think what's genius about david bazan it's how he writes about christianity and god (bein' a devotee himself) but he's never really explicit about it. it's not like he's preaching. so his songs have many possible interpretations....
i can see why most people would connect this with losing faith in god/organized religions and such (pretty obvious immagery, sinners, unseen distant lords, churches), but you could also see it as a metaphor for a failed marriage. they took their vows in church, people attended to the celebration, they moved in together, so it's supposed to be ok, right?
but then the speaker begins to progressively grow out of love for his wife: "I still have never seen you and somedays i don't love you at all", this means he never really sees the girl's true face. he feels confused at who she is, and why he loved her to being with it. you see, love changes when you're forced to spend each day together by marriage. people (and the toughts you have on them) change a lot. there's days when everything is beautiful and then there's days where "i don't love you at all".
in this case, the "unseen, distant lord" would be Love, the impossible, unconditional Love.