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.
the rain was there to wash away my tears
i wanted to be them but instead i detroyed myself.
i wanted to be them but instead i detroyed myself.
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Light Up The Sky
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
When We Were Young
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This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
No Surprises
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Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
In the epic Grendel "destroys himself" by attacking the hall of Hrothgar. He sees the Dane's happiness and wishes to destroy them, since he assume they won't accept him.
In Beowulf, Grendel is a pretty ambiguous figure. Unlike the dragon at the end of the book, he is describes as human, and with a tinge of sympathy. Yet he was born a monster, outcaste. He wanted to take part in the merriment of the group, but knew he would not be accepted. He started hating the group, killing everyone.
Beowulf does not actually challenge the monster per se, he lays, pretending to sleep until Grendel comes across him during one of the monster's nightly killing sprees. Beowulf tears off his arm in combat, at which point Grendel flees. He runs back into the nearby mire where he lives, to die alone.
This may be following Beowulf too litterally, but in the book, the warrior elite doesn't actually hate Grendel at first. Grendel " destroys [his] chance" by attacking the group with no provocation outside of his own mind. He broods about his loneliness and his feelings worthlessness and "monstrosity" and then blames an outside source for his feelings. He is the one who labels himself an outsider, and it is he who attacks first. He is the one who sits in a murky swamp, thinking up the differences between him and them. In the end, it is his own self loathing which end up destroying him, I think, not his want to be accepted. In the same vein, the person whom this song was written about seems to be expressing more self-pitty than hatred toward the other group. He aknowleges that it is his fault he is unhappy.
I'm usually pretty far off the mark, but whatever.
I know this comment is too long already, but does anyone have an idea why the switch between "I Wanted To Be Them" And "I wanted to see them"?