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.
On my tv, violent actions race across my screen
A world of hate staring at the rise in murder rate
I can't believe what we've become
Is all hope lost to everyone?
A bettered wife waits for us to hear
Her screams tonight
A child of war wonders what we're all fighting for
I look and think how can this be?
What causes all our suffering?
Eyes wide open we can't see
I can't understand it's out of hand
To me we're all just killing time
Killing time
Killing time, we're running our lives
Religious right, is buying up guns for
A hell of a fight
Another victim lies in pain
A serial killer waits for fame
Have we all gone insane?
I can't understand it's out of hand
To me we're all just killing time
Killing time
I can't believe There's got to be
Some way to break through
I think that I - will have to try, I'll lose my mind
We're all killing time
Why?
A world of hate staring at the rise in murder rate
I can't believe what we've become
Is all hope lost to everyone?
A bettered wife waits for us to hear
Her screams tonight
A child of war wonders what we're all fighting for
I look and think how can this be?
What causes all our suffering?
Eyes wide open we can't see
I can't understand it's out of hand
To me we're all just killing time
Killing time
Killing time, we're running our lives
Religious right, is buying up guns for
A hell of a fight
Another victim lies in pain
A serial killer waits for fame
Have we all gone insane?
I can't understand it's out of hand
To me we're all just killing time
Killing time
I can't believe There's got to be
Some way to break through
I think that I - will have to try, I'll lose my mind
We're all killing time
Why?
Lyrics submitted by black_cow_of_death
Killing Time Lyrics as written by Susan Janet Ballion Peter Edward Clarke
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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It's about how fucked up society really is. TV is more violent then the crimes it reports to keep us safe. Children fight in war, wives are beaten and don't seek help, gangs recruit new kids to kill and steal, religious nuts store guns for "the end of the world." Serial killers get famous from all the media coverage, and in the meantime, we're just "killing" time before our deaths.
Wow.
Wow, crazy nobody replied to this. I can understand why it was placed last. Jason was disgusted with this world beyond repair in this album, it's a mix of hope and despair all over About Time but this song really hits home and is the perfect eulogy for such a passionate, talented (he wrote all the songs!) person, not anything new for great artists, no matter the genre. But when I hear the last 2 pieces of riffs plus Jason yelling to the night "WHYYYY????" repeatedly, I still get the hair on my back to raise up, and this is the first album I bought in grade 8, first cd even, first thing that went into my super expensive cd-rom, lol. Best song on About Time with Peaceful Day, Every Single Day and Not Far Away.