Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
How can I forget you?
Disregard how I feel?
Silently listen
To the words I can't see
As long as I have tried
As low as I can be
I will never resign myself
From the trial I seek
Why should I forgive you
After all that I've seen?
Quietly whisper
When my heart wants to scream
For as long as I have tried
And as low as I can be
I will never resign myself
From the trial I seek
There's no time to rest
Or to reconsider
For this cruel unsaid
Won't concede
For as long as I have tried
And as low as I can be
I will never resign myself
From the trial I seek
Disregard how I feel?
Silently listen
To the words I can't see
As long as I have tried
As low as I can be
I will never resign myself
From the trial I seek
Why should I forgive you
After all that I've seen?
Quietly whisper
When my heart wants to scream
For as long as I have tried
And as low as I can be
I will never resign myself
From the trial I seek
There's no time to rest
Or to reconsider
For this cruel unsaid
Won't concede
For as long as I have tried
And as low as I can be
I will never resign myself
From the trial I seek
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'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."
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
I'm guessing this song is about a breakup...after a relationship that lasted seven months. It's definitely an invigorating and powerful song.
Hey does anyone hear that <ruff, ruff> in the background. It sounds like the took one of those toy battery opperated puppies that do a little <ruff, ruff> take a few steps and then do it again. I think it's about the same timing too. It's definitely a cool sound.
Haha, I can hear it. Seems like it could be a record scratch or a metal-wound guitar string scratch.
@phatcat I’ve always heard it as a duck quacking lol
it definately a relatable song everyone knows how hard it is to forgive someone who's really hurt you. she wont give up untill she see him suffer the way she has
phatcat, im hearing it, and i like it.
My personal favorite from their seconds album. ParadoxPox is absolutley right about the break up thing. I think this is the most accessable from the album as well
Why should I forgive you After all that I've seen Quietly whisper When my heart wants to scream
Love those lines. She's saying, why should I stand back and take the way you've treated me, forgive you? She's not going to let him get away with it.
I definitely think that this song could be about a bad breakup... I related to it very much during a bad break up myself... However what I <3 the most about Portishead songs is that they represent an underlying struggle with self...<br /> <br /> Perhaps the "seven" in the title of the song represents the seven deadly sins, and her toil with herself as she is struggling to overcome something that seems far more powerful than herself. Its almost as if she feels her hands are tied "quietly whisper, when my heart wants to scream" The ultimate stuggle we all have between dark and light, fighting our evil side to become a better person.. Changing what we dont like about ourselves and wanting to move on, but some part of us will not let go those old habits dying hard...<br /> <br /> The references to a "trial" could be toward judgment by the Almighty her cry for help for something greater to come and save her from herself and that person she cant forget or forgive is the side of herself that disappoints her the most.....<br /> <br /> "There's no time to rest<br /> Or to reconsider<br /> For this cruel unsaid, won't concede"<br /> (She doesnt want to give up on herself but she continually sees herself making the same mistakes, almost as if a negative influence in her character wont let her progress to her own spiritual next level)
I definitely think that this song could be about a bad breakup... I related to it very much during a bad break up myself... However what I <3 the most about Portishead songs is that they represent an underlying struggle with self...
Perhaps the "seven" in the title of the song represents the seven deadly sins, and her toil with herself as she is struggling to overcome something that seems far more powerful than herself. Its almost as if she feels her hands are tied "quietly whisper, when my heart wants to scream" The ultimate stuggle we all have between dark and light, fighting our evil side to become a better person.. Changing what we dont like about ourselves and wanting to move on, but some part of us will not let go those old habits dying hard...
The references to a "trial" could be toward judgment by the Almighty her cry for help for something greater to come and save her from herself and that person she cant forget or forgive is the side of herself that disappoints her the most.....
"There's no time to rest Or to reconsider For this cruel unsaid, won't concede" (She doesnt want to give up on herself but she continually sees herself making the same mistakes, almost as if a negative influence in her character wont let her progress to her own spiritual next level)