For my interpretation of the song, think of a pair. A guy who’s played the sex game for a long time, knows what he’s doing. A girl who’s pretending to be able to play the same game.
“The distance between the sheets
When chemicals compete
The friction of skin is deathly unbearable, yeah
The basics of want and need”
These lines open us up to the idea of hot, raw, rough sex. The kind of sex between two people where there’s anger and tension and rough passion. The lines are deceptive considering what follows because they give the impression that this is just sex, hence the use of the word ‘basics’ and ‘chemicals’, both words that suggest no emotions.
“The coward's in you and me”
This line reveals that they are both afraid of something. He’s afraid to let anything about this ascend from just the sex, and she is afraid to let it be more because she knows then he will be gone. He knows that’s what she’s feeling, knows that’s what he’s feeling, but because of that fear, he calls them both cowards.
“There's no turning back
We walked into this
Don't confuse it”
Even though they both have feelings that they are grappling with, they’re too far in, too drawn to each other, to stop, but the terms are already laid down, so to speak. They walked into this ‘relationship’ knowing it was just sex, and he’s warning her not to confuse it for anything else.
“Love
Wasted on the young”
This is where he admits just how much more of something this pair has. It may be love, but it’s wasted on them because they’re both too young and cowardly to do anything about it. Instead…
“Detonate and run
Never wanna own a heart that breaks alone”
They are letting the love happen (like waiting for a bomb to go off) and then when it finally gets to be too much (the bomb exploding), they’ll both run. It will break both of their hearts, but he tries to pretend that’s how he wants it.
“Bodies with no remorse
Clothing lines the floor”
Like in the very first verse, it begins with that deceptive description of it as just hot, raw sex. It’s ironic because the song is littered with remorse but he is still trying to claim there is none.
“The rhythm of sin is
Beating slowly
Dancing lonely”
One would assume that neither of these people actually sees sex as a sin. Their sin is all of the secrets they are hiding under the sex, the feelings they have. The feelings are leaving them lonely right next to each other, right with each other, because they both have what they want but aren’t reaching for it.
“Love
Wasted on the young
Detonate and run
Never wanna own a heart that breaks alone”
Already explained.
“Taken by it fast
Sacred in the moment
I can feel your breath
You couldn't save me”
The change from just sex to their feelings happened fast, and he seems to allude to the fact that he realized it in a tremendous moment, a sacred moment (showing that the feelings are not despised by him, just feared). He’s feeling her breathe and wishing that he would let her know what he felt, but instead, he’s going to hide it again. He’s going to claim that even she couldn’t save him.
“Taken by it fast
Sacred in the moment
I predict the worst
You're going to hate me”
It’s reached the detonation mentioned in the chorus. It’s all too strong to go on this way, and he’s got to end it, got to just stop, and he knows that when he ends it, she is going to feel as if he strung her along, made her fall in love and threw her out, so she is going to hate him. That thought is hard for him. The line is delivered with just enough of a break that it vibrates with pain.
“I could leave all of this behind
I could leave all of it behind”
The first of these lines is him trying to convince himself that he can leave her and their relationship behind, even though it will be hard and will break his heart. The second lines is him telling himself that he can leave all of it behind, all of the meaningless relationships, all of it, so that he never has to go through this situation again.
“I can't live this way forever
I cannot live this way forever”
He has to change because what he thought was just tearing the other people in his life apart is really tearing him apart as well. He knows this has to change. Things can’t go on this way.
This song has an entire story, with all of its depth of emotion and passion, carnal or emotional, woven right into it. It truly is stunning.
For my interpretation of the song, think of a pair. A guy who’s played the sex game for a long time, knows what he’s doing. A girl who’s pretending to be able to play the same game.
“The distance between the sheets When chemicals compete The friction of skin is deathly unbearable, yeah The basics of want and need”
These lines open us up to the idea of hot, raw, rough sex. The kind of sex between two people where there’s anger and tension and rough passion. The lines are deceptive considering what follows because they give the impression that this is just sex, hence the use of the word ‘basics’ and ‘chemicals’, both words that suggest no emotions.
“The coward's in you and me”
This line reveals that they are both afraid of something. He’s afraid to let anything about this ascend from just the sex, and she is afraid to let it be more because she knows then he will be gone. He knows that’s what she’s feeling, knows that’s what he’s feeling, but because of that fear, he calls them both cowards.
“There's no turning back We walked into this Don't confuse it”
Even though they both have feelings that they are grappling with, they’re too far in, too drawn to each other, to stop, but the terms are already laid down, so to speak. They walked into this ‘relationship’ knowing it was just sex, and he’s warning her not to confuse it for anything else.
“Love Wasted on the young”
This is where he admits just how much more of something this pair has. It may be love, but it’s wasted on them because they’re both too young and cowardly to do anything about it. Instead…
“Detonate and run Never wanna own a heart that breaks alone”
They are letting the love happen (like waiting for a bomb to go off) and then when it finally gets to be too much (the bomb exploding), they’ll both run. It will break both of their hearts, but he tries to pretend that’s how he wants it.
“Bodies with no remorse Clothing lines the floor”
Like in the very first verse, it begins with that deceptive description of it as just hot, raw sex. It’s ironic because the song is littered with remorse but he is still trying to claim there is none.
“The rhythm of sin is Beating slowly Dancing lonely”
One would assume that neither of these people actually sees sex as a sin. Their sin is all of the secrets they are hiding under the sex, the feelings they have. The feelings are leaving them lonely right next to each other, right with each other, because they both have what they want but aren’t reaching for it.
“Love Wasted on the young Detonate and run Never wanna own a heart that breaks alone”
Already explained.
“Taken by it fast Sacred in the moment I can feel your breath You couldn't save me”
The change from just sex to their feelings happened fast, and he seems to allude to the fact that he realized it in a tremendous moment, a sacred moment (showing that the feelings are not despised by him, just feared). He’s feeling her breathe and wishing that he would let her know what he felt, but instead, he’s going to hide it again. He’s going to claim that even she couldn’t save him.
“Taken by it fast Sacred in the moment I predict the worst You're going to hate me”
It’s reached the detonation mentioned in the chorus. It’s all too strong to go on this way, and he’s got to end it, got to just stop, and he knows that when he ends it, she is going to feel as if he strung her along, made her fall in love and threw her out, so she is going to hate him. That thought is hard for him. The line is delivered with just enough of a break that it vibrates with pain.
“I could leave all of this behind I could leave all of it behind”
The first of these lines is him trying to convince himself that he can leave her and their relationship behind, even though it will be hard and will break his heart. The second lines is him telling himself that he can leave all of it behind, all of the meaningless relationships, all of it, so that he never has to go through this situation again.
“I can't live this way forever I cannot live this way forever”
He has to change because what he thought was just tearing the other people in his life apart is really tearing him apart as well. He knows this has to change. Things can’t go on this way.
This song has an entire story, with all of its depth of emotion and passion, carnal or emotional, woven right into it. It truly is stunning.