| The Shins – A Comet Appears Lyrics | 15 years ago |
| Along with the nietzsche reference in the first verse, I believe he's referencing Kundera's "The Unbearable Lightness of Being". | |
| The Killers – Losing Touch Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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Does anyone else feel that verse and chorus of this song sound more like a dialogue between two people then just one? It seems the first voice seems the depressed and desperate character because of his tone and sarcastic references to optimistic consolance, while the second voice is talking to him (without hurry) and trying to bring him around by talking about his over-the-top pessimism and doomsday attitude, but offering reassurance in how he'll eventually find his way back home. That's my current take on it, anyway. |
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| The Killers – Human Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| I think you're definitely in a closer ballpark than everyone else I've heard from. The second verse, where he's saying goodbye virtues is most intriguing to me. If you're not spot on, you're definitely very close to what the song is expressing. | |
| Jeff Buckley – Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen cover) Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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This song, while extremely beautiful, offers a rather depressing testimony. The lyrics are wonderfully poetic and clever, but it's not extremely difficult to interpret the main theme. Skipping to the 2nd verse. Well, your faith was strong but you needed proof You saw her bathing on the roof Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you She tied you to her kitchen chair She broke your throne and she cut your hair And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah Using the King David analogy, the character in the story gives in the seductiveness of a beautiful woman. The line "she cut your hair" obviously refers to the story of Samson and Delilah. So once in the snare of this woman, he is then broken and weakened. If you haven't already guessed, (and Jeff Buckley said this too) the line "Hallelujah" refers to sex, or more explicitly, an orgasm. Throughout the whole the song the story illustrates that love is a cage one enters into with the later dissapointing promise of sex. Skipping to the next key verse: and I've seen your flag on the marble arch And love is not a victory march It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah The last two lines are reiterated in various forms throughout. When he was overthrown by her beauty, his throne was broken. It's not a triumph, but more akin to a form of slavery. The flag symbolizes her victory, her triumph over him. he's gained the "hallelujah", but it's cold and it's broken because he, in turn, has surrendered everything else. Sacrificing himself, his pride and his dignity. Well there was a time when you let me know What's really going on below But now you never show that to me, do you? But remember when I moved in you And the holy dove was moving too And every breath we drew was Hallelujah ^ This is obviously the most overtly sexual set of lyrics. Now that his relationship is rocky, he is not only chained by the shackles of love and lust, but now receives nothing in return. All at the expense of everything he was. His desperation towards this unfair disposition is made clearly by the way these last lyrics are sung. Don't be fooled by the literal meaning of the word. The chorus of 'Hallelujah" throughout the song is almost sarcastic in nature. He entered into this journey with the promise of his lust and pursuit of love being furfilled, that "Hallelujah". I don't think the narrator is as one-dimensional as it may seem. I think he was always hoping for true love, but when he dove into the relationship he didn't find love, but rather a domineering, cruel woman who stripped him of all he was. The chorus is melancholy because the the unfair price of his prize. Maybe there is a god above But all I've ever learned from love Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew you And it's not a cry that you hear at night It's not somebody who's seen the light It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah So having sorted out the depressing nature of the song. I will now go off on a limb. To take the literal route, I think the verse before this was a clue that she had lost all interest in him, and was probably having an affair with someone else. This would explain the "somebody who outdrew you line", and I can only presume that perhaps the narrator discovered this, and killed her lover. There is no real resolve in this song. The end is tragic. The narrator goes off begrudged by love and all the horror it has brought him. It's the story of an unfortunate man who fell in love, but wasn't loved back...was used, and taken advantage of because of his vulnerable state. |
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| Sigur Rós – Svefn-G-Englar Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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Don't need to go much further than the album cover to grasp this one. It's about being born, which is fitting since on the C.D. is the inscription: I gave you hope(von) that became a disappointment(von brigoi)... this is a good beginning(agaetis byrjun). So basically they were dissapointed with their first album, so this was their way of starting again fresh...so to carry the metaphor, they are 'reborn" in the first song (note the first lyric is I'm here 'again' inside you). Some could interpret the "birth" to deeper than the literal sense. Perhaps more in the philosophical or spiritual sense, but at the end of the day, it's all about being born. |
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| Sigur Rós – Glósóli Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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I love how the music video perfectly illustrates the lyrics. A childlike adventure. Glosoli directly translates as 'glowing sole" but is a childish way of saying "glowing sun" which is really cool. No other band can deliver that sort of innocence like they do with their music boxes, glockenspiels, and whatever they use to make that marching sound. It's a peter-pan like flight into wonder, amazement and adventure. I think that's what it boils down to, and what they wanted to express. a heroic, beautiful introduction. |
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| Sigur Rós – Heysátan Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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In an interview, Kjartan said that after writing the song, they discussed what they though it meant, and all came to the same conclusion. Coming from the band it's basically the story of an old man looking contentedly out over his fields and land, knowing he's going to die soon. He knows he will die, but accepts it's inevitability and has no fear or regret. As the last line says, he lolls his head, content. Such a fitting ending to an album, the calm death of an old man who is happy with the long life he has lived. |
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| U2 – With or Without You Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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There is a clear distinction here between the characters "you" and "she". The openings lyrics illude to God, so I take this song as somewhat of a continuation of the conflict in "I still haven't found what I'm looking for". At the start he's waiting for God, but after the next lyrics "sleight of hand and twist of fate" He's compromised (no sexual inuendo intended) by a relationship or a love interest. So deciding that his waiting has been in vain, he falls deep into the snare of temporal love with "she". The next verse is tricky, but it seems to express a dissatisfaction with God and what he's been dealt despite "reaching the shore". I see this to be the main jist of the song. In that, God keeps giving, but it never seems to be enough, so he falls into the ails of earthly pleasures (where he is left on a bed of nails, his hands tied and body bruised) and in turn needs to be rescued by God. This is just one take of the song of course, but the famous chorus "with or without you" may refer to the friction between his discontent with God's gifts alone, and his inability to survive and live by seeking life and love elsewhere. So he can't live with God (because "You gave it all, but I want more"; note the similarity to the previous song), and he can't live without God because he becomes victim to "she", who takes advantage of his vulnerability and search for more. (My hands are tied, my body bruised, she got me with nothing to win and nothing left to lose.") |
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| U2 – One Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Bono hates it when this song is played at weddings because it's somewhat of an anti-love song. It illustrates the separating differences between us as a human beings. That said, by the end of the song it appeals to much broader philosophical ideas. | |
| U2 – Running To Stand Still Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Might I add, that Bono's also pointed out that the "7 towers" refer to 7 skyscrapers around Dublin. and during zootv, Bono, in over-the-top fashion, dramatically pretends to inject himself with a syringe near the end of the song. | |
| U2 – Running To Stand Still Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Bono has said it's about a couple struggling with heroin addiction... Which makes perfect sense when you analyze the lyrics. It also features the same chords as the Velvet underground song "heroin". | |
| U2 – I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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There was a very enlightening interview I saw recently where, in one segment, Bono was talking about his walk in Christianity, and also about Gospel music. He said that most Gospel music is somewhat of a lie in which it's always about the goodness and reassurance of faith in God, but never touches on the human aspect of doubt, struggle and uncertainty that everyone experiences. What I love about this song is it celebrates gospel music in a very anti-gospel way. Apart from being musically beautiful, it's a Christian song that reflects man's struggled search for meaning in faith and life. The lyrics acknowledge faith in God, but unlike every Gospel song out there, the chorus also acknowledges his uncertain discontent with where he's presently at. A message more true to faith, Christianity, and humanity than all the Christian contemporary rock songs in the world. |
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| U2 – Elvis Presley And America Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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I believe these lyrics were semi-improvised, and recorded on the first take. The music is also based on on one of the tracks of "a sort of homecoming"... Oddly enough this is one of my favorite tracks on the album, and the first song I listen to after my team loses a big game. This is mainly because of the disconnected, muttered way the lyrics are expressed as opposed to custom-made "feel good" songs like "fix you" and "bad day". There's something strangely relatable and sincere about Bono in this song. It's not lyrically vacuous, it has an emotional sensation and a story to tell. It's just that the narrator is unclear about coming to the source of it all. It's the best example of the "lyrical sketches" Bono has referred to in the album. It dwells poeticly on the immediate feelings, but struggles to put it together in a complete picture. This adds a flawed, human quality that I think most of us can relate to. It's like a book of abstract pictures that are being thumbed through. Maybe that's why it's so satisfying to listen to. Because it dwells on the ambiguity of mixed emotions instead of a clear consistent theme. The only real way of expressing that lack of clarity is to apply that to the lyrics. Furthermore, this carries over to the way the song is arranged, where the line between verse and chorus is blurred or nonexistant. And when the song ends it's, not really resolved, but just like a snippit from an infinitely long piece. |
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| U2 – Bullet The Blue Sky Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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I always compare Joshua Tree to Radiohead's "OK Computer" in that both album's are ironically endeared to the very thing they're criticizing. In OK Computer, tracks like airbag illustrate a generaly distrust of technology, yet computer generated sounds are a central part of the album's musical make-up. During "The Joshua Tree-Rattle and Hum" era, U2 had a powerful endearment towards american music, roots-rock, country music, and the blues. this is apparent throughout the album and especially their tour. Yet in the same breath, tracks like "Bullet the blue sky" and "Mothers of the disappeared" are protesting America's involvement in El Salvador. So I always found that sort of love/hate relationship with the U.S. to be really interesting. |
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| U2 – Bad Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| and janquary, it's not just speculation...but Bono has said so on numerous occasions. That's not to say the central theme of the song cannot be applied to many other things. But the rampant use of heroin in Dublin was the song's inspiration. But Bono has enough class not to reference it directly, only illudes to it in very subtle ways. | |
| U2 – Bad Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Just to reiterate, the U2 song's "Bad" and "Running to stand still" are about people's struggles with heroin, as one of his friends died from an overdose on his birthday. Interestingly enough, the two main chords for Running to stand still are the same as the Velvet Underground song "heroin". and "Bad" features a similar sort of rush in the chorus. | |
| U2 – A Sort Of Homecoming Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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Because I have way too much time on my hands, I like looking at most of their albums as a story being played out. You have the innocence of childhood and spirtuality (boy into October) then he grows up, get's drafted, and witnesses the horrors of war (war)... I see "The Unforgettable Fire" as the the unsteady, post-traumatic return home. It's a shaky, flavorless, spacy album with ambiguously poetic lyrics (no where more evident than in the stretch of promenade-Elvis Presley and America). I think 'A Sort of Homecoming' is about coming home from "war" (both the album and the literal sense), while reflecting back on it and how people have been changed by it. While most of the chorus lyrics are self explanatory, and about the hunger to finally return home. Lyrics like: "...faces ploughed like fields That once gave no resistance...Dislocated, suffocated" Emphasizes the numbness and emotional disconnection that soldiers incur in warfare and post-traumatic depression. These lyrics are a reoccuring theme throughout the album. |
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| U2 – A Day Without Me Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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I agree with the general consensus about suicide and "Would anything change if I wasn't around." Because of the themes of innocence, and childlike nature of the song and the album. Whenever I hear this song I think of a little 8 year old kid who is contemplating running away from home. Sort of fits the light, cheery sound of the track, even if it's ultimately expressing something more serious. |
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| Coldplay – Clocks Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| Haha. I was looking for something a little deeper than the obvious...a metaphor or what not. | |
| Coldplay – A Rush of Blood to the Head Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| I meant to say...a jonny CASH imitation. | |
| Coldplay – Don't Panic Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| I just looked over some peoples replies...and I'm startled by all the pessimism (which I think is a reflection of the reviewers depressing outlook on life). To call this song sarcastic, is to surrender it to a dark fate...something I never want associated with Coldplay. Martin is not the sarcastic, pessimistic, depressing type. Considering the fact that the album ends with "everythings not lost", and the mellow yet positive nature of the album, this song is most definitely optimistic. They named the album parachutes so that they wouldn't be declared dark and depressing...and in every song Chris has been most sincere. I can't imagine the last few lines being sarcastic...it's just so not coldplay, maybe radiohead or some emo band...but not Chris. Not coldplay. Take the song for what it is. A song about a troubled world...that is ultimately beautiful. | |
| Coldplay – We Never Change Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| This is a perfect pair with trouble...quiet and melancholy. So simplistic. So easy to identify with. I feel as if he/I is/are lying in bed on one of those depressind rainy days...sort of vainly going through each day, with those great words "I wanna live in a wooden house, where making more friends would be easy, I wanna live where the sun comes out..." as my motto. Sort of a lazy song. | |
| Coldplay – Trouble Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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This is one of those songs that Coldplay just beat me to (before I could write it for myself). Perfect riff, Great cold, quiet, melancholy description of sorrow. An apologetic feeling I often feel...with less intensity. |
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| Coldplay – Such a Rush Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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A good pair with bigger stronger. Basically complainging about the mechanical materialism of modern society...and how all we want is things and money. Great climax...pretty good song. |
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| Coldplay – Things I Don't Understand Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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I think this b-side is a reflection fo the kind of stuff we can expect from coldplay in the future....just a guess. In short, it's a corny song about how confusing the world and universe is...yet how he loves it anyway, perhaps because of it's confusion and complexity. |
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| Coldplay – Politik Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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The best opening to a concert or album...anywhere...ever. That said, I like how Chris is very ambiguous when talking about political matters. Not accusing or questioning anything in particular, just wishing for politicians and world leaders to "...open up their eyes...". And in typical lennon-bono-esque fashion asking for "love" over the conflicts of today. |
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| Coldplay – Spies Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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THE most underrated coldplay song of all time. I say it's the best song live of any other on parachutes. Even better...it was banned in CHINA!!!COOL! Mysterious feel about it...and an incredible guitar riff. I don't think it's a reference to anything in particular...including china. Fankly, I think Chris may have been inspired by a book or story to draw out an abbreviated storyline about a world or place inhabited by many spies that are everywhere, yet are almost never visible. Spies that seek out specific people...or fugitives if you will. Early on, the guy the freaked out and anxious because of this...but in the end finds comfort and indifference to the spies...maybe learning that they are harmless after all. If this song is a reference to something in the real world...it's a companion to brothers & sisters. |
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| Coldplay – Speed of Sound Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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The object here is to express all forms of intensity and amazement about the world. I don't think it's terribly deep...kinda corny actually. I do not think this is a clocks rip-off. I think there are enough differences, that...if you stop comparing X&Y to AROBTTH, it holds it's own. |
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| Coldplay – Parachutes Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| He always has to have a song named after the album. It's forgivable in this sense though...because the object of the title was to portray safety and comfort (many found coldplay to be a depressing band)...so, in a sense there's a link. | |
| Coldplay – High Speed Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| This song touches the quintessential early coldplay stylings. Very whoosy, intense strands of sound come through. If it's about a relationship, it's about how everythings happening so fast...it's frightening and yet they survive in there little bubble(he likes bubbles it would seem)...calm in the cockpit as the world goes flying by. | |
| Coldplay – Green Eyes Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| A song about girl he knew who had green eyes. yep. It's a comforting song after the intensity of clocks and daylight. | |
| Coldplay – God Put a Smile Upon Your Face Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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It took me a long time to see the depth in this songs meaning. I realize now that it's very much an agnostic song (I didn't know it had any philosophical or religious connotations before). We don't know what's going to happen after death...your guess is as good as mine, if there is a God...where do we draw the line between heaven and hell? |
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| Coldplay – Everything's Not Lost Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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I won't be long. It's kind of a return to "don't panic", reminding you of the albums central theme. Don't panic, everythings not lost. |
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| Coldplay – Don't Panic Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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I say...the second best song of all time for Coldplay. I can't compliment this song enough. Out of all the songs on parachutes, it is the most individuating. It feels as if no one else could've formed those lyrics. It's so very coldplay, simple drum and acousic rythym accompannied by soem thin electric guitar picking (jonny seems to hate chords). If I had to sum up coldplay in one song...this is it. So many of Coldplay's early songs are angsty, and complain about the horrors and problems in this world. Don't panic, acknowledges this but adds the positive "but we live in a beautiful world". The meaning is simple. The world can be a tough and terribly place sometimes, but in the end....it's beautiful. it's worth having--and life is worth living. We call have someone to lean on. Come to think of it...it goes quite well with "everythings not lost". |
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| Coldplay – Daylight Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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My brother hates this song...but we can both agree that it has some great lyrics. It causes me to be more optimistic about philosophical explanations of the epic that precedes it. In short...I say it's about someone's lust for enlightenment. In the live version he practically pants before the outro, the character lusts for the daylight like a man thirsts for water in the desert. I wen twith enlightenment because it seems to accompany the simile of the cave so well. The light could be anything someone lusts for, but this is just my two cents. It seems to fit, especially towards the end. |
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| Coldplay – Clocks Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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I don't have to say this...but hands down, the best coldplay song of all time. that said... I get annoyed when people reduce this song to a troubled relationship. It's so ambiguous that it's quite apparent that he's waxing philosophical or describing something deep. The most trusted idea is that he's talking about the imminence of death. In agree that this theme exists throughout the majority of the song. Unfortunately, so much needs to be explained, for example... "you are" that high voice, echoing over the piano riff...what does it mean? It's funny that one guy thought it might be a descartes reference. One theory is that it's an incomplete phrase. "You are out of time" or something to that effect. That theory lacks evidence though. Secondly, What is "home"? He mentions it in the verse and the wonderful outro. but I haven't yet figured it out. There's so many references to life, death, and philosophy that need to be unwound (Chris's got some 'splainin to do). I'll post again when I have some more theories (I'm responding to everything, so bear with me). |
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| Coldplay – Careful Where You Stand Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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Great, unique song...so many coldplay songs capture emotions that I've always wanted to express through music (but they beat me to it). This'un's 'bout a childlike attachment to someone you love. His love is the equivalent of a security blanket, an innate childlike clinging that we can all relate to. |
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| Coldplay – Brothers & Sisters Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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First single...yes. great song from his early angsty days. bigger, stronger, such a rush, animals...basically a bunch of complaints about the world that, luckily (and purposefully), didn't show up in parachutes. The song seems to depict a very dramatic, even romanticly powerful war scene fit for the next WWII epic. Fear, uncertainty, and other emotions mixed up in the desire to survive in such scary times...whether or be a soldier or a civilian. It doesn't have to be about war though, but a variety of things. The search for jews in WWII germany is just an example. |
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| Coldplay – Bigger Stronger Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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Probably coldplay's best b-side. Amazing guitar...live too. This song pairs nicely with "such a rush", in that it talks about the narrowminded, mechanical lives of people and society these days. I want money, I want cars, I want more more more....etc. |
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| Coldplay – Animals Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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Great song. In coldplay's early days it seems like Chris had a lot of angst about the world and troubles (politics and what not). It was because of this that they were often viewed as a somewhat depressing band...but coldplay changed that by naming there first album "parachutes", and including songs like "don't panic". I won't go so far as to say that Chris is making a point about the very basics of human nature (lord of flies), just his expression of disgust about the terribly massacres and such that man has done to others and itself. |
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| Coldplay – Amsterdam Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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Beautiful, beautiful song. As good an ending as politik is a beginning.(I'm happy to say I can play it on the piano). The song was meant to be ambiguous, like most colplay songs that leave it up to many different personal interpretations. Simple. Chris or a made-up character of his is in a rut. Unable to move (metaphor or not), and has no choice but to wait for (hopefully) someone to rescue him. As the song progresses, he loozes hope, but in the end he someone eventually comes to his aid. To you, this song could be religious, about a relationship or...whatever you want it to be really. |
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| Coldplay – A Rush of Blood to the Head Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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I heard that he was trying to come up with somewhat of a johnny imitation here....I think he did a good job. If you haven't heard this one, check out the 2003 live version where jonny adds an incredibly solo. Anyway...I don't think song is deep in the sense that it has hidden messages about Chris himself. The song is just a somewhat morbid (too strong?) depiction of a very troubled man who seeks to resolve the tangled web he's weaved with his girlfriend/wife (and who knows who else), by burning down a house/building of some significance. Drastically clearing the page and trying to start anew. it would make a cool music video. |
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| Coldplay – A Message Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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The last song they recorded on the album. It's pretty cheezy, especially with lyrics like "...and I'm not gonna take it back, and I'm not gonna say 'I don't mean that'... At the end it seems like he's talking about a relationship, but I think the hinted at, "primary" message of "the message", is about the lack of lennon-esque love in this world between politicians and people alike. You could be a bit more liberal and say that the last "you" is about a soldier, and the previous "you"s were about instigators of a certain conflict. |
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