| Twenty One Pilots – House of Gold Lyrics | 12 years ago |
|
In my estimation, your interpretation nails it. I especially appreciate your perspective on the video, as I had still been pondering it, but what you propose makes a lot of sense. The only thing I would add is in response to your note about the "bum" reference. I think the key here is the preceding lyric: "And life turns plans up on their head." I suspect he's saying that when we expect things to work out great, life throws us a curveball and we wind up disappointed more often than not. So he's going to do the opposite - set his expectations low ("to be a bum") and hope that when he gets his curveball from life, the outcome is instead greatness. Thanks again for the insightful write-up on this great song! |
|
| The Civil Wars – Poison & Wine Lyrics | 13 years ago |
|
@bjeff5: Thanks for the comments. I think you raise interesting points, and that's the beauty of song analysis and websites like this - that two people can have two different viewpoints but still be equally moved by a song. With that said, it's clear that we're on opposite ends of the spectrum, regarding the notion of love. I believe we can choose how we REACT to love. In other words, we can choose to enter into a relationship with someone; we can choose to be faithful to them; we can choose to stay together, choose break up, or choose to try and make it work when our relationships hit a snag. But when it comes to the existence of love, I don't believe we get to choose whether or not it it's there. If it were true that "we have the choice to love or not love someone," then there would never be a heartbroken person in the world. Having loved someone who didn't love me back - a situation we've probably all been in at some point in our lives - I can say, with certainty, that I wish it had been as simple as choosing to stop loving them, knowing it was totally one-sided. Unfortunately (at least in my experience) it's not something we can control that easily - we cry over it, we lose sleep over it, we make ourselves emotionally sick over it, and sometimes even worse. I just struggle with the idea that someone would choose to endure this and would choose to continue loving someone who doesn't love them back; but again, that's probably because I'm of the opinion that love isn't driven by choice but rather by something far beyond our control. |
|
| The Civil Wars – Poison & Wine Lyrics | 13 years ago |
|
The thing about love is that it's not something you do but rather something that happens to you. In other words, we have no say in love - it can't be forced or created or just done away with on a whim. In an ideal world, we find our soulmate, fall madly in love with them, and stay madly in love with them for the rest of our life. But the world isn't always ideal, and sometimes, no matter how hard we try or how much we don't want it to happen, we grow apart, and we fall out of love. And I think that's what this song is about - two people who have slowly drifted apart in their relationship, who have gradually and painfully fallen out of love, and who are now at that crossroads where they're choosing to confront it, with brutal, beautiful honesty. It's no one's fault that this has happened - note, this isn't an accusatory or otherwise mean-spirited song - it just happened, and it does happen, no matter how hard people may sometimes try to fend it off. To me, this is a breakup song, yes, but in a world of catchy pop songs about breaking up, and being jaded, and name-calling, and seeking revenge, this is a breakup song for adults. It's a song for, and about, people who understand the human condition, who aren't afraid to address what's really happening to their relationship, and who aren't afraid to confront it head-on, for better or for worse. "I don't love you, but I always will" is the gut-shot of this song, the repeated line that pounds us into a state of breathlessness and stays with us long after the song has ended, long after it has broken our heart. It's a line that, to me, speaks to the marked difference that exists between loving someone and being "in" love with someone. Despite the fact that the individuals here have fallen out of love and likely won't survive as a couple, they're grateful for one another - for the experiences they've had together; for everything they've given one another over years; and for the memories they'll always share, no matter where their separate roads may lead them in life from this point - and this is why, even though they may no longer be "in" love, they both know that they'll always have a piece of the other's heart. |
|
| Counting Crows – Anna Begins Lyrics | 16 years ago |
|
I tend to be more in agreement with the few posts I've seen about that idea that Anna is the "friend" referenced in the first line of the song. I feel like it’s a song about two friends of the opposite sex (the author being the male; Anna being the female) who are exploring the possibility of taking their relationship to a romantic level. They discuss how things are going to change, how they’ll never be “just friends” again, how it’s a huge risk for their relationship, and whether or not it’s a risk worth taking because really, these sorts of things tend to be “all or nothing.” The middle of the song leads me to believe they do decide to enter this next level of their relationship, with the author being constantly afraid — paranoid, even — that it’s not going to work out, that he’s going to one day lose her (which was the risk he debated in the beginning of the song). He talks about how he’s going to keep her, make sure she never leaves. He says he’s not worried, but he’s just telling himself that because inside, he knows he is. At the end of the song, the author’s worries — his paranoia — come to fruition, I think, with the relationship having taken a turn for the worst and him beginning to lose Anna; she begins to “fade away,” then she disappears, and ultimately, he acknowledges what he’s feared all along…that he was not/they were not ready for this sort of thing. |
|
* This information can be up to 15 minutes delayed.