| The Avett Brothers – January Wedding Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| this is a great song. the meaning is pretty obvious, but the line, "and she was sick like audrey hepburn when i met her" could mean that she was depressed and/or anorexic. hepburn fought through anorexia and depression, and given that the meaning of the song is about two wounded people (he was sick with heartache) finding each other, then maybe they were both sort of depressed and trying to be better. i found that line intriguing and somewhat poetic...it's a nice way of telling the listener that this woman was really hurting...bringing in a reference to a beloved american icon. way to go, avett brothers!! | |
| Coldplay – Viva la Vida Lyrics | 14 years ago |
|
I haven't read through all the interpretations so my ideas might not sound original. first of all, there is no way this is about war or george w. bush, etc. personally, i don't even think it's about religion. it's clearly about love and a breakup. it's a poetic breakup song, but the relationship was fast moving - it came and went like a "wicked and wild wind." "i used to rule the world, seas would rise when i gave the word..." don't we all feel like this at the beginning of a relationship? "now in the morning i sleep alone, sweep the streets i used to own..." he's a beggar now, he wants it back but it's gone. there was a breakup and he's alone. "i used to roll the dice, feel the fear in my enemy's eyes, listen as the crowd would sing, 'now the old king is dead long live the king'..." he gambled on a wild woman whose known for going from guy to guy. he's the new king. he faced down his opponents - which is all the guys who loved this girl. think about the lyrics for plush by STP - where the dogs can find her. the dogs are the other guys. in this case, his enemies are the guys that are courting this woman. she's a good one, too, because he feels like a king. "one minute i held the key, next the doors were closed on me and i discovered that my castle stands upon pillars of salt and pillars of sand." this is the best line in the song. he had her heart and soul. something happened beyond his control that led them apart, or perhaps the intensity of the relationship just wore off and what seemed perfect was like a house of cards...it looks real but there's nothing to it when all is said and done...they weren't fit for each other. he built his dreams upon an impossible situation - they were too different. "never an honest word" I'm struggling a bit with the chorus, but I think all of us know that after a breakup it's hard to be honest...we have to create lies to get by (e.g., I didn't like her anyway, she was a slut, etc). "it was a wicked and wild wind, blew down the doors to let me in..." perhaps the intensity of the hookup or connection let down her guard...maybe it was more literal - perhaps a storm or something scary that let down her guard. some event occurred that was external to his skills in meeting women to get them together. "shattered windows and the sound of drums, people couldn't believe what I'd become..." to me, this could be very personal. lots of these singers start from humble roots and they become famous and start dating the pick of the litter. i'll bet he got in over his head here and started alienating himself from his friends, which happens in very intense relationships sometimes, at least at the beginning. "revolutionaries wait for my head on a silver plate..." yep, the other guys swarm around and sometimes that can shake one's nerves. perhaps by thinking he's king shelters him from reality and he let it get to his head (previous verse). they want what he has and he's letting it go. "just a puppet on a lonely string...oh, who would ever want to be king..." just sort of a classic lament that he felt like he had no control over the circumstances that brought him together with his lover and now he's realizing that he never really had a choice or the relationship never made it to a place where he had any say or control (not bad control, but literal choice). anyway, what I like about songs like this is that they are a sort of projective test - we can put on to them things that we feel. personally, i went through a breakup after a whirlwind intense relationship that lasted only about a month. after it was over, i felt like the pauper - the beggar - who once was king. the goodness, the elation, was gone. that hurt. that's what i think this song is about. heck, for all i know it's about george w. peace! |
|
| The Postal Service – The District Sleeps Alone Tonight Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| I see a lot of people suggesting that it's about a past lover, but i think the past love is the city and all the experiences associated with it. i don't think the lyrics would be appropriate for gibbard (he seems to be from washington state) but a lot of singers will perform songs written by or for others, perhaps a band mate, etc. who knows exactly where it came from. maybe he did spend time in DC. I think that definitely the song is about a someone who has returned to a place they used to love perhaps in a different role or as a visitor. the song starts with him looking down, so there's some shame or embarrassment perhaps associated, or just shyness. hard to say, exactly. sometimes i think songs are amalgamations of different ideas and feelings that sort of go together. good food for thought out here, people! | |
* This information can be up to 15 minutes delayed.