| Okkervil River – Lost Coastlines Lyrics | 11 years ago |
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ajfdlas The last comment I had didn't show the lyrics and I apologize for the wasted space... I'm redoing it Dx "Packed and all eyes turned in/ No one to see on the quay, no one waving for me/ Just the shoreline receding/ Ticket in my hand and thinking/ Wish I didn’t hand it in" I took this as someone reaching maturity in life, whether literally or not, and feeling utterly alone in whatever he or she is going through. They only see what he or she is specifically going through and is wishing that they didn't wish away their youth like so many of us do when we're younger. "And who said sailing is fine/ Leaving behind all the faces that I/ Might replace if I tried on that long ride/ Looking deep inside but I don’t want to look so deep inside yet." This goes back to not wanting to grow up. When you're a kid, most people think that growing up will be fun, but when it comes down to it and you're walking up a stage to get your diploma or moving out of your childhood home, you realize that everything is going to change. You really have to reevaluate who you are and who you want to be but you don't want to. You want to go back to being a kid. Sailing is a metaphor for being a grown-up or growing up. "Sit down- sit down on the prow to wave bye/ There might not be another star further on the line/ Look out- look out at each town that glides by/ And there’s another crowd/ To drown in crying eyes" This is making a decision and initially being determined to stick with it because it doesn't seem like there's a better choice. It's like a quick-snap decision or even a decision you had made a long time ago, possibly about a career, and you stuck with it because you didn't know anything else. There's fear that you might make a mistake if you change your mind about it. All the while, you're seeing everyone else and all you see are they're successes or failures and all they are are examples to you, whether to change the decision or to keep it. "And see how that light you love now just won’t shine/There might just be another star/ That’s high and far in some other sky" This is about realizing that your initial choice isn't the right one and wondering what else is out there that you can do. "We sing: Is that marionette real enough yet/ To step off of that set/ To decide what her dance might be doing/ Ruining the play, too, and the ensuing melee escape" Here, it's talking about how adults in our lives try to pick and choose when we're ready to become adults as well. In this awkward stage in our lives, they only want us to be adults when it is convenient for them and ourselves as well. There is a lot of fear and wondering about what will happen when the strings are finally cut and we're totally free to make our own decisions. "We packed up all of our bags/ The ship’s deck now sags/ From the weight of our tracks/ As we pace beneath flags black and battered/ Rattling our swords in service of some feted, foreign lord" I felt this was about the baggage a lot of us want to carry with us everywhere we go, meaning the past. We're not willing to let go of the good things OR the bad things that happen to us, especially when everything else around us is changing. We try to keep our past wars and battles with us, never changing our damaged battle flags. While this is going on, we're trying to follow some 'predetermined path' that was set for us, maybe by our parents. This path is a plan we try to maintain. "We sail out on orders from him but we find/ The maps he sent to us don’t mention lost coastlines/ But nothing we’ve actually seen has been mapped or outlined/ And we don’t recognize the names upon these signs" This is obviously talking about setting out and realizing that there is no set path and that nothing will go exactly as planned. We can plan all we want for our future, but there's going to be a lot that's going to mess it up, sometimes completely. "And every night finds us rocking and rolling/ On waves wild and wide/ Well we have lost our way/ Nobody’s gonna say it outright" Finally, this is about finally reaching adulthood and a sense of independence. And it sort of sucks but, because society demands it, we tend to act like we've all got our act together. |
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| Okkervil River – Lost Coastlines Lyrics | 11 years ago |
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Personally, I interpreted this song to be about change, growing up, and, more specifically, graduation. It could be wrong, but... well, here goes :) Also, a lot of the lyrics above are wrong, so... I took this as someone reaching maturity in life, whether literally or not, and feeling utterly alone in whatever he or she is going through. They only see what he or she is specifically going through and is wishing that they didn't wish away their youth like so many of us do when we're younger. This goes back to not wanting to grow up. When you're a kid, most people think that growing up will be fun, but when it comes down to it and you're walking up a stage to get your diploma or moving out of your childhood home, you realize that everything is going to change. You really have to reevaluate who you are and who you want to be but you don't want to. You want to go back to being a kid. Sailing is a metaphor for being a grown-up or growing up. This is making a decision and initially being determined to stick with it because it doesn't seem like there's a better choice. It's like a quick-snap decision or even a decision you had made a long time ago, possibly about a career, and you stuck with it because you didn't know anything else. There's fear that you might make a mistake if you change your mind about it. All the while, you're seeing everyone else and all you see are they're successes or failures and all they are are examples to you, whether to change the decision or to keep it. This is about realizing that your initial choice isn't the right one and wondering what else is out there that you can do. Here, it's talking about how adults in our lives try to pick and choose when we're ready to become adults as well. In this awkward stage in our lives, they only want us to be adults when it is convenient for them and ourselves as well. There is a lot of fear and wondering about what will happen when the strings are finally cut and we're totally free to make our own decisions. I felt this was about the baggage a lot of us want to carry with us everywhere we go, meaning the past. We're not willing to let go of the good things OR the bad things that happen to us, especially when everything else around us is changing. We try to keep our past wars and battles with us, never changing our damaged battle flags. While this is going on, we're trying to follow some 'predetermined path' that was set for us, maybe by our parents. This path is a plan we try to maintain. This is obviously talking about setting out and realizing that there is no set path and that nothing will go exactly as planned. We can plan all we want for our future, but there's going to be a lot that's going to mess it up, sometimes completely. Finally, this is about finally reaching adulthood and a sense of independence. And it sort of sucks but, because society demands it, we tend to act like we've all got our act together. |
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