I think this song can mean different things to different people. Re: still racing out at the trestles, but that blood it never burnt in her veins, since racing appeals mainly to males, I feel those lines loosely refer to a wife who really was not a kindred spirit or soulmate, who did not share the same passions or sentiments of her husband. The wife just moved on with her own values. I remember reading Bruce himself alluding to getting the inspiration for "the darkness" from some bars he saw where defeated men drank, "they weren't looking to fight, they were looking to get punched". I feel it refers to where the broken people go, those who are broken in spirit, may have an addiction, have antisocial tendencies and perhaps aren't very respectable so they might be a dark place where they need to do their thing. But then again it's a place "where nobody asks too many questions or looks too long in your face," after all, everyone is too preoccupied with their own situation, therefore, you won't be judged, but you'll feel you'll fit right in, or it's a place where fitting in doesn't matter. Overall great pain in your soul is what drives you there, so loss of money and a spouse are just incidentals, a small part of the picture. The secret doesn't necessarily mean something shameful; it can just be something only you know about because other people (like an insensitive spouse) aren't interested in hearing about. (Smile and the world smiles with you, cry and you get a wet shirt.) "I'll be there on time" means no hesitation, and "pay the cost" means one doesn't care if something harmful happens in such an environment. "The things that can only be found in the darkness on the edge of town" refer to whatever satisfactions one can get by being in that environment, a feeling of belonging when you're a misfit, a feeding of your addiction, acting out in whatever antisocial way you feel like doing, and you no longer care about the consequences.
To me, "The Darkness on the Edge of Town" reminds me of a part of my hometown where there were a lot of homeless people, some were drug-addicted, some were alcoholics, some were veterans. There were good people with bad luck, and then were some were really dangerous, looking for a fight, looking to sell or score drugs. Anything could happen and usually did. |
