Per the FAQ on Keane's website, Keane's drummer Richard Hughes, stated the following:
"We've been asked whether "Somewhere Only We Know" is about a specific place, and Tim has been saying that, for him, or us as individuals, it might be about a geographical space, or a feeling; it can mean something individual to each person, and they can interpret it to a memory of theirs... It's perhaps more of a theme rather than a specific message... Feelings that may be universal, without necessarily being totally specific to us, or a place, or a time..."
With the nostalgic sentiment and the overall tone of the song, I think Keane is attempting to express a Portuguese term known as 'saudade', which does not have a direct English translation but roughly means "that which we remember because it is gone."
No matter how hard you pray god hates you now!
No matter how much you smile you just hide a frown
no matter how you get up they just throw you down
you say suicide is not the key I say its my key out of this fucked up life I always put my trust in my knife and I say FUCK YOU CHRIST!!!
Pride and Power!
blood and glory!
Suicide was the end of this story!
We must continue a dying race
dying is slow so I pick up the pace
for every bullet in which i write my name
i need death I want death we need death
we are hated by your god you pray because you fear death
I dont care so I slit my wrists
I feel lonely so I burn myself
I feel alone so I cut myself
SO I BRING DEATH UPON ME!!
No matter how much you smile you just hide a frown
no matter how you get up they just throw you down
you say suicide is not the key I say its my key out of this fucked up life I always put my trust in my knife and I say FUCK YOU CHRIST!!!
Pride and Power!
blood and glory!
Suicide was the end of this story!
We must continue a dying race
dying is slow so I pick up the pace
for every bullet in which i write my name
i need death I want death we need death
we are hated by your god you pray because you fear death
I dont care so I slit my wrists
I feel lonely so I burn myself
I feel alone so I cut myself
SO I BRING DEATH UPON ME!!
Lyrics submitted by the Anti hero
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Somewhere Only We Know
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