"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
I was surprised at how incredibly fast you were
To come up and ask for a light
I was amazed at just how matter of fact you were
In taking me back by the night
I only crave the sugar on the pill
I hope that you will
Trust me, trust me, to let you down
You know that somebody got there first
Trust me, trust me, to let you down
My finger's crossed while my lips are pursed
Trust me, I don't know where I'm going
You can drop me there
Don't understand how the roles are reversed
And now it's me that's freaked out by the chase
The holy trinity are there in your purse
A condom, obsession and mace
It's easier if I'm on my way
So anyway you will
Trust me, trust me, to let you down
You know that somebody got there first
Trust me, trust me, to let you down
My finger's crossed while my lips are pursed
Trust me, I don't know where I'm going
You can drop me there
I want you, you want me
I want you not to want me
I need you to need me
To leave me, needing you to leave
Trust me, to let you down
You know that somebody got there first
Trust me, trust me, to let you down
My finger's crossed while my lips are pursed
Trust me, I don't know where I'm going
You can drop me there
(Trust me, down)
Trust me to let you down
You know that somebody got there first
(Trust me, down)
Trust me to let you down
My finger's crossed while my lips are pursed
(Trust me, down)
Trust me to let you down
Trust me to let you down
(Trust me, down)
Trust me to let you down
Trust me to let you down
To come up and ask for a light
I was amazed at just how matter of fact you were
In taking me back by the night
I only crave the sugar on the pill
I hope that you will
Trust me, trust me, to let you down
You know that somebody got there first
Trust me, trust me, to let you down
My finger's crossed while my lips are pursed
Trust me, I don't know where I'm going
You can drop me there
Don't understand how the roles are reversed
And now it's me that's freaked out by the chase
The holy trinity are there in your purse
A condom, obsession and mace
It's easier if I'm on my way
So anyway you will
Trust me, trust me, to let you down
You know that somebody got there first
Trust me, trust me, to let you down
My finger's crossed while my lips are pursed
Trust me, I don't know where I'm going
You can drop me there
I want you, you want me
I want you not to want me
I need you to need me
To leave me, needing you to leave
Trust me, to let you down
You know that somebody got there first
Trust me, trust me, to let you down
My finger's crossed while my lips are pursed
Trust me, I don't know where I'm going
You can drop me there
(Trust me, down)
Trust me to let you down
You know that somebody got there first
(Trust me, down)
Trust me to let you down
My finger's crossed while my lips are pursed
(Trust me, down)
Trust me to let you down
Trust me to let you down
(Trust me, down)
Trust me to let you down
Trust me to let you down
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Fast Car
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This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
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I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
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This song is pretty awesome. It's also pretty simple.
It's about an aggressive girl that pursues that song's narrator. He isn't that interested in her and is kind of freaked out by her aggressive advances. The role reversal has got him feeling weird, but he is willing enough to have sex. But he is warning the girl that sex is all he wants and he has no desire for a relationship. He is preparing her for the let down.