He reuses the verse melody from the previous album's "Dirty Little Religion", the topics of the verses are all over the place, and he packs too many words into one line (goes to show...) and too few in another (it's pretty hard to find), and rhymes "Henley Regatta" with "Persona non grata", but gets away with it all as only he could.
Reverend, reverend
Is this some conspiracy?
Crucified for no sins
An image beneath me
Lost within our plans for life
It all seems so unreal
I'm a man cut in half in this world
Left in my misery
Reverend, he turned to me
Without a tear in his eyes
Nothing new for him to see
I didn't ask him why
I will remember
The love our souls had sworn to make
Now I watch the falling rain
All my mind can see now is your
Well, I guess you took my youth
And gave it all away
Like the birth of a new-found joy
This love would end in rage
And when she died I couldn't cry
The pride was in my soul
You left me incomplete
All alone as the memories now unfold
Believe the word
I will unlock my door
And pass the cemetery gates
Sometimes when I'm alone I wonder aloud
If you're watching over me
Some place far abound
I must reverse my life
I can't live in the past
Then set my soul free
Belong to me at last
Through all those complex years
I thought I was alone
I didn't care to look around
And make this world my own
And when she died I should've cried
And spared myself some pain
You left me incomplete
All alone as the memories still remain
The way we were
The chance to save my soul
And my concern is now in vain
Believe the word
I will unlock my door
And pass the cemetery gates
The way we were
The chance to save my soul
And my concern is now in vain
Believe the word
I will unlock my door
And pass the cemetery gates
Gates
Gates
Is this some conspiracy?
Crucified for no sins
An image beneath me
Lost within our plans for life
It all seems so unreal
I'm a man cut in half in this world
Left in my misery
Reverend, he turned to me
Without a tear in his eyes
Nothing new for him to see
I didn't ask him why
I will remember
The love our souls had sworn to make
Now I watch the falling rain
All my mind can see now is your
Well, I guess you took my youth
And gave it all away
Like the birth of a new-found joy
This love would end in rage
And when she died I couldn't cry
The pride was in my soul
You left me incomplete
All alone as the memories now unfold
Believe the word
I will unlock my door
And pass the cemetery gates
Sometimes when I'm alone I wonder aloud
If you're watching over me
Some place far abound
I must reverse my life
I can't live in the past
Then set my soul free
Belong to me at last
Through all those complex years
I thought I was alone
I didn't care to look around
And make this world my own
And when she died I should've cried
And spared myself some pain
You left me incomplete
All alone as the memories still remain
The way we were
The chance to save my soul
And my concern is now in vain
Believe the word
I will unlock my door
And pass the cemetery gates
The way we were
The chance to save my soul
And my concern is now in vain
Believe the word
I will unlock my door
And pass the cemetery gates
Gates
Gates
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The way this song speaks to me🥺🥺when I sing it I feel like I relate
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This song is def a twin to "Unfair" (a song she has been quoted as saying is about falling in love with someone who is already in a relationship) so it is presumably about the same person. Given the references to buying an apartment and not being able to see her love interest "after tonight," it's most likely that she's moving away and she'll "wait a day to break the bad news" (i.e. notifying him that she's leaving once she's already gone).
And, of course, the fact that she sees in him a fellow "idealist" and "dreamer" (terms commonly given to people with the INFP personality on the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)) portends that she'll always be left wondering if they would've been perfect together.
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Van Halen
The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
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Silent Planet
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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.
I was in a cemetery once and it didn't have any gates. This song confuses me.