Lost Symphonies

To install the notion that I divided by I Replace the occasion to speak I’m not the only lonely boy (lonely boy, lonely boy, lonely boy)

To be honest, I’m not sure if this bit is about coming together or separating.

Coming together:

‘Division’ is the same as saying A goes into B, so essentially what we have is one ‘I’ letting another ‘I’ into itself, or, less abstractly, one person letting another person into their life. ‘Replace the occasion to speak’ would thus refer to the comfortable silences that people sink into when they have been together for a long time, and ‘I’m not the only lonely boy,’ would simply be the speaker acknowledging that this sort of union is quite standard - it’s what everyone does.

Separating:

‘Divided’ can also mean torn apart - as in ‘divided, we fall,’ so it could be about two people separating. In this case, ‘replace the occasion to speak’ would imply that they have reached a point where there is nothing left to say and all they can do is act and go their separate ways. Once again, this is commonplace.

Until I decide to take my watch off I’ll still believe that we Were just a matter of time Still getting older every day Shout for shout’s sake

The speaker believes that they are destined to be with subject, and the only way it could ever be otherwise is if the passing of time no longer entered into the equation. But the speaker finds that no matter how long they wait, they continue to get older without getting any closer to the subject, and all they can do is shout about it.

Siren siren, don’t do this dance in my ear If I have already lost him once Do a deadly dance, all I’ve asked for is so little I've already lost him

In The Odyssey, the song of the sirens is irresistible. Once a sailor is in the trance of the sirens’ song, they cannot escape and they will sail their ship toward certain destruction on the rocks. In the case of Lost Symphonies, the siren embodies the allure of the subject, and the speaker is pleading with it not to continue to seduce them since they have already endured the tragedy of losing the subject.

If I decide to sever the plates below The shore would separate and find only seven placed again

In one of the earlier posts someone suggested that this may be a reference to God dividing up the ocean and creating the seven seas, and I think they’re right on the money. But what sticks out for me here are the words ‘only’ and ‘again’ as they convey a sense of inevitability. I believe that the speaker is saying, in so many words, that even if they had the omnipotence of God, things would have played out in exactly the same way; their separation from the subject was inexorable.

Before commemorating (this anniversary) I hope you still believe Before commemorating (this anniversary) Ten feet tall and I still have the right to say

In a marriage, only one spouse has remained faithful and thus has the higher ground? Not too sure…

I don’t know that this song is about any one relationship. I think it might just be about break-ups in general and how hard it can be to let go of something that has been a huge part of your life for so long.

And now I’ll just wait patiently for someone to come along with a quote from a magazine interview that completely debunks everything I’ve written. : P