Passenger Seat

this song is soo good. its like i wrote about how i felt with my ex. we used to road trip all of the time and drive everywhere and this hits dead on how we felt. it was just nice and quiet and we weren't afraid to ask each other the stupidest of questions. that feeling of acceptance is amazing and i really wish that i could have it back. a lot of people define love as the feeling you get when your heart pounds and you get the chills and everything. but that is just when you have a stupid little crush. those people have never experienced true love. ben obviously has and described it here better than i could have imagined possible. its simple, to the point, and gets every single emotion across. i love how he places himself in the passenger seat and gives the control to the girl. i picture perfectly him slouched in the charir with his head resting on top of the door, straring out the window thinking about anything, not worried at all about saying the wrong thing. that love is a beautiful thing. this song makes me tear a little because of how insanely close i can relate to this song. the whole car scenario just hits a little too close to home...

this song doesn't mean anything it's just about love in it's purest form: when you know its there on everyday tasks like getting driven home hell of a song

wow..one word...breathtaking. this song=the pure and simple form of LOVE. the crazy state of happiness that is so often hard to capture in today's songs. this song is just so incredibly personal, and i think anyone can relate to it. i think the relationship described here could be between bf/gf, parent/child, or even God/human. Seriously. this is definitely one of the top songs on their album transatlanticism. I LOVE YOU BEN GIBBARD!!!!!!

this song totally reminds me of drives home with my friends. When its just me and one of them sitting in silence for most of the ride after a busy evening. Just enjoying being near each other. That comfortable kind of silence you can only share with a few people. Great song

this song reminds me of the innocence and wonder of children. And i think the best lines are " When you feel embarrassed, i'll be your pride. When you need direction, i'll be the guide"

someone told me this song is magic, and it is.

I'm not saying this is the correct interpretation or anything but this is what I imagine when I listen to this song. A guy is driving his girlfriend home late at night and she's tired. She's been wanting to ask him something and now since they're alone it's the perfect time. She wonders out loud on the lines: "I strain my eyes and try To tell the difference between shooting stars and satellites." I think this is metaphorical and the shooting stars represents love while the satellites represent society. She's wondering whether anyone or anything will get in the way of their love when she asks "do they collide?" He answers her by smiling, assuring her nothing will ever get in the way of them. She feels more comfortable and realizes that the rest of society really doesn't matter and won't ever change their love. He then continues to tell her "when you feel embarrassed then I'll be your pride, when you need directions then I'll be the guide, for all time, for all time." He tells her that he will always be there for her and love her, forever.

This song, to me, never sounds like a child and parent. I also agree that it is trying to capture a feeling, not a scenario. Therefore, in my opinion, the car has nothing to do with the meaning, that is just an example of where the feeling may take you; ie. driving with your boyfriend/girlfriend/partner. I interpret the lyrics to convey the feeling of when you are IN love, not just loving someone. Therefore you can feel able to ask any question you want and be answered, or guide them and do everything you possibly can for them, for all time.

The imagery is incredible in this song, I remember the first time I heard it, I was on a road trip on by baseball team's bus heading to a game some two hours away. The route there was through a canyon, and at night you could see faint outlines of evergreen trees and mountain ridges. The line "the darkest country road and the strong scent of evergreen" couldn't have been timed better as I got to the song while passing thorugh the canyon, and I felt like I was right where Ben was singing about. That's the sheer greatness of DCFC. As for my interpretation, I never did think of it as a bond between someone and a parent figure, that is definetely an interesting interpretation. But I had always thought of it as perhaps a road trip some friends are taking, it is late at night and he and the driver are the only ones awake. I would think that the driver is his girlfriend, and they are sharing a small moment with each other while they still have it. The guy in the passenger seat is tired and falling asleep, and perhaps mutturs "do they collide?", referring to the stars and satellites. His girlfriend thinks this is silly and is amused by how funny he is while he is tired. The guy, though still falling asleep, realizes this and feels a feeling similar to being on top of the world, resting his feet on the dash and telling himself "the world dosent matter", because he has everything he needs right next to him. As he finally falls asleep, he is thinking of his girlfriend and everything she means to him, and everything he'll do for her - "When you feel embarrased, then i'll be your pride. When you need directions, then i'll be the guide; for all time".

So blissfully and perfectly literal. Thank you thank you a thousand times, Death Cab.