In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Telling time is hard when it rewinds
Painting circles around your crimes
What if I told you to die
Would you hate me and burn up inside
No traces, no picture
No sacred glowing scriptures
So control your chaos
Relax and you can save us
Your throne of unjust
A dirty sole of mistrust
It pushes down, forces us down
What if it all came crashing down all around you
How will you save yourself
If you need one more fix to let it lift
Just stop and think, because it's over
So it's fine if you can't define
All the reasons for losing your mind
But if I could turn back time
I'd walk and pretend it's a lie
No faces, no voices
No falling concrete takers
No control, all chaos
A severed screaming circus
The time, the pain
Forced us to run away
What if it all came crashing down all around you
How will you save yourself
If you need one more fix to let it lift
Just stop and think because it's all over
You're the birthplace of disease
Ending all, ending me
Forever wrapped in chains
What if it all cam crashing down all around you
How will you save yourself
If you need one more fix to let it lift
Just stop and think, because it's all over
Painting circles around your crimes
What if I told you to die
Would you hate me and burn up inside
No traces, no picture
No sacred glowing scriptures
So control your chaos
Relax and you can save us
Your throne of unjust
A dirty sole of mistrust
It pushes down, forces us down
What if it all came crashing down all around you
How will you save yourself
If you need one more fix to let it lift
Just stop and think, because it's over
So it's fine if you can't define
All the reasons for losing your mind
But if I could turn back time
I'd walk and pretend it's a lie
No faces, no voices
No falling concrete takers
No control, all chaos
A severed screaming circus
The time, the pain
Forced us to run away
What if it all came crashing down all around you
How will you save yourself
If you need one more fix to let it lift
Just stop and think because it's all over
You're the birthplace of disease
Ending all, ending me
Forever wrapped in chains
What if it all cam crashing down all around you
How will you save yourself
If you need one more fix to let it lift
Just stop and think, because it's all over
Lyrics submitted by Hardcore_Icon, edited by NFfan90
Beneath Lyrics as written by Tomas Haake Fredrik Thordendal
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I see it as two guys who commit murders or other crimes, and he's covering up for the main offender, and he's getting a bit tired of it
"Telling time is hard when it rewinds Painting circles around your crimes What if I told you to die Would you hate me and burn up inside" Everything he does for this person is building up, and he can count how many times the person's done wrong, and he's saying 'if I told you to fuck off and die, that I wasn't gonna do this for you anymore, would you hate me'
"No traces, no picture No sacred glowing scriptures So control your chaos Relax and you can save us" He's not religious (sacred glowing scriptures) so he doesn't care what God thinks, and they leave no trace of what they do, but he's saying to the person 'hey calm down on what you're doing for a bit so we don't get caught'
"Your throne of unjust A dirty soul of mistrust It pushes down, forces us down" The main offender has no conscience and an unpure soul so this forces both of the guys to do the crimes cos he doesn't want to stand up to him
"What if it all came crashing down all around you How will you save yourself If you need one more fix to let it lift Just stop and think, because it's over" Now he's standing up to the main offender and challenging him, saying that he can go get fucked and asking, how are you gonna cope now that I'm not covering for you?
"So it's fine if you can't define All the reasons for losing your mind But if I could turn back time I'd walk and pretend it's a lie" He now regrets doing the things with the main offender, and if he gets asked he'll deny everything and blame it on him
"No faces, no voices No falling concrete takers No control, all chaos A severed screaming circus" He can't see, or hear the main offender anymore. He hears of utter chaos now he has left him.
The time, the pain Forced us to run away
What if it all came crashing down all around you How will you save yourself If you need one more fix to let it lift Just stop and think because it's all over
You're the birthplace of disease Ending all, ending me Forever wrapped in chains
What if it all cam crashing down all around you How will you save yourself If you need one more fix to let it lift Just stop and think, because it's all over
Well Sunshine, I see where you're coming from. However, I don't believe that Beneath is about crimes and murder. I read an interview with Tommy Sickles and he said that this song shows how fucked up everything was while making Skeletons. Maxwell's mom died, Matt's house burned down and he was experimenting with drugs, and Bill's marriage fell apart. It was a hard time for them and hard for them to focus on writing their music. All these hardships are reflected in the chorus:
"What if it all came crashing down all around you How will you save yourself If you need one more fix to let it lift Just stop and think, because it's over"
What if it all came crashing down all around you How will you save yourself If you need one more fix to let it lift Just stop and think, because it's over
Maybe he's done looking after her- she's on her own without his help anymore. And for her to think about what has happened
I think He's referring to the past, and present versions of himself, reflecting on substance abuse, & how its destroyed his current place in time. Hes had to rebuild, & He's telling that damaging nature to fuck off. If he were to get one more fix to let it lift, He would be repeating the same destructive behavior. He wants to destroy the part of himself that has caused everything to crash down around him, but to return is not worth the damage because that part of his life is over.