White Gold

This is a complex song about the life of a musician who doesn't know where true value is (porn or sirloin is what they get). It's a reflection taken as they do cocaine (white gold) with an aspiring actress. They are the piss-poor because they spend their lives away (white gold) and lose their friends and loved ones over a blind quest for fame. Hence the airwaves and the airlines (touring). The waitress/actress tries to warn them that they are replaying history, but the response is that they're in the same boat, she hasn't "beat" them in her path. The musician thinks they can make their lives different, "make it right," but they have to admit that because of the white gold, their vision is strained.

Another thought about her vision being strained... when I said she's losing track of what she wants in life I meant that she's losing track/having a hard time remembering why she wanted to go into acting.

And when I said "fame doesn't buy happiness" I meant that being famous isn't a source of happiness for everyone. Even for people who enjoy, fame alone usually can't make people happy. Things like friendship usually make people genuinely happy.

Basically, money and fame are oftentimes overrated.

:/ I think I have some corrections: "Piss poor, riding high..." "She asked the poss poor, "why you lookin' for that party in the sky? it's just a movie about a movie too old to die"

*piss poor

Oh. :/ I'm not sure?

I agree with boomerstyle

These are the correct lyrics:

Piss poor, riding high, sunbathing fireside. We're here for the porn or the sirloin Get your T-bone, let your backbone slide, tunnel and sky collide Lose friends to the airwaves and the airlines

I want to make it right, some future in my eyes (bright) Hush don't explain when you water down my name I'll be up too late, call me when you get better at your game You haven't beat me yet.

The waitress, the actress has got the skin and the bones With the hairbrush and an air brush she'd be white gold. She asked the piss poor "Why are you looking for that party in the sky? It's just a movie about a movie, too old to die"

I'm going to make it right You haven't beat me yet though my vision is strained.

What does this song mean though?

This one is hard to peg but I'll piece together what I think about what it says.

The first verse describes an extravagant and indulgent scenes. That on the surface seems desirable but is really 'piss poor'.

The chorus I'll leave for later since I think it hinges on the two verses.

The second verse starts with a kind of duality showing the real and the fake. Tuning the plain waitress into an airbrushed actress. Then the question is asked, Is it all worth it? Trying to achieve some idealistic happiness?

Now for the chorus which confuses things for me. I've come to two conclusions about the chorus.

A. The whole song is someone's idealistic dream and by asking that question in the second verse the person's dream has been shaken adding the line "though my vision is strained" to the following choruses.

B. The chorus is the waitress' dream to make her own bright future that is different from the fake happiness that people try to envision for her. But the constant bombardment is starting to wear away at her dream.

Of course I could be off about the whole thing. Either way it stays as one of my favorite Metric songs and maybe one of my favorite songs of all time.

Well, white gold IS another term for cocaine. And if you read over the lyrics, it does make quite a bit of sense.