Well, in my opinion this song is about being a young & maybe a little naive &/or introverted girl and finding yourself loving a man who is at first very charming, carefree & outgoing, and seems at first to be without limits, as in
"There was a time
you opened up every doorway
you didn't mind if everything
wasn't your way"
then that man starts to gradually become more introverted & shows their more possessive/obsessive side to you as the relationship progresses, even while they keep up the appearance of being carefree & outgoing to everyone else,
"Don't pull away
that goes against what you told me
I look in your eyes
I realize what you've sold me
is love in a vacuum"
so you confront them about the way they're acting and of course they deny it,
"I think you've changed
but you insist that
that's not true"
quite possibly they are an addict of some sort, my guess would be cocaine, &/or showing very obsessive behavior towards you (early on in the video for this song we see the man hanging a picture up, it is a very large portrait of Aimee & it is prominently displayed in his/their apartment for the duration of the song), thus their "love in a vacuum",
"You look so strange, so distant
that you're hardly you
Now I can see
how you have been acting different
You say it's me
but I know
that it isn't
it's love in a vacuum"
but still you are in love with them and don't want to leave them and you know that they are truly in love with you and they don't want you to leave them either, maybe they are convinced you can save them from themself, maybe they are so broken that the possibility of an overdose &/or suicide attempt is very real and you want to get through to them that their behavior not only dangerous but it is also just pissing you off and if they don't wise up they run the risk of loosing you, as in the lines
"You will be lonely
if you leave me alone", so you want to save them but can't get through to them due to the addiction &/or emotional problems they have,
"Love in a vacuum
and that's not enough
love in a vacuum
You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
You will be lonely
if you leave me alone
You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
it's just not enough"
you want them to understand that the love they are giving you is not enough when it is filtered through the vacuum of their drug addiction &/or emotional impairment,
"You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
it's just not enough
and just wait
you will be lonely
Love in a vacuum
Love in a vacuum
and that's not enough
Love in a vacuum".
'Love In A Vacuum' for me is a hauntingly truthful acute argument on the loneliness of obsession and almost inevitable loss of love that follows people who are broken in some way or another; the obsessives, the coke heads, the drunks, addicts or the just-plain-old emotionally broken; a razor sharp, lyrically driven, deceptively poppy, yet ultimately-depressing-in-the-best-way song.
Quintessential Aimee Mann.
Sleeping is giving in
No matter what the time is
Sleeping is giving in
So lift those heavy eyelids
People say that you'll die faster than without water
But we know it's just a lie
Scare your son, scare your daughter
People say that your dreams are the only things that save ya
Come on, baby, in our dreams
We can live our misbehavior
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes
Every time you close your eyes
Every time you close your eyes
Every time you close your eyes
People try and hide the night underneath the covers
People try and hide the light underneath the covers
Come on hide your lovers
Underneath the covers
Come on hide your lovers
Underneath the covers
Hidin' from your brothers underneath the covers
Come on hide your lovers underneath the covers
People say that you'll die faster than without water
But we know it's just a lie
Scare your son, scare your daughter
Scare your son, scare your daughter
Scare your son, scare your daughter
Now here's the sun, it's alright (lies, lies)
Now here's the moon, it's alright (lies, lies)
Now here's the sun, it's alright (lies, lies)
Now here's the moon, it's alright (lies, lies)
But every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes
(Lies, lies)
No matter what the time is
Sleeping is giving in
So lift those heavy eyelids
People say that you'll die faster than without water
But we know it's just a lie
Scare your son, scare your daughter
People say that your dreams are the only things that save ya
Come on, baby, in our dreams
We can live our misbehavior
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes
Every time you close your eyes
Every time you close your eyes
Every time you close your eyes
People try and hide the night underneath the covers
People try and hide the light underneath the covers
Come on hide your lovers
Underneath the covers
Come on hide your lovers
Underneath the covers
Hidin' from your brothers underneath the covers
Come on hide your lovers underneath the covers
People say that you'll die faster than without water
But we know it's just a lie
Scare your son, scare your daughter
Scare your son, scare your daughter
Scare your son, scare your daughter
Now here's the sun, it's alright (lies, lies)
Now here's the moon, it's alright (lies, lies)
Now here's the sun, it's alright (lies, lies)
Now here's the moon, it's alright (lies, lies)
But every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes (lies, lies)
Every time you close your eyes
(Lies, lies)
Lyrics submitted by drinkmilk, edited by JuanCarlosPL
Rebellion (Lies) Lyrics as written by Regine Chassagne Howard Bilerman
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Love in a Vacuum
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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.
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He certainly did earn that reputation.
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Like a lot of the other comments are saying, I think this mainly about voyeurism. If the song was about his girlfriend, then why would he use the word spy. If you are a spy it means you shouldn't be caught, that is kind of the whole point, and if you are a voyeur, the whole point of the pleasure you get from it, is the fact that the other people don't know you are watching them. See a bit of a connection there?
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Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
Not to be repetitive, since everybody else seems to have the mainstream stuff covered, here are some things I thought about.
Number one, this song is summery, as opposed to much of the rest of the album which is very wintery. It gives a vision of driving or just exploring a bustling city in the summer (see Haiti, adds to this effect).
Also, it's told from an adult's point of view, and at the end of the album. This in my opinion is the struggling desensitized generation in its later years, after having settled down and assimilated with most of society. Now he finds himself happy to be free of society and a member of the Rebellion: Finally, after all these years, the hypocrisy and oppression he has lived with (the Neighborhoods) is being addressed. What was once hidden "under the covers" is now out in the open and can be fixed.
So why does it end on a sad note? "Every time you close your eyes", you are alone with your thoughts and memories. This is the protagonist realizing that, despite all that's being done to uncover hypocrisy, it is too late to save the desensitized generation. This might be him recalling the dark times of his youth during the neighborhoods, a time that was stolen from him. There is no replacing one's childhood - that part of his soul can never be replaced.
In short, nobody can live through such an oppressive environt as the Neighborhoods and come out unscathed. Even when all the mistakes society has made are righted, a generation is still psychologically robbed.