"Forever After Days" as written by and Matthew D. Berninger Aaron B. Dessner....
On my feet I stand tonight
Stand and step up to the light
An extraordinary man
Unbroken in a breaking light
Forever after days
Stand and make myself a crown
To the table I step alone
Hold my own above the ground
Take my shot under the light
Heroes come the common way
Pull myself into the sky
Wrap me in the banner I made
On my feet I stand tonight
Stand alone inside the air
An extraordinary man
Everything stops and holds me there
Forever after days
Stand and make myself a crown
To the table I step alone
And hold my own above the ground
Take my shot under the light
Heroes come the common way
Pull myself into the sky
Wrap me in the banner I made
Forever after days
Stand and make myself a crown
To the table I step alone
And hold my own above the ground
Take my shot under the light
Heroes come the common way
Pull myself into the sky
Wrap me in the banner I made
Stand and step up to the light
An extraordinary man
Unbroken in a breaking light
Forever after days
Stand and make myself a crown
To the table I step alone
Hold my own above the ground
Take my shot under the light
Heroes come the common way
Pull myself into the sky
Wrap me in the banner I made
On my feet I stand tonight
Stand alone inside the air
An extraordinary man
Everything stops and holds me there
Forever after days
Stand and make myself a crown
To the table I step alone
And hold my own above the ground
Take my shot under the light
Heroes come the common way
Pull myself into the sky
Wrap me in the banner I made
Forever after days
Stand and make myself a crown
To the table I step alone
And hold my own above the ground
Take my shot under the light
Heroes come the common way
Pull myself into the sky
Wrap me in the banner I made
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and secondly, it's confounding that no one else has commented on this song. i'm not ashamed to admit it's one of my favorites.
the line "unbroken in the breaking light" sums it up perfectly.
a lot of the national's songs have a sense of disparate fortitude... "Mr. November", "All the Wine", "Fake Empire", "Forever After Days"... no matter how humble we pretend to be, we crave attention and feel entitled to the spotlight. "i used to be carried in the arms of cheerleaders", "a birthday candle in a circle of black girls", "tiptoe through our shiny city with our diamond slippers on", "on my feet i stand tonight"...
after all, we hold our own against monuments of shit on a daily basis, yet rarely do we receive any form of reward or recognition. and it was this sense that initially drew me in and quickly made me a fan for life. well that, and matt just sounds like a bad ass. anyways, i believe this song is a testament to everything the national stands for, and the following journey is an amalgam of what i profess to be an extraordinary man...
christ - "heroes come the common way" - last supper - "to the table i step alone" - crown of thorns - "stand and make myself a crown" - crucifixion - "hold my own above the ground" - "hold the line! stay with me" - maximus decimus meridius - "what we do in life, echoes an eternity" - "forever after days" - daniel day-lewis - bill the butcher - bloody american flag - also played a boxer - rocky iv -"take my shot under the light" - another bloody american flag - "wrap me in the banner i made"
it could also mean something about dying, or wanting to die,
take my shot under the light, heroes come a common way
pull myself into the sky, wrap me in the banner i made
also maybe something about making himself a martyr and killing himself, once he has achieved martyrdom.
"Take my shot under the light, heroes come the common way, pull myself into the sky, wrap me in the banner I made"
I claim to be a Christian, but I constantly struggle with the root of my sinful nature (self-righteousness) and continually pray for faith in Christ alone.
But I do agree with mrcricket as far as the rest of his interpretation. The National frequently write about feeling entitled for enduring the mundane.
"a lot of the national's songs have a sense of disparate fortitude... "Mr. November", "All the Wine", "Fake Empire", "Forever After Days"... no matter how humble we pretend to be, we crave attention and feel entitled to the spotlight. "i used to be carried in the arms of cheerleaders", "a birthday candle in a circle of black girls", "tiptoe through our shiny city with our diamond slippers on", "on my feet i stand tonight"...
after all, we hold our own against monuments of shit on a daily basis, yet rarely do we receive any form of reward or recognition."