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.
Even though we know, yeah we know
Our time has almost come, we're all overdue
Can there be a place to call our own?
Can there be a road that takes us home?
We toe the line
We go along
We don't belong
To you now
When it rains it pours
Like summer storms
The skies as gray as leaves
The rivers flood the banks
And spill into the streets
But the people laughed
And swore that they'd restore
The city piece by piece
And then the clouds gave
Way as if to agree
When it rains it pours
The mystery unknown
Now unfolds
The life that we once owned
First bought, then sold
Like messengers of war
We've no control
To oceans unexplored
This ship sails through
We toe the line
We go along
We don't belong
To you now
When it rains it pours
Like summer storms
The skies as gray as leafs
The rivers flood the banks
And spill into the streets
But the people laughed
And swore that they'd restore
The city piece by piece
And then the clouds gave
Way as if to agree
When it rains it pours, it pours, it pours
When it rains it pours
When they die, we mourn
When it hit, we swore
Now we want not more
Like a saint reborn
Like a rose in a storm
Like a child unborn
A child unborn
It's the coin
We're tossing into the well
It's misfortune that
We could not foretell
It's the dry spell
When it rains it pours
Like summer storms
The skies as gray as leafs
The rivers flood the banks
And spill into the streets
But the people laughed
And swore that they'd restore
The city piece by piece
And then the clouds gave
Way as if to agree
When it rains it pours, it pours
When it rains it pours
Our time has almost come, we're all overdue
Can there be a place to call our own?
Can there be a road that takes us home?
We toe the line
We go along
We don't belong
To you now
When it rains it pours
Like summer storms
The skies as gray as leaves
The rivers flood the banks
And spill into the streets
But the people laughed
And swore that they'd restore
The city piece by piece
And then the clouds gave
Way as if to agree
When it rains it pours
The mystery unknown
Now unfolds
The life that we once owned
First bought, then sold
Like messengers of war
We've no control
To oceans unexplored
This ship sails through
We toe the line
We go along
We don't belong
To you now
When it rains it pours
Like summer storms
The skies as gray as leafs
The rivers flood the banks
And spill into the streets
But the people laughed
And swore that they'd restore
The city piece by piece
And then the clouds gave
Way as if to agree
When it rains it pours, it pours, it pours
When it rains it pours
When they die, we mourn
When it hit, we swore
Now we want not more
Like a saint reborn
Like a rose in a storm
Like a child unborn
A child unborn
It's the coin
We're tossing into the well
It's misfortune that
We could not foretell
It's the dry spell
When it rains it pours
Like summer storms
The skies as gray as leafs
The rivers flood the banks
And spill into the streets
But the people laughed
And swore that they'd restore
The city piece by piece
And then the clouds gave
Way as if to agree
When it rains it pours, it pours
When it rains it pours
Lyrics submitted by PansyMk4, edited by atemu1234, Belgarion262
Historia Calamitatum Lyrics as written by Joseph Principe Brandon Barnes
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
Thursday
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
First of all, to HollyHomocide, it is not on any record you can buy, but what I heard it is a bonus song on appeal to reason that u get if u download it from itunes.
This song has nothing to do with floods just because he sings about rain and rebuilding.
I actually bothered to look up the title of the song and found out it is the latin title of an autobiography written by a french philosopher in the 12th century. Now in the foreword of the book he states this:
"OFTEN the hearts of men and women are stirred, as likewise they are soothed in their sorrows more by example than by words. And therefore, because I too I have known some consolation from speech had with one who was a witness thereof, am I now minded to write of the sufferings which have sprung out of my misfortunes, for the eyes of one who, though absent, is of himself ever a consoler. This I do so that, in comparing your sorrows with mine, you may discover that yours are in truth nought, or at the most but of small account, and so shall you come to bear them more easily. "
He is pretty much saying that whatever happens to you, there is always someone that has it worse, and we should cheer up and rebuild whatever got torn down or taken away.
it also might be aimed towards the pessimists out there, saying that its to late to save our planet and doomsday is right around the corner, trying to tell them that there is still hope out there. There are some minor metaphors in this song that is hard to figure out cuzz i havent analyzed it well enough yet, but hopefully more will come.
i tink it is about the german blitz on london in 1943 "When it rain it pours" talk about the bombs dropped on London, "The skies is grey as leaves" Talk about german bombers all over the skies, "But the pepoles laughed and sore than they restore the city piece by piece" it is beaucause after each night the city was completely destroyed and the pepoles did not abandon because they know than if they do that, the Nazi woud have win.
there's a couple spots in the lyrics that I don't agree with/don't make sense to me.
I think it's we toe the line we go along we don't belong to you now
that's what it sounds like to me + it makes more sense.
+"skies as grey as leaves?" leaves aren't grey, I really think it's "skies as grey as these"
It should be "Like passengers aboard, we've no control" instead of "like messengers of war, we've no control."
Amazing song, better than some stuff from the album. Don't know exactly what it's about, but could be about New Orleans or something like that.
on which record is that song?
it is on the soundtrack to punisher warzone
Appeal to Reason.
i don’t think its about flooding literally, I thinks it’s a kinda metaphor… not really much of an ider of what tho, its one of those songs that you can fit your own meaning to I think., about rebuilding something important , or saying ‘bring it on world'
It on my Appeal to Reason, but im from Engaland, and it a bonus track at the end.
now ive read a bit more i kinda agree with Rutlin, its about gettin on with life.
Just like Suvive (we've all bin sorry , we've all bin hurt) its about not feeling sorry for yourself.
Like a saint re-born, Like a rose in a storm, Like a child un-born,
all butiful things, still to come,
what you think??
Yes I am sorry. I have to edit myself :) this song is on the UK album, while Elective Amnesia is on the ITunes version. <br /> <br /> Yeah it is beautiful and well written, but whats your interpretation of it? what do you think about it? <br /> <br /> The second I saw<br /> "like a child un-born" <br /> I started thinking about abortion <br /> and the creation of a better life for yourself (be it the father or the mother) by killing someone else, but that's what jumped to my head first.<br /> <br /> Actually it just came to my mind:<br /> <br /> These are things of immense beauty figuratively speaking, that probably goes through a lot of pain:<br /> <br /> Most saints were brutally murdered in some way or another (Jean d'Arc for example)<br /> The rose in the storm probably suffers as well, feeling it is going to be slayed by the rain or pulled up by the wind,<br /> And a child that isn't born, that dies before it is born, what pain and anguish do they feel?<br /> <br /> I guess these are all examples of overcoming something?<br /> <br /> Their songs amazes me more and more, because they are so intricately written and there is always a new element that is discovered :D
Yer i kinda see what you mean, overall i think its about, accepting what life throws at you and getting on with your life.<br /> <br /> The chorus is just an example of things going really badly wrong and people not complaining about it, a bit like in Bangladesh, and just realising that life goes on and they just need to fix whats broken and start over again.<br /> <br /> Like i said its kinda like a similar meaning to Survive for me, about not feeling sorry for yourself.<br /> <br /> i like what you've said bout the 'like a child un-born' bit, i no rise against are pro abortion.<br /> i thought of it more like as a child un-born is a beautiful thing witch is yet to come.<br /> Like you said about saints being killed, if they re-born it would be a beautiful thing to look forward to, same with the child un-born, so it ties in with getting on with life and looking to the future.<br /> <br /> I just love rise against so much, i dont understand the critics of the new album, i thinks it amazing, and this song can have so many different meanings to so many people its just a master piece.<br /> <br /> thanks for you reply !<br />
Historia Calamitatum - History of my calamities
"But the people laughed and swore that they'd restore The city piece by piece."
Pretty sure it's talking about our current worldly situation, we've got a torrent of issues affecting us all, one of which being the environmental problems we're facing. Although we keep saying we are going to fix it, we haven't seemed to do too much about it.
I don't think this is literal. I believe there is deeper meaning to this, it's a metaphor.
I have to agree with both Rutlin and Lutherius. I think this song talks about how we complain about things when in reality, soooo many people have it WAY worse than us. However, Lutherius also brings up a good point in saying that it's about worldly situations and what we're doing to try to fix things.
This song is REALLY open to interpretation. Great song, though. Very meaningful to everyone!