It's empty in the valley of your heart
The sun, it rises slowly as you walk
Away from all the fears
And all the faults you've left behind

The harvest left no food for you to eat
You cannibal, you meat-eater, you see
But I have seen the same
I know the shame in your defeat

But I will hold on hope
And I won't let you choke
On the noose around your neck

And I'll find strength in pain
And I will change my ways
I'll know my name as it's called again

'Cause I have other things to fill my time
You take what is yours and I'll take mine
Now let me at the truth
Which will refresh my broken mind

So tie me to a post and block my ears
I can see widows and orphans through my tears
I know my call despite my faults
And despite my growing fears

But I will hold on hope
And I won't let you choke
On the noose around your neck

And I'll find strength in pain
And I will change my ways
I'll know my name as it's called again

So come out of your cave walking on your hands
And see the world hanging upside down
You can understand dependence
When you know the maker's hand

So make your siren's call
And sing all you want
I will not hear what you have to say

'Cause I need freedom now
And I need to know how
To live my life as it's meant to be

And I will hold on hope
And I won't let you choke
On the noose around your neck

And I'll find strength in pain
And I will change my ways
I'll know my name as it's called again


Lyrics submitted by Nobody-special, edited by 1770, dodgerblue

The Cave Lyrics as written by Edward James Milton Dwane Benjamin Walter David Lovett

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

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The Cave song meanings
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  • -1
    Song Meaning

    In my mind, this song is about two people who are both in love with each other but they both have some personal baggage that is getting in the way of their shared happiness.

    (Since I'm a girl, I'll tell it with my gender being the narrator)

    So the boy- who has recently changed lifestyles (maybe moved?) has found no luck [The harvest left no food for you to eat], and so slowly but certainly is become less and less the person he was, throwing away everything that he was previously, and maybe getting into dangerous substances. [It's empty in the valley of your heart/The sun, it rises slowly as you walk/Away from all the fears/And all the faults you've left behind]. Unfortunately, when the girl he loves tries to help- he pushes her away out of pride, not wanting her to see him weak, she of course, thinks this is silly. [But I have seen the same/I know the shame in your defeat]

    The girl, on the other hand, has also found herself in a new setting (college?) and thinks that she needs to adjust and get into what she thinks is adequate for her future. [Cause I need freedom now/And I need to know how/To live my life as it's meant to be]. She wants to help him [Now let me at the truth/Which will refresh my broken mind], but because of all her new commitments and his pride, they start to feel distant.

    In all this confusion, the boy decides that the one thing that will make him better would be to be in a relationship, but the girl doesn't want that, she needs her freedom and believes that he should be focused on other things too, and she makes it known that she won't be in a relationship, no matter how much she cares for him. [So make your siren's call/And sing all you want/I will not hear what you have to say/Cause I have other things to fill my time, You take what is yours and I'll take mine]. So she lets herself become less of a figure in his life, talks to him less etc. The boy doesn't take this well and becomes angry, he then casts her away. But she holds her head up, knowing (or wishing) that when he figures everything out, and gets off the substances he started, he'll be back. [But I will hold on hope/And I won't let you choke/On the noose around your neck/And I'll find strength in pain/And I will change my ways/I'll know my name as it's called again"]

    Obviously, I might be a little biased, because this is a personal song to me, but this is what I see.

    BrokenWing18on January 14, 2011   Link

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