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.
Keys are in my pocket
And they rattle you away
Seventh floor apartment
and a fiery escape
But I'm a wife in watercolors
I can wash away
What seventeen cold showers
Couldn't wash away
Save me
Save me
Save me from what I want
Save me
Save me
Save me from what I want
Save me
Save me
Save me from what I want
Honey, what reveals you
is what you try and hide away
You could tell the planets
or your pillow case
But I'm a wife in watercolors
I can wash away
what seventeen cold showers
Couldn't wash away
Save me save me save me from what I want
Save me save me save me from what I want
Save me save me save me from what I want
Save me save me save me from what I want
Save me save me save me from what I want
Save me save me save me from what I want
And they rattle you away
Seventh floor apartment
and a fiery escape
But I'm a wife in watercolors
I can wash away
What seventeen cold showers
Couldn't wash away
Save me
Save me
Save me from what I want
Save me
Save me
Save me from what I want
Save me
Save me
Save me from what I want
Honey, what reveals you
is what you try and hide away
You could tell the planets
or your pillow case
But I'm a wife in watercolors
I can wash away
what seventeen cold showers
Couldn't wash away
Save me save me save me from what I want
Save me save me save me from what I want
Save me save me save me from what I want
Save me save me save me from what I want
Save me save me save me from what I want
Save me save me save me from what I want
Lyrics submitted by rainandrev
Save Me from What I Want Lyrics as written by Anne Erin Clark
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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its amazing how far music can come.. 24 years after it released and its one of the most heartfelt songs ive heard
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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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I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
I think it actually goes,
"Keys are in my pocket They rattle you awake
Seventh floor apartment And a fire escape."
"fiery" according to the lyrics included in the physical album, BROOOOOOOOOOO
OOPS. Pwned.<br /> <br /> I was going more based off of what I thought made sense at the time, but re-reading the lyrics and reflecting on the song's meaning, "fiery escape" actually makes more sense.<br /> <br /> And it's probably also meant to be a double entendre--based on the context and her pronunciation.