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.
jenny jenny jenny, don't be lazy
jenny jenny jenny, don't be lazy
i know it's hopeless
i know it's sad
i know you're stupid
i know it's sad
but jenny jenny jenny
jenny jenny jenny
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
everyday i ride my bike
up and down these roads
i'd see a beautiful flower
it was trampled on the ground
jenny, it makes me think of you
how you used to be and how you are now
oh jenny how you are now
oh jenny jenny jenny
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
oh it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
you used to be so pretty
but now you're just tragic
believe in something
you're full of horseshit
you used to be so pretty
but now you're just tragic
believe in something
you're full of horseshit
you used to be so pretty
but now you're just tragic
believe in something
you're full of horseshit
you used to be so pretty
but now you're just tragic
believe in something
you're full of horseshit
oh jenny jenny jenny
and you said
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
no it's not
no it's not
no it's not
no it's not
jenny jenny jenny, don't be lazy
i know it's hopeless
i know it's sad
i know you're stupid
i know it's sad
but jenny jenny jenny
jenny jenny jenny
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
everyday i ride my bike
up and down these roads
i'd see a beautiful flower
it was trampled on the ground
jenny, it makes me think of you
how you used to be and how you are now
oh jenny how you are now
oh jenny jenny jenny
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
oh it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
you used to be so pretty
but now you're just tragic
believe in something
you're full of horseshit
you used to be so pretty
but now you're just tragic
believe in something
you're full of horseshit
you used to be so pretty
but now you're just tragic
believe in something
you're full of horseshit
you used to be so pretty
but now you're just tragic
believe in something
you're full of horseshit
oh jenny jenny jenny
and you said
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
don't be a jerk jonny
don't be so cruel to me
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
it's out of love (no it's not)
no it's not
no it's not
no it's not
no it's not
Lyrics submitted by mindbloc
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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”
when i saw these guys live, jonny pierce kept making a gesture to a pregnant stomach whilst singing. maybe the lyrics are indicating that a girl he is very much in love with has gotten pregnant with someone else? which could link with: 'it's out of love (no it's not)' as if to say that the baby wasn't for love, more lust?