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.
My sixteen locked and loaded
All fear has been avoided
You say the words and my weapon is drawn
This one could be my last time
Some people call it war crime
I may be staring down a lethal sight
(To die)
Nothing shocks you like a bullet hole
Leaving my fear on the danger line
Suffering a man should never know
Leaving my faith on the danger line
I do this for my family
My daughter loves her daddy
Too many talk down on things they don't know
With colors never faded
Reckless and unabated
They may take me but never take us all (I'll crawl)
Nothing shocks you like a bullet hole
Leaving my fear on the danger line
Suffering no man should ever know
Leaving my faith on the danger line
I know what you're thinking
I've been there before
So think of the times
The time we spent laughing away
So think of the times at home
Now I found myself in my own blood
(never thought I'd lay in my own blood)
The damage done is far beyond repair
I never put my faith in up above
(never had much faith in up above)
But now, I'm hoping someone's there
Never meant to leave this world alone
I never meant to hurt the ones who cared
And all this time I thought we'd just grow old
You know, no one said it's fair
Tell my baby girl that it's alright
I've sung my last song today
Remind the Lord to leave his light on for me
I'm free
All fear has been avoided
You say the words and my weapon is drawn
This one could be my last time
Some people call it war crime
I may be staring down a lethal sight
(To die)
Nothing shocks you like a bullet hole
Leaving my fear on the danger line
Suffering a man should never know
Leaving my faith on the danger line
I do this for my family
My daughter loves her daddy
Too many talk down on things they don't know
With colors never faded
Reckless and unabated
They may take me but never take us all (I'll crawl)
Nothing shocks you like a bullet hole
Leaving my fear on the danger line
Suffering no man should ever know
Leaving my faith on the danger line
I know what you're thinking
I've been there before
So think of the times
The time we spent laughing away
So think of the times at home
Now I found myself in my own blood
(never thought I'd lay in my own blood)
The damage done is far beyond repair
I never put my faith in up above
(never had much faith in up above)
But now, I'm hoping someone's there
Never meant to leave this world alone
I never meant to hurt the ones who cared
And all this time I thought we'd just grow old
You know, no one said it's fair
Tell my baby girl that it's alright
I've sung my last song today
Remind the Lord to leave his light on for me
I'm free
Lyrics submitted by InUtero1324, edited by AvngdSvnX, Wyvern740, FunRocks
Danger Line Lyrics as written by James Sullivan Brian Haner
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I to believe it's about war and soldiers, but I see it as a soldier who after going to battle gets shot and is thinking of his wife and daughter.
"My 16 locked and loaded All fear has been avoided You say the words and my weapon is drawn."
I see that as a solider who is at camp readying himself for a coming battle, he blocks out his fear and follows his commander's orders to go fight.
"This one could be my last time Some people call it war crime I may be staring at a lethal sight"
THe soldier is thinking that he possibly won't make it out of this and that it could be considered a war crime that he is about to go do something he doesn't want to, the lethal site part could also be him looking at the approaching battle and about to jump in.
(To die)
"Nothing shocks you like a bullet hole Leaving my fear on the danger line Suffering a man should never know Leaving my faith on the danger line"
THis in a story telling sense, could be a flash forward to after he's been shot and suffering as he waits for death.
"I do this for my family My daughter loves her daddy Too many talk down on things they don't know"
Here it could be interpreted that it's him thinking of the fight and why he's doing this, to ensure his family is free, and also taking a jab at those who say it is a pointless affair to fight.
"With colors never faded Reckless and unabated They may take me but never take us all"
THe first line is obviously referencing the American Flag. THe reckless and unabated/ They may take me but never take us all part can be considered the soldier forseeing his death but reassuring himself that if he dies, his company will stay safe.
"Nothing shocks you like a bullet hole Leaving my fear on the danger line Suffering a man should never know Leaving my faith on the danger line"
Again refer to the note about this line earlier in this post.
"I know what you're thinking I've been there before So think of the time The time we spent laughing away So think of the times at home"
The soldier is either talking to his family telling them to remember the good times they had.
"Now I find myself in my own blood The damage done is far beyond repair"
He is beyond saving after he's been shot.
"I never put my faith in up above But now, I'm hoping someone's there"
He never thought of a god or an afterlife but is now hoping that God is there to meet him when he gets to heaven.
"I never meant to leave this world alone I never meant to hurt the ones who cared And though this time I thought we'd just grow old You know, no one said its fair"
Him thinking about his wife and their vows at a wedding possibly or his last words if he could talk to her.
"Tell my baby girl that it's alright I've sung my last song today" The solider telling someone to tell his daughter that it is ok he is going to die and not to worry about him.
"Remind the lord to leave his light on for me I'm free."
The soldier thinking about god leaving a light on so he can find his way to heaven, and him being free of his pain and suffering as a spirit in heaven.
Again this is just my interpretation of the song.
The true beauty of a well written song, or any piece of art for that matter, is its ability to be interpreted in many different ways. When a7x wrote this song, they very well could have been writing from the perspective of a soldier(i tend to think so because of the drumline), but it can easily be taken as a metaphor for depression, suicide, or be related to by everyone who has fought their own war in life. A beautiful, well written song. The entire Nightmare album is a masterpiece.
2:29-5:28 E.P.I.C.
It's obviously about war and the loss that it brings, but more specifically the loss experience personally by soldiers killed in action.
I like this better than M.I.A. It really shows what soldires go through and expresses it in a good way.
i feel like this song is about war but the second half of the song is like a metaphor about the rev. maybe speaking from the rev's perspective.. like he didn't meant to hurt the ones he loved.
maybe his death altered the song. i duno. the outro is so touching...
The last part is incorrect, instead of "You're not allowed" to leave the light on for me, it should say "Tell the Lord to leave the light on for me"
...So much emotion in this song.
Ugh, since i can't edit my response...
I just realized it's "REMIND the Lord to leave his light on for me."
I feel like an idiot now
haha, don't worry none of us think you are.
Great song. Definitely about war and the death of a soldier. Very sad toward the end.
I almost heard the first time I really listened to the lyrics, especially the "Tell my baby girl..." line.
I definitely agree it is about a soldier at war. I particularly like this stanza:
"I do this for my family My daughter loves her daddy Too many talk down on things they don't know"
It just shows the reason most go to war, and how so many people disregard the action or criticize it despite never being in that position.
Great song, but of course that is expected from a7x.
This is so obviously the thoughts of a soldier who has been killed in the line of duty. He confronts an enemy, has been shot and is pain. He knows he will die, and he's thinking about his family and friends in his last moments of his life, wishing he could be with his loved ones and growing old like he believed he would. He also hopes there is a God above who will welcome him to heaven. In the last seconds he gives up and feels free.
hi :) i know that alot of people don't agree with this interpretation and even rated guitarchick -1 for saying this, but i definitely got that the song was about suicide :p that's the reason i came on here was to see if anyone agreed =)
try not to forget people, the point of music is to interpret it any damn way you want to, the saddest songs in the world are some peoples happy songs =)
Yeah, no. There is no evidence in this song that hints it's about suicide. It's about as quoted from cliffgirl08 <br /> <br /> "This is so obviously the thoughts of a soldier who has been killed in the line of duty. He confronts an enemy, has been shot and is pain. He knows he will die, and he's thinking about his family and friends in his last moments of his life, wishing he could be with his loved ones and growing old like he believed he would. He also hopes there is a God above who will welcome him to heaven. In the last seconds he gives up and feels free."<br /> <br /> My sixteen locked and loaded - (His issued weapon)<br /> All fear has been avoided - (He's not afraid of going into battle)<br /> You say the words and my weapon is drawn - (Military training)<br /> <br /> Nothing shocks you like a bullet hole - (Looking down and discovering he's been shot)<br /> Leaving my fear on the danger line<br /> Suffering a man should never know - ( If you're going to commit suicide, you're going to shoot yourself somewhere where you WONT suffer. If this song was about suicide, this line wouldn't need to be included. Unless he would be talking about emotional suffering, but if was, then the first line wouldn't be needed.)<br /> Leaving my faith on the danger line - (The danger line is typically where you cross over into war territory. He's leaving his fears there, and getting ready for battle.)<br /> <br /> I do this for my family - (He's going to into the military to support his family)<br /> My daughter loves her daddy<br /> Too many talk down on things they don't know - (Too many people talk down on war, why we go to war, what we're after, ect ect.)<br /> <br /> With colors never faded - (The american flag, his uniform maybe?)<br /> Reckless and unabated<br /> They may take me but never take us all (I'll crawl) - (They may take his life, but they wont take all of his brothers and soldiers lives.)<br /> <br /> Now I found myself in my own blood (He's been shot, he's laying in his own blood.)<br /> (never thought I'd lay in my own blood)<br /> The damage done is far beyond repair <br /> I never put my faith in up above<br /> (never had much faith in up above)<br /> But now, I'm hoping someone's there - (He hasn't been close to god, or put his faith in him, but now he's dying and hoping God is there to take him.)<br /> <br /> Never meant to leave this world alone<br /> I never meant to hurt the ones who cared - (If you're committing suicide, you know you're going to leave the world alone, and you know you're going to hurt the ones who cared about you. These two lines wouldn't be here if it were about suicide.<br /> And all this time I thought we'd just grow old<br /> You know, no one said it's fair<br /> <br /> Tell my baby girl that it's alright<br /> I've sung my last song today<br /> Remind the lord to leave his light on for me<br /> I'm free - (He's saying to comfort his daughter as she is told daddy won't be coming home. Also, to tell the lord not to forget him and accept his coming as he dies. Then he dies.)
I sort of agree with you. I don't think people have to read it TOO literal.<br /> That's the thing about songs, poems, novels, literature in general. You can represent emotions in different ways, doesn't need to mean word for word... obvious, that's the thing.<br /> <br /> People here says: "yes, it's about a soldier... because it says bullets, 16 locked, blood, danger line, etc. but they are all symbolisms. But well, that's the thing about creations... interpretation.. people can think whatever consider.