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Half Light I Lyrics
You told us that
We were too young
Now that night's closing in
And in the half light
We run
Lock us up safe
And hide the key
But the night tears us loose
And in the half light
We're free
Strange how the half light
Can make a place new
You can't recognize me
And I can't recognize you
We run through the streets
That we know so well
And the houses hide so much
We're in the half light
None of us can tell
They hide the ocean in a shell
Ocean in a shell
Our heads are just houses
Without enough windows
They say you hear human voices
But they only echo
They only echo
They only echo
Only echo
(We are not asleep, we are in the streets)
(We are not asleep, we are in the streets)
(We are not asleep, we are in the streets)
We were too young
Now that night's closing in
And in the half light
We run
And hide the key
But the night tears us loose
And in the half light
We're free
Can make a place new
You can't recognize me
And I can't recognize you
That we know so well
And the houses hide so much
We're in the half light
None of us can tell
They hide the ocean in a shell
Without enough windows
They say you hear human voices
But they only echo
They only echo
Only echo
(We are not asleep, we are in the streets)
(We are not asleep, we are in the streets)
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Their parents tried to shelter them in the light, but inevitably the night will come. As they start to think for themselves they enter the “half light” which changes how they feel about everything. I think this captures the excitement of starting to really think for yourself. You start to question your parent’s beliefs and find beauty where it wasn’t before.
However, the whole song is very ominous. They’ve entered the half light, but that means that the night is coming with disillusionment and loneliness.
This is one of the best songs on The Suburbs. I actually like it more than Half Light II, which is also great. Lyrically there's a lot to sink your teeth into, especially this part:
This is one of the best songs on The Suburbs. I actually like it more than Half Light II, which is also great. Lyrically there's a lot to sink your teeth into, especially this part:
Our heads are just houses, Without enough windows, You say you hear human voices, but they're only echoes.
Our heads are just houses, Without enough windows, You say you hear human voices, but they're only echoes.
Lots of ways to interpret it, but I take it to mean being alone with your thoughts and emotions, not being able to reveal your inner self to others(i.e. keeping the window to your mind closed and concealing your inner reality). The "houses" that "hide the ocean...
Lots of ways to interpret it, but I take it to mean being alone with your thoughts and emotions, not being able to reveal your inner self to others(i.e. keeping the window to your mind closed and concealing your inner reality). The "houses" that "hide the ocean in a shell" can be understood as both literally the houses of the suburbs that look so peaceful on the outer shell/surface but hide so much behind their external facades(i.e. family turmoil,etc.) as well as figuratively speaking with the houses as our heads analogy. This illustrates the idea that what's going on in someone's head is also walled off and away from public view, again hiding an ocean of thoughts and emotions in a shell(or an "Ocean of Noise" if you will, for Neon Bible fans). The echo is seemingly the echo of your own voice in your head, a product of feeling isolated or alone with your thoughts. Those aren't other humans you're hearing, it's just your own voice repeating on you. Interestingly, "Empty Room" precedes this song on the album by only two tracks and features the lines "said your name in an empty room", which one could also imagine producing an echo. So there's an apparent theme on the album between being alone with the echoes of your thoughts, which you've either concealed from others or have been unable to share with others.
The "half light" appears to represent a transition to becoming more free and open under the cover of partial darkness. The "half light" is enough to illuminate and shed light, but there's enough darkness present to feel more comfortable about opening up to someone else. Greater awareness and freedom result, and now they no longer feel imprisoned by living inside their heads/houses. "We are not insane". Instead, they are free("on the streets") and the world begins to look different to them. They are beginning to see things in a new light -- even if it is only a half light.
i think these are the correct lyrics:
You told us that we were too young now the night's closing in and in the half light, we were one
luck us up safe and hide the key but the night tears us loose and in the half light we're free
strange how the half light can make a place new you can't recognize me and I can't recognize you
we run through the streets that we know so well all the houses hide so much but in the half light none of us can tell they hide the ocean in a shell
the ocean in a shell
our heads are just houses without enough windows you say you hear human voices but they're only echoes
they're only echoes they're only echoes only echoes
we are not insane, we are on the streets we are not insane, we are on the streets
not 100% positive, since i was playing it by ear, but it's still better than copying incorrect lyrics off of wikilyrics cough i can't decided if it's "hide the ocean in a shell" or "had" because i can hear both, and make sense of both.
anyhow, the end of this song REALLY reminds me of something very sufjan stevens.
this whole album is a large movement, it's incredible- definitely about growing up and finding yourself, i think, and then finding yourself again (and again)
Pretty much.
Pretty much.
To me, it seems to be a major revisiting of the themes in "Antichrist Television Blues". It seems to be about growing old, changing, becoming jaded, and longing for the days of youth that you spent doing absolutely nothing, but living.
To me, it seems to be a major revisiting of the themes in "Antichrist Television Blues". It seems to be about growing old, changing, becoming jaded, and longing for the days of youth that you spent doing absolutely nothing, but living.
As long winded and pretentious as that sounded.
As long winded and pretentious as that sounded.
Very good album though, A++
Very good album though, A++
i'm not sure it DID sound pretentious! very well put-- it's an amazing work of art, and they've clearly put a remarkable amount of effort into putting it all together so well.. i mean i can really feel it all, if that makes sense.
i'm not sure it DID sound pretentious! very well put-- it's an amazing work of art, and they've clearly put a remarkable amount of effort into putting it all together so well.. i mean i can really feel it all, if that makes sense.
sooo beautiful! brings me to tears every time i hear it. my favorite part is "you can't recognize me, and i can't recognize you". the separation of the syllables makes it really emotional.
it's "We Are not asleep, We are in the streets."
you're right, well at least according to the booklet :)
you're right, well at least according to the booklet :)
actually it sounds like "we had the ocean in a shell"
To me this song is about the changes that puberty brings and how it changes our relationships
To me this song is about the changes that puberty brings and how it changes our relationships
strange how the half light can make a place new you can't recognize me and I can't recognize you
strange how the half light can make a place new you can't recognize me and I can't recognize you
and how we don't really know ourselves, but that's all we know... alone and deep... just a shell, yet feeling as alone and deep as an ocean.
and how we don't really know ourselves, but that's all we know... alone and deep... just a shell, yet feeling as alone and deep as an ocean.
the ocean in a shell.
the ocean in a shell.
and how living in the suburbs limits the ability for ourselves to have the opportunity to see our true selves. Not enough windows...
and how living in the suburbs limits the ability for ourselves to have the opportunity to see our true selves. Not enough windows...
our heads are just houses without enough windows
our heads are just houses without enough windows
"we had the ocean in a shell"
"we had the ocean in a shell"
I think your right because I always thought thats what they were saying when i listen to it This is one of my favorite songs on the album for that lyric alone
I think your right because I always thought thats what they were saying when i listen to it This is one of my favorite songs on the album for that lyric alone
The band said that they wanted this album to sound like the music they heard growing up. It's fun to try a put the connections together
Alot of other people have pointed these two out: Modern Man = Jesse's Girl Sprawl II = Heart of Glass
I think this one has quite a bit in common with "Never Tear us Apart" by INXS.
Anyone else?
leyte, so weird. Right after I heard this song this morning I downloaded "Never Tear Us Apart"... I wasn't even thinking of the connection but I must have noticed the same thing you did.
leyte, so weird. Right after I heard this song this morning I downloaded "Never Tear Us Apart"... I wasn't even thinking of the connection but I must have noticed the same thing you did.
great observations!! Whatever it is....its an amazing CD!!
great observations!! Whatever it is....its an amazing CD!!
I can definately hear so many different songs in this album, when i first listened to them i could have sworn they were all covers but of course the lyrics are all different and none of them are covers but this album unlike any of their other albums sounds much more like something i have heard before, while their other albums; reflektor and funeral are completely original.
I can definately hear so many different songs in this album, when i first listened to them i could have sworn they were all covers but of course the lyrics are all different and none of them are covers but this album unlike any of their other albums sounds much more like something i have heard before, while their other albums; reflektor and funeral are completely original.
I like clovus' view but I see it religiously. when I was young my parents kept me and my brother "sheltered" in Christianity. when wewould ask questions they would say things like "we were too young". when I became an agnostic, things seemed different and new, just like verse two. "Strange how the half light, Can make a place new, You can't recognize me, And I can't recognize you". when I would go to a church I would feel like the things that were being said were things that people were "echoing" from what adults told them when they were children.
I hope I didn't offend anyone with my ideas, I'm not trying to tell people what is right or wrong. your beliefs are not of any importance to me, and I'm glad you found something that works for you
the beginning versus to me mean that adults are trying to disciple the children, thinking they're too young to be out at night because nights can be more dangerous since it's dark and there's few people outside. but as kids, they don't think about that (and some adults, like me, still don't...) because they're just thinking about having fun and being outside and feeling free. things at night look differently than they do in the day.
oh also, this song reminds me of the song played in little miss sunshine when they're crusing the highway in their VW bus. i think about that every time i listen to this song.
I think this song is about how little we see from the world "the houses hides so much" -think about it, you only see a house but there people living their life in it it's filled with passion, pain, love etc. "they hide the ocean in the shell" we only see the shell but there's something so much bigger in it. "our heads are just houses but they don't have enough windows" we don't see enough,
It's actually might be a religious, spiritual song, we only see the material part of our world and the material is so, so little.
But in the half light you suddenly see more.
I think arcade fire is saying many people in our society are the shells and they hide the (Ocean)-emotions, passion, love..etc within ourselves.
I think arcade fire is saying many people in our society are the shells and they hide the (Ocean)-emotions, passion, love..etc within ourselves.