Gun-Shy

To me the lyrics describe someone who just can't figure out how to proceed with living because they run solely on misguided faith. He's depended on a guide be it friends, family, a lover, his ego, drugs or God that has only led him astray. Whatever the guide is, it is seemingly only existent for its own benefit as the singer always ends up being damaged somehow. And after trying so hard to follow the guide for so long, he's left after so many years no longer able to act on his own will(gun-shy). He is always looking for signs. Seeing the sky stare at him, putting his ears to the ground, but to no avail (Always pushing against the earth). He left his mind long ago and put on a fake persona to try to force himself to act. I am led to think this person believes in God even though he's only given glimpses of the truth and eventually led by them into tribulation. In the video, 3 of them are busy taking samples of their skin, blood and doing tests on their bodies. But one of them lays motionless until the very end when he's blowing out smoke.Then he is resurrected. Maybe a drug reference but I think it could be the expression "blowing smoke" as if he is really only trying to get pity out of us so as to continue his addiction to fear. And he feels alive again temporarily.

This song is difficult to decrypt

He's too shy to ask someone out even though they are often together. Maybe it's about the friendzone.

"And when I move my face left You're always standing there" ... "And when I try to face you You're walking away"

one small correction: towards the end, it's "choosing something false".

i think this song is about loss of trust in others, in the world, in oneself...

My favourite song off Shields, instrumentally and lyrically awesome.

This is my own inpretation, and I took a personal spin on it. I agree with everyone's opinion on it being about the singer losing his faith in the world, but for me, the singer lost it because of a particular person. This person is the "guide that has only led me astray." To me, the singer is dependent on this person and relies on their vision of the world as reality. However, this "guide" doesn't have the best intentions for the singer, and he starts to realize this, causing the vision that the "guide" implemented into his mind, to deteriorate. The song is about the destruction of this world he believed in when he discovers the person doesn't have the best intentions after all. The singer puts his "ears to the ground" and "the sky stares at him," yet he can't seem to see, hear, or speak. He's frozen in time, in shock, because he doesn't have his own opinion on the world. After all, he's "gun-shy," like a dog that avoids danger. He tries to confront the "guide": "And when I try to face you You're walking away" And, "We're cut off at the knees (Can't even take a stand)" Yet, the "guide" continues to watch him from a distance: "You're always standing there (A shadow I can't see)" The chorus reveals the deep meaning of the song, describes the ignorance the singer experienced, but leaves us with a haunting last line: "And even as I limp (You smile)" Meaning that the "guide" knows how much pain and confusion they are causing, but enjoys every bit of it.

LOL "When I try to face you, you're walking away." Man, words hold such strange meanings. I wonder if the singer TRULY believes the sh*t he spouts. So much for book smart. It obviously ain't what it used to be...