"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Broad-shouldered beasts fill the sky
Manhattan beats at the night
But you are wrapped up in wire
Curled up in fright
So I took you to the city for the night
To dance under dizzy silver lights
But for a moment, you were wild
With abandon like a child, just a moment
But wasn't it you who said I was not free
And wasn't it you who said I needed peace
And now it's you who's floored by fear of it all
And it's alright
Take it out on me
And it's alright
Take it out on me
These apartment walls are paper thin
And no one is trying to listen in
What to hear our doubts
Hear our whispered shouts, they don't care
Wasn't it you who said I was not free
Wasn't it you who said I needed peace
And now it's you who's floored by fear of it all
And it's alright
Take it out on me
And it's alright
Take it out on me
But when you feel the world wrapping 'round your neck
Feel my hand 'round yours
And when you feel the world wrapping 'round your neck
Don't succumb
But it's alright
Take it out on me
And it's alright
Take it out on me
And it's alright
Take it out on me
Manhattan beats at the night
But you are wrapped up in wire
Curled up in fright
So I took you to the city for the night
To dance under dizzy silver lights
But for a moment, you were wild
With abandon like a child, just a moment
But wasn't it you who said I was not free
And wasn't it you who said I needed peace
And now it's you who's floored by fear of it all
And it's alright
Take it out on me
And it's alright
Take it out on me
These apartment walls are paper thin
And no one is trying to listen in
What to hear our doubts
Hear our whispered shouts, they don't care
Wasn't it you who said I was not free
Wasn't it you who said I needed peace
And now it's you who's floored by fear of it all
And it's alright
Take it out on me
And it's alright
Take it out on me
But when you feel the world wrapping 'round your neck
Feel my hand 'round yours
And when you feel the world wrapping 'round your neck
Don't succumb
But it's alright
Take it out on me
And it's alright
Take it out on me
And it's alright
Take it out on me
Lyrics submitted by rosuko1214
Broad-Shouldered Beasts Lyrics as written by Edward James Milton Dwane Benjamin Walter David Lovett
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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Seriously no one has commented
This might just be my experience colouring my interpretation of the song but I think it's about someone struggling with anxiety and someone that loves them (romantically or not) trying to help them through it.
Broad-shouldered beasts fill the sky Manhattan beats at the night But you are wrapped up in wire Curled up in fright
The city is alive and open to explore and have fun in but the person with anxiety is frozen in place by fear.
So I took you to the city for the night To dance under dizzy silver lights But for a moment, you were wild With abandon like a child, just a moment
The person's loved one brought them into the city to try to help and try to help them feel alive and carefree again, and it works - sort of.
But wasn't it you who said I was not free And wasn't it you who said I needed peace And now it's you who's floored by fear of it all
They tried to be okay for the person that they love but it doesn't work that way and quickly they got over whelmed. Although they do need to feel free and have peace from their anxiety, a night of dancing doesn't help in the way that it would for someone not struggling with it which their loved one is just now understanding.
And it's alright Take it out on me And it's alright Take it out on me
Cut to present time where the person is having an anxiety/panic attack and the loved one is just trying to be there and lets the anxious person let out everything at them, now understanding how to help.
These apartment walls are paper thin And no one is trying to listen in What to hear our doubts Hear our whispered shouts, they don't care
They are afraid to talk and let out their fears to their loved one lbecause they fear that they will be overheard and judged. The loved one is trying to reason out the person's irrational fears that the anxiety causes.
But when you feel the world wrapping 'round your neck Feel my hand 'round yours And when you feel the world wrapping 'round your neck Don't succumb
In the middle of a panic/anxiety attack it can be extremely helpful to have someone that you are comfortable around to just be there as a grounding presence. The loved one is suggesting that when all the fear and all the doubts get too overwhelming to hold their hand and know that despite the words spiraling in their head, they are loved. Hold my hand and I'll help you fight your demons, hold my hand and we can fight together, just please don't give up.
Can you tell that I really love this song? Anyways like I said I might be wrong or probably am but this is how I see the song. I do think that the loved one is probably a significant other and that an alternate meaning could be a couple fighting to stay together after kind of falling out of love.