You live out where the street ends
in a basement apt. with one of your friends
and the tap drips all night
water torture in the sink
The furnace is burning
but it's still cold i think

I can smell the bleach
that they use in the hall
but it can't clean the dirt off of me
It's seeping under the door
in across the floor
it's starting to hurt

Everytime I breathe
Everytime I try to leave
Everytime I breathe

Now the toaster sticks
and the empties are piled
I haven't been up the stairs in awhile now
I gotta wash the sheets on my bed
gotta watch the things that go unsaid
God I wish we'd leave it at this

And every evening you open the door
You come down
There's nothing like watching tv all night underground
and no one is watching me slide
below street level
barely alive

Now we live out where the street ends
in a basement apt. just like our friends
We always said that we were different
but you know now that we weren't
'cause there's holes in all the bottles
and my lungs hurt


Lyrics submitted by glytter_girl

Basement Apartment song meanings
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    General Comment

    Some of you people are really dense! Just because Sarah Harmer is folksy, doesn't mean she's squeaky clean! This song has nothing to do with the apartment. It is about living on the fringe of society while dealing with the depression and drug addiction that put you there. The smell of bleach, the tap dripping and being underground are references to the deplorable situation and daily reminders that contribute to depression. This becomes blatantly obvious through the lines: "and no one is watching me slide below street level barely alive" The final lines regarding bottles with holes are certainly a reference to drug use. The whole song shows the circular nature of the problem - she can't afford a decent place to live, which makes her depressed and as a result she turns to drugs. The addiction enhances the depression and ensures that she will never be able to afford a better life - pushing her toward more drugs.

    miketurneron July 08, 2007   Link

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