I enjoyed reading the opinions on this song, but for all the people who are like "it's NOT about suicide" or "it's DEFFO not about a girl" etc. you should remember that a very common (and brilliant) character of Interpol lyrics is AMBIGUITY. Perhaps the main idea of the lyrics involves drugs, stemming from this might be a slight desire to end life, or the influence of a girl etc etc. So please don't be casting things off so harshly.
I think this song is fantastic, and here are the things I get from my favourite lines:
"Tonight I'm gonna rest my chemistry" is so powerful yet lazy at the same time - he realises what he needs to do, but his word choice ("rest") shows his submissiveness to addiction - he can only rest it, not battle/challenge it, either because he can't or mightn't even want to.
"Just some rage and three kinds of yes" to me, the three kinds of yes are 'yes' as in accepting the cocaine and the effect it has on him, 'yes' as in being submissive to the contemporary assumption that drugs/this lifestyle is the only way to be, and 'yes' as in saying that word when having sex. The last one might seem a bit odd, but Interpol songs are just full of sexual undercurrent and the feeling of sexual gratification is similar to feeling high off drugs (or a high-fuelled fuck on cocaine haha). All of these 'yes's are the dominating factors of his life, and he obviously is uncomfortable about it.
"My friends they come, and the lines they go by" his friends aren't really friends at all - in this situation they are all there to do their lines, not to be actual friends; and it all just "goes by" - i.e. it is superficial and false. Also get the feeling here that he has lost actual friendships that he valued because of his drug-taking ("gotta take some time to realise")
"But you're so young
You're so young
You look in my eyes
You're so young, so sweet, so surprised"
To me, this is a person who is inspiring him to take hold of the situation - surprised at the person he is when he takes this shit. It could be himself looking into a mirror - thinking about his youth and innocence and never imagining being the person he is today.
Very nice interpretation, I especially like your view on the resting. I never really thought about it that way, but the inability to completly fight of the addiction and therefor call it rest is beautiful.
Very nice interpretation, I especially like your view on the resting. I never really thought about it that way, but the inability to completly fight of the addiction and therefor call it rest is beautiful.
I enjoyed reading the opinions on this song, but for all the people who are like "it's NOT about suicide" or "it's DEFFO not about a girl" etc. you should remember that a very common (and brilliant) character of Interpol lyrics is AMBIGUITY. Perhaps the main idea of the lyrics involves drugs, stemming from this might be a slight desire to end life, or the influence of a girl etc etc. So please don't be casting things off so harshly.
I think this song is fantastic, and here are the things I get from my favourite lines:
"Tonight I'm gonna rest my chemistry" is so powerful yet lazy at the same time - he realises what he needs to do, but his word choice ("rest") shows his submissiveness to addiction - he can only rest it, not battle/challenge it, either because he can't or mightn't even want to.
"Just some rage and three kinds of yes" to me, the three kinds of yes are 'yes' as in accepting the cocaine and the effect it has on him, 'yes' as in being submissive to the contemporary assumption that drugs/this lifestyle is the only way to be, and 'yes' as in saying that word when having sex. The last one might seem a bit odd, but Interpol songs are just full of sexual undercurrent and the feeling of sexual gratification is similar to feeling high off drugs (or a high-fuelled fuck on cocaine haha). All of these 'yes's are the dominating factors of his life, and he obviously is uncomfortable about it.
"My friends they come, and the lines they go by" his friends aren't really friends at all - in this situation they are all there to do their lines, not to be actual friends; and it all just "goes by" - i.e. it is superficial and false. Also get the feeling here that he has lost actual friendships that he valued because of his drug-taking ("gotta take some time to realise")
"But you're so young You're so young You look in my eyes You're so young, so sweet, so surprised" To me, this is a person who is inspiring him to take hold of the situation - surprised at the person he is when he takes this shit. It could be himself looking into a mirror - thinking about his youth and innocence and never imagining being the person he is today.
Wow, Interpol is genius.
Very nice interpretation, I especially like your view on the resting. I never really thought about it that way, but the inability to completly fight of the addiction and therefor call it rest is beautiful.
Very nice interpretation, I especially like your view on the resting. I never really thought about it that way, but the inability to completly fight of the addiction and therefor call it rest is beautiful.