I know this is an old song and probably no one will read this comment, but I just need to get this off my chest.
People are getting the meaning of this song wrong because they keep going back to Fall Out Boy's previous song topics (love, fame, girls, break-ups, etc.). If you truly want to understand this song, you have to think outside the box.
The lyrics tell the story of a celebrity who's husband cheated on her (or did something just as bad - or worse) and a hit-man's proposition of assassinating said husband.
Once you have that situation in mind, the lyrics finally become clear:
"Baby, seasons change, but people don't"
The hit-man's first argument. ("He's not gonna change. Why bother trying?")
"And I'll always be waiting in the back room"
Again, the hit-man. ("You know where to find me if you want to go through with it.")
"I'm boring, but overcompensate
With headlines and flash photography" (I'm skipping the repetition for the sake of convenience.)
The hit-man is appealing to the wife's need for attention. ("Think of all the press coverage his death will bring; you'll be in the spotlight again.")
"Don't pretend you'll ever forget about me"
The wife refused or said she'll think about it, but the hit-man knows she'll eventually accept.
"We don't fight fair"
Killing someone in order to have things go your way isn't considered as fighting fair.
"They say your head can be a prison
Then these are just conjugal visits"
A metaphor for the wife's recurrent thought about assassinating her husband.
"People will dissect us till this doesn't mean a thing anymore"
The hit-man's third argument. ("They won't be able to prove anything. Everyone will forget about the whole thing once the situation blows over.")
"We do it in the dark
With smiles on our faces
We're dropped and well concealed
In secret places"
The hit-man's explaining his method: with a sniper rifle, he'll find a well hidden spot that's in the shadows and enjoy it when the bullet rips through her husbands skull.
This is one of my favorite songs simply because the subject of the lyrics is so different than the rest of their songs. I also love the contrast of the serious topic (murder for hire) and the upbeat rhythm and melody. It's things like that that makes Fall Out Boy who they are.
@ForeverRetro Here 15 years later to say yes, this interpretation is the best one. I also thought that's what the song was about. The breakup/ personal recount interpretation of the song is so boring, honestly. I'm reposting this on genius because people need to read it.
@ForeverRetro Here 15 years later to say yes, this interpretation is the best one. I also thought that's what the song was about. The breakup/ personal recount interpretation of the song is so boring, honestly. I'm reposting this on genius because people need to read it.
I know this is an old song and probably no one will read this comment, but I just need to get this off my chest.
People are getting the meaning of this song wrong because they keep going back to Fall Out Boy's previous song topics (love, fame, girls, break-ups, etc.). If you truly want to understand this song, you have to think outside the box.
The lyrics tell the story of a celebrity who's husband cheated on her (or did something just as bad - or worse) and a hit-man's proposition of assassinating said husband.
Once you have that situation in mind, the lyrics finally become clear:
"Baby, seasons change, but people don't" The hit-man's first argument. ("He's not gonna change. Why bother trying?")
"And I'll always be waiting in the back room" Again, the hit-man. ("You know where to find me if you want to go through with it.")
"I'm boring, but overcompensate With headlines and flash photography" (I'm skipping the repetition for the sake of convenience.) The hit-man is appealing to the wife's need for attention. ("Think of all the press coverage his death will bring; you'll be in the spotlight again.")
"Don't pretend you'll ever forget about me" The wife refused or said she'll think about it, but the hit-man knows she'll eventually accept.
"Wouldn't you rather be a widow than a divorcé? Style your wake for fashion magazines" The hit-man's second argument. ("Wouldn't it be better if the public sees you as the victim of a horrible crime than the victim of a bad marriage? It'll also be a lot more fun to get dressed for a funeral than for court.")
"We don't fight fair" Killing someone in order to have things go your way isn't considered as fighting fair.
"They say your head can be a prison Then these are just conjugal visits" A metaphor for the wife's recurrent thought about assassinating her husband.
"People will dissect us till this doesn't mean a thing anymore" The hit-man's third argument. ("They won't be able to prove anything. Everyone will forget about the whole thing once the situation blows over.")
"We do it in the dark With smiles on our faces We're dropped and well concealed In secret places" The hit-man's explaining his method: with a sniper rifle, he'll find a well hidden spot that's in the shadows and enjoy it when the bullet rips through her husbands skull.
This is one of my favorite songs simply because the subject of the lyrics is so different than the rest of their songs. I also love the contrast of the serious topic (murder for hire) and the upbeat rhythm and melody. It's things like that that makes Fall Out Boy who they are.
Thank you so much this really helped me understand his song alot more
Thank you so much this really helped me understand his song alot more
@ForeverRetro yes its 2015 but what you said made so much sense even if it was 5 years ago
@ForeverRetro yes its 2015 but what you said made so much sense even if it was 5 years ago
@ForeverRetro like your interpretation, but I just thought it was about Pete Wentz and Ashlee Simpson
@ForeverRetro like your interpretation, but I just thought it was about Pete Wentz and Ashlee Simpson
@ForeverRetro Here 15 years later to say yes, this interpretation is the best one. I also thought that's what the song was about. The breakup/ personal recount interpretation of the song is so boring, honestly. I'm reposting this on genius because people need to read it.
@ForeverRetro Here 15 years later to say yes, this interpretation is the best one. I also thought that's what the song was about. The breakup/ personal recount interpretation of the song is so boring, honestly. I'm reposting this on genius because people need to read it.