Feel For You

Everyone I've read so far (and I haven't read everyone yet, but I love Nightwish and probably will eventually ;) ) seems to feel this song is from a girl's perspective, or from a girl AND a guy's perspective. I think the whole thing, from start to finish, is from a man's, and I've come to this conclusion for a couple reasons plus gut instinct.

First, this song makes me think of PASSION before anything else, from the music to the lyrics themselves -- "Bedroom scent, beauty ardent/distant shiver, heaven sent". "Puppet girl your strings are mine" simply there on its own is a really cool, really creepy line -- but it's not passionate in a romantic sense at all, just kinda skeezy when you think about it. However, if the whole song is the same singer, suddenly these lines are adding to the rest rather than painting the other side of the romance. Suddenly these lines are more about possessing the object of dire affection rather than manipulating a victim.

Second, who in all the world would refer to a man as "the lily among the thorns" without very special circumstances? "The prey among the wolves" is more feasible, but still unlikely. This makes me think the narrator is singing to a woman. Of course, if it is a she, she could easily be singing about herself-- "Only so many times/I can say I long for you" directly precedes "the lily among the thorns", and it is unclear whether this "lily" is "I" or "you". Here's where my gut comes into play, and I have to think the singer is talking about the other party. Finally, while we're talking about this stanza/verse/whatever ("Feel For You" really reads like a poem: speak it, aloud, and you'll see the lyrics spill perfectly even without melody. I love how, like a poem, it doesn't have a chorus or predictable structure. It's so awesome :D), what woman would limit the times she says "I love you"? Girls pronounce their affections all the time. It's men who say it once and see no need to say it again, since the message has already been put across. Once more this feels like a man, singing to a woman.

Now, the breakdown. Verse one is declaring that the singer is new to matters of love, or at least true, deep infatuation (it makes me think this love is something real, something special). It then continues to paint pictures of passion with poetic diction ;) Verse two continues on this vein, ending with a darker twist by inserting scary words -- "Devil" and "Nightmare". The third stanza has a more a bitter taste. It reads to me much like "We've been through this before". This part also makes me think the female party in this song is innocent, too (lily among the thorns again) -- putting the pieces together, this seems like a young love, or a love between two peoples who have hardly loved before. While the singer, with all these lyrics, seems more chilling and a little bit crazy, the other lover is more delicate, more sweet -- but in her own way dangerous.

Finally, these last two stanzas are repeated again and again, about as many times as a chorus would have been. Its as if the writer (who was, I'll add, a man! Another plus to my theory ;D) cut the chorus and bridge out of the song and slapped it on at the very end. It gives this wonderful feel of a crescendo to finish this already beautiful piece. As soon as Marco's part (it is Marco singing, no?) begins, the singer seems to switch into a scarier, darker, crazier side of himself (even when Tarja begins again, it is still much more intense). "Barely cold in her grave/barely warm in my bed" seems once more to speak of how distant and spacey and delicate the other person is, I don't think it literally means she is dead. "Puppet girl, your strings are mine" directly follows "settling for a draw tonight", which to me means the singer does NOT have total control over his love. No, she is his, and he has great influence over her -- but it is a game between the two of them. They work as both opponents and as a team, moving THROUGH each other and not just WITH. They are both part of the other.

Finally, the very end, by far the most intense and heart-pounding moment of the song. "This one is for you/for you, only for you" is, to me, proof of the devotion and passion between these two people. They're both a little crazy, but they are only for each other. For you, for you, only for you-- the way it's sung is so intense and so passionate and emblazoned, you can't help but feel this love. The same person who sang "Puppet girl, your strings are mine" now calling "this one is for you" is somehow so utterly enthralling, and part of why I must believe this song was written as one whole monologue rather than a duet between two people.

"Just give in to it, never think again/I feel for you" is a hard line for me to understand. "I feel for you" doesn't sound like "I pity you" to me right here. The way my heart thrums at this point, it sounds like, "I FEEL for you", as in "You make me feel", not quite "I care for you", but I FEEL for you. However, my sis pointed out it could also mean, "Don't think: I'll do it for you, I'll even feel for you." And this is where I'm stumped. Suggestions?

Overall, I think this song is about an impassioned, blazing love between two slightly crazy peoples who are absolutely enthralled with one another. It's a dance between the shy one, with hooks in her eyes, and the fierce one, with wild ways and a possessive nature. Whatever the song means, though, it's beautiful, and I'm sure we all agree on THAT.