I think it's a direct reference to the veterans and survivors of the Second World War. There were many of them that saw horrific things during their time "on foreign shores"-- this is the "life" that's "thrown before their eyes." Their comrades and friends were killed right in front of them, and yet they carried on because they had to. Their souls became calloused and hollow from the losses.
I think this song specifically looks at a vet after he's gotten back home. No one really understands what he's been through, and he's too proud to seek out help, so the only comfort he has is the small high he gets from his cigarettes. He's out of the military, "free to drift and die" on his own terms now and he questions why he survived and his friends didn't.
I feel like the end is sort of a dark hint that he can't take the survivor's guilt anymore. "Sick with regret", he "sputters out" like his last cigarette.
I think it's a direct reference to the veterans and survivors of the Second World War. There were many of them that saw horrific things during their time "on foreign shores"-- this is the "life" that's "thrown before their eyes." Their comrades and friends were killed right in front of them, and yet they carried on because they had to. Their souls became calloused and hollow from the losses.
I think this song specifically looks at a vet after he's gotten back home. No one really understands what he's been through, and he's too proud to seek out help, so the only comfort he has is the small high he gets from his cigarettes. He's out of the military, "free to drift and die" on his own terms now and he questions why he survived and his friends didn't.
I feel like the end is sort of a dark hint that he can't take the survivor's guilt anymore. "Sick with regret", he "sputters out" like his last cigarette.