Big big big reference filled song. Personally favorite as well.
"If I could play back every moment to you now
Spent lovesick and swollen on
Mornings mincing garlic on the counter by the sink
If I could hit the instant replay on only every good day
Would any of it catch you by surprise?"
If he could play back the memories they made in the house, all of the tiny dots.
"When you say, "something is missing now"
That's what came back to me
Normal mornings like that set the knife down and forget where I'd left it
Making breakfast
Put coffee on the stove then scour every counter for the knife"
In the moment of collapse, the morning mincing garlic came back to him - funny what you think of after a collapse. She says something is missing in the relationship, he starts to panic and tell her to just sit down at the table and be calm and talk to him about it.
"But doesn't it seem a bit wasteful to you
To throw away all of the time we spent perfecting our love in close quarters and confines?
Isn't it wasteful?
And I am terrified that it doesn't feel painful to me yet
Somewhere on top of the high rise there's a woman on the edge of a building at the ledge
And traffics backing up on 35"
Doesn't it seem wasteful and awful to throw away everything they've built and experienced together (like all of the memories in the house). A woman is on the ledge of a building (referenced only in this song) and traffic is backing up on 35 because of the bridge collapse.
"Somewhere a storm touches down north in Hudsonville"
This is weird because the storm in HUDSONVILLE 1965 took place, well, in 1965.
"Somewhere the coffee starts to boil on the stove and
Somewhere the wind blows"
The coffee in HUDSONVILLE boils on the stove as stated in the song multiple times.
"Somewhere the river levels finally getting low"
When I first heard this line, before the album came out, I was blown away that they referenced the chinese folklore Said The King To The River storyline, but alas - the river flooded from the storm and it's finally lowering. However the STKTHR theory is a neat take on it as well.
"Says the city lacks the funds to fix the bridge"
They can't afford to fix the collapsed bridge on 35.
"And from here in the kitchen
I can hear the neighbors in the alley hanging linens
And the men collect the trash bins in the street
You're speaking to me but I can't understand you
The coffee is burning and
All of the times that we spent
That road trip out west
Through desert for the rest stops the kitsch we both collect
That winter the whole weekend we huddled by the stove
The cabin I had rented
The unexpected snow
That visit for Christmas
On television binges
We'll see friends in Brooklyn
Drive south to Richmond
There's traffic on the bridge
A woman on the ledge
And everywhere the wind
Everything is happening at once"
References to all of the road trips they'd taken. References the desert, the Christmas trip, all of it. Then references the traffic on the bridge before it collapses, the woman on the ledge of the building, and the wind from the storm in HUDSONVILLE.
Big big big reference filled song. Personally favorite as well.
"If I could play back every moment to you now Spent lovesick and swollen on Mornings mincing garlic on the counter by the sink If I could hit the instant replay on only every good day Would any of it catch you by surprise?" If he could play back the memories they made in the house, all of the tiny dots.
"When you say, "something is missing now" That's what came back to me Normal mornings like that set the knife down and forget where I'd left it Making breakfast Put coffee on the stove then scour every counter for the knife" In the moment of collapse, the morning mincing garlic came back to him - funny what you think of after a collapse. She says something is missing in the relationship, he starts to panic and tell her to just sit down at the table and be calm and talk to him about it.
"But doesn't it seem a bit wasteful to you To throw away all of the time we spent perfecting our love in close quarters and confines? Isn't it wasteful? And I am terrified that it doesn't feel painful to me yet Somewhere on top of the high rise there's a woman on the edge of a building at the ledge And traffics backing up on 35" Doesn't it seem wasteful and awful to throw away everything they've built and experienced together (like all of the memories in the house). A woman is on the ledge of a building (referenced only in this song) and traffic is backing up on 35 because of the bridge collapse.
"Somewhere a storm touches down north in Hudsonville" This is weird because the storm in HUDSONVILLE 1965 took place, well, in 1965.
"Somewhere the coffee starts to boil on the stove and Somewhere the wind blows" The coffee in HUDSONVILLE boils on the stove as stated in the song multiple times.
"Somewhere the river levels finally getting low" When I first heard this line, before the album came out, I was blown away that they referenced the chinese folklore Said The King To The River storyline, but alas - the river flooded from the storm and it's finally lowering. However the STKTHR theory is a neat take on it as well.
"Says the city lacks the funds to fix the bridge" They can't afford to fix the collapsed bridge on 35.
"And from here in the kitchen I can hear the neighbors in the alley hanging linens And the men collect the trash bins in the street You're speaking to me but I can't understand you The coffee is burning and All of the times that we spent That road trip out west Through desert for the rest stops the kitsch we both collect That winter the whole weekend we huddled by the stove The cabin I had rented The unexpected snow That visit for Christmas On television binges We'll see friends in Brooklyn Drive south to Richmond There's traffic on the bridge A woman on the ledge And everywhere the wind Everything is happening at once" References to all of the road trips they'd taken. References the desert, the Christmas trip, all of it. Then references the traffic on the bridge before it collapses, the woman on the ledge of the building, and the wind from the storm in HUDSONVILLE.
Ridiculously perfect song.