To me, it seems like the character in the song is addressing himself when he says "you" in this song. Here's why:
"Tonight I'll have a look
And try to find my face again"
He's going to try to find who he is again -- the person he wants to be, or the person who he was before something happened.The word "again" makes me think that he tries -- unsuccessfully -- to do this a lot.
"Buried beneath this house
My spirit screams and dies again"
Not too sure about this one. Maybe the house represents a typical middle-income American lifestyle that he has worked himself into -- he has a house, security, wealth, etc., but underneath it all his spirit is screaming and dying for something different, maybe a dream that he had in the past.
"Out back a monster wears a cloak of Persian leather"
No clue.
"Behind the TV screen
I've fallen to my knees"
He drowns himself in entertainment and is to the point where he is almost controlled by it. His life has little meaning outside of what he sees on the screen. He's "fallen to his knees" and let it take control of him.
"I said you got me where you want me again
And I can't turn away
I'm hanging by thread and I'm feelin' like a fool"
He can't get away from this lifestyle or mindset that he's worked himself into.
"I'm stuck here in-between
The shadows of my yesterday"
Maybe he failed in the past and decided to settle for less, to give up on his ambitions. Now he's stuck, wanting to feel alive again but afraid to try because he remembers the "shadows" -- failures -- of yesterday, the past.
"I want to get away
I need to get away"
He wants to get out of this rut. He knows he needs to for his own good.
"Blanket of silence
Makes me want to sink my teeth in deep
Burn all the evidence
A fabricated disbelief
Pull back the curtains
Took a look into your eyes"
This one isn't too clear to me, either. Maybe he wants to forget the past and his failures but he can't, thus "burn all the evidence, a fabricated disbelief".
"My tongue has now become
A platform for your lies"
This could mean that he's started thinking of himself as a failure or a coward. He's addressing himself when he says "your lies" -- the part inside of him that wants to give up and accept defeat. There's a small part of him that believes in himself, the part that knows the lies he's saying about himself are not true, the part that knows he COULD succeed if he kept trying. But that other quiet but persuasive voice inside has convinced himself that he can't.
"I said you got me where you want me again
And I can't turn away
I'm hanging by thread and I'm feelin' like a fool
I'm stuck here in-between
The shadows of my yesterday
I want to get away
I need to get away"
Same as above.
"Now you know
Yeah you got my back against the wall
Oh god
I ain't got no other place to hide"
He feels overwhelmed and trapped by the failures of his past, therefore he feels that he's being held "against the wall". He doesn't have any place to hide from it anymore.
"Chained down
Like a sittin' duck just waitin' for the fall"
His fears are crippling him, and he knows that if he lets them keep holding him back he's going to fall even lower soon.
"You know
Yeah you got my back against the wall"
Same as above.
"Deep in the jungle
Camouflaged by all the fallen leaves
A hand holds up the sky
While shamefully I make my plea"
No clue.
"The alters callin'
But my legs won't seem to stand"
Not sure how the word "alter" works into the song, but the part about his legs not being able to stand clearly means he has no determination anymore -- no guts to face challenges again.
"Guess I'm a coward
Scared to face the man I am"
This sums up the previous two verses, I think. He's not beating around the bush anymore. He's openly admitting it now, in a bit of a self-pitiful, hopeless way: "I guess I really am a coward, too scared to face the fact that I failed in the past." That's what is holding him back from trying again.
"Now you know
Yeah you got my back against the wall
Oh god
I ain't got no other place to hide
Chained down
Like a sittin' duck just waitin' for the fall
You know
Yeah you got my back against the wall"
Same as above.
The song could be about a number of different things, but regardless of the context, I think it is focusing on failures of the past holding you back from trying again.
To me, it seems like the character in the song is addressing himself when he says "you" in this song. Here's why:
"Tonight I'll have a look And try to find my face again"
He's going to try to find who he is again -- the person he wants to be, or the person who he was before something happened.The word "again" makes me think that he tries -- unsuccessfully -- to do this a lot.
"Buried beneath this house My spirit screams and dies again"
Not too sure about this one. Maybe the house represents a typical middle-income American lifestyle that he has worked himself into -- he has a house, security, wealth, etc., but underneath it all his spirit is screaming and dying for something different, maybe a dream that he had in the past.
"Out back a monster wears a cloak of Persian leather"
No clue.
"Behind the TV screen I've fallen to my knees"
He drowns himself in entertainment and is to the point where he is almost controlled by it. His life has little meaning outside of what he sees on the screen. He's "fallen to his knees" and let it take control of him.
"I said you got me where you want me again And I can't turn away I'm hanging by thread and I'm feelin' like a fool"
He can't get away from this lifestyle or mindset that he's worked himself into.
"I'm stuck here in-between The shadows of my yesterday"
Maybe he failed in the past and decided to settle for less, to give up on his ambitions. Now he's stuck, wanting to feel alive again but afraid to try because he remembers the "shadows" -- failures -- of yesterday, the past.
"I want to get away I need to get away"
He wants to get out of this rut. He knows he needs to for his own good.
"Blanket of silence Makes me want to sink my teeth in deep Burn all the evidence A fabricated disbelief Pull back the curtains Took a look into your eyes"
This one isn't too clear to me, either. Maybe he wants to forget the past and his failures but he can't, thus "burn all the evidence, a fabricated disbelief".
"My tongue has now become A platform for your lies"
This could mean that he's started thinking of himself as a failure or a coward. He's addressing himself when he says "your lies" -- the part inside of him that wants to give up and accept defeat. There's a small part of him that believes in himself, the part that knows the lies he's saying about himself are not true, the part that knows he COULD succeed if he kept trying. But that other quiet but persuasive voice inside has convinced himself that he can't.
"I said you got me where you want me again And I can't turn away I'm hanging by thread and I'm feelin' like a fool I'm stuck here in-between The shadows of my yesterday I want to get away I need to get away"
Same as above.
"Now you know Yeah you got my back against the wall Oh god I ain't got no other place to hide"
He feels overwhelmed and trapped by the failures of his past, therefore he feels that he's being held "against the wall". He doesn't have any place to hide from it anymore.
"Chained down Like a sittin' duck just waitin' for the fall"
His fears are crippling him, and he knows that if he lets them keep holding him back he's going to fall even lower soon.
"You know Yeah you got my back against the wall"
Same as above.
"Deep in the jungle Camouflaged by all the fallen leaves A hand holds up the sky While shamefully I make my plea"
No clue.
"The alters callin' But my legs won't seem to stand"
Not sure how the word "alter" works into the song, but the part about his legs not being able to stand clearly means he has no determination anymore -- no guts to face challenges again.
"Guess I'm a coward Scared to face the man I am"
This sums up the previous two verses, I think. He's not beating around the bush anymore. He's openly admitting it now, in a bit of a self-pitiful, hopeless way: "I guess I really am a coward, too scared to face the fact that I failed in the past." That's what is holding him back from trying again.
"Now you know Yeah you got my back against the wall Oh god I ain't got no other place to hide Chained down Like a sittin' duck just waitin' for the fall You know Yeah you got my back against the wall"
Same as above.
The song could be about a number of different things, but regardless of the context, I think it is focusing on failures of the past holding you back from trying again.