The way I interpret it, it's sung from the point of view of a man who's fallen head over heels for a woman in a way he didn't expect and is perhaps a bit ashamed of. He talks about his feelings for this woman in a way he admits sounds stupid and makes him feel like a fool, but decides to ignore that and wear his "crown for the king of fools" proudly.
"Like a fifteen year old kid wears a vampire kiss"
"And I wear it like a badge that you put all over my face"
"But in shameless moments you made more of me than just a mess"
To me, they all seem to be lines that indicate a sense of shame over what he feels, but in one way or another still gives the impression that he thinks his feelings are justified, no matter how stupid they make him seem.
I agree that "The bell rang out and the air outside turned blue from fright" is probably a reference to the building being set on fire, but I would say it's probably a metaphorical fire, rather than a literal one.
I could be missing something here, early Elvis Costello lyrics about love and relationships are mostly known for being spiteful and cynical. But given that he was recently married to Cait O'Riordan at the time, maybe the idea that he would write a more straightforward love song is not that much of a stretch. It does appear on the same album as Jack of all Parades, which is also a lot less cynical than his other love songs.
The way I interpret it, it's sung from the point of view of a man who's fallen head over heels for a woman in a way he didn't expect and is perhaps a bit ashamed of. He talks about his feelings for this woman in a way he admits sounds stupid and makes him feel like a fool, but decides to ignore that and wear his "crown for the king of fools" proudly.
"Like a fifteen year old kid wears a vampire kiss" "And I wear it like a badge that you put all over my face" "But in shameless moments you made more of me than just a mess"
To me, they all seem to be lines that indicate a sense of shame over what he feels, but in one way or another still gives the impression that he thinks his feelings are justified, no matter how stupid they make him seem.
I agree that "The bell rang out and the air outside turned blue from fright" is probably a reference to the building being set on fire, but I would say it's probably a metaphorical fire, rather than a literal one.
I could be missing something here, early Elvis Costello lyrics about love and relationships are mostly known for being spiteful and cynical. But given that he was recently married to Cait O'Riordan at the time, maybe the idea that he would write a more straightforward love song is not that much of a stretch. It does appear on the same album as Jack of all Parades, which is also a lot less cynical than his other love songs.