The song uses references to gold, coke and rust as analogies to love and loss.
"Midas touch" refers to being able to turn things to gold - which in this case is an analogy to having what you hold most dear - for this guy is his loving relationship with a woman.
Coke would taint gold-- here it means blight or loss of what is precious -- For him this is a reference to the loss of his loved one to death.
"Joke in the way we rust" refers to the ironic correlation between the strength of love for someone with the inevitable devastation wrought by death.
"Go your way" vs "long way round" refers to his thoughts on her post-death journey vs him continuing in this life without her. "Go your way" and "Breath again" both suggest his wishes for her spiritual journey after death. "Hold your gaze" seems to be something akin to wishing her to stay steady and strong in this journey.
References to weather and oats in the water relate to his sense of devastation and loss. Now that she's gone there are things he wish they had talked about that he regrets not talking about ("things you never asked her, how they tear at you.."
The song uses references to gold, coke and rust as analogies to love and loss. "Midas touch" refers to being able to turn things to gold - which in this case is an analogy to having what you hold most dear - for this guy is his loving relationship with a woman. Coke would taint gold-- here it means blight or loss of what is precious -- For him this is a reference to the loss of his loved one to death.
"Joke in the way we rust" refers to the ironic correlation between the strength of love for someone with the inevitable devastation wrought by death. "Go your way" vs "long way round" refers to his thoughts on her post-death journey vs him continuing in this life without her. "Go your way" and "Breath again" both suggest his wishes for her spiritual journey after death. "Hold your gaze" seems to be something akin to wishing her to stay steady and strong in this journey.
References to weather and oats in the water relate to his sense of devastation and loss. Now that she's gone there are things he wish they had talked about that he regrets not talking about ("things you never asked her, how they tear at you.."