No Children Lyrics
Give up on trying to save us
I hope we come out with a fail-safe plot
To piss off the dumb few that forgave us
Fall down beneath their own weight
And I hope we hang on past the last exit
I hope it's already too late
Someday burns down
And I hope the rising black smoke carries me far away
And I never come back to this town again in my life
And tell everyone you were a good wife
And I hope you die
I hope we both die
I hope it bleeds all day long
Our friends say it's darkest before the sun rises
We're pretty sure they're all wrong
I hope the worst isn't over
And I hope you blink before I do
And I hope I never get sober
You can't find one good thing to say
And I'd hope that if I found the strength to walk out
You'd stay the hell out of my way
There is no sign of land
You are coming down with me
Hand in unlovable hand
I hope we both die
how could anyone think things are going rather well for the narrator? are you kidding? he's obvoiusly depressed and in a total dead-end marriage that they can't get out of(they've hung on past the last exit). he hates himself and hates his wife, they're both drowning with no love at all between them anymore. he says "i hope you die, i hope we both die." how does that have any positive connotation?
Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. And sometimes lyrics mean exactly what they say they do.
Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. And sometimes lyrics mean exactly what they say they do.
Unless you're a hipster who thinks that nothing is serious or genuine. In which case, "LAWL THIS SONG IS RLY FUNNY!"
Unless you're a hipster who thinks that nothing is serious or genuine. In which case, "LAWL THIS SONG IS RLY FUNNY!"
Oh, and the biggest reason he curses and despises her so much is because the very fact that he has to continue seeing her face every day is because HE is a cowardly, weak little man. He can't walk away, because he's too depressed by now to do much but be miserable. So he just sits there and takes it and gets more disgusted and depressed. "I hope you die. I hope we both die." Think about it.
i hope many people don't ever have to relate to the song the way i do, but being someone who went through a bitter divorce... i see it a totally different way.
it's feeling trapped, and feeling like you're so far down in a hole that you'll never get out. it's hoping that you keep fighting, that bad things keep happening, because then at least you feel something.
knowing that it's a bad situation, but not having the will to do anything about it.
what cements it for me, is the part:
And I'd hope that if I found the strength to walk out You'd stay the hell out of my way
that's what really got me.
Nailed it, bro.
Nailed it, bro.
See people? This is what happens when a person actually CONNECTS with the emotional sentiment expressed in a piece of poetry, instead of merely blank-facing, then saying "I don't get this, so I'm going to insert my own interpretation."
See people? This is what happens when a person actually CONNECTS with the emotional sentiment expressed in a piece of poetry, instead of merely blank-facing, then saying "I don't get this, so I'm going to insert my own interpretation."
@dreamtwo I don't think I took that line the way you did. I feel it's more related to the part where he hopes the two will die, I believe he means if the narrator has the "strength" to kill themselves they hope the other won't stop them.
@dreamtwo I don't think I took that line the way you did. I feel it's more related to the part where he hopes the two will die, I believe he means if the narrator has the "strength" to kill themselves they hope the other won't stop them.
I think what everyone's trying to get at here -- and what makes this song so great -- is that it's about the very fine line between love and hate. The opposite of love isn't hate; it's indifference, and our narrator certainly isn't indifferent. You don't have murder/suicide fantasies about someone you don't care about. But then, you can only hate someone, really hate them, if you've let them close enough to feel like an inseparable part of you. The irony here is that this song is all about "hope" -- almost every line starts with that word. It's just that hope isn't necessarily a pleasant thing. The narrator literally can't imagine a future without his wife -- that's love -- but then the future he can imagine is pretty horrible. If you've ever put all your emotional eggs in one basket, you'll know what he means.
This song is depressing, but also very well written.
My favourite line is: "I hope we come out with a fail-safe plot to piss off the dumb few that forgave us."
(funny I'm listening to this song at this very moment)
i read this interview about the mountain goats and it said that the alpha couple is this alcoholic couple who he wrote several albums from the perspective of. so no, iagoAdmirer, your interpretation is almost the opposite of the song. also, i read that the mountain goats wanted to stop writing about these people, hence the "i hope you die/ i hope you both die".. its not about him as a person.
whats remarkable about this song is its accuracy in portraying alcoholism. if you know any alcoholics closely, you know that they like their way of life as much as it kills them to. they are like walking juxtapositions, contradictions, etc. the mountain goats have this imminent doom within each song so reminiscent of addiction and.. oh. god. its brilliant
I completely agree with RedDwarf. This is the exact same reaction that I had to the song. At first I thought it had to be intended as black comedy. Then I listened again and that time it struck me as basically serious. There's a certain sense of ridiculous because the lyrics are so cutting that they don't mesh with the melody in the way that you'd expect. I think that's intentional and there's meant to be an ambiguity in that he's not entirely sure if he really means what he's saying in the really harsh way that the words suggest. It's saying something so terrible that it sounds like it must be an ironic joke, but there's an unsettling level of seriousness behind it.
I think there a few interpretations
The first being obvious, a couple who hate each other. The music itself may be a hint towards the lyrics also. The song sounds like a happy sing along song, but once you look deeper you see that it is sad and depressing, maybe like their marriage. They are stubborn and neither one wants to be the one to give up, supported by this lyric here:
I hope it stays dark forever I hope the worst isn't over And I hope you blink before I do And I hope I never get sober
I think it's him saying he can and will beat her. They don't love each other and stick with each other because it's comfortable, supported by this (other's have said that's the way alcoholics are. I don't drink, but that's how I am with my current relationship, it's just comfortable):
I am drowning There is no sign of land You are coming down with me Hand in unlovable hand
If he is depressed with no sign of hope, then he is going to make sure she will also be depressed.
The above doesn't make much sense though. Maybe there's a different meaning?:
I hope I lie And tell everyone you were a good wife And I hope you die I hope we both die
Why would he lie if he hates her so much?
And I hope when you think of me years down the line You can't find one good thing to say
I think what the above is saying is that he thinks this is all his fault. Maybe it's his fault there are no children. He wants her to blame him but some reason she won't. Maybe it isn't a mutual hate, maybe he hates her and she doesn't hate him. We only assume the hate is mutual, but what if she is forgiving and he isn't? What if he hates himself because he can't provide children.
And I'd hope that if I found the strength to walk out You'd stay the hell out of my way
He wants to leave the relationship because he feels guilty, but he knows he won't be able to if she stops her. That might be why he wants her to hate him.
Well, there are a couple different interpretations in there, so either one might be true. Hel, neither could be true.
The next person I hear talk about this as a cute, funny, lighthearted, satirical take on marriage is getting punched in the fuckin' nose.
The use of an upbeat tempo and tuning is meant to be IRONIC, NOT LITERAL. Of all the people who should understand the concept of irony, it should be you hipster assholes.
"There may come a day when you're gonna need the words to this song. You'll be sitting there going, 'What has become of my marriage? This blows.' Right? I want you to remember that I gave you a little something that you could sing, because when that time comes, there won't be much to do besides sing."
-John Darnielle, 40 Watt Club, Athens, Georgia, August 10, 2006.
It seems to me that this is the song of a married couple staying together (to keep from looking bad) even though they both hate each other. And are sick of having to put on a show whenever any of their "friends" come over. They're probably famous or live in a strict religious community.
Anyway, that explains the conflicting desires throughout the song. On one hand the guy doesn't want to deal with the terrible reputation he would get if he acted improperly and on the other things have gotten so bad that he hates his spouse so much he hopes she suffers and dies or that he dies so he can get out of this situation.
Before I came up with this interpretation I was thinking that this song was about a married couple staying together for the sake of their kid(s), but the line "And I hope when you think of me years down the line you can't find one good thing to say." doesn't seem to show much concern towards any children they might have.