Meaningless?
You mean it's all been meaningless?
Every whisper and caress?
Yes yes yes it was totally meaningless
Meaningless
Like when two fireflies flouresce
Just like everything I guess
Less less yes, it was utterly meaningless
Even less
A little glimpse of nothingness
Sucking meaning from the
Rest of this mess
Yes yes yes it was thoroughly meaningless
And if some dim bulb should say
We were in love in some way
Kick all his teeth in for me
And if you feel like keeping on kicking,
Feel free
Meaningless
Who dare say it wasn't meaningless?
Shout from the rooftops
And address the press
Ha ha ha, it was totally meaningless
Meaningless
Meaning less than a game of chess
Just like your mother said
And mother knows best
I knew it all the time but now I confess
Yes yes yes how deliciously meaningless
Yes yes yes effervescently meaningless
Yes yes yes it was beautifully meaningless
Yes yes yes it was profoundly meaningless
Yes yes yes definitively meaningless
Yes yes yes comprehensively meaningless
Yes yes yes magnificently meaningless
Yes yes yes how incredibly meaningless
Yes yes yes unprecedentedly meaningless
Yes yes yes how mind-blowingly meaningless
Yes yes yes how unbelievably meaningless
Yes yes yes how infinitely meaningless
You mean it's all been meaningless?
Every whisper and caress?
Yes yes yes it was totally meaningless
Meaningless
Like when two fireflies flouresce
Just like everything I guess
Less less yes, it was utterly meaningless
Even less
A little glimpse of nothingness
Sucking meaning from the
Rest of this mess
Yes yes yes it was thoroughly meaningless
And if some dim bulb should say
We were in love in some way
Kick all his teeth in for me
And if you feel like keeping on kicking,
Feel free
Meaningless
Who dare say it wasn't meaningless?
Shout from the rooftops
And address the press
Ha ha ha, it was totally meaningless
Meaningless
Meaning less than a game of chess
Just like your mother said
And mother knows best
I knew it all the time but now I confess
Yes yes yes how deliciously meaningless
Yes yes yes effervescently meaningless
Yes yes yes it was beautifully meaningless
Yes yes yes it was profoundly meaningless
Yes yes yes definitively meaningless
Yes yes yes comprehensively meaningless
Yes yes yes magnificently meaningless
Yes yes yes how incredibly meaningless
Yes yes yes unprecedentedly meaningless
Yes yes yes how mind-blowingly meaningless
Yes yes yes how unbelievably meaningless
Yes yes yes how infinitely meaningless
Lyrics submitted by Anne Arbour
Meaningless Lyrics as written by
Lyrics © ROUGH TRADE PUBLISHING
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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and the lines,
"and if some dim bulb should say
we were in love in some way
kick all his teeth in for me
and if you feel like keeping on kicking
feel free"
are quite violent like he's trying to kick the meaning out of the relationship to save him from being too sad about the break up.
to me it sounds like the other person has called off their relationship, describing it as meaningless; it had not been as full of love as he had felt it was. this song is his reaction, which is full of sarcasm and outrage.
"you mean it's all been meaningless? yes, it was totally meaningless!"
you know? they went through so much and he just can't believe that the other person could feel this way.
You can analyse the different parts with self-denyal, remembering, irony and acceptance throughout the song.
The sound of this track seems to be really meaningless, as it was intended to be; but in the end he describes how he really felt, adding 'meaningless' ironicaly to what he really felt about it.
It seems clear that one interpretation of this is an ode to existentialist thought, that ultimately the ground of being has no meaning, just like everything, like the fireflies fluorescing. Yet that meaningless allows love to be at all, it is beautiful/profound/infinite/magnificent and mind blowing.
Of course, at the same time it's simply an achingly bitter lament from someone who's just had their heartbroken.
The fact that it's both at the same time ably demonstrates Stephin Merritt's songwriting chops.
He's been in some undefined relationship, and the other party has broken it off, claiming that it 'didn't really mean anything'.
He sarcastically agrees 'yes yes yes, it was totally meaningless' (it certainly wasn't to him), and then attempts to convince himself that he never cared all that much in order to lessen the pain of separation ('sour grapes', essentially).
Pretty heartbreaking :/