Well, in my opinion this song is about being a young & maybe a little naive &/or introverted girl and finding yourself loving a man who is at first very charming, carefree & outgoing, and seems at first to be without limits, as in
"There was a time
you opened up every doorway
you didn't mind if everything
wasn't your way"
then that man starts to gradually become more introverted & shows their more possessive/obsessive side to you as the relationship progresses, even while they keep up the appearance of being carefree & outgoing to everyone else,
"Don't pull away
that goes against what you told me
I look in your eyes
I realize what you've sold me
is love in a vacuum"
so you confront them about the way they're acting and of course they deny it,
"I think you've changed
but you insist that
that's not true"
quite possibly they are an addict of some sort, my guess would be cocaine, &/or showing very obsessive behavior towards you (early on in the video for this song we see the man hanging a picture up, it is a very large portrait of Aimee & it is prominently displayed in his/their apartment for the duration of the song), thus their "love in a vacuum",
"You look so strange, so distant
that you're hardly you
Now I can see
how you have been acting different
You say it's me
but I know
that it isn't
it's love in a vacuum"
but still you are in love with them and don't want to leave them and you know that they are truly in love with you and they don't want you to leave them either, maybe they are convinced you can save them from themself, maybe they are so broken that the possibility of an overdose &/or suicide attempt is very real and you want to get through to them that their behavior not only dangerous but it is also just pissing you off and if they don't wise up they run the risk of loosing you, as in the lines
"You will be lonely
if you leave me alone", so you want to save them but can't get through to them due to the addiction &/or emotional problems they have,
"Love in a vacuum
and that's not enough
love in a vacuum
You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
You will be lonely
if you leave me alone
You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
it's just not enough"
you want them to understand that the love they are giving you is not enough when it is filtered through the vacuum of their drug addiction &/or emotional impairment,
"You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
it's just not enough
and just wait
you will be lonely
Love in a vacuum
Love in a vacuum
and that's not enough
Love in a vacuum".
'Love In A Vacuum' for me is a hauntingly truthful acute argument on the loneliness of obsession and almost inevitable loss of love that follows people who are broken in some way or another; the obsessives, the coke heads, the drunks, addicts or the just-plain-old emotionally broken; a razor sharp, lyrically driven, deceptively poppy, yet ultimately-depressing-in-the-best-way song.
Quintessential Aimee Mann.
I am outside
And I've been waiting for the sun
With my wide eyes
I've seen worlds that don't belong
My mouth is dry
With words I cannot verbalize
Tell me why
We live like this
Keep me safe inside
Your arms like towers
Tower over me, yeah
Cause we are broken
What must we do to restore
Our innocence
And all the promise we adored?
Give us life again
Cause we just wanna be whole
Lock the doors
Cause I'd like to capture this voice
It came to me tonight
So everyone will have a choice
And under red lights
I'll show myself it wasn't forged
We're at war
We live like this
Keep me safe inside
Your arms like towers
Tower over me
Cause we are broken
What must we do to restore
Our innocence
And all the promise we adored?
Give us life again
Cause we just wanna be whole
(Ah, ah)
(Ah) tower over me
(Ah) tower over me
(Ah)
And I'll take the truth at any cost
Cause we are broken
What must we do to restore
Our innocence
And all the promise we adored?
Give us life again
Cause we just wanna be whole
And I've been waiting for the sun
With my wide eyes
I've seen worlds that don't belong
My mouth is dry
With words I cannot verbalize
Tell me why
We live like this
Keep me safe inside
Your arms like towers
Tower over me, yeah
Cause we are broken
What must we do to restore
Our innocence
And all the promise we adored?
Give us life again
Cause we just wanna be whole
Lock the doors
Cause I'd like to capture this voice
It came to me tonight
So everyone will have a choice
And under red lights
I'll show myself it wasn't forged
We're at war
We live like this
Keep me safe inside
Your arms like towers
Tower over me
Cause we are broken
What must we do to restore
Our innocence
And all the promise we adored?
Give us life again
Cause we just wanna be whole
(Ah, ah)
(Ah) tower over me
(Ah) tower over me
(Ah)
And I'll take the truth at any cost
Cause we are broken
What must we do to restore
Our innocence
And all the promise we adored?
Give us life again
Cause we just wanna be whole
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Like a lot of the other comments are saying, I think this mainly about voyeurism. If the song was about his girlfriend, then why would he use the word spy. If you are a spy it means you shouldn't be caught, that is kind of the whole point, and if you are a voyeur, the whole point of the pleasure you get from it, is the fact that the other people don't know you are watching them. See a bit of a connection there?
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In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
I think this is a song to the youth-- us teenagers, the new generation you know. Nowadays we live so different from before... so different that nowadays we've seemed to lose our innocence. Not the goody-two-shoes nice and naive innocence most people think when actually they're just blinded by that myth. What I mean is like the kind of innocence that few of us hold today that makes us be able to believe in ourselves and not be ashamed of what we believe in-- that kind of pure ignorance of what other people think, you know. As with little children, and you can see that in them. You can see that passion in them when they want something, they either have to get it or not. They'd always find a way to get to their goal or what they want, urged by the drive that's inside them. They go for what they want directly, not caring about what others have to say about them, and if they don't get what they want, they learn to sit back and just happily accept it.
Like, the kind of innocence few of us nowadays have that lets you be curious and imaginative and open to many new things and contented with yourself rather than trying to prove so much to the world like trying to sound wiser than you have to be. Us kids nowadays, you know... we're such smart-asses and we think we know too much already. And some of us, without even knowing, even harm ourselves that way.
And sometimes, we also get lost in all of that, that 'we just want to be home'.
Well, it has a lot of meanings, and everyone's entitled to their own perception of the song. It could be speaking in a spiritual way with possible relations to God and all that, but if so, speaking of God and your thoughts and what you've seen is practical in a sense, too.
This is a good song for me, and it made me cry. :p
And is it just me or does the beginning sound like she's singing in church or something... makes me think of a funeral, too. Which, when thinking of that, makes the song quite heavy to listen to.
I definetly agree with you, "What must we do to restore our innocence" i think what thats talking about is talking to God and asking what must we do to gain innocence again, humans aren't innocent ever since adam and eve first sinned (in the bible) and jesus came back to restore our innocence so that we may go to heaven.
The lyrics were written for the Love146 organization. Love146 is dedicated to trying to put an end to child sex slavery and exploitation.
i agree with jesskuh about everything. this song is absolutely about how we need our innocence back. and how our generation isnt as naive and..innocent as youth used to be.
This song is really nice. I think that it could be about teenagers or just the whole human race in general. This person has just opened their eyes and realised the world that we are all living in, a world full of violence and suffering, they are shocked, there are 'words that they can not verbalize' and they wonder 'why we live like this'. After realising this they are upset and want comfort and something to hide beneath or behind. They turn to some sort of friend 'Keep me safe inside Your arms like towers tower over me'
'Cause we are broken What must we do to restore our innocence' This could mean just that our world and society is broken and they are wondering what we can do to restore peace and innocence in the world.
yea...
i saw in a video on youtube that the band is big contributors to the organization "love146". This is an organization for child trafficking and labor. They made a shout-out at one of their concerts to love146 right before they sang we are broken, and said that the song is dedicated to them. For anyone who doesn't know what child trafficking is, it's basically forced prostitution and labor of children and Paramore supports this organization. if you read the lyrics with this perspective, i'm pretty sure that its about children going through this. it makes the song even more amazing! it brings tears to my eyes whenever i listen to it.
Hayley dedicates this song to love146. an organization to stop sex trafficking and slavery. "Cause we are broken What must we do to restore our innocence And all the promise we adored?" - "restore our innocence" meaning what can we do to get it (in other words virginity) back. sames goes for "and all the promise we adored" - sex after marriage. Paramore supports this organization, and dedicates this song to love146 almost everytime they preform it live.
I think, personally, that this song is about someone losing their virginity? This isn't my theory, this is something a friend pointed out to me and, when I look at the lyrics, it's something I've noticed. I think it's about someone losing their virginity, but possibly, regretting the desicion - "What must we do to restore our innocence". That's what I've gathered from the song - I'm probably wrong. If it is right, it's done in a very subtle way.
I love the song though.
Since When Is Paramore A Christian Band???
O.o
This is one of my favourite songs by Paramore. I love the inclusive language in this song ('we are broken'). It's as if Paramore is telling us we aren't alone when we feel broken, lost and afraid. There's always someone who is going through something similar to you, even if you feel totally isolated. This song is probably aimed at teenagers, however I think it can be a message for anyone who is having a rough time. You can relate this song to a specific situation or time in your life when you felt broken.
I can really understand the line: 'my mouth is dry with words I cannot verbalise'. For me personally, these lines describe the feelings I get with anxiety. A dry mouth and words that don't come out right are things that too often occur for me. The words stay locked up inside because when I'm having a bad moment, I'll be too worried or too overcome with anxiety to just be myself. Then I end up asking myself why the heck I live like that, and why I let anxiety take over ('tell me why we live like this').
'Keep me safe inside your arms like towers, tower over me' - I love these lines too. It's the longing you get when you just want someone to be there for you. You're desperate for someone strong and brave to hold you and protect you with strength. But at the end of each day, it's all the same, and nobody's ever there. You have to rely on yourself again. You dust yourself off and keep going, and somehow you find the strength within yourself. Your inner voice. And moments like that make you feel a little braver, and you feel like you have found yourself again ('lock the doors, cause I'd like to capture this voice that came to me tonight').
'We are broken, what must we do to restore our innocence' - again, the 'we' here I think is Paramore singing out to us, reminding us we aren't alone. We may feel lost and broken, and like we have changed so much over the years thanks to the pain. We want to restore our youth, happiness and ignorance, just to feel whole again ('give us life again, cause we just wanna be whole'). All we want is to go back to the people we were before, but in reality we cannot. After feeling so much pain for whatever reason, we are forever changed ('with my wide eyes, I've seen worlds that don't belong).
Even if we try to pretend like it hasn't changed us, we can never restore our innocence completely. And so life goes on, and you learn to accept it ('and I'll take the truth at any cost').
@sapphire14 I believe the line 'my mouth is dry with words I cannot verbalize' is trying to explain all the hurt that goes on inside of the person. The ache you know? People say you can talk to them but no one has actually been in your situation, so they can never really understand what you've been through. With all the hurt and pain mixed into one, trying to explain to someone is almost impossible.
I still miss 'All We Know Is Falling' compared to 'RIOT!'. Still, it's a beautiful song just like Hayley. June 12th - Get the CD while they are in STOCK. It is beyond amazing.