Affection Lyrics
I know that you say I get mean when I'm drinking, but
Then again, sometimes I get really sweet so
What does it mean if I tell you to go fuck yourself?
Or if I say that you're beautiful to me?
[Chorus]
It's affection, always
Ooh, you're gonna see it someday
My attention for you
Even if it's not what you need
[Verse 2]
Sometimes we talk all night long, we don't shut up
And when it's late, we'll say we're still wide awake so
We love to talk about how you'll come up to visit me
And we'll rent a car and we'll drive upstate
[Chorus]
It's affection, always
Ooh, you're gonna see it someday
My attention's on you
Even if it's not what you need
[Bridge]
I think of you, I want you too
I'd fall for you
I think of you, I want you too
I'd fall for you
I think of you, I want you too
I'd fall for you
I think of you, I want you too
I'd fall for you
About
“Affection” was the first single Cigarettes After Sex had released in three years after their debut EP. While the two verses taken together can seem to depict an abusive relationship, frontman Greg Gonzalez assures that the song is actually a pastiche of two unrelated narratives: his drunken banter with his friends in the first verse and his love for his girlfriend in the second verse. A 2016 Bandcamp article describes the song as “half bittersweet apology, half long-distance relationship ballad.” Perhaps Gonzalez intentionally married the two stories in order to create ambiguity.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
I thought that “Affection” came out so good that it was kind of the template to the album basically. I thought, “This song sounds great, so let’s just try to do the whole record there,” which is why we went back because it made sense to do it there.
– Greg Gonzalez, in 2017 interview with Music & Riots magazine
