This song is def a twin to "Unfair" (a song she has been quoted as saying is about falling in love with someone who is already in a relationship) so it is presumably about the same person. Given the references to buying an apartment and not being able to see her love interest "after tonight," it's most likely that she's moving away and she'll "wait a day to break the bad news" (i.e. notifying him that she's leaving once she's already gone).
And, of course, the fact that she sees in him a fellow "idealist" and "dreamer" (terms commonly given to people with the INFP personality on the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)) portends that she'll always be left wondering if they would've been perfect together.
When you find your castle on the hill with the bars on the windows
Will you burn the bridge behind you?
Will you ever come out & see the sun again
Or will you hide?
And now how long has it been since you've seen the light?
Make your way on the stairs
To the top of your tower
Stone cold floors, hardwood doors
Lead you to your room of plastic flowers
They still look the same drenched in water
It comforts you to think that they're alive
It could have been easier than this
If you threw it all away, what would you miss?
It could have been too much of a chance to take
The silence in your head would have to break
Your grip is slipping faster
Looks like you'll have to face yourself after all
Step outside the shadows of your cage
Strangled truth, stolen youth
is written on every line of every page
It's your story - do you want it back?
You have to decide if it is worth it
Swim across the swamp to the other side
Run until you're out of breath and when you look back they'll be nothing left but a memory fading quickly
It could have been easier than this
If you threw it all away, what would you miss?
It could have been too much of a chance to take
The silence in your head would have to break
Your grip is slipping faster
Looks like you'll have to face yourself after all
It could have been easier than this
If you threw it all away, what would you miss?
It could have been too much of a chance to take
The silence in your head would have to break
Your grip is slipping faster
Looks like you'll have to face yourself after all
Will you burn the bridge behind you?
Will you ever come out & see the sun again
Or will you hide?
And now how long has it been since you've seen the light?
Make your way on the stairs
To the top of your tower
Stone cold floors, hardwood doors
Lead you to your room of plastic flowers
They still look the same drenched in water
It comforts you to think that they're alive
It could have been easier than this
If you threw it all away, what would you miss?
It could have been too much of a chance to take
The silence in your head would have to break
Your grip is slipping faster
Looks like you'll have to face yourself after all
Step outside the shadows of your cage
Strangled truth, stolen youth
is written on every line of every page
It's your story - do you want it back?
You have to decide if it is worth it
Swim across the swamp to the other side
Run until you're out of breath and when you look back they'll be nothing left but a memory fading quickly
It could have been easier than this
If you threw it all away, what would you miss?
It could have been too much of a chance to take
The silence in your head would have to break
Your grip is slipping faster
Looks like you'll have to face yourself after all
It could have been easier than this
If you threw it all away, what would you miss?
It could have been too much of a chance to take
The silence in your head would have to break
Your grip is slipping faster
Looks like you'll have to face yourself after all
Lyrics submitted by plasticflowers
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Techno Ted may be a person who caused Chris incredible emotional pain & trepidation as well as moments of peace & happiness but now is removed and awaiting his fate. Darling may be a different person who is also free of him and can live her life free of Ted's tyranny. "In between all the laughing, and daydreams ... lies: a desert of truth" Lies are like a desert or the omission of Truth: Where there were Lies then Truth was absent. The song, "Techno Ted", may be a cathartic celebration of the downfall of this person.
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The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
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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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Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
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Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
Perhaps one of my favourite Lifehouse songs. It confronts, I believe, the struggle to find a self-identity through the haze of youth and bad decisions.
^ nice interpretation, plasticflowers. you hit the nail on the head.
i just heard this song about a couple of weeks ago, and i can't stop listening to it ever since (along with Butterfly, Ordinary Pain, Through These Times).
Jason once said this song was just a joke about how people would say things with the eighties or what not. I think it turned out to be a great song and it reminds me of portraying life as a fairytale. That things happen, and we wish we could change them, but it's real.
This and "Fairytales Sandcastles" are my all time favorite Lifehouse songs.
One of the best songs for lifehouse...too bad its really hard to find.
The title says alot and the song can mean different things.
Change is definitely a strong theme to the song. As you grow up things do change and not necessarily for the better. For instance, a traumatic event in the past can trigger many sad emotions later in life.
That's one thing the song can be about for some people, not being able to move on from an event from their childhood, which can automatically mean missing the eighties cause things were so much more better before the change.