So this has been.my favorite song of OTEP's since it came out in 2004, and I always thought it was a song about a child's narrative of suffering in an abusive Christian home. But now that I am revisiting the lyrics, I am seeing something totally new.
This song could be gospel of John but from the perspective of Jesus.
Jesus was NOT having a good time up to and during the crucifixion. Everyone in the known world at the time looked to him with fear, admiration or disgust and he was constantly being asked questions. He spoke in "verses, prophesies and curses". He had made an enemy of the state, and believed the world was increasingly wicked and fallen from grace, or that he was in the "mouth of madness".
The spine of atlas is the structure that allows the titan to hold the world up. Jesus challenged the state and in doing so became a celebrated resistance figure. It also made him public enemy #1.
All of this happened simply because he was doing his thing, not because of any agenda he had or strategy.
And then he gets scourged (storm of thorns)
There are some plot holes here but I think it's an interesting interpretation.
If you find your sweetheart in the arms of a friend
That's when your heartaches begin
When dreams of a lifetime must come to an end
That's when your heartaches begin
Love is a thing you'd never can share
When you bring a friend into your love affair
That's the end of your sweetheart
That's the end of your friend
That's when your heartaches begin
If you find your sweetheart
In the arms of your best friend, your brother
That's, that's when your heartaches begin
And you know when all your dreams
When all your dreams of a lifetime
Must, must all come to an end
Yeah, that's, that's when your heartaches begin
Oh, you see love is a thing
That you never can share
And you know when you bring a friend
Into your love affair
That's the end of your sweetheart
That's the end of your friend
Well, that's when your heartaches begin
That's when your heartaches begin
When dreams of a lifetime must come to an end
That's when your heartaches begin
Love is a thing you'd never can share
When you bring a friend into your love affair
That's the end of your sweetheart
That's the end of your friend
That's when your heartaches begin
If you find your sweetheart
In the arms of your best friend, your brother
That's, that's when your heartaches begin
And you know when all your dreams
When all your dreams of a lifetime
Must, must all come to an end
Yeah, that's, that's when your heartaches begin
Oh, you see love is a thing
That you never can share
And you know when you bring a friend
Into your love affair
That's the end of your sweetheart
That's the end of your friend
Well, that's when your heartaches begin
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a genious song, either way its looked at it is great. Either the friend becomes your lover, OR your friend steals your lover. WOW does anyone else see this or is it just me?
I believe the overall message of this song is to keep your friends away from your relationships, as "Love is a thing you can never share". This is because love is a sacred and powerful emotion we can have, and when we abuse our amount of love by searching for those around us for more love, i.e, friends, we lose the privacy and secrecy of our special relationship. Elvis Presley reflects that bringing friends into your relationship, and becoming ambitious for more love, is harmful, and can lead to devastating outcomes, in this song "Heartaches", due to the end of relationships between friends and lovers. Ultimately, the message is that we need to embrace love for what it is.