4 Meanings
Add Yours
Share
Q&A

The Longest Wave Lyrics

Throw me all around
Like a boomerang sky
Whatever you do
Don't tell me why
Poppies grow tall
Then say bye bye
The wave is here

A seamless little team
And then we tanked
I guess we're not so sacrosanct
The tip of my tongue
But then we blanked
The wave is here
Waiting on the wind
To tell my side

Ready set jet
But she never gets far
Listen to your skin
From the seat of my car
Two centipedes stuck
In one glass jar
The longest wave
Waiting on the wind
To tell my side

Whatcha want
Whatcha need
Do you love

Maybe I'm the right one
Maybe I'm the wrong
Just another play, the pirate, and the papillon
Time to call it a day

Maybe you're my last love
Maybe you're my first
Just another way to play inside the universe
Now I know why we came

Sterile as the barrel
Of an old 12 gauge
Under my skin
And half my age
Hotter than the wax
On a saxifrage
The longest wave
Waiting on the wind
To turn my page

Steady your sails
For the butterfly flap
Whatever you do
Don't close that gap
I'm dreaming of a woman
But she's just my nap
Your ship is in
Waiting on the tide so I can swim

Whatcha want
Whatcha need
Do you love

Maybe I'm the right one
Maybe I'm the wrong
Just another play, the pirate, and the papillon
Time to call it a day

Maybe you're my last love
Maybe you're my first
Just another way to play inside the universe
Now I know why we came

Now I know why we came
Now I know
Song Info
Submitted by
mellow_harsher On Jun 19, 2016
Questions and Answers

Ask specific questions and get answers to unlock more indepth meanings & facts.

4 Meanings

Add your song meanings, interpretations, facts, memories & more to the community.

Cover art for The Longest Wave lyrics by Red Hot Chili Peppers

Definitely about his two-year relationship with Aussie model Helena Vestergaard, that ended late 2014?

"Throw me all around Like a boomerang sky" References her Aussieness.

"Under my skin And half my age" Helena was aged 19-22 when they were dating.

A few other songs from The Getaway mention Helena... I feel like this relationship really affected him, and therefore influenced him lyrically. Makes me feel a bit sad to be honest lol.

He said this in an interview: “Lyrically, I’m embarrassed to say, a 2-year relationship that completely fell apart like a nuclear bomb, just left me feeling pretty raw and available to the emotional universe for writing. So even though the relationship was a bit of a disaster, I feel that in some way, I did get something out of it, which was about half the songs on this record.”

My Interpretation

The Helena story seems to be the source of this track, but I feel that the song communicates the broader message even when you don't know about their relationship.

The gorgeous musical style of the refrain and the "just another," "time to call it a day," "last love," and the past-tense of "we came" all convey a feeling of finality, certainly felt by Keidis about the end of the relationship. However, there's also a prominent and somber awareness of the continuation of life into the future. Both sides of "maybe wrong/right" and "maybe last/first" have been felt by someone who has lived a long time and has a long time left to live. The "just another" can also be taken as a flag of continuity. That's why I really see this song by its release title and the recurring mention of the "wave." AK has felt this finality years before, but life cycles onward and once again he finds himself at just the same peak or trough as he felt before. The wave is life, and the song is, broadly, about the emotion of connecting with the feelings of your past and future selves.

My Interpretation
Cover art for The Longest Wave lyrics by Red Hot Chili Peppers

i absolutely love the chorus of this song.

Cover art for The Longest Wave lyrics by Red Hot Chili Peppers

Furthermore - I believe the working title of this song was called "The Philippines" (he said that in the commentary of the album, it's on YouTube). Helena is Aussie, and I think her last name is Dutch? but she also looks part Asian, and maybe one of her parents is from the Philippines? That was my only other thought on the connection to her... :)

My Interpretation