It has become quite apparent to me that when I am lacking
the inspiration to write, I turn to music as an alternative source of
expression. Then with a little encouragement, I decided I would dedicate a blog
post solely to lyrics. By this I mean I’m going to share with you my all-time
favourite lines from songs on my iPod, and explain to you why it is that I love
them so very much. If you fear my musical interests are not to your liking,
fear not – this is entirely focused on the words, not the thundering drums or
screaming, hell-bent vocalists.
“Tears stream down your face, when you lose something you
cannot replace” – Fix You, Coldplay
I’m sure you’re familiar with these lyrics taken from one of
the most iconic songs of the’ noughties’. Pretty self-explanatory this one – if
I listen to it with enough concentration on the words, they make me cry. Shocker
I know, I never cry. I think I actually cry even more when I play it on guitar.
I get way too into it.
“Is this what it feels like, finding out that I’ve got the
guts to say anything” – Guts, All Time Low
As one of my favourite songs by this band, this line fills
me with self-belief and the strength to keep doing whatever it is that I’m
doing. Be it helping a friend, sharing my opinion or even writing these blogs,
all it takes to get me really pumped is a listen to this song; that line in
particular.
“Bid my blood to run, before I come undone, save me from the
nothing I’ve become” – Bring Me to Life, Evanescence
All that comes to mind when I hear those lines is sitting in
the car park in Tesco late one evening over the Christmas holidays a few years
ago, hating life. It was the year I woke up Christmas morning and spent over
two hours crying in bed. How depressing, right? It also reminds me of my
younger cousin once ripping my sleeves open in front of my whole family so he
could “check me”. How thoughtful of him. Little shit.
“You shoot me down but I won’t fall, I am titanium” –
Titanium, David Guetta feat. Sia
Ah, Titanium. A song that continues to plague me to this
day. Not that I mind, though. Ever since I played it for a girl’s Leaving Cert
music practical, it has literally haunted me. I hear it everywhere. But like I said,
I don’t really mind. It reminds me of some good memories and even begins to
make me regret the bad ones. And besides all the personal shizz, it’s still a
tune.
“Life’s too short to even care at all” – Cough Syrup, Young
the Giant
Most people, myself included, probably wouldn’t know this
song if it wasn’t for Glee, which is why I have linked the Glee version, and
also as that is the version on my iPod. I like to think that I live by the
message of this lyric but as always, life happens and not giving a shit becomes
less of an option. I suppose it’s a good thing that I’m usually forced to care
because when I don’t care, I’m very much a bitch.
“When everything feels like the movies, yeah you bleed just
to know you’re alive” – Iris, The Goo Goo Dolls
Has my life ever felt like a movie? Yes. Have I ever bled
just to feel alive? Yes.
“I kissed a girl and I liked it” – I Kissed a Girl, Katy
Perry
Catapulting Ms Perry onto the music scene, this song was
released in 2008 when I was in 1st year of secondary school. I guess
when I used to sprint upstairs to listen to this song every day after school we
should’ve all put two and two together.
“We started out; I’d forget your name. The more you smiled
at me, the more I lost my way” – Roses in the Summertime, Keywest
A girl. Small bit shorter than me. Quiet. Dark hair. Funny run.
Observing her. I like her. What’s her name? Where’s she from? Nice smile. Good teeth.
Does she have a boyfriend? I want her. Could she ever want a girlfriend? Could she
ever want me? Hmm. Challenge accepted.
“I promise I’m always there, when your heart is full of
sadness and despair” – Footprints in the Sand, Leona Lewis
Friendships are more important to me now than ever before. Especially
since a few have shipped out and started college. The thought of losing them is
terrifying. Which is why I felt a surge of relief and emotion come over me when
my best friend played this song and told me she thought of me when she listened
to it. I’m blessed, I know I am.
“And I know I may end up failing too, but I know you were
just like me with someone disappointed in you” – Numb, Linkin Park
I have failed people many times in my life. More than the
average person, I would imagine. People had expectations of me and I disappointed.
But I’m not the first person to let someone down, nor will I be the last. Don’t
set the bar so high for someone if you can’t reach it yourself first.
“A certificate on paper isn’t gonna solve it all, but it’s a
damn good place to start” – Same Love, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Mary
Lambert
I remember being told about this song by a friend way before
it had been released. I didn’t think much of it – too political for my liking. But
then it hit me just how significant that song could end up being and how much
support it could garner for the cause. For same-sex marriage. Now when I hear
this song it makes me feel all warm and gooey inside. I’m a small part of a
massive community. And I couldn’t be any more proud.
“The truth never set me free so I did it myself” – Careful,
Paramore
This line reflects and sums up my whole experience of bullying
in my school. I spoke the truth; I had no reason to lie. I was supposed to be
the victim. I was supposed to be forever grateful to my principal for making
the pain stop. I wasn’t believed. I wasn’t helped. I will never be grateful for
anything that person does for me. She could’ve saved me and she didn’t. I saved
myself. I got myself through it, no-one else did. I guess that explains why I still
hold so much anger towards that individual.
“Explain to me how it came to this, take it back to the
night we kissed” – Before the Worst, The Script
This somehow became my heartbreak song a few years ago and
subsequently I tend not to listen to it anymore. Too many emotional scars
formed during these three and a bit minutes.
“I know I’m finding it hard to breathe, and I’ve been
drowning in my own sleep” – Rescue Me, You Me At Six feat. Chiddy
Sitting in the middle of one of my Junior Cert pre-exams,
head down on the desk listening to this song. Not caring about the task at
hand. Too focused on the pain of being alone and misunderstood in a room full
of people that claimed to know me. Then being asked to remove my Paramore
hoodie thinking to myself, is that really all you teachers are concerned about?
Not the tears streaming down my face, no?
“All the times that we shared, every place everywhere, you
touched my life” – I’ll Always Remember You, Hannah Montana
Yes, this is Hannah Montana. No, I’m not ashamed to say I was
a fan. This is a song about parting ways with high school friends after ‘graduation’,
so I never imagined I’d be listening to it at the end of 2nd year
knowing that was goodbye to my best friend of eleven years. I knew I shouldn’t have
missed her, but I did.
“Still I fight with my pen in my hand held tight, writing
protests songs tonight, ‘cause I’m still here” – Learn My Lesson, Young Guns
Kind of reflects my story, doesn’t it? Except I’m writing
blog posts, not songs. Close enough.
“Let ‘em wonder how we got this far, ‘cause I don’t really
need to wonder at all” – Still Into You, Paramore
Where to start with this song? God, I think this could be
our song. So first of all we have proved the whole county wrong by still being
together now. Fifty-nine kilometres apart, an hour and a half bus journey away,
and 14 months in the bag? I think it’s safe to say we’ve silenced the sceptics.
It’s surely understandable so to tell you I cried hysterically when Paramore
played this as their final song at their Dublin show two weeks ago. It’s our
song, though. I had a right to be totes emosh. Isn’t that what happens when you’re
in love?
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