Favourite NMA song for JS lyrics ?

[Master Ray]

Just listened to 'Fireworks Night' for the first time in a while... another contender for 'Best NMA lyrics'...

[Johnz]

Favourite NMA lyric. Is that even possible?

Someone like Jesus has always been a favourite of mine. Far better thing would be another one.

States Radio is great too. 'and the scientists shake their heads' is one of my favourite lines.

And probably another 100 more...

[Anna Woman von NRW]

What do you think mean the lyrics of "Home" and "Falling" "Falling" is about the family links, the way sons try to have their own way in their lifes, despite the past and their fears ("This fear you carry with you is not of your own making")

Falling is one of my favourite ever NMA songs. For very personal reasons. One of which is, I vividly remember driving down the M20 back towards the sanctuary of me Mum & Dad's whilst in the midst of splitting up with my ex,  a 4 year old son and all that. This song blaring out in the outside lane at 100+ while I cried my eyes out. This song may well have stopped a high speed accident 

Some of what fucks us up is self-inflicted, an awful lot of it is what other people give us. intentionally or not. To me, this song is telling all of us that a lot of what we carry is bollox that other people put there. Accidently or not. Nature, nurture, genetics- whatever. Either way it's not our fault we feel the way we do sometimes and when we do our own heads in we need to remember it's not down to us and to let it go. A very valuable set of words.

[Guillaume]

What do you think of the lyrics of "Devil's bargain", the new song?

Justin said about it:

"Devil's Bargain' is written about a particular person."

Some of what fucks us up is self-inflicted, an awful lot of it is what other people give us. intentionally or not. To me, this song is telling all of us that a lot of what we carry is bollox that other people put there. Accidently or not. Nature, nurture, genetics- whatever. Either way it's not our fault we feel the way we do sometimes and when we do our own heads in we need to remember it's not down to us and to let it go. A very valuable set of words.

Very true, Anna Woman O Kent.
I think that what you are saying is mostly the meaning of "Falling", and in this way i can somewhat relate to this very personal song, the song speaks to me.
The NMA's song i've thought about the most these last few years ex aequo with "Falling" was probably "High"...when you are in bad moods and up and downs in your life, the line "All these things you fear so much depend on angles of vision" is  so true...

I ask myself about the lyrics of "Home", it feels like a very personal song too..:

"The chemical wind burned you to the bone and when you came back, you were not the same (...)
Chris you were gone, out on the edge, these things that destroy are inside of ourselves"

I remember Justin saying in a french interview that "Dawn" was a very very personal song for him, it was about one of his friends who tried to commit suicide when the friend's girlfriend left him alone...and finally Justin's friend choose to stay alive, at the last moment, when he saw the sun rising, one morning...a sad and beautiful story.

[Anna Woman von NRW]

What do you think

Oh Guillaume – you poor deluded boy. What have you done?    What on earth possessed you to come back and ask me questions about words? I just heard the whole board groan.     But you asked a lot of questions so I'm sorry everyone (he did ask and now I've got an excuse to go !!! - and I wish there was an evil grin emoticon to put in here).

Now's the time to hit back button because......

A general point first: you said “i can somewhat relate to this very personal song, the song speaks to me.”. This is the genius of Mr Sullivan's lyrics. To me, you don't have to be able to identify with the literal interpretation of the story being told. The vitality and quality of the words lets you FEEL the emotions and thoughts, and if you can feel it then you can remember things in our own life that made you feel that way and so you can relate. Obviously the full power of NMA is the marriage of words and music but we're talking lyrics so I've set the music aside. Finally on this point I wouldn't presume to have a clue what the genesis behind the words are – all this old crap is just my wordy IBS. 

High – A reminder to keep a sense of perspective and place in the world. Getting a bit “over-wrought”? Getting a bit wrapped up in your woes? Well climb a hill look out and remember that actually we're just pissy little atoms on a rock spinning around in a universe far bigger than we can truly get our heads round. We ain't that important.  From down at the bottom of the hill where we live our lives we don't get to see all the other “angles of vision”. For every angle there's another 359 at least. Get over yourself.

Home – Barring 2 songs I don't often listen to NBTS. Not because I don't like it – I love it, it's special. But to appreciate it I have in be in the right frame of mind and the right place to....... sort of sink into it, for me it's not music to wash up to if you get what I mean? So I haven't listened to Home for a while but I'm about to (4.59 minute pause), so:  well that bears out my point entirely. Listen alone, in peace and quiet and it's very heart-wrenching but there is hope. From outside of ourselves, somewhere in the chaos we live in someone cared. Enough to take “Chris” in. Maybe the true value in what we do is when we do a random kindness to a stranger. That's what I just took.

Dawn – Faith, hope, love, triumph. In the blackest of black places somewhere there is a light and if you find it and can hold on to it during the night you'll see the sun come up.  Seems that Children were the light for the person these words were about. This is the only direct personal experience in  this post I think – the only thing that stopped me was my Son. Dawn - the most gorgeous wonderful thing this world has to offer. Seeing the sun rise. Perfect. 

I'll finish this with a back at ya' – Changing Of The Light. One of my top 3. What do you take from that song?

[Pol]

Changing of light - Here is my attempt at a meaning.
Its about a couple who have been in a long term relationship and who have had kids who are now grown up and moved away. The relationship is now over though one of them hopes it can be rekindled.

[Shush]

I relate strongly to the lyrics in "Ghosts"

I think JS was referring to his memories of Robert Heaton. I lost a close friend about 10 years ago. That song always makes me think of him. To me it just makes sense. His ghost is part of me. He is still alive in my fond memories of him. Also, people we have known and lost are part of us. The times and experiences we have had together with them in the past has shaped the people we are today.

love that song. All the better for following "Summer Moors" on the album.

[Johnz]

I relate strongly to the lyrics in "Ghosts"

I think JS was referring to his memories of Robert Heaton.

love that song. All the better for following "Summer Moors" on the album.

I agree. I'm thinking that it may refer to the band's studio, with maybe a picture of Rob hanging on the wall. I guess it can be applied to many situations which makes it so relatable.

One of my favourite tracks from BDAW.

[pjevac]

I guess that's one of the hardest questions to answer, 'cause Justin's lyrics are what makes their songs so special to me...
At this moment I'd go for The Charge, because of the "...no one needs morality when there isn't enough to eat..." line,
then I'd go for Green & Grey for "... is it true that the world has always got to be something that seems to happen somewhere else..."
and then there's Spirit of the Falklands: "...'Cause it's no surprise that young men are heroes
It's no surprise that young men are strong
It's no surprise that young men are foolish
We've known that all along..."

[Guillaume]

I'll finish this with a back at ya' – Changing Of The Light. One of my top 3. What do you take from that song?

What you have beautifully written about "Dawn" also sums up nicely the meaning(s) of "Changing of the light", i think

Dawn – Faith, hope, love, triumph. In the blackest of black places somewhere there is a light and if you find it and can hold on to it during the night you'll see the sun come up.

[lotus]

Family - Turn Away - Dawn

[Belza]

As others have said before there are so many to choose and it changes daily.  At the moment the song's lyrics that really resonate with me are Turn Away and One Bullet.  If we are looking at individual lines however then "Saw which was the winning side still I joined the other" and "I don't give a damn that I never will be worthy" have always had a deep-felt meaning for me and probably the most beautiful line I've heard is "If I could only choose one moment to last forever I would be here with you."

[Guillaume]

At the moment the song's lyrics that really resonate with me are One Bullet.

What do you think is/are the topics/meaning(s) of "One bullet"?
It's a great song, moving i think, and it seems that it is about various characters, or maybe the same character at different times of his life..

[Pol]

One for the current state of the board

Brothers Sister pay no heed to the unfaithful messagingers (spelling) lol

[ruckedout]

The Attack