Behind Closed Doors

yeah, this song seems to me kinda about how people are behind a revolution at first, but never really do anything besides small protests. they spin their wheels never really achieving much. then it seems like they get beaten down badly, and then it turns on and there is no way they are gonna let their opressors take away their voice for their rights, no matter how badly things get, they will never quit

Great song. It has a really interesting meaning behind it. I think it talks about how some people will just look at the current state that other people are in and say, "Oh crap, they're screwed, wish i could help," but when they have their own life threatened, they suddenly do whatever they can to stay alive.

Chairs thrown and tables toppled, Hands armed with broken bottles, Standing no chance to win but, We're not runnin', we're not runnin'.

There's a point I think we're missin', It's in the air we raise our fists in, In the smiles we cast each other, My sister, my brother.

About the time we gave up hopeing We'd ever find these locks still open, Stumbling on stones unturned, the hurt we feel, we all have earned

The lines we cross in search of change, but all they see is treason

And though we have no obligation, to stay alive On broken backs we beg for mercy, we will survive (Break out) I won't be left here Behind closed doors.

Bonfires burn like beacons, Guiding the lost and weakened. Flames dance on crashing waves, Guiding ships who've gone astray

Time out, let's stop and think this through, We've all got better things to do, than talk in circles run in place, the answers are inches from my face.

and though we have no obligation, to stay alive On broken backs we beg for mercy, we will survive (Break out) I won't be left here Behind closed doors.

Black eyes, broken fingers, Blood drips and I let it run down my lips into my swollen gums When hope is nonexistent, Our instincts all scream, "Run", We never turn our backs or even bite our tongue.

Although we have no obligation, to stay alive On broken backs we beg for mercy, we will survive (Break out) I won't be left here Behind closed doors.

These are the correct lyrics according to the booklet And yes, it really says "and though" twice and "although" in the end.

Im really unsure about the lyrics, IMO it seems more to be about people fighting a senseless revolution, although they lost hope long ago, but they don't know what do to instead, and so they just go on with it.

Fighting "behind closed doors" probably means to fight although your goals are unreachable. But there is one person left who sees that it can't go on this way "there's a point i think we're missing" and who wants to break out because he doesn't want to end up fighting a senseless fight "i won't be left here, behind closed doors" "the hurt we feel, we all have earned" means that they have to realise the hurt they feel (maybe refering to the fighting part at the beginning) is there own fault that they earned through there actions, and if they wan't to get rid of it they have to change them. He then crosses the line in search of a better way, but is considered to be a treator, because the others are so narrow minded and focused on "there" way that they can't accept that there might be another one. "the lines we crossed in search of chance but all they see is treason"

"Time out, let's stop and think this through, We've all got better things to do, than talk in circles run in place, the answers are inches from my face." Is a conclusion: Stop fighting a senseless revolution and stop fighting each other and think about how you can actually do something that will really help, it's right in front of you, because there a so many ways you can do something that will actually help.

yeah, I think it also addresses the fact that a lot of people talk about how they want "change", but then when they see people protesting violently or doing driect action or civil disobidience, a lot of people tend to turn up their noses: "The lives we've crossed in search of change, but all they see is treason" The "lines" are laws, which are often pretty arbitrary, and people watching from home might see breaking the lawas as "treason", but the people breaking them are only "seeking change"

First off, this song is amazing. Second, I pretty much agree with what Lightning.J said. People pretend to take a real interest in helping other people, or fighting for a cause, but when it affects their day-to-day life, they get scared. Then there are the people that get beaten down and don't know how to stand up again, so they just give up.

I think this song is trying to convey frustration of trying hard for something, but never getting anywhere, and loosing so much your only option is to turn away. "When hope is non-existent, Our instincts all scream, 'Run', We never turn our backs or even bite our tongue." But, if I were to use a metaphor, it's like in a fight, when you've been beaten to a pulp and you're ready to give up, but in your heart you're still fighting. That, or you know you're going to loose from the beginning, but you set it up so the next guy has a chance. "On broken backs we beg for mercy, we will survive (Break out) I won't be left here Behind closed doors. "

In reality, when i hear this song I immeadiatly think Anarchy. look at it. were a small force, but we fight on anyway, "standing, no chance to win but, were not running, were not running". When we (anarchists) rebel, when we revolt, we have vitrouly no chance of winning. The thing is though, we dont care. When he sais "the silent nod we give eachother, my sister, my brother," were talking brothers in arms. anarchys like a religion, and yet its not. We cross whatever lines we have to, break whatever laws we have too, and we do it in search of change, becuase it needs to be done. and yet, they call it treason. burning cities and flags, engaging government forces, or maybe just fly-posting (A) signs all over town one night, we all do our part. we dont even care what happens to us. wre sold out to our cause and we DONT have an obligation to stay alive. No one can tell you whether or not you can die. its posibly the one thing we have freedom over.and when we riot, they beat us down, they tell us to give up, like the bridge sais. black eyes, broken fingers, blood drips and i let it run, down, my lips etc. thats all ill say for now. but seriously consider the possibility that Rise Against are anarchists, or at least anti government.

In my opinion it's all about America. The government and how everything has been playing out the past few years. "Chairs thrown and tables toppled, Hands armed with broken bottles, Standing no chance to win but, We're not runnin', we're not runnin'."- The American people in a great civil conflict with our leaders, we aren't armed like them, we haven't any chance of winning but yet we stand as one. "Time out, let's stop and think this through," Pretty easy< lol. "We've all got better things to do,"-We are bothering with little things that aren't really that important. "A talk in circles run in place,"- No one is really deciding anything, we just run in circles and never accomplish a thing "Answers inches from my face."- The answers are beyond obvious yet we don't do anything about it. "There's a point I think we're missin',"- We aren't seeing everything like we should, we are missing something, a simple and obvious point. "It's in the air we raise our fists in,"- We (the people) stand as one together for whats right. "In the smiles we cast each other,"- Oppressed by the people we allow to lead. "My sister, my brother."- The people, the American people. "Time out, let's stop and think this through," Pretty easy< lol. "We've all got better things to do,"-We are bothering with little things that aren't really that important. "A talk in circles run in place,"- No one is really deciding anything, we just run in circles and never accomplish a thing "Answers inches from my face."- The answers are beyond obvious yet we don't do anything about it. I love this song and I love this band. One of the most unique sounding bands I have ever heard before.

Sounds a lot like a group of people who keep rebelling against the same thing, over and over, but who are never willing to actually martyr themselves for their cause. Which suggests they don't believe in it that much.

"Chairs thrown and tables toppled, Hands armed with broken bottles, Standing no chance to win but, We're not runnin', we're not runnin'."

This is the bit that suggests rebellion to me, which makes what follows extremely interesting.

"There's a point I think we're missin', It's in the air we raise our fists in, In the smiles we cast each other, My sister, my brother.

About the time we gave up hope and We never find these locks still open, Stumbling on stones unturned, The hurt we feel, we all have found."

They're rebelling by this point, judging by the first paragraph, so what's the point they're missing? He says it's in the air they raise their fists in; air is often used symbolically as a symbol for peaceful change (note that it isn't in the fists themselves). It's also in the smiles they cast each other which seem familial to the singer. That leads me to believe that he doesn't think they should be doing this violently. The answer is in the air, and in smiles; that means it isn't in fists, broken bottles, flames, etc.

"Time out, let's stop and think this through We've all got better things to do A talk in circles, run in place Answers inches from my face."

After that, this is obvious. The singer is trying to get people to stop the violence for a while so that they can all think about what they're doing, but the rest of the band is either unwilling to do it ("We've all got better things to do,") or isn't willing to actually consider anything other than what they're already doing ("A talk in circles, run in place.")

("Black eyes, broken fingers Blood drips, and I let it run, down my lips and into my swollen gums. When hope is nonexistent Our instincts all scream run We never turn our backs or even bite our tongues.")

He presents several very unpleasant images, then immediately associates them with not running, not thinking about what one is saying, and not following one's instincts.

Most importantly, the chorus is about giving up.

("Although we have no obligation, to stay alive On broken backs we beg for mercy, we will survive (Break out) I won't be left here Behind closed doors.")

Honestly, that should pretty much prove my point. The singer isn't willing to die for his cause.

"Chairs thrown and tables toppled, Hands armed with broken bottles, Standing no chance to win but, We're not runnin', we're not runnin'."

In spite of a seemingly impossible challenge, "we" take arms and refuse to run from a cause. "We" is an idealist group, or rather the ideal itself - a cause and the people who believe in it.

"There's a point I think we're missin',"

Self-Explanatory; this ties the opening "not running" sequence to the rest of the song.

"It's in the air we raise our fists in, In the smiles we cast each other, My sister, my brother.

About the time we gave up hope and We never find these locks still open, Stumbling on stones unturned, The hurt we feel, we all have found."

The narrator presents a dilemma in which the cause/ideal is constantly being beaten back and rejected (The people try every new path, but ultimately it ends in hurt), when the answer (or rather an alternative solution) is right in front of their faces.

"The lines we've crossed in search of change, but all they see is treason"

The group/ideal is simply calling for a change, yet the world views this idea as treason.

"Although we have no obligation, to stay alive On broken backs we beg for mercy, we will survive (Break out) I won't be left here Behind closed doors."

These are the defining lines in the song. Although "we" (the ideal, and by extension the people that believe in it) is just an ideal, and the world will go on as normal without it, the people who believe in it will fight until their dying breaths to keep that ideal alive.

When the narrator shifts from "we" to "I" it implies that the narrator himself is the ideal, and the "we" are those who support him. When he says "I won't be left here behind closed doors", he means that the ideal will not and cannot be forgotten or hidden as long as there are people who believe in it.

"Bonfires burn like beacons, Guiding the lost and weakened. Flames dance on crashing waves, Guiding ships who've gone a stray"

Eventually, the cause will be lost to time, and people will lose their way (similar to the growing old concept in the song Architects), but bonfires (which I interpret as rallies or new younger believers in the ideal) will bring them back to their old beliefs and get them fighting again.

"Time out, let's stop and think this through, We've all got better things to do, A talk in circles run in place, Answers inches from my face."

To the narrator, the solution to his problem is right in front of his face. The cause that his people have been fighting for has gotten to the point where it's doing nothing but causing unnecessary hurt amongst it's believers.

This suggests that sometimes it's better to think about what you're fighting for (and how), rather than just doing what your instincts tell you and get hurt every time. "Work smarter, not harder" is something my mother used to always tell me, and this seems to speak towards that concept.

"Black eyes, broken fingers, Blood drips and I let it run down my lips and to my swollen gums When hope is non-existent, Our instincts all scream, "Run", We never turn our backs or even bite our tongue"

In the end, the "I", the ideal, has been battered, bruised, and beaten, yet it's believers still fight for it. The "I" let's the blood from his metaphorical wounds drip to show the damage that's been done, and makes no attempt to hide it - as it's a symbol of the hardship it's willing to go through. In spite of all that, the "I" is still alive.

But that brings us to the ultimate meaning of the song.

People fight hard for what they believe in. They fight to the point where the ideal becomes lost in violence, hurt, negativity, and loss, yet it's people still fight for it - and are more than willing to die for it. But, in the end, people never think to find a better way to preach their message.

Indeed, the point everyone's missing is in both the smiles cast, and the air around those who believe in the ideal. It's the ideal itself - it's alive. Even if it seems like the world has forgotten about it, as long as there's a "we" who can raise their fists, the ideal is alive.

Don't fight for something, and then lose yourself in bringing that cause to fruition. You can't preach a gospel of peace if you've resorted to violence to get it across to people.

bloody brilliant, awesome song.. love the guitar