In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Come on, skinny love, just last the year
Pour a little salt, we were never here
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Staring at the sink of blood and crushed veneer
I tell my love to wreck it all
Cut out all the ropes and let me fall
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Right in this moment, this order's tall
And I told you to be patient
And I told you to be fine
And I told you to be balanced
And I told you to be kind
And in the morning I'll be with you
But it will be a different kind
And I'll be holding all the tickets
And you'll be owning all the fines
Come on, skinny love, what happened here?
Suckle on the hope in light brassieres
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Sullen load is full, so slow on the split
And I told you to be patient
And I told you to be fine
And I told you to be balanced
And I told you to be kind
And now all your love is wasted
And then who the hell was I?
And I'm breaking at the britches
And at the end of all your lines
Who will love you?
Who will fight?
Who will fall far behind?
Ooh, ooh
Woo, oh ooh
Pour a little salt, we were never here
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Staring at the sink of blood and crushed veneer
I tell my love to wreck it all
Cut out all the ropes and let me fall
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Right in this moment, this order's tall
And I told you to be patient
And I told you to be fine
And I told you to be balanced
And I told you to be kind
And in the morning I'll be with you
But it will be a different kind
And I'll be holding all the tickets
And you'll be owning all the fines
Come on, skinny love, what happened here?
Suckle on the hope in light brassieres
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Sullen load is full, so slow on the split
And I told you to be patient
And I told you to be fine
And I told you to be balanced
And I told you to be kind
And now all your love is wasted
And then who the hell was I?
And I'm breaking at the britches
And at the end of all your lines
Who will love you?
Who will fight?
Who will fall far behind?
Ooh, ooh
Woo, oh ooh
Lyrics submitted by J.Diddy, edited by mike, jennifer50, drakili, anzii, coopigat, musicjunkie27, anechiwa, benapere
Skinny Love Lyrics as written by Justin Deyarmond Edison Vernon
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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It's about love gone sour.
As for the title "Skinny Love" it could be an affectionate term he gave his petite girlfriend, or maby the fact that their love is wasting away- shrinking to skinny. The latter is probably more likely, due to the reference in the first line ("Come on, skinny love just last the year").
"pour a little salt, we were never here" Salt has healing properties, when put on open wound they help the process along. Probably metaphorically speaking, he wants this doomed relationship to heal, to even "Just last the year." I like the vivid imagery to blood and crushed veneer in a sink, as if a vase was broken in a fit of rage. I dunno if that ties into the salt reference, maby indirectly.
he then basically tells her to let him go, to cut off the tethers binding him to her.
the third stanza deals wih a blaming the other for the failure of the relationship. She couldn't meet with his expectations, either that or she treated him poorly, probably both.
stanza four seems like a mixture of memories, stating why have we gone wrong when we once loved each other? and how even though the burden of pain (through separating) is heavy, it's still hard to "split."
The last part gives us a glimse as to WHY it went sour. it seems she kind of led him on, that she wasn't that into him- when he really cared for her.
He then states that its unlikely she'll find anyone worthwhile, no one will be able to love her for all the stuff she puts her partners through.
wonderfully honest and emotional, i love this song.
I like your way of thinking... I tend to agree with the metaphorical interpretation about the love wasting away but it could be literal as in a pet name or stature. Could be a reference to addiction as well. <br /> <br /> I do sense though he gave her fair warning as to how difficult it might be to sustain their love for the myriad of reasons a relationship might fall apart. Especially one with a talented busy musician. Distance, groupies, or even his own complicated personality. I sense he tried to reasssure her that he cared and loved her...but failed.<br /> <br /> She may have fallen off the train and was heartbroken as well and he is truly disapointed and heartbroken as well but doing a good job of masking it... She couldn't be reassured and lost faith in what they had and moved on. <br /> <br /> I think he accepted all the flaws she had but knew that he had a "tall order" ahead of him by accepting her love. She may have been complicated on some level or he could be referring back to himself...<br /> <br /> I sense that she was fragile and he thought of her as his baby bird...but now he is realizing his own fragility. She may have powered up and now he is standing in an endless line to get back to her... <br /> <br /> Salt also burns. I think its a reference to the bittersweet nature of what they had or could have had if she had been patient. They never even got to the place he ideally wanted them to be.<br /> <br /> I love music so much do to it's subjectivity. I do tend to apply my own situations and thoughts to the poetry. I think this is why I love Bon Iver. There is a quality in his voice and in the musical arrangement that makes me want to weep and rejoice at the same time. I want to dance around a bon fire drunk on wine, crying and laughing and getting all that saddness out... It's tribal and ethereal and most majestic!!! <br /> <br /> <br />
btw, just thrownin it out there, theres also the term "adding salt to the wounds" which causes more pain
Really great analysis.<br /> <br /> "Skinny Love" is soulfully poetic but could be vague in meaning. It's only after you read posts from shortandsweetem and further analysis from vamul1 that it seems so simple. I agree tho with vamul1 and maheeganyaknow: I had originally interpreted the "pour a little salt" line as burning or pain, almost as if the characters would never intentionally worsen the state of the relationship or stir the waters between them.
like your reply
I agree with most of that is said. But as for the salt lyric, i see it as when people pour salt on the ground so that nothing grows there anymore or remember anything. Which is followed by "we were never here" So perhaps he's basically trying to forget some part of this relationship.
Salt poured on land also prevents things from growing again.
i agree with taymay, i think that maybe there was a sort of stint in their relationship that would be better off forgotten.
I think it is such a wonderful song, my interpretation of the salt lyric is- punish me (poor a little salt) and then we are even and we can move on ( we where never here), I think he is saying here i am, I am wounded (by the veener? a thrown glass) throw salt on me, I am giving you everything (I tell my love to wreck it all). Can we just move on . I think it may be when relationships get so caught up about who is right and who is wrong who holds the balance ect.
Just my own interpretation and probably way off the mark;<br /> <br /> Could ^Skinny love" be reference to an under-age virgin who would be of age in a year and whom the singer had fallen in love with but wanted to wait until it was all legal?<br /> <br /> This would tie in with the first chorus of "I told you to be patient......"<br /> <br /> "In the morning" could be a metaphor for her coming of age when their love will "be a different kind"<br /> <br /> Him "Holding all the tickets" could mean he would feel like he had won the lottery. And her "Holding all the fines" could refer to guilt and uncertainty after the event.<br /> <br /> The next line ".....what happened here" in my opinion is the turning point of the song when the singer finds out that his love hasn't waited for him but turned elsewhere.<br /> <br /> This would explain the second chorus telling her "Now all your love is wasted" and asking "Who the hell was I?"<br /> <br /> "I'm breaking at the britches" refers to his pent up sexual desire after being kept dangling "at the end of all your lines"<br /> <br /> The last three lines of the song can be taken quite literally. <br /> <br /> Like I said, just my own interpretation and probably way off the mark. Comments please.
Love itttt!<br /> With regard to the salt thing, I read it as when you pour salt on ice, it melts it. The bad patch where they were cold to one another was probably the ice, and "pour a little salt, we were never here" is him wanting to melt it and make it disappear.
Wonderfully interpreted, absolutely wonderfully. <br /> This is by far the most perspicuous and/or well-articulated interpretation of any song I've read on this site to date. Bon Iver was only recently revealed to me and this song, appearing to be one of his bigger hits, if not the biggest, is incredible. I've listened to it quite a few times and have yet to tire of each element therein. Nevertheless, this song is not the point, but your thorough dissection. Well done, Sir or perhaps Madam, very well done. Unquestionably, I could never have done so well myself.<br /> <br /> I am thoroughly impressed!
Excellent analysis. I agree "skinny love" refers to the relationship itself, that it's thin, tenuous, superficial, etc.. The last line is about a "wound" to the relationship that reveals just how superficial it was because only a "veneer," a thin external layer, had to be shattered to let flow the "blood", life, substance of the relationship. And it was a wound so small that a little salt could fix it. All of this captures the idea that insubstantial relationships can be damaged by trivial problems, disagreements, etc..<br /> <br /> And just to add another layer to the salt metaphor--in the good ole days, salt was an important preservative, so in addition to healing the wound, it would also help to preserve the relationship to atleast "last the year."
Yeah i was gonna say the same thing as shinpads. about snow melting ice and snow. considering the fact that he wrote this all cooped up in a cabin the winter that would kinda make sense. but all the things about the wounds and also, about stuff not growing back makes a lot of sense.
She got in her car, and left crying as she drove home. Her heart was broken, for it was not her intentions to screw up...she can't think straight and was naive and gullible thinking it truly would be a couple of beers...This morning she woke up, setting out to keep making things right...she told "interritus", and I quote "in the avalanche I lost the one I truly love....not to be confused w/ 'lust'....but, if his heart is the same, we will cross paths again - as I'll keep searching to make it right" to which he responded (today at 1:18pm) "I can hear the resolve in your words" and she said "Yes b/c until this person I never knew what love was...that's how I could differentiate the two (love/lust). As 'corny' as it sounds; when our eyes locked I was lost for words, when I became lost in his words it was love; devine intimacy". She has it in her heart to make it right, and will do nothing but keep trying. She realizes she cannot drink, unless it is with him...she realized it was no excuse, and she realized that she's an idiot and in order to respect herself, she has to respect him first and foremost; she will...then she will prove her love is true...
I agree with TayMay07 and found a wikipedia article that talked about how it was a ritual to pour salt on the ground of conquered cities to curse the land. I also thought the salt could refer to the phrase "with a grain of salt" and how there was doubt about the relationship lasting even from the beginning. <br /> <br /> for more: rainischange.wordpress.com/2012/04/03/ill-be-holding-all-the-tickets-and-youll-be-owning-all-the-fines-bon-iver/
I get your perspective and I would not have thought the song was like tat thanks.
perfect
I love how the most rated comment on this song is a misconception of what love is. Actual love does not go sour, elated feelings & commitment might.
Here are direct quotes from Bon Iver (Justin Vernon) Justin Vernon of Bon Iver on "Skinny Love"
So Emma seems to be the subject of a lot of these songs? Who is/was she? Well, it’s not a “she” question as much as it’s a “what” and “when” question. It’s old love. And in this case, old, sore, lost love.
Were these songs written forever ago or are they just about “forever ago”? If the latter, did you ever set out to write this record before? About forever ago. They were all written at the same time. I was unable to deal with my personal shit within the constraints or boundaries of my other musical projects or personal environment.
There’s this peaceful resignation going on all over For Emma. It suggests there’s been some time and distance between you and the stories you’re telling. Is that the case? In time, yes. But in earnestness and closeness of feel, they are current, or were when I wrote them. They hadn’t escaped or dissipated yet until I dealt with them, no matter how long ago they existed. It’s kind of like the sores are still open. Just scarred over. So it’s like me sitting and examining these scars. Trying to rip them off. Discard them. Or at least explain them, so I can be at peace with them.
”Skinny Love” seems this one is about the moment you knew things were destined to fail. Well, this wasn’t about who you think it would be about. Part of the trouble with the old haunting love, is that it fucks with your future loves, and can damn and/or ambush your relationships. That’s who this is about.
After learning that Justin said this song is about the pain of past relationships making their way into new ones brings a whole new perspective to the song for me!
I almost feel like he's talking to himself. Both people that are living inside of his heart, the broken one and the one that is trying to hard to move on. So often we let the broken one lead our lives and sabatoge future happiness so he's trying to hold onto his small ability to love, skinny love, and get through the hurt that still harbors in his heart.
"pour a little salt, we were never here" is a defense mechanism just trying to erase someone from your mind, the past love still haunting you.
"i tell my love to wreck it all, to cut all the ropes and let me fall" again a self-sabatoging act. So stuck on the fact that the former lover couldn't love you that you push away anyone else that might come close to making you so vulnerable again.
I hear the chorus as a self-mantra, said in the mirror: I told you to be patient I told you to be fine I told you to be balanced I told you to be kind In the morning I'll be with you But it will be a different "kind" I'll be holding all the tickets And you'll be owning all the fines
He is talking to both people inside. Asking himself to be patient, fine, balanced, and kind even though the hurt part usually wins out. He will wake up and be better and he will own up to the past yet leave the hurt or "fines" behind. He wants to be stronger....
The most gripping part of the song is "Now all your love was wasted? Well then who the hell was I?" Almost like a flashback to this past love.....that one thought we have that makes us cringe immediately with hurt.....Bringing him back to that sad vulnerable place
and it ends with him still wounded....hopeless...afraid he'll always be his own worst enemy as he pushes away love because of the past. Because some won't fight too hard for love, after awhile most will just fall far behind:
Who will love you? Who will fight? Who will fall far behind?
Brilliant song, brilliant lyrics, amazing all together
Hello all,<br /> <br /> May I first start my expressing my entire love for this song - truly fantastic in everyway.... I'm afraid that I don't have anything to add to the meaning of the song, simply because I believe all points have been covered.<br /> <br /> One small point that I do have to say is this....<br /> <br /> Skinny love has received 45 posts from people obviously passionate about Bon Iver's lyrics. Fair shout, the man is clearly incredible.<br /> <br /> However, I recently searched Bonnie "Prince" Billie's song, Cursed Sleep, to find a mere 2 posts...<br /> <br /> Now I'm from England and I find artists like Bon Iver and Bonnie "Prince" Billie to be clear foundations of what America truly has to present to the world, completely contradicting all the small-minded peasants that happily follow an ignorant fraternity of people that find America to be a threatening country and therefore some sort of enemy.<br /> <br /> Bon Iver has a wonderful story surrounding a truly amazing album... However, Bonnie "Prince" Billie has a wonderful album developing into an amazing story....<br /> <br /> So my rather drawn out point is this.... PLEASE listen to Cursed Sleep by Bonnie "Prince" Billie and comment on his song.<br /> <br /> I'm sure it seems so ridiculous that one man can be so passionate about a seemingly trivial fact, but this man's music has affected me in a big way and I would really like to see the backing from his home country that he truly deserves.<br /> <br /> Feel free to comment/shoot me down where I stand.<br /> <br /> D.
OOPS<br /> <br /> Before getting on my soapbox, I really should learn how to spell Bonnie "Prince" BillY...<br /> <br /> My apologies, please don't let my lack of attention to detail defer you from the point in hand.<br /> <br /> X
I absolutely love this song! definately my favourite this year.<br /> <br /> Alot of people have put what they think the song is about, usually about relationship troubles and the term 'skinny love' is refering to the amount of love in the relationship, or it is the nickname for the mans partner.<br /> <br /> When i first heard the song i thought it was about suicide, i know a bad thought, but the lyrics 'Sink of blood' gave me that idea, silly really. But i also thought that it might be about a fathers daughter who is suffering from an eating disorder, maybe, and it could have been about their parents being woried about them. just an idea.
The Skinny Love refers to his own inability to love completely (which is why it is skinny). He says in the interview posted by djfrisk that the song is not about who you think its about. He is pleading with himself to be able to hold on to this other person enough to "last the year." But, as he says later, "In the moment, this order's tall."<br /> <br /> The chorus is so sad because he is showing how he has led this other person on a wild goose chase, telling her (presumably) that if she is patient, if she fixes this or that about herself, things will work out. But the brilliant line "I'll be holding all the tickets/ You'll be owing all the fines" shows that he knows that he is the one who will screw up, and she is the one who will pay. Startlingly honest, but I think that is the quality that makes these songs so great.
I agree with you, lyriclover81! :)
Yes, I also interpreted the "pour a little salt" line as evoking an image of salting the land so that it would infertile, thus killing any memory of the relationship and any memory of it, so "we were never here".
Yes it is all about the pain we get from relationships, but I feel like this is an experience based on his dad or to someone who is really close with him. <br /> <br /> He was trying to tell us their part of the story. I felt such sad vibe in this song but for some reason, I don't believe that its coming from him but from someone else rather.<br /> <br />
@lyriclover81 <br /> I really like your interpretation. Something you may find interesting though is why Vernon begs himself to be patient, fine, balanced, and kind. In the Bible, in Corinthians, love is defined:<br /> "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud"<br /> It matches up nicely with the chorus, so maybe Vernon wishes he could feel a true love for another.
I gotta say, I've listened to most of the versions of this song, and I have to say that Birdy's version is technically fine, but it just sounds like a sad girl singing a song. The version of this that Bon Iver sings on Jools is by far the best. He's not just sad, but he captures the essence of a failing relationship. You can just feel the anger, depression and desperation in his voice when he sings it. With that said, this is my interpretation.
First, I believe skinny love to just mean a relationship where the love has faded and the relationship is weak. But I believe the proper term should be "anorexic love", because he is trying to inject all the love he can into the relationship, but it seems as if she keeps rejecting it, and letting the love waste away.
Come on skinny love just last the year
**He may be talking to the figurative relationship, or he may be actually talking to his girl, but I think he's just begging for the relationship to last a little longer. He knows it won't work out because she can't nurture the love, so he's just begging that it last long enough so that he can prepare himself for the inevitable breakup.
Pour a little salt we were never here Staring at the sink of blood and crushed veneer
**They must have just had a big fight and hes just asking to pretend it never happened. Just pour salt to help the wound heal, and pretend they were never there fighting. Then he starts surveying that damage done in the relationship. Its like if you've been punched in the mouth, you run to the sink to wash up and you're spitting out blood and teeth into the sink. The interesting thing is veneer is what you use for fake teeth, but it's also a term to describe polishing something to make it look better than it really is.
So "crushed veneer" is also another was to say that his view of how good and awesome he may have thought the relationship was, has just been crushed.
I tell my love to wreck it all Cut out all the ropes and let me fall
****He knows the break is going to happen so he's trying tell himself to cut off his emotions and fall out of love so it won't hurt as bad.
Right in this moment this order's tall
***A tall order is another way of saying you are asking too much out of something. As much as he want's to cut his emotions, he know's it's not a feat he can accomplish. He loved her too much and knows he can't just fall out of love right on the spot.
And I told you to be patient And told you to be fine And I told you to be balanced And I told you to be kind
***These are the things he's been asking his love to do, and if she would just do them, the relationship would've lived and been perfect. Notice in this instance, kind means her just being nice to him, but then. . .
In the morning I'll be with you But it will be a different "kind"
****He knows when he wakes up the next morning with her, everything will be different. He'll be with her, but it will be a different "kind" of being with her. In other words, he'll be physically next to her, but not as a couple. Also it means that she will be kind to him, but not in a loving way, but more of a kindness that comes out of pity, because she is trying to let him down easy.
I'll be holding all the tickets And you'll be owning all the fines
***As someone else said, basically he's holding all the memories and punishments for the relationship, while she makes out like a bandit with the fine money so to speak. In other words, he left feeling shitty about what has happened, while she wont care as much and sees the break as getting her freedom back.
Come on skinny love what happened here Suckle on the hope in lite brassiere
***This one's kinda tough. I think he's just pleading with his love to feed off whatever little hope there is left in the relationship. Babies suckle, but if it's a light brassiere then that means there's not much in that bra to suck on. Basically, he's pleading with his love to just stay with him a little longer and just hope she will love him more.
Sullen load is full; so slow on the split
**Sullen means kinda like beat up and moving slow. So I think that's the skinny, malnourished love they had. They aren't breaking up in some passionate way, its just that the love is dying slowly, hence, slow on the splt (up).
And now all your love is wasted? And then who the hell was I?
****He's saying that if the breakup happens, any love she managed to have for him is wasted. He feels like her love was all that ever mattered, and that anything good he felt about himself was because of that great feeling being loved gives you, so he defined himself through her love and the relationship. As a result, if her love was just a big waste, what does that make him?
And now I'm breaking at the britches
***Him breaking at the britches just means he's falling apart now.
And at the end of all your lines
***Just imagine her as a metropolitan bus line and now he's at the end of any line that bus could take him. He can't even transfer to another bus because there are no more buses that will take him any further.
Who will love you? Who will fight? Who will fall far behind?
***Now he's just wondering who will love her and fight for her as hard as he was willing to, and he believes that most of the men she will date will just fall behind in deserving her love.
Anyways, this song is very personal to me because I went through pretty much the same emotions as he did about a year ago. Love sucks sometimes.
This is a spot-on interpretation.<br /> I will say that I always thought "Right in this moment, this order's tall" meant that he was ordering a "tall" drink at bar to attempt to escape his feelings through alcohol, but I like your way of reading it too.
Wow your interpretation actually brought me to tears because this song has been on repeat for me since about April when "the love of my life" left me.....I hear this song and it hits me hard and your interpretation was just dead on.
Thanks guys. This is one of those songs where you don't think too much about it until you wind up with the same emotional pain that I'm sure was felt when this song was written. Then you suddenly understand everything. I had that special one leave me too, and it really sucked.
This one nails it. Like you said, I think having gone through the experience yourself, you can relate to what the song is all about. I haven't been through anything like this but it's amazing to me that once you know what the singer is feeling, then all of a sudden everything makes sense. And as you said, if it's not the original author then I think you lose some of those emotions of why it was originally written. Once you know what the singer is feeling you don't have to try too hard to understand what's going on. Thanks for the help in understanding this song and I hope you two can move on and everything and not dwell too much in the past.
@parch I can relate to this. I've also lost my "love of my life" just recently. everything was on point<br />
@parch I think the part where it says “And now I’m breaking at the britches, and at the end of all your lines” means that he is falling apart, but also his heart breaks at everything she says to him. If you think of “lines” in terms of sentences, it sounds like he’s saying that everything she tells him hurts, because she doesn’t love him the way he does her, and it’s not genuine.
I believe this song is about a relationship where the singer is desperate for a relationship, any kind, even if it doesn't have love. And the other person wants the relationship to be more than that but is just as needy as he is and unable to end the relationship- in the end it's just a "skinny love" destined to end because it's starving for real affection from both of them.
Come on skinny love just last the year (He wants the relationship to last as long as possible)
Pour a little salt we were never here (Sowing salt is a way of making a land unplantable where nothing will/can grow, so hes saying that they're already such a shriveled small thing that it won't even matter, they were never really there to begin with)
Staring at the sink of blood and crushed veneer (Blood is considered symbolism for pain or experiencing pain and sometimes death while veneer is a covering, like a clear layer over the sink showing that on the outside they look together and happy but deep down the relationship is bringing more pain than happiness and he knows it but he can't stop)
I tell my love to wreck it all Cut out all the ropes and let me fall Right in the moment this order's tall (In these three lines he is telling her to end it, to just leave him and let him go because he can't, but he knows it's a hard order to fulfill for whatever reason)
And I told you to be patient And told you to be fine And I told you to be balanced And I told you to be kind (She does want him to love her, she feels she needs that love, and he's asking her to wait, to be patient and just stay okay for a little while and not judge him too harshly, to be fair and kind with him)
In the morning I'll be with you But it will be a different "kind" (Even though they're together and and in a sexual relationship he won't really be there, it's simply physical not emotional)
I'll be holding all the tickets And you'll be owning all the fines (She needs him to love her but he just can't so she technically has to pay for his faults and actions. He's getting the tickets and she has to pay for them)
Come on skinny love what happened here (He doesn't know where it all went wrong, because he just wanted to be happy and still hasn't found it. It's just becoming more and more painful and he doesn't know why)
Suckle on the hope in lite brassiere (She keeps hoping that it will turn around, that he'll love her because hes staying with her, that he'll find it in him to invest his love into the relationship)
Sullen load is full; so slow on the split (They both know they're not healthy for each other and they need to end it but both of them can't and it's making them both irritated with each other)
And now all your love is wasted? (She really did love him, and she wanted him to love her but he couldn't and now shes saying that she wasted it on him)
And then who the hell was I? (He knows he was using her but can't admit it, because he still needs to try and feel something, even though the relationship will bear no fruit)
And now I'm breaking at the britches (His pride is starting to shatter and fall apart) And at the end of all your lines (She confronts him and starts arguing with him and telling him they're over)
Who will love you? Who will fight? (These three lines are him playing at her insecurities, he need to feel/be loved as a last attempt to get her to stay, because as stated before, he feels this need to be in a relationship even if it's shallow)
Who will fall far behind? (This very last line is him basically saying, ok they're over, but now who will be able to move on first? Which one of them, with their issues, is going to be able to find love and which one will just end up stuck in the same "skinny love" relationship again with someone else.)
i think you are dead on with ur response.. sounds like you've been there and done that.. cause this is exactly how im feeling..
Sadly & beautifully said. So truthful it hurts. But in a way that's right, justified, wanted. You said it beyond well, Beleafing. The way you broke it down was fantastic. Tragic. But tragic can be beautiful. Is beautiful. And it was for me. As was this real lovely song. Thank you.
well in light of djfrisk's post this song takes on a whole new incredible meaning IMO, i still agree the song can legitimately be understood as shortandsweetem analyzed, altho to me the line "pour a little salt..." recalls conquerors sowing fields with salt to make the infertile, and so to sow the fledgling relationship with salt to kill in before it ever happens, which anticipates the cutting of the ropes
Now the other interpretation. Imagine that Bon Iver has had a terrible, horrible break up years ago and his "skinny love" is a new girl he is beginning to see. and it is also important that in this scenario bon iver's relationship with the skinny love is ruined by his long ago breakup
First, he hopes they can make it a whole year since it is so hard for him to keep a relationship together.
Then he TOLD her that SHE had to be the patient, balanced, etc. partner in the relationship. And in the morning he will be better, no longer haunted by the ghosts of the past that come out at night perhaps, and in this way the morning will be a different "kind" in quotes.
"suckle on the hope in lite brassiere" a wonderful line, combining maternal love (suckle) and conjugal love (lite brassiere) into an expression of how bon iver hopes that with this love he can bury his past.
now i propose that the speaker changes. I would argue that the lines from "now all your love is wasted..." until the end are spoken by ms. skinny love herself who does not understand bon iver's internal struggles.
his love has been wasted on his former love, no one will love him when is stuck in the past, no one can fight his past for him and he will fall far behind
this leaves the speaker of the the second appearance of the "i told you to be..." section interestingly ambiguous, it could be bon iver telling her again and again that he needs her to be the rock, or it could be ms. skinny love telling him that she needs a rock of her own.... who can tell? :)
Wonderful interpretation, it just makes so much sense! <br /> <br /> I just love the wonderful ambiguity in all of Bon Iver's songs and the fact that you can read so many things into them, even the presence of a female speaker.
i just very very resently lost my husband to suicied and this song is just amazing my son sent it too he says im strong and moving forward is going to be so very hard but listing to skinny love i can here my husband telling me to be patient and this hole in my chest well im holding all the pieces all my love feels wasted im not sure i just know that this song is very real to me
Beautifully done.
Beautifully done.
I love this interpretation, it brings an entirely new feeling to the song for me. It also works beautifully with the lines "And I'll be holding all the tickets / And you'll be owning all the fines." The damage done to him by this past relationship should be his alone to deal with and move on from, but instead he's transfered it to this new woman, and suddenly she's responsible for all the "fines" that he's racked up from his previous relationship. Whatever Justin Vernon's intention, the depth of interpretation this song allows just shows how remarkable his songwriting it. Beautiful, beautiful song.
Sagaxfilos, I think your interpretation makes a lot of sense... I just seem to always let this song be more about how one love always tends to be bigger than the rest, the future ones... he sings about skinny love, maybe that's not a name but simply weaker love(s)... It always seems to me he's hoping for these future skinny loves, however difficult, to get him out of ropes of the old one... Pour salt in his wound to eventually get him out of the pain... Yet, I just find that the song has a somewhat hopeless tone. 'In the morning I'll be with you, but it will be a different 'kind'... Even the quotes kinda mock the new loves... 'come on skinny love, just last the year' seems so desperate as well as the final phrases: 'who will love you, who will fight...'<br /> <br /> I really like your maternal/conjugal reference, which really also seems to underline what kind of love he's looking for to move him forward... maybe one more safe and stabile...<br /> <br /> I also think it's quite amazing the amount of guilt the song in my view contains... she's owning the fines, her love is wasted, 'who was I?'...<br /> <br /> Finally, 'staring at sink of love and crushed veneer'... I love this one, but I can't quite figure it out... perhaps just an image...?<br /> <br /> btw, try listening to this one... I think she really does the song justice: youtube.com/watch
Love this one. Thanks to whoever-you-are for getting these lyrics up so quickly.
A lot has been said about this song, but it's one of my favorites ever, so I figured I'd put down my thoughts.
His heart has been broken, smashed into a million pieces. But Skinny Love isn't about the one who broke his heart. He's trying to find something in new relationships now, but is unable to. He's pretty much at rock bottom. He pleads with his new girl, "skinny love" to just last the year. He needs someone, he hasn't had a meaningful relationship since his heart was broken. But he knows it's his fault. "Cut out all the ropes and let me fall:" forget it, it's not going to happen, and it wouldn't be easy, "this order's tall." It's a tall order to try to deal with him right now in this state.
In the first chorus, I think this "skinny love" is speaking to him. She tells him to be patient and kind and maybe this will work. But she knows it won't, and in the morning, she'll be a different "kind." Not a genuine kindness like before, but a false, pity sort of kindness. She's leaving. She holds the "tickets," a list of all of his faults and mistakes, and he is left to work through them alone, to "pay the fines."
He is speaking again and asks her "What happened here?". Now he's really at the bottom. He has his heart broken again, this time essentially by himself, and is as full of sadness as he could be. "Sullen load is full."
Then I think in the next chorus he is speaking to himself. "I told you to be patient...fine...balanced...kind." You need to be those things for a relationship to work. Then in his despair, he addresses the original heartbreaker. "Who the hell was I?" Maybe he was cheated on. He's broken, and it's all her fault. He realizes how broken he really is, and why "skinny love" didn't last.
I imagine him looking in the mirror and asking himself: "Who will love you? Who will fight? Who will fall far behind?" If someone is going to really love his broken soul, they're going to have to fight for it. They're going to have to fall behind in life to go pick him up out of the hole he has fell/dug into. Is there anyone out there who will fight that hard for him?
THIS SONG IS NOT ABOUT ANOREXIA. Have you people ever heard of a Metaphor? Imagery anyone?
To me, this song is about someone in a relationship that is dying, and is barely holding together, hence "come on Skinny Love just last the year" the love they have is barely there, and he wants to hold on to it.
"I tell my love to wreck it all, Cut out all the ropes and let me fall"; He wants to end the relationship, wants her to leave him, but neither of them can bring themselves to do it, they keep coming back to one another.
"And I told you to be patient And told you to be fine And I told you to be balanced And I told you to be kind"
He's telling her how to make the relationship last as long as it can, and they are both trying to sort it out, and end it, to clear up their feelings.
"In the morning I'll be with you But it will be a different "kind""; They have once again reconciled, and their attempts to end the relationship have failed, they wake up together, and this was not what he meant by being "kind", he meant have a gentle break up, but she has been "kind" to him in the romantic sense, taken pity on him, and got back together with him.
"I'll be holding all the tickets And you'll be owning all the fines"; He will accuse her of different reasons they keep getting back together, and she will be owing him apologies in his eyes.
"Come on skinny love what happened here"; He's asking their strained relationship what happened, their love used to be a "Well rounded love", but now it is a "Skinny Love"
"Suckle on the hope in lite brassiere"; They keep getting physically intimate, and he is hoping that they can make it work each time, but it only shows how they are attracted to each other physically but not emotionally.
"so slow on the split"; They are taking too long to split up and stay apart, instead they are trying to drain the relationship dry of any affection, when he thinks they should just be moving on.
"And now all your love is wasted? And then who the hell was I?"; All the love she put into their relationship at the start is wasted, as they have dragged out the relationship and ruined it. He's asking himself, "Who was I?" because he used to be so in love with her, and all that love is gone, and he cant figure out how to get it back.
"And now I'm breaking at the britches" He's illustrating how sexual their relationship is now, and all the emotion has gone out of it, he's not thinking with his head, but only his body, just acting on his lust for her, and not thinking about moving on.
"And at the end of all your lines";When she has grown old. "Who will love you?"; She is scared to be alone, that's why she can't to move on from him, she can't bear the idea of growing old alone, without being with someone.
"Who will fight?" Who else is going to fight to keep their relationship together? He has made so much effort to fix their relationship, she doesn't know if she's ever going to find anyone again that will fight that much for her.
"Who will fall far behind?" Which one of them is going to be crushed in the end? Which one of them will be left behind by the other? They are both fighting to keep ahead.
I know many people feel this is about illness, but I believe a strained relationship is illness enough. To me, many of Bon Iver's works speak of little, barely tangible tragedies in life.
that is an awesome interpretation of this song. i totally agree
I think it could be about an anorexic, too. I often thought it is but then I thought that this song is too popular for this theme... Not like Superchick or Silverchair.... I dont know but of course it would be the first interpretation after listening....
"It’s about that time in a relationship that I was going through; you’re in a relationship because you need help, but that’s not necessarily why you should be in a relationship. And that’s skinny. It doesn’t have weight. Skinny love doesn’t have a chance because it’s not nourished.” - Bon Iver
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Amen. Took the words right out of my mouth. When the person doesn't excite you; you don't want them when you are high; you feel you need them; and you only want them when you're down, it's NOT love. It's not anything but manipulative and cruel. When Rip Van W awakened from his long nap, the first person who entered his mind (the one he wanted to be with) is who he desired. THAT is honesty. Good song. Love the artist.
It accompanies Hinder's Lips of An Angel so beautifully, which the DJ's already spinning somewhere. Happy Friday. Happy Weekend, Everyone. Facing reality after so much time is oddly freeing. Yes, good song and artist.
Oh, but how well Franz F's Cheating on You accompanies it. LOL. We all need to go to Brazil to learn how to live and appreciate music:)