I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
Mm-noom-ba-deh
Doom-boom-ba-beh
Doo-boo-boom-ba-beh-beh
Pressure pushin' down on me
Pressin' down on you, no man ask for
Under pressure that brings a building down
Splits a family in two, puts people on streets
Mm-ba-ba-beh, mm-ba-ba-beh
Dee-day-da, ee-day-da
That's okay
That's the terror of knowing what this world is about
Watchin' some good friends screamin', "Let me out"
Pray tomorrow gets me higher
Pressure on people, people on streets
Da-da-da, mm-mm
Da-da-da-ba-bum
Okay
Chippin' around, kick my brains 'round the floor
These are the days it never rains but it pours
Ee-doh-ba-buh, ee-da-ba-ba-bop
Mm-bo-bop, beh-lup
People on streets, ee-da-dee-da-day
People on streets, ee-da-dee-da-dee-da-dee-da
It's the terror of knowing what this world is about
Watching some good friends screaming, "Let me out"
Pray tomorrow gets me higher, higher, high
Pressure on people, people on streets
Turned away from it all like a blind man
Sat on the fence but it don't work
Keep comin' up with love but it's so slashed and torn
Why, why, why?
Love
Insanity laughs under pressure we're breaking
Can't we give ourselves one more chance?
Why can't we give love that one more chance?
Why can't we give love, give love, give love, give love
Give love, give love, give love, give love?
'Cause love's such an old-fashioned word
And love dares you to care for
The people on the edge of the night
And love dares you to change our way of
Caring about ourselves
This is our last dance
This is our last dance
This is ourselves
Under pressure
Under pressure
Pressure
Doom-boom-ba-beh
Doo-boo-boom-ba-beh-beh
Pressure pushin' down on me
Pressin' down on you, no man ask for
Under pressure that brings a building down
Splits a family in two, puts people on streets
Mm-ba-ba-beh, mm-ba-ba-beh
Dee-day-da, ee-day-da
That's okay
That's the terror of knowing what this world is about
Watchin' some good friends screamin', "Let me out"
Pray tomorrow gets me higher
Pressure on people, people on streets
Da-da-da, mm-mm
Da-da-da-ba-bum
Okay
Chippin' around, kick my brains 'round the floor
These are the days it never rains but it pours
Ee-doh-ba-buh, ee-da-ba-ba-bop
Mm-bo-bop, beh-lup
People on streets, ee-da-dee-da-day
People on streets, ee-da-dee-da-dee-da-dee-da
It's the terror of knowing what this world is about
Watching some good friends screaming, "Let me out"
Pray tomorrow gets me higher, higher, high
Pressure on people, people on streets
Turned away from it all like a blind man
Sat on the fence but it don't work
Keep comin' up with love but it's so slashed and torn
Why, why, why?
Love
Insanity laughs under pressure we're breaking
Can't we give ourselves one more chance?
Why can't we give love that one more chance?
Why can't we give love, give love, give love, give love
Give love, give love, give love, give love?
'Cause love's such an old-fashioned word
And love dares you to care for
The people on the edge of the night
And love dares you to change our way of
Caring about ourselves
This is our last dance
This is our last dance
This is ourselves
Under pressure
Under pressure
Pressure
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
I'm pretty sure this song is referring to the pressure of love. It's about how nobody is immune to the pain love can cause; the world is about love and sometimes relationships can be very hurtful
"It's the terror of knowing what this world is about Watching some good friends screaming "Let me out!""
He sees all the pain associated with love, and his own love is "slashed and torn," so he tries to turn "Away from it all like a blind man".
But at the end, he realizes you can't turn your back on love, despite the pain. You have to love people and care for them even if you've been hurt; you have to give love one more chance.
@Apoll0 I don't think this is particularly about love... Bowie probable found himself under pressure to be the pop icon the Chameleon always expected to change and still produce Popular Art... Everybody is under pressure to conform to society norm, as you realizes what the world is all about ....
David Bowie + Freddie Mercury = Most Androgenous Song in Existence.
Though I really really like it and I hate that bastard Vanilla Ice for ripping off the bass. Jerk.
I think most generally the song is about the pressure of conformity and status quo. The pressure is killing us, it's driving us against each and destroying us, but all it takes to get rid of the pressure is to show some genuine love for other people for being who they are. However, showing such love will upset the status quo, and it would require us to move past our own lives, so the same pressure is preventing us from showing simple love.
@Ganondox completely true, have you seen the movie called "Its Kind of Funny Story"? watch it and tell me....
@Ganondox I think you nailed it!
@Ganondox I want you to know that, out of everybody's theories that I've read, only yours comes close to what I've discovered this song means. You should feel very proud for seeing that. <br /> I'm going to be going into depth on the meaning on The Laughing Matters (thelaughingmatters.com) episode 14 if you are interested in hearing my theory, but it kind of requires the other theories as well (other episodes). At any rate, good on you.
This song was playing when we relaunched SongMeanings!
@mike What a beautiful way to send it out, Mike!
This song always gets me... "keep coming up with love but it's so slashed and torn..." We've torn up the meaning of the word "love" but we need to give it one more chance, even it "dares you to care for the people on the edge of the night" such as the homeless and sick... but "this is our last dance." We're all under pressure but we need to still care for those people and ourselves.
It's Freddie's song. It was destined to be good :)
@infiniteentropy In many performances, particularly the Freddie tribute, Bowie changes this lyric to "Keep coming up for air, but it's so slashed and torn.." I wonder if this is a function of his memory troubles, or deliberate. I hope it's a mistake, because this has gotta be one of the most beautiful and impactful lyrics of all time!
I can't believe, after all these 15 years, this song still sounds so powerful and deeply moving at the same time. the kind of music that you unfortunately seem hard to get from those so-called "mainstream" artists/musicians nowadays (ie: those you see or hear constantly on TV and radio, especially MTV, ouch!).
@dinkot WHY NOT Great art is always Great art...
@dinkot WHY NOT Great art is always Great art...
i love this song but the funny thing is that ive never really thought about what it meant because im usually too busy singing it in my car
I think this song is about depression and suicide. It seems to switch back and forth between someone dealing with depression, and a friend watching them deal with it.
"Pressure pushing down on me Pressing down on you no man ask for Under pressure that brings a building down Splits a family in two Puts people on streets"
This means the pressure of life effects everyone. The repeating of "under pressure" throughout the song is the constant bombardment of stress and pressure in life.
"It's the terror of knowing What the world is about Watching some good friends Screaming 'Let me out'"
Seeing the horrors of the world. Of a friend try to kill themselves.
"Pray tomorrow gets me higher Pressure on people people on streets"
Always hoping tomorrow will make you feel better. Always hoping you can get out of this rut. Again pressure of life effects everyone "people on streets".
"Chippin' around - kick my brains around the floor These are the days it never rains but it pours"
Suicide by gun to the head and depression because everything seems worse than it really is. It's really raining, but you think it's pouring.
"Turned away from it all like a blind man Sat on a fence but it don't work Keep coming up with love but it's so slashed and torn"
Trying to ignore the horror of the world. Siting on the fence is no knowing what to do. So you do nothing, but it's not working in making you feel better. Or doing nothing didn't work in saving someone from suicide. Trying to connect to a person with depression with love, but your love you try to give them just ends up getting mutilated by their world.
"Love love love love love Insanity laughs under pressure we're breaking Can't we give ourselves one more chance Why can't we give love that one more chance Why can't we give love give love give love give love"
I think "love" means "love of self" in some ways. People keep trying to help us, and we keep trying to help ourselves, but Insanity (depression) laughs as we're breaking. We break under pressure. Why can't we give love of ourselves, others, and life another chance?
"'Cause love's such an old fashioned word"
Love is something old fashioned because we haven't felt it in a long time. Love is something that isn't common anymore.
"And love dares you to care for The people on the (People on streets) edge of the night And loves (People on streets) dares you to change our way of Caring about ourselves"
Love for other people makes you reach out for people on the edge of the night Night means death or suicide. Love for others dares you to care about yourself. Self preservation.
"This is our last dance This is our last dance"
The last time you see someone before they kill themselves. Or the last time you have ever felt happiness.
"This is ourselves"
This is ourselves. This is you, and you only. Meaning we are by ourselves. We are alone dealing with this alone. You can't change yourself. You feel hopeless. (Ever hear the expression no one can change you but you?) But only you can change your outlook on life.
"Under pressure Under pressure Pressure"
I think this is the moment someone is on the verge of killing themselves, but it seems ambiguous to me whether or not they go through with it. The song of life is "under pressure". Perhaps death is giving into "pressure". Or perhaps the person has decided that they are no longer under pressure (depression) and that there is just pressure in the world.
I know queen did another song on suicide, but this is my interpretation, and the lyrics line up pretty good I think. I listened to it extensively when my life was at it's worst. Music was the only thing that made me feel better. But only when I got out of depression, did I realize the meaning of this song and why it had such a connection to me.
@skessinger I appreciate you sharing that. I think that there is an element of wanting out of this pressure to disassociate from each other, to reduce our compassion, to distrust one another on a base level... but I disagree with it being specifically about that as the encompassing message. I believe you saw the direness that is implied regarding that we are killing ourselves with this pressure not to care, but to still look like we care...<br /> But it wouldn't be this website if there was only one way to view the song lol<br />
To me, this is a cynic (Bowie's vocal) arguing with a romantic (Mercury's vocal). They both realise that the world is in jepardy, but the cynic is dismissing the romantic's notion of salvation and love. In the end, the cynic has nothing new to say, only to point out the hopelessness of life, while the romantic tries to find meaning and happiness.
I'd never thought of it in the way ChildofMusic and prilla1206 say, but that makes sense, thinking about the lyrics and the differences between Mercury and Bowie's parts.
I'd heard somewhere that the song was originally to be called "People on the Streets", and that line features heavily in the song. So, I wonder if this is about our attitudes to the "undesirables" in society - the people on streets etc., that our world throws out. The conflict between Bowie and Mercury then becomes about how we treat this people: Freddie sings "can't we give love one more chance", we need to love these people? But Bowie's words point out what that means: love as a word is easy to say, but it has vast implications, i.e. "love dares you to care for the people on the edge of the night and... change our way of caring about ourselves". There's almost a challenge in these words: are we up to it?
Agree that this is a great song and Vanilla Ice's rip-off is horrendous.