So, it's sad that doesn't suit you now.
And me fresh out of rope
Please ignore this lisp,
I never meant to sound like this.
So take me and break me
And make me strong like you.
I'll be forever grateful to this and you.

It's only you, beautiful.
Or I don't want anyone.
If I can choose it's only you.

Fix me to a chain around your neck
And wear me like a nickel.
Even new wine served in old skins
Will cheapen the taste.
I shot the pilot,
Now I'm begging you to fly this for me.
I'm here for you to use,
broken and bruised.
Do you understand?

It's only you, beautiful.
Or don't want anyone.
If I can choose,
It's only you.
But how could I miscalculate
Perfect eyes will have perfect hate.
If I can choose, it's only you.

â??We're wreckingâ??
And I'm dry like a drum
So fine I'll leave
We're spent
Take our time
Measured
We slave for days.

It's only you, beautiful.
Or I don't want anyone.
If I can choose.
It's only you.
But how could I miscalculate
Perfect lies from a perfect hate.
If I can choose
It's only you.



Lyrics submitted by BrandNew1208

Track duration: 04:32

"The No Seatbelt Song" as written by Jesse Lacey, Brian Lane

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Lyrics powered by LyricFind


The No Seatbelt Song song meanings
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182 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:If there's any one band that I'd like to have the chance to sit down and chat about their lyrics, I think it might be Brand New.

    I can't say that I know what they mean exactly in this song, but I would guess that, despite what most of the commenters here seem to think about the song, it probably has little, if anything, to do with a romantic, boyfriend/girlfriend sort of relationship. Like a lot of Brand New's lyrics, this song is full of Christian/Biblical references, though you'd have to be pretty familiar with Christian culture and the Bible to catch a lot of them.

    The most obvious religious references are in the second verse. "Fix me to a chain and wear me like a nickel" is a likely reference to wearing crucifixes, an idea which is reinforced by the next line talking about new wine in old wineskins—as another poster pointed out, this is directly from parables told by Jesus in the Bible, which were based on Jewish traditions (here's the same link to the Wikipedia page that the other user supplied: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/…). It would be hard to argue that Lacey was referencing anything else in that line, though the intended effect of the reference is not as easy to understand. The next line, "I shot the pilot, now I'm begging you to fly this for me," might be alluding to the once-popular Christian bumper sticker "God is my co-pilot," and the last line of that verse, which is a recurring theme throughout the song, "I'm here for you to use, broken and bruised," echoes popular sentiments in modern protestant Christian churches (I'm not sure about other denominations), though it could be interpreted a couple different ways.

    On one hand, in the King James version of the Bible, in 1 Corinthians 11:24 Paul, describing what Jesus did and said at the last supper, says "And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me." This verse is often quoted when churches observe communion. In that sense, Lacey could be describing the main character as Jesus saying the line, although given the wider context of the album and the surrounding lyrics, if this is the case, Lacey's depiction of Jesus would be quite different than the popular Christian view.

    Another way to look at it would be as the Christian depiction of humanity at large. A lot of protestant Christian pedagogy talks about humanity as a 'broken vessel,' something battered and beaten by an inborn sinful human nature and corrupted world, needing to be fixed or refined by Christ (e.g., schultze.org/…). Sometimes this language is taken further, describing a need for Christians to become broken (be humbled, essentially) so that they can become less reliant on themselves and more reliant on Christ. The line from the first verse, "So take me and break me and make me strong like you," fits in with this idea very well; I almost think I've heard that exact line before somewhere else, perhaps in a Christian song.

    Judging by the rest of the lyrics, I'm guessing the first interpretation is more likely correct, that Lacey is depicting Jesus as the protagonist saying those lines. If I'm right, though, I think Lacey is turning the traditional Christian language on its head by reversing the roles—having a, perhaps tired and worn out, Jesus have this conversation with a modern would-be follower.

    Lines like "It's only you, beautiful" could also be a reference to pop Christian rhetoric, which, though it might sound strange if you haven't heard it before, often talks about the church being the "bride" of Christ (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/…).

    As I said at the beginning, I really don't have any ideas about the exact meaning of the song, and I think it's definitely possible that Lacey is using these references to describe a non-religious relationship, but I think it's very clear that there's a lot of religious referencing going on. As a guess, I think it sounds like Lacey is likening Jesus to someone whose love abandoned him, leaving him shattered.
    Flag WellThenon April 02, 2013   Link
  • +1
    My Interpretation:So I was just watching the Daisy Session versions of a few songs, and it got me reminiscing with Brand New. They've always had amazing songs, and I've always loved them. I've been listening to songs super closely, and reading along with the lyrics in front of me and I realized something I never saw before. To me, it looks like the first two lines of the song were added sometime after the song was first written. It was a song that had been written about how he was ALMOST giving up, and wanted help not to. Then, the first two lines were added after he finally DID give up. He says "It's so sad, this doesn't suit you now, and me (I'm) fresh out of rope". As in "When I first wrote this, it fit, but I don't really mean it anymore". I don't know, maybe it's just me.
    Flag LintzPCon January 20, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:to be honest, i think it's about someone being hurt pretty bad, but they still love the person. when you truly love someone sometimes you just can get over them no matter how bad they hurt you, and you'll always want them regardless of what they've done. you'll take the abuse and the pain as long as your with them as stupid as it may seem, but love can do that sort of stuff to you. also it could basically be a song about the guy who f***ed things up with the girl hes in love with, and he only wants her but she doesnt want him back now, and hes basically saying you can abuse him and use him and do whatever you want with him cause he jsut wants her back.
    Flag juju77on January 06, 2010   Link
  • 0
    Song Meaning:"The No Seatbelt Song" meaning, in the vehicle of his heart he has no control of the outcomes. He wants the one he loves to grab the wheel. <-- "I shot the pilot I'm begging you to fly this for me"


    "I never meant to sound like this So take me and break me And make me strong like you I'll be forever grateful to this and you" saying this wasn't his plan for them but he has given in to her childish actions. Begging her to make him like her, because he knows he has only her in his heart and it makes a soft spot he can't control. He wishes she can teach him the ways apparently she knows all too well.

    "It's only you, beautiful Or I don't want anyone If I can choose It's only you"
    Those lines are perfectly showing how much control she has over his ever emotion. Hoping somewhere in her heart will click and stop all of this someday.

    "But how could I miscalculate Perfect eyes will have perfect aim" best lines in the song... showing how blinding true love is, his love for her is a perfect calculation and measurement, her Perfect meaning Beautiful eyes WILL definitely direct her into him, in her aim.

    His heart is the only thing left in his whole body. He believes She will see someday how much he loves her. Hoping by believing she will lend him to the wheel of her heart as well.
    Flag greatjobon November 19, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Love this song shows so much emotion. To me is about a relationship that went bad because of the guys dumb jealousy because the girl cheated on him, so he couldn't take it and asked her to break up with him and now the guy is trying so hard to show how much he does love this girl by proving his love by words, poems, actions but she does not see how hard he is trying. He trys and trys and wants her so bad and will not want any other girl except her.now he is broken down wants her back even after all the shit she did to him. He just wants something anything that belongs to him to be on her any memory or object. She won't never get it, she won't never see the how hard he is trying to win her back. So he will sit and watch. That what the song means to me.
    Flag enjoiTBSon September 27, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I want to know why he coughs at the end of the song, does it have any relevance to the song at all?
    Flag maddyjadeon June 02, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:xvxfatmacxvx - i know how you feel!!
    Flag clandestine8on May 11, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:how do I tell some one,
    I can't tell her because its a really completed situation but its true,I don't want anyone one if I can't have her in my life (even as a friend) I would do anything for this girl she is one of the few people in my life who I truly can say that I love. and she is not in my life right now.
    I just want to tell her "I'm here for you to use, broken and bruised
    Do you understand?

    It's only you beautiful, or I don't want anyone
    If I can choose it's only you"

    I am so lost with out her and this song literally makes me brake down what the fuck can I do guys?

    Flag xvxfatmacxvxon May 05, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I believe this song is about someone who is in love with someone obviously. So much that they want nobody else but that person. Maybe it doesn't work out between them or so he/she thinks. I also see it as Brand New is describing how this person finds the one they love so perfect and maybe if he/she were like them, then maybe the one they love would love them back. :]
    Flag SyntheticLieon February 02, 2009   Link
  • +2
    General Comment:he shouldn't be in this relationship because it means more to him than it does for her, he has his own problems to deal with, yet he's so enticed by her, he becomes completely selfless.
    Flag snowfacedgirlon December 07, 2008   Link

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