Lyrics for In the Backseat as interpreted by drinkmilk

In the Backseat Lyrics
I like the peace
In the backseat
I don't have to drive
I don't have to speak
I can watch the countryside
And I can fall asleep

My family tree's
Losing all its leaves
Crashing towards the driver's seat
The lightning bolt made enough heat
To melt the street beneath your feet

Alice died
In the night
I've been learning to drive
My whole life
I've been learning

I like the peace
In the backseat
I don't have to drive
I don't have to speak
I can watch the countryside

Alice died
In the night
I've been learning to drive
My whole life
I've been learning
Oh, Norah!

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special 3lend
10-01-2004

Rated 0 
what a beautiful song. arcade fire is so awesome.

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ieatseeds
11-01-2004

Rated 0 
holy crap, holy crap. this song is like, oh my lord. when i first heard it, and she sand "i've been learning to drive my whole life..." i was like....so consumed! with.... i dont know what! i got chills and my heart palpitated and i couldn't breathe and i wanted to cry but knew i must'nt. it is simply a song, no need to get ridiculous.

but ah, this song demonstrates what i love most about music--- it's ability to stop me dead in my tracks.

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potato43
11-29-2004

Rated 0 
I've never heard a song let loose quite like this one does at the end. Make a point to see these guys live before they explode. It's one of the best shows you'll ever see, not that I'm an expert but, but, well, you've heard the music.

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getaccused
11-30-2004

Rated 0 
Wow...I listened to this song for the first time all the way through just now (I used to skip this and stick with my favorite tracks - Laika, Haiti, Wake Up) and...it sent shivers down my spine. Just...brilliant.

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NightNeverSleeps
12-01-2004

Rated 0 
to me, the "backseat" is a metaphor for living a life that you are no longer in control of emotionally.

the imagery of a family tree "losing its leaves" and the line "alice died," seemed to suggest that a family member of hers has died ( i imagine a younger sister or something). after this, the speaker in the song simply can't function and spends her life in the "backseat," letting other people make decisions for her because she simply doesnt care anymore. the fact that the speaker watches dreamily from a window while other people are "driving" her, and also the word "asleep" imply more passivity.

as for "i've been learning to drive my whole life," maybe this traumatic event (a sibling or other family member dying) happened when she was very young and she never recovered from it. she's been gradually learning how to cope but she still isn't ready to take the wheel.

i could be completely wrong about the details, but nevertheless this is a beautiful song.

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guiltycubiclez
12-19-2004

Rated 0 
She needs to sing on more of their songs.

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MaxWasHere
12-30-2004

Rated 0 
Think about it: everybody over the age of 20 is expected to drive, but remember when you were a kid and your parents drove you everywhere? I like the peace in the backseat.

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doughbro
01-13-2005

Rated -1 
i love this song, like the entire rest of this album, typing this along with everyone else's comments almost seems conformist, but jesus, i just listen to this song and i just step out of reality for a brief period of time and kind of float in this little bubble of happiness.

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wannabelle
01-17-2005

Rated +1 
when i first heard this song it was kinda late at night, the day i had gotten the cd and i figured i would give it a try. i zoned out for a lot of it but this song just caught my attention, because it was the girl singing or because it was at the end of the disc., i don't know.
you know those songs that just fit perfectly with the mood of a movie or something, the kind that just wanna make you cry or laugh or have fun along with the movie? this song can give you that feeling, without the movie itself. when it ended I was like "woah, what just happened??"
i agree that its about possibly loss of a family member, ut i thought it was more about coming of age, perhaps reluctantly gaining responsibility, but not shirking it because she doesnt care.
i have no real evidence for that, its just what i thought about the lyrics. when i first heard it. maybe just the fact that she says "I've been learning to drive" as if she has known that this was coming, and doesnt want to grow up or take on some certain position or responsibility, but knows that she will have to sometime soon, because suddenly the "leaves" of her family are falling; perhaps a kind of loss of innocence thing.
but its weird that the song itself makes me happy but its idea is so depressing...

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wannabelle
01-17-2005

Rated 0 
^ wow, i just realized that that was full of typos, but you get the idea...

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room101
01-23-2005

Rated 0 
Kinda what wannabelle said. I think the family member who passed on in the song was someone she was heavily influenced by and/or had played a major role in her life. The line about learning to drive is learning to live with out this family member as she grew up and became more independant. In this song, she misses the role that person played in her life, remembering fondly the passiveness of when that person influenced or played the role in her life. At the end, she realizes she must learn to live with out.

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erolsabadosh
01-23-2005

Rated 0 
To me it's about growing up, coping with loss and learning to survive. Beautiful.

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snocat
01-25-2005

Rated 0 
I think in the beginning Alice is reminiscing her young life where everything is peaceful and there is always a driver under control or speaker that says what she wants (parents). But as time goes by ("My family tree's loosing all it's leaves, crashing towards the driver's seat,"), she needs to take control herself and begins to grow. Then once she takes control learning to drive herself, her old self died (Alice died in the night, I've been learning to drive. ). Then she starts to reminiscence of the previous 'Alice', and then reminds herself of the new 'Alice'.

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snocat
01-25-2005

Rated 0 
To me, this song is about when we are older, we think back and remember being the carefree child we all are. Then when we finally take control, we really start to learn the real side of life. Thus starting the climb of a steep mountain of learning with no goal in sight ("My whole life,
I've been learning.").

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snocat
01-25-2005

Rated 0 
Thus starting the climb of a steep mountain of learning with no signs of the end of learning is what i mean. Take out 'no goal in sight'.

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DarkerShadeofWinter
02-02-2005

Rated 0 
this song is so tragic and sad, but thats why its beautiful.

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bfleety
02-10-2005

Rated 0 
First, everyone should go out and purchase the actual album, because it is one of the best of 2004. Also, you learn alot about the band in the inner pamphlet. It isn't the normal Jewel case insert... it looks identical to a funeral program. In it you read "When family members kept dying they (Arcade Fire) realized that they should call their record 'Funeral.'" Also, the album is dedicated in memory of 9 individuals. Two of which bear the last name 'Chassagne' and one is named 'Alice.' Regine Chassagne is the female vocalist for Arcade Fire. So now I come to the song meaning, it is about the death of Regine's mother Alice. The backseat is a metaphor for control in her life. She used to always have someone (the driver) to look up to in her life, and didn't necessarily have to make any tough decisions on her own. Now, with the death of her mother, she has "crashed into the driver's seat" and now needs to take control of her own life. Her entire life, she's been learning how to mature and be independent, and now she's almost forced to grow up. But hey, what do I know? Your guess is as good as mine. Spread the word, these guys rock. See them live and you'll know what I'm talking about.

P.S. Anyone care to explain "the lightening bolt made enough heat to melt the street beneath your feet"

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incubus4ever
02-15-2005

Rated 0 
I can't wait to see these guys at Coachella. This song is really sad. I think everyone is right about the metaphors...the lightning bolt line might be like something happening unexpectedly (like a death) and all of a sudden you don't have the support of the street beneath you...something like that. All I know is that her voice is beautiful.

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Nimbus the Kitten
02-17-2005

Rated 0 
I saw them play this live; It was their last song. At the end, when the humming replaces the words, the band walked off stage playing their instruments. We, the audience, thought this meant the show was over. It was amazing, purely. But then the band came out through a side door, still playing this song, and proceeded to walk amongst the crowd. I don't think anyone moved, or said a word. It was an impossible dream, that became reality. What. a. fucking. concert.

One can tell when the band they are seeing is truly, truly into the music that they are playing. And the Arcade Fire is seriously into their music. Makes for a great show, and makes the audience happy to be there watching them.

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kimber
03-23-2005

Rated 0 
my theme song.

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kathrynlh
03-25-2005

Rated 0 
Damn. thats all i can say. This song is...damn. so good. the way she lets go at the end. damn.

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noonesown
03-29-2005

Rated 0 
Although I think the Arcade Fire's overrated, and sadly caught up in this mainstream indie revolution (damn mtv/kroq ruins everything for money), this song..

Well. It's a piece of work. Amazing, astounding, incredible. Very.. I guess, 'true.'

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newkicks
04-07-2005

Rated 0 
bfleety, I agree with what you said.

No, the arcade fire is NOT overrated..I dont know ONE person who knows them apart from me. Theyre CD is amazing..simply amazing. Theyre live shows are unbelievable.

bfleety, I think "the lightening bolt made enough heat to melt the street beneath your feet" was when her mother (Alice) died..maybe she died in a car crash or something like that. Régine is pretty young, so I dont think Alice died of old age. The phrase could be her mother is just drifting away, and she just slowly passed away into the "street". What a haunting song.

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newkicks
04-07-2005

Rated 0 
Oh and by the way, at the end of the song Régine says "Oh Norah!" :)

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regretably
05-03-2005

Rated 0 
i also think this song is about losing a family member, as well, for the reasons previously stated. i thought the driving also represented how her not driving doesn't make her responsible for the incident. i think NightNeverSleeps' analysis is pretty accurate though.

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