Hey Miss Murder, can I
Hey Miss Murder, can I
Make beauty stay if I
Take my life?

With just a look they shook
And heavens bowed before him
Simply a look can break your heart

The stars that pierce the sky
He left them all behind
We're left to wonder why
He left us all behind

Hey Miss Murder, can I
Hey Miss Murder, can I
Make beauty stay if I
Take my life?

Dreams of his crash won't pass
Oh, how they all adored him
Beauty will last when spiraled down

The stars that mystify
He left them all behind
And how his children cry
He left us all behind

Hey Miss Murder, can I
Hey Miss Murder, can I
Make beauty stay if I
Take my life?

What's the hook, the twist, within this verbose mystery?
I would gladly bet my life upon it
That the ghost you love, your ray of light will fizzle out
Without hope
We're the empty set, just flowing through, wrapped in skin
Ever-searching for what we were promised
Reaching for that golden ring we'd never let go
But who would ever let us put our filthy hands upon it?

Hey Miss Murder, can I
Hey Miss Murder, can I
Make beauty stay if I
Take my life?

Hey Miss Murder, can I
Hey Miss Murder, can I
Make beauty stay if I
Take my life?



Lyrics submitted by Imber

Track duration: 03:27


Miss Murder song meanings
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442 Comments

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  • 0
    My Interpretation:songmeanings.net/songs/view/3530822107858588589/
    (If the link isn't doing what I want, it is to NobodyImportant's analysis. It should be on the 6th page after mine. I think it does well.)



    Given that Davey, the singer and lyricist of AFI, went to a Catholic school, I don't find the presence of religious imagry odd. Given how much of his writing incorporates it, I consider it more of a metaphor for a part of the message he his trying to get accross. It is similar to how a word itself has history and stems, but what it means is only loosely related to each stem's meaning.

    What I see in these lyrics is a person who is well regarded. Not nessicarily a superstar or a leader of many, but anyone with some kind of superficial favor or talent. This person does not believe they are all that they are percieved to be, and they will ultimately break the illusion. Out of a combination of self-loathing, fear (of both not being good enough and of it's consequences), and a desire to be viewed favorably, the speaker debates committing suicide. He likely percieves himself to have peaked. Metaphors in the song have to do with martyrs, and that is what he hopes to attain through his suicide in addition to freedom from his life.

    I don't think the Nazi-esque imagry of the video is as significant as many have made it out to be. It is a very effective way of showing a detached leader held high above his mindless, rigid, stubborn and demanding followers. I find the banners to be more telling. They represent a mask and a barrier between the followers and leader. The followers may not even know Davey is on the roof. They certainly do not care what he has to say, as they go on roboticly.



    (What I know about Davey swould suggest that he is the person debating suicide... but I may be wrong. It may be only a character.)
    Flag Tilyron January 02, 2013   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation:It seems to me that this song is about the allure of suicide and death. Miss Murder is death itself (maybe that's why it switches between referring to it as a male and female- death has no gender?). He even seems to rationalize his death by asking for beauty to remain if he dies. He's sacrificing himself in his mind, but those left behind just wonder what led him to it. The world is dark and not at all what he was promised, so he kills himself to "be with" Miss Murder and hopefully leave behind some beauty for those who knew him.

    The idea that if he dies beauty can stay implies that he views himself as an ugly thing as well.
    Flagged MadamDarkmatteron February 24, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I honestly thinks it's about a family of two kids and a father, and the father was famous, or respected. This father dies in a crash of some sort, and the kids are sad.
    Flag NotaShattyFatmason July 12, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Alot of people have suggested and me aswell that the song is about someone who is good looking and young and they want to be that good looking for ever so suicide will keep him from aging
    "may buety stay if i take my life"
    Flag SpikedYumon December 28, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:This song is about questioning Jesus:

    "He left us all behind"

    He's going after, screwing, or dating a christian girl and he's saying "If I kill myself like Jesus did then will that make you happy?"

    He's trying to convince her that Jesus is horrible for leaving.

    But he's not
    Flag LifeGoesOnon December 25, 2010   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:it really does refer to Jesus
    it talks about the last hour when he speaks about a shook and the heavens taking HIM
    he refers to Jesus having to leave to be a sacrifice i think maybe he feels alone
    God promised not to let us go maybe he walked away from God and feels forsaken and now he's so alone that he feels the need to commit suicide
    "that ghost you love" God cant be seen but we believe in him and love him
    Davey must be truly hurt and feel forsaken he just doesn't know that Jesus had to die in order to free us and give us eternal life with our father in heaven
    Flag JesusLoves1228on September 22, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Well, judging by the video I personally think that this song is about, as many have said before, about s person who wants to 'go out with a bang,' so to speak. They want to 'make beauty last,' which can be facilitated by suicide, or a beautiful death. Like, dying young (or at the greatest point of one's career or something) so that everyone will remember that person that way.

    That being said, all the Nazi imagery in the movie might refer to Hitler: during World War II, the Allied Powers were about to capture Hitler, but he killed himself before they got to him. To this day, I believe, his actual remains have never been found. The lines, 'He left them all behind / We're left to wonder why / He left us all behind' might be from the point of view of the Nazis, who worshiped Hitler and probably wondered why he went and committed suicide, leaving all his people behind.

    Also, 'Dreams of his crash won't pass / Oh, how they adored him / Beauty will last when spiraled down' refers back to that point. Hitler's downfall is famous in history, as is the fanaticism of the Nazis. The Nazi regime 'spiraled down' in a way that might be considered 'beautiful' in its abrupt downfall, kinda like the Roman Empire.

    The bridge says: 'I would gladly bet my life upon it / That the ghost you love, your ray of light will fizzle out / Without hope,' which might refer to Nazis that want Hitler's glory and greatness to be forever remembered, but that he never will, that he is just a ghost who will fizzle out in history. They (The Nazis) are 'the empty set / ...Ever-searching for what we were promised,' (Hitler's goal of a Nazi-dominated Europe for the Aryan race), but 'Reaching for that golden ring we'd never let go (the goal that Nazis never forgot) / But who would ever let us put our filthy hands upon it? (nobody would ever let them reach that goal).

    In my opinion, the chorus represents the thoughts of Hitler, who wanted to leave a legacy despite his loss. It's undeniable that he accomplished this goal, because nowadays Nazi Germany is nearly synonymous with 'evil' or 'death.'

    Some of the above theories are actually really plausible, though, because my thoughts were mainly based on what I thought about the video, with Havok standing over a cheering crowd in a very Nazi-like fashion.

    Flagged mblacklockeon September 11, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:LISTEN UP

    It seems im the only one who understands these lyrics. Seeing how its refering to nephillim. which are the offspring of a spiritual seed from a fallen angel in a human. it seems this song is in the first person so it is him asking if he(a nephillim) takes his life may beauty(purity) stay. Nephillim are humans physically but we arnt aware they walk among us, and they are corrupted by fallen angel taint. this affects many other songs by AFI(a fire inside)

    The stars that pierce the sky
    He left them all behind
    We're left to wonder why
    He left us all behind

    Revelations refers to stars as angels, metephorical for angels. this is talking about lucifer falling. Nephillim are children of Satan and he leaves them to be on the earth and such. andyway we is refering to nephillim and He refers to Satan. Stars are angels.


    Dreams of his crash won't pass
    Oh, how they all adored him
    Beauty will last when spiraled down

    The stars that mystify
    He left them all behind
    And how his children cry
    He left us all behind


    Lucifer was beautiful and adored, but he rebelled against God and was cast down.


    We're the empty set, just flowing through, wrapped in skin
    Ever-searching for what we were promised
    Reaching for that golden ring we'd never let go
    But who would ever let us put our filthy hands upon it?

    nephillim are spiritual beings in a physical body, wrappen in skin. Searching for what we were promised refers to a savior, Jesus saved humans, nephillim need a savior for them. Reaching for the golden ring refers to heaven, wanting to get in, but they cannot because of their taint of fallen angels, or "filthy hands".




    Well i hope that explained it. ill prolly be thought of as crazy tho.










    Flagged GreyHillsideon August 07, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:And i had picked up the same interpretation from the lyrics you did, it makes the most sense. And it fits just the general feel of the song, Its more upbeat and light musically(the good part of the fame) but the lyrics are darker and more serious(the underlying problems that come with the limelight).

    I think its brilliantly put together. They made it exactly like what their view of all the attention feels like: when you first see it, or in the song hear it, it sounds more upbeat, catchy and fun. But once you focus on it, and really look at it, you see the deeper rooted problems. All the negative parts are hidden from plain site, but once you analyze even a bit it becomes overly apparant.
    Flag mechatanneron July 14, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:It's about the conspiracy that Courtney Love murdered Kurt Cobain and he didn't commit suicide.
    Flag bangedurdaughter69on June 25, 2010   Link

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