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Breathing from a hole in my lung
I had no one
With faces in front of me
Racing through the void in my head
To find traces
Of a good luck academy
Sparks ignite and trade them for thought
About no one
And nothing in particular
Washed the sickened socket and drove
Resent nothing
There's good will inside of me
[Chorus]
Wake me up, lower the fever
Walking in a straight line
Set me on fire in the evening
Everything will be fine
Wake me up strong in the morning
Walking in a straight line
Lately, I'm a desperate believer
But walking in a straight line
Something I will never forget
I felt desperate
And stuck to the marrow
Invisible to everyone else
I'm a sex-change
And a damsel with no heroine
[Chorus]
I don't need no time to say
There's no changing yesterday
If we keep talking and
I keep walking in straight lines
[Chorus]
I had no one
With faces in front of me
Racing through the void in my head
To find traces
Of a good luck academy
Sparks ignite and trade them for thought
About no one
And nothing in particular
Washed the sickened socket and drove
Resent nothing
There's good will inside of me
[Chorus]
Wake me up, lower the fever
Walking in a straight line
Set me on fire in the evening
Everything will be fine
Wake me up strong in the morning
Walking in a straight line
Lately, I'm a desperate believer
But walking in a straight line
Something I will never forget
I felt desperate
And stuck to the marrow
Invisible to everyone else
I'm a sex-change
And a damsel with no heroine
[Chorus]
I don't need no time to say
There's no changing yesterday
If we keep talking and
I keep walking in straight lines
[Chorus]
Lyrics submitted by patrick3972
Track duration: 04:18
"Straight Lines" as written by Johns/hamilton
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, EMI Music Publishing
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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If they were around at the time, these would've been the people going, "what IS this weird sh*t?" when The Beatles released their Sgt Peppers album, because it didn't sound like the same old stuff they were used to. In fact these are probably the same so-called 'fans' Silverchair were hoping to shed when they put out Diorama. Oh well, best treasure your precious Bush and Mudhoney albums then, because in case it escaped anybody's notice, Silverchair haven't written a true 'grunge' track since 1999.
Sorry, just had to get that off my chest... now onto my interpretation:
Yes, Straight Lines definitely appears to be about Johns's recovery from the various physical and mental afflictions he suffered during the late 90s/early 2000s.
The lyrics also imply that he is learning to use this new positive mind-set to write dynamic, uplifting material - rather than cultivating negative emotions as inspiration for his songwriting as he'd tended to in the past.
IMO, "damsel with no heroine" is a clever play-on-words which harks back to the line "addict with no heroine" from earlier song Emotion Sickness. Johns is saying that, in times past, he was like an androgynous "damsel in distress" without a hero/ine (ie: a "saviour" he could count on the provide emotional support) - but now he realises he can't change the past so he's choosing to move on.
Incidentally, "Despite Straight Lines" was the original title of David Bowie's 1979 Lodger album.
"good luck academy"... I seem to recall a lyric in Diorama, but I can't remember what that is... anywhoodle, thinking about how he's referred to 'good' in his lyrics in the past makes me relate this to his clinical depression as well as the arthritis and anorexia. As you said, all the illnesses he's come out of.
I still love this song.
cemetary "i live in a cemetary full of good will and integrety" (perhaps meaning that they are dead/non existant
Straight lines " there's good will inside of me"
i don't know i just recently thought of it and thought it was an interesting comparison. of him saying in one of the older song that he possibly has none (or at least no specialty) and in a newer song kind of realising "hey i do"
Wonderful observation!
T.
Something I will never forget
I felt desperate
And stuck to the marrow
Invisible to everyone else
I'm a sex-change
And a damsel with no heroine
Is very literal, it speaks about how he's just skin and bones, androgynous due to his figure, and how no one could notice his growing problem.
I don't need no time to say
There's no changing yesterday
If we keep talking and
I keep walking in straight lines
Daniel is stating that he's moving past his illness and will stay strong and if he stays distracted and he'll continue on despite his past.
I luv Daniel Johns & Silverchair.
XD