Beach House – On the Sea

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Out on the sea we'd be forgiven
Our bodies stopped the spirit leaving
Wouldn't you like to know how far you've got left to go

Somebody's child
Nobody made you
It's not what you stole its what they gave you
In or out you go
In your silence your soul

Would you rather go unwilling
The heart is full and now it's spilling
Barreling down the steps
Only a moment left

In hind of sight no peace of mind
Where you begin and I'm defined
Daughter of unconscious fate
Time will tell in spite of me
In hind of sight no peace of mind
It begins and we'll be fine
Where shadows bend and suddenly
The world becomes
And swallows me in

Whistle to a friend
Gentle til the end
Anyway in a name
She takes shape just the same

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Lyrics submitted by kissingthebeehive, edited by temen, Mellow_Harsher

Track duration: 05:32

"On the Sea" as written by Victoria Garance Alixe Legrand Alex Kristian Scally

Lyrics © CHRSALYIS MUSIC GROUP INC

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On the Sea song meanings
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10 Comments

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  • 0
    My Opinion:Also instead of 'Our bodies stopped' I'm pretty sure it's actually 'Our bodies stunned.'
    Flag benjaminteddyon April 19, 2013   Link
  • 0
    My Opinion:I hear: "Anyway human nature can shape you just the same," at the end but maybe that's just my ears.
    Flag benjaminteddyon April 19, 2013   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation:I get images of a birth, of not knowing where a child ends and the mother begins hence, 'In hind of sight no peace of mind, where you begin and I'm defined, daughter of unconscious fate, time will tell in spite of me.' Who knows who we are in life or what makes us who we are, we know for a fact time is going to change us and in birth separate the mother from the child- but we all end up in the same place and in death we are swallowed up back into the womb. We become undefined by time again, by a name, we realize our place in the world as indivisible from everything and one else.
    Flag benjaminteddyon December 31, 2012   Link
  • 0
    Song Meaning:Some parts sound like depression and suicide contemplation.

    "Our bodies stopped the spirit leaving
    Wouldn't you like to know how far you've got left to go"

    Death, then questioning wouldn't you like to know how far you have left to go in life.

    "Somebody's child
    Nobody made you
    It's not what you stole its what they gave you"

    (You're someone's child....they gave you life? Not sure)

    "Would you rather go unwilling"

    (would you rather fear death/ have it happen to you when you don't want it)

    "The heart is full and now it's spilling
    Barreling down the steps
    Only a moment left"

    (death is imminent)

    "In hind of sight no peace of mind
    Where you begin and I'm defined
    Daughter of unconscious fate
    Time will tell in spite of me
    In hind of sight no peace of mind
    It begins and we're defined
    Shadows bend and suddenly
    The world becomes
    And swallows me in"

    (The singer can't get over the past. Seems to be referencing someone else, maybe a past relationship. Wants to be or feels "swallowed" by the world)

    "Whistle to a friend"
    Gentle til the end
    Any way human nature can shame, just the same"

    Not sure what this means...it sounds hopeful, perhaps they feel maybe they can get over whatever has happened so they "whistle to a friend". Or perhaps the whistle is to warn their friend so someone find them if they do go through with it...

    Just some thoughts!
    Flag Kidarh13on October 09, 2012   Link
  • +4
    General Comment:When I listen to this song, I get a strange feeling. You know that feeling when you listen to an old band that you used to listen to; a euphoric and nostalgic feeling as you listen. And you start to travel back in time. Your emotions rewind in a sense of fulfillment or bewilderment, and you look back at what you’ve done in your life since the first time you heard the song. You find who you used to be. You’re now standing on top of a mountain looking down, and you see your old self and the struggles you went through, the people you met, the people you loved. You start thinking to yourself about the things you could have done differently, maybe they wouldn’t have ended so bad if you just did something a little different. But now you’re standing back in the present with all these things long gone, past away, they’re boxes under piles and piles of dust. What do you do? … I listened to this song and what I did was, I grabbed a duster and dusted up those boxes, and tried to make right of what I made wrong.
    This is what I believe the song is about.
    Flag otherlifeson June 12, 2012   Link
    • 1 Reply
  • 0
    General Comment:Has anyone reading this read the novel Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson? Probably because I've been thinking about the story a lot lately, anyway, I imagine this song being sung to Ruth by her Aunt Sylvie.

    Housekeeping is about transience, nature (especially water), social non-conformity, and female relationships...Those are themes I pick up on when I listen to this song, also.
    Flag tesstigermilkon May 26, 2012   Link
  • +1
    Lyric Correction:Also, this is just what it sounds like to me but...

    In hand of sun no peace of mind
    Where you begin and I’m defined
    Daughter of unconscious faith
    Time will tell in spite of me
    In hand of sun no peace of mind
    It begins and we’ll be fine
    Shadows bend and suddenly
    The world becomes
    And swallows me in

    Might actually be...

    Hind of sight, no peace of mind
    Where you begin and I'm defined
    Daughter of unconscious fate
    Time will tell, in spite of me

    Hind of sight, no peace of mind
    Where it begins and we're defined
    Shadows bend and suddenly,
    The world becomes, and swallows me in

    And finally, there's another chunk of lyrics towards the end that goes like...

    "Whistle to a friend"
    "Gentle til the end"
    "Any way human nature can shame, just the same"
    Flagged MintyAppleon May 14, 2012   Link
    • 5 Replies
  • +2
    My Interpretation:Are we sure on these lyrics? It sounds like,

    Somebody's child nobody made you.
    It's not what you stole, it's what they gave you

    And then,

    In a route you'll go
    In your silence you'll sow.

    I could be wrong, but the way I'm hearing it, it sounds like an appeal to a person considering killing themselves.

    The "sea" to me just means it's apart from society (in nature, we'd be forgiven for our mistakes).

    "Wouldn't you like to know how far you've got left to go?" -- Don't you want to see how it all plays out?

    "Somebody's child, nobody made you. It's not what you stole, it's what they gave you." -- Your life is a gift. You have nothing to be ashamed of.

    "Would you rather go unwilling? The heart is full and now it's spilling." -- Is this how you want to leave? It's obvious that you're hurting.
    Flag MintyAppleon May 14, 2012   Link
  • +2
    General Comment:The second part of this album, Bloom, seems to parallel the story of a girl who is coming of age (On The Sea), shedding something bad from her past and reigniting a focus on things that were once so important to her (New Year), experiencing the pains of second thoughts (Wishes) but ultimately finding peace (Irene).
    Flag noles848on May 05, 2012   Link
  • +5
    General Comment:No idea what the hell exactly she is singing about. But I think people rush to this site when they first hear a song in hopes that someone else commented on the lyrics and figured it out for them on a logical level. When I listen to this song, and really feel it, that's all there is to it. I'm guilty of coming to this site to read what someone has wrote so I can say ok THAT'S how I feel...What he said! But this song just feeds my soul. Even though she sings, there are no words. Just feel what she has to say and notice the emotions that come up. Don't try to rationalize for once in your life. I just looked through all of my tagged pictures on facebook. Thousands of pictures that spans over 4 years. Listening to this song while tracing back the steps of my life...It all made sense. It made sense where I was, where I'm going, and where I'm at right now. I think that's the sign of a fucking great song. Enjoy and god bless your life. Whoever you are....I love you...
    Flag karmaisdharmaon May 03, 2012   Link
    • 2 Replies

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