You were standing with your girlfriends in the street
Falling back on forever, I wonder what you came to be
I was new in town, the boy with the eager eyes
I never was a quitter, oblivious to schoolgirls' lies

When I look back on those neon lights
The leather seats, the passage rite
I feel the heat, I see the light

Miss Atomic Bomb
Making out, we've got the radio on
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone

Racing shadows under moonlight
Through the desert on a hot night
And for a second there we'd won
Yeah, we were innocent and young

Cast out of the night, well you've got a foolish heart
So you took your place but the fall from grace was the hardest part
It feels just like a dagger buried deep in your back
You run for cover but you can't escape the second attack
Your soul was innocent, she kissed him and she painted it black
You should have seen your little face, burnin' for love
Holdin' on for your life

All that I wanted was a little touch,
A little tenderness and truth, I didn't ask for much, no
Talk about being at the wrong place at the wrong time

Miss Atomic Bomb
Making out we've got the radio on
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone

Racing shadows under moonlight
We're taking chances on a hot night
And for a second there we'd won
Yeah we were innocent and young

The dust cloud has settled, and my eyes are clear
But sometimes in dreams of impact I still hear
Miss Atomic Bomb, I'm standing here
Sweat on my skin
And this love that I've cradled
Is wearing thin (Miss Atomic Bomb)
But I'm standing here and you're too late
Your shock-wave whisper has sealed your fate

It feels just like a dagger buried deep in your back (it's a proving ground)
You run for cover but you can't escape the second attack (and you turn it to chance)
Your soul was innocent, she kissed him and she painted it black (on a loser's game)
You should have seen your little face, burning for love,
(Miss Atomic Bomb)

Holdin' on for your life
But you can't survive (All that I wanted was a little touch)
When you want it all (A little tenderness and truth, I didn't ask for much)
There's another side (Talk about being at the wrong place at the wrong time)


Lyrics submitted by phoebe9261, edited by Drknight16, antkingjr, Hiro3653, watttttttt

Miss Atomic Bomb Lyrics as written by Dave Brent Keuning Brandon Flowers

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

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Miss Atomic Bomb song meanings
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  • +16
    Song Meaning

    Definitely tied to Mr. Brightside- Brandon even said so himself. It also seems to be tied to the new song, 'A Matter of Time.'

    This song shows an older Flowers reflecting on the events of Mr. Brightside, giving the girl who cheated on him the name 'Miss Atomic Bomb,' referring to the impact that her cheating had on him.

    The first stanza says "standing with your girlfriends in the street, Fallin' back on forever"- lyrics taken from A Matter of Time. He then says "I wonder what you came to be," showing that he's reflecting on this from some time after. He was "the boy with the eager eyes," showing that this is Mr. Brightside himself.

    The song chronicles the innocence that they once had, Flowers losing his virginity to this girl in the backseat of his car, "The leather seats, the passage right I feel the heat, I see the light," to their demise, when she cheated on him.

    The screaming in the background seems to symbolise this loss of innocence when he finds out what she's done. The relationship ends with Flowers saying it felt "just like a dagger buried deep in your back" and that her "soul was innocent, she kissed him and she painted it black."

    It cuts back to the present time, after the "dust cloud [from the Atomic Bomb] has settled [and his] eyes are clear," only to show that he still thinks about her (obvious if you've listened to his many songs seemingly about the same girl) with the line "sometimes in dreams of impact i still hear"

    phoebe9261on September 12, 2012   Link
  • +4
    General Comment

    I think this song is amazing. It gives me the impression of an old man, reminiscing on his first love. "I wonder what you came to be". This line gives me the idea that he thinks about this woman all the time. I think it is definitely linked to Mr Brightside, because the music even sounds the same at one point, and the story is about the pair in the future. "It was innocent she kissed him and she painted it black", this is one of my favourite lines, because here is saying how love can twist someone, and change the rest of their lives negatively. I think this song has mixed meanings, because it looks at young love from two different angles. One angle, is the way it can manipulate a person, and make them desperate and infuriated for you. "burning for love holding on for your life". It also looks at it from a more positive perspective, showing the glowing passion for one another, even though the childhood innocence still remains, "taking chances on a hot night, for a second there we'd won, yeah we were innocent and young". I think in some ways, this song isn't about Flowers loosing his virginity, but instead, "Mr Brightside", loosing it to "Miss Atomic Bomb"..."The leather seat the passage right, I feel the heat I see the light". I think they have labelled this woman "Miss Atomic Bomb", simply because, she has wrecked his life, but he still loves her even though he knows it's wrong. She hasn't done it willingly, but she's changed him as a man. The music video to this is so effective, as it is in cartoon, which portrays more of the theme of teenage curiosity and innocence. The man that keeps supposedly stealing her away, I think is in fact a figment of his imagination. The man is representing "Mr Brightside's" own insecurities, which is what is keeping the pair from being together. I think this song is also about regret, because he knows that he was the one tearing them apart, even though it was the last thing he wanted to do.

    PooPancakeon July 28, 2013   Link
  • +3
    Song Meaning

    This plaintive song was inspired by the 1950s nuclear testing parties, where crowds watched above-ground nuclear tests in the Nevada desert through sunglasses. There was even a beauty pageant, which lead to the iconic photograph of the winning 'Miss Atomic Bomb' clad in a mushroom cloud-shaped bathing suit. Brandon Flowers told the backstory of the song to NME: "It's a beautiful picture of this woman in the desert. I think she's still alive. I met Bernie Taupin for the first time and I felt like he was giving me a little bit of advice. He didn't say much to me, just asked, 'Do you like titles?' And I started thinking about Elton John songs, and found out Bernie wrote the titles first. Like 'Mona Lisa and Mat Hatters,' or 'Candle in the Wind,' it's already epic."

    Flowers had the phrase 'Miss Atomic Bomb' rattling in his brain, and he decided to tie the song into "Mr. Brightside" revisiting the characters of the Hot Fuss classic. This, he told NME, made it "very easy for me to write.'" Flowers revealed to UK newspaper The Sun that this song was originally rejected by one of the album's producers. "For a while, it got dismissed by one particular producer - I'll leave him unnamed but the demo was shut away for three months," he explained. "Yes, we took that personally, and one day I was at home on the computer going through some demos, came across it again and thought: 'WHAT are we doing? It could even be a single and be brought to life on film.' So we resurrected it."

    juurodrigson October 01, 2012   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    Reminds me of Human, sort of tamer.

    admeanson October 01, 2012   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    The video/ animation to this music is adorable.

    ideallyon July 05, 2013   Link
  • 0
    Song Meaning

    This plaintive song was inspired by the 1950s nuclear testing parties, where crowds watched above-ground nuclear tests in the Nevada desert through sunglasses. There was even a beauty pageant, which lead to the iconic photograph of the winning 'Miss Atomic Bomb' clad in a mushroom cloud-shaped bathing suit. Brandon Flowers told the backstory of the song to NME: "It's a beautiful picture of this woman in the desert. I think she's still alive. I met Bernie Taupin for the first time and I felt like he was giving me a little bit of advice. He didn't say much to me, just asked, 'Do you like titles?' And I started thinking about Elton John songs, and found out Bernie wrote the titles first. Like 'Mona Lisa and Mat Hatters,' or 'Candle in the Wind,' it's already epic."

    Flowers had the phrase 'Miss Atomic Bomb' rattling in his brain, and he decided to tie the song into "Mr. Brightside" revisiting the characters of the Hot Fuss classic. This, he told NME, made it "very easy for me to write.'" Flowers revealed to UK newspaper The Sun that this song was originally rejected by one of the album's producers. "For a while, it got dismissed by one particular producer - I'll leave him unnamed but the demo was shut away for three months," he explained. "Yes, we took that personally, and one day I was at home on the computer going through some demos, came across it again and thought: 'WHAT are we doing? It could even be a single and be brought to life on film.' So we resurrected it."

    juurodrigson October 01, 2012   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation

    The links to Mr Brightside was apparent to me after the first few listens. The music even sounds the same at one point, I'm glad I was right

    xIbaXon October 14, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    The story isn't about Flowers losing his virginity, he lost on his wedding night. Most Mormons are virgins.

    zombizon November 19, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I wonder if anyone else has noticed this but when he sings

    "The dust cloud has settled, and my eyes are clear" "But sometimes in dreams of impact I still hear".

    If you listen carefully and especially in the live versions, the guitar interlude is the same guitar interlude used in Mr.Brightside.

    Hiro3653on December 10, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I love the Killers, they are fab musicians, and Brandon Flowers' voice is soothing! I just love him!

    Love7on November 04, 2013   Link

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