The Hard Candy that they sing about is a metaphor of sort. In the song, our "hero" recalls a memory that shares the same saccharine quality that candy does. The memory is packaged and stored in his mind. Occasionally he would unwrap it, pop it into his mouth and relive the sublimation once upon a time.
The memory is of an encounter with something/someone who seemed ordinary but can
"Time expands and then contracts"
The song is filled with regrets and longingness. The candy temporarily relieves these emotions. All that he does is suck on the nectar until it dissolves. If he tries to bite on it, the piece breaks and dissolves even faster. There is no substance in memory but images. When he's done with one piece, he can have another one. But it's the exact same sensations all over again. Nothing more. Apparently this is not the outcome he wanted. Somewhere down the line he did or failed to do something. He watched as she walked away from him without stopping. He probably even smiled as she did.
"You send your lover off to China
Then you wait for her to call"
He secretly hoped that she would look back. Now he longs for her and yearns for that sweetness in his life, more specifically: her.
"You put your girl up on a pedestal
Then you wait for her to fall"
The pedestal he places her on alludes to divine worship. It's something perfect and almost unattainable. But there would be no need for a pedestal if that something perfect is within the grasp of his arms.
The craving comes to him in his sleep. Along with the craving comes the regret. It's like having a nightmare and searching for a source of comfort in your mother.
"But she fades just out of sight"
There is no comfort in regret.
When he wakes up, reality hits him.
"And when you wake the morning showers you with light
And it makes you feel alright"
Life isn't so bad really.
But later on...
"it's just the same hard candy
You're remembering again"
The Hard Candy that they sing about is a metaphor of sort. In the song, our "hero" recalls a memory that shares the same saccharine quality that candy does. The memory is packaged and stored in his mind. Occasionally he would unwrap it, pop it into his mouth and relive the sublimation once upon a time. The memory is of an encounter with something/someone who seemed ordinary but can "Time expands and then contracts" The song is filled with regrets and longingness. The candy temporarily relieves these emotions. All that he does is suck on the nectar until it dissolves. If he tries to bite on it, the piece breaks and dissolves even faster. There is no substance in memory but images. When he's done with one piece, he can have another one. But it's the exact same sensations all over again. Nothing more. Apparently this is not the outcome he wanted. Somewhere down the line he did or failed to do something. He watched as she walked away from him without stopping. He probably even smiled as she did. "You send your lover off to China Then you wait for her to call" He secretly hoped that she would look back. Now he longs for her and yearns for that sweetness in his life, more specifically: her. "You put your girl up on a pedestal Then you wait for her to fall" The pedestal he places her on alludes to divine worship. It's something perfect and almost unattainable. But there would be no need for a pedestal if that something perfect is within the grasp of his arms. The craving comes to him in his sleep. Along with the craving comes the regret. It's like having a nightmare and searching for a source of comfort in your mother. "But she fades just out of sight" There is no comfort in regret. When he wakes up, reality hits him. "And when you wake the morning showers you with light And it makes you feel alright" Life isn't so bad really. But later on... "it's just the same hard candy You're remembering again"