How foolish I could be at first to think this was another song being lovesick. Indeed this is a song about loneliness, but there's another dimension to it.
"it's the crowded room that's never heard
no one here can say a word of my native tongue"
This is no normal crowd; it's a crowd of strangers speaking a different language. The song is about the feelings of loneliness an immigrant has after relocating to a foreign country.
"it's the quiet night that breaks me
I cannot stand the sight of this familiar place
it's the quiet night that breaks me
like a dozen papercuts that only I can trace"
Describing the anguish of getting nowhere and being lonely.
"all my books are lying useless now
all my maps will only show me how to lose my way"
All the things the immigrant has learned in the past is of little use in this foreign land. The only familiar direction is back, but that would be counterproductive to all that the immigrant has gone through to get here.
"it's the crowded room that breaks me:
everybody looks so luminous and strangely young"
Describing the unfamiliar appearance of the people in this new place. From the perspective of a foreigner arriving on Western soil, this could refer to the fashions and cosmetics that enhance people's appearances.
"it's the crowded room that's never heard
no one here can say a word of my native tongue
I can't be among them anymore
I fold myself away before it burns me numb"
The last two lines refers to the difficulty of adjusting to a new culture and learning to "fit in."
"oh, call my name - you know my name
and, in your love, everything will change
tell me it won't always be this hard
I am nothing without you
but I don't know who you are"
Describes the longing to hear a familiar call -- to recognize a person who recognizes him/her. The immigrant feels hopeless without someone familiar, someone who could offer comfort against the difficulty and uncertainty of the future.
-Though I'm not an immigrant myself, both my parents are immigrants. And indeed, as I've seen in father, the lack of friends and family during a difficult transition can be very unsettling. The feeling of being alone in the world is not something you want to experience. The way Vienna has captured the aura of such a trying time in one's life in a song is truly remarkable. Very poignant indeed.
How foolish I could be at first to think this was another song being lovesick. Indeed this is a song about loneliness, but there's another dimension to it.
"it's the crowded room that's never heard no one here can say a word of my native tongue"
This is no normal crowd; it's a crowd of strangers speaking a different language. The song is about the feelings of loneliness an immigrant has after relocating to a foreign country.
"it's the quiet night that breaks me I cannot stand the sight of this familiar place it's the quiet night that breaks me like a dozen papercuts that only I can trace"
Describing the anguish of getting nowhere and being lonely.
"all my books are lying useless now all my maps will only show me how to lose my way"
All the things the immigrant has learned in the past is of little use in this foreign land. The only familiar direction is back, but that would be counterproductive to all that the immigrant has gone through to get here.
"it's the crowded room that breaks me: everybody looks so luminous and strangely young"
Describing the unfamiliar appearance of the people in this new place. From the perspective of a foreigner arriving on Western soil, this could refer to the fashions and cosmetics that enhance people's appearances.
"it's the crowded room that's never heard no one here can say a word of my native tongue I can't be among them anymore I fold myself away before it burns me numb"
The last two lines refers to the difficulty of adjusting to a new culture and learning to "fit in."
"oh, call my name - you know my name and, in your love, everything will change tell me it won't always be this hard I am nothing without you but I don't know who you are"
Describes the longing to hear a familiar call -- to recognize a person who recognizes him/her. The immigrant feels hopeless without someone familiar, someone who could offer comfort against the difficulty and uncertainty of the future.
-Though I'm not an immigrant myself, both my parents are immigrants. And indeed, as I've seen in father, the lack of friends and family during a difficult transition can be very unsettling. The feeling of being alone in the world is not something you want to experience. The way Vienna has captured the aura of such a trying time in one's life in a song is truly remarkable. Very poignant indeed.