Bang the Doldrums is one of my fave's on IoH, and I didn't seem to find it as cryptic as most other people. But anyway, here's what I think:
"I wrote a goodbye note in lipstick on your arm when you passed out,
I couldn’t bring myself to call, except to call it quits,"
This is pretty straightforward. I think they (the couple, I mean - probably Pete and Jenae) get drunk and sleep together and he wants her way more than she does him. He has a thing with commitment and intimacy, I mean, even the way he broke up with her is temporary. It can't be saved like a letter or text could.
He couldn't bring himself to call her, so he never did. 'Calling it quits' doesn't necessarily mean he called her, the lipstick note could qualify as such.
"Best friends, ex-friends to the end,
Better off as lovers and not the other way around,"
There's a serious play on words here, definately added to confuse. Here's my interpretation: they were best friends, now 'ex-friends to the end'. By 'better off as lovers, not the other way around' I think he means they're not 'lovers better off'.
"Racing through the city, windows down,
In the back of yellow-checkered cars."
I think this simply implies a sense of urgency and desire - racing through the city (Chicago, perhaps?) together, infatuated.
"You're all wrong,
Are we all wrong?
You're all wrong,
Are we all wrong?"
Here I think he's simply questioning the situation. The relationship is so messed up - is it worth it?
"This city says;
Come Hell or high water, when I’m feeling hot and wet,
I can’t commit to a thing, be it heart or hospital,"
The City. Again, this could be L.A., Chicago, or New York (all of which Pete Wentz, the main lyricist, spends a lot of time). Come hell or high water is usually used to imply loyalty or staying power. Perhaps she promised to be there hell or high water, and now that both are there, what is she gonna do?
The next line is simple: he can't commit to a relationship - he just uses the hospital metaphor to emphasis how large his phobia is.
"The tombstones are waiting,
They were half engraved,
They knew it was over,
Just didn’t know the date."
This is probably one of the most straight-forward FOB lyrics ever. The relationship was doomed from the beginning - it was a matter of when, not if.
"And I cast a spell over the West to make you think of me,
The same way I think of you,"
Maybe he's talking about Hollywood, maybe he's talking about the chick - who knows? He just wants to be accepted and thought of and loved.
"This is a love song in my own way,
Happily ever after, below the waist."
Possibly one of my favorite lines on the album. This is a love song is his own way, as close as he can come to love - obsession, infatuation, and lust. Happily ever after below the waist just serves the drive the point home. Sexual satisfaction is as close to happily ever after as they'll ever come.
Amazing song - great lyrics, but all FOB songs are mindblowing. I think I've got it down pat - who knows? Everbody reads them and thinks something different.
Bang the Doldrums is one of my fave's on IoH, and I didn't seem to find it as cryptic as most other people. But anyway, here's what I think:
"I wrote a goodbye note in lipstick on your arm when you passed out, I couldn’t bring myself to call, except to call it quits,"
This is pretty straightforward. I think they (the couple, I mean - probably Pete and Jenae) get drunk and sleep together and he wants her way more than she does him. He has a thing with commitment and intimacy, I mean, even the way he broke up with her is temporary. It can't be saved like a letter or text could.
He couldn't bring himself to call her, so he never did. 'Calling it quits' doesn't necessarily mean he called her, the lipstick note could qualify as such.
"Best friends, ex-friends to the end, Better off as lovers and not the other way around,"
There's a serious play on words here, definately added to confuse. Here's my interpretation: they were best friends, now 'ex-friends to the end'. By 'better off as lovers, not the other way around' I think he means they're not 'lovers better off'.
"Racing through the city, windows down, In the back of yellow-checkered cars."
I think this simply implies a sense of urgency and desire - racing through the city (Chicago, perhaps?) together, infatuated.
"You're all wrong, Are we all wrong? You're all wrong, Are we all wrong?"
Here I think he's simply questioning the situation. The relationship is so messed up - is it worth it?
"This city says; Come Hell or high water, when I’m feeling hot and wet, I can’t commit to a thing, be it heart or hospital,"
The City. Again, this could be L.A., Chicago, or New York (all of which Pete Wentz, the main lyricist, spends a lot of time). Come hell or high water is usually used to imply loyalty or staying power. Perhaps she promised to be there hell or high water, and now that both are there, what is she gonna do?
The next line is simple: he can't commit to a relationship - he just uses the hospital metaphor to emphasis how large his phobia is.
"The tombstones are waiting, They were half engraved, They knew it was over, Just didn’t know the date."
This is probably one of the most straight-forward FOB lyrics ever. The relationship was doomed from the beginning - it was a matter of when, not if.
"And I cast a spell over the West to make you think of me, The same way I think of you,"
Maybe he's talking about Hollywood, maybe he's talking about the chick - who knows? He just wants to be accepted and thought of and loved.
"This is a love song in my own way, Happily ever after, below the waist."
Possibly one of my favorite lines on the album. This is a love song is his own way, as close as he can come to love - obsession, infatuation, and lust. Happily ever after below the waist just serves the drive the point home. Sexual satisfaction is as close to happily ever after as they'll ever come.
Amazing song - great lyrics, but all FOB songs are mindblowing. I think I've got it down pat - who knows? Everbody reads them and thinks something different.