To say this song is purely about "shattered dreams" is to generalize carefully crafted verses into some overall angsty and cliche recognition of pain in song. "Down" shouldn't be treated like some Dashboard lament. Why? Because McMahon is more versatile than that. The song takes us through the last night of a couple's relationship all the way though the brutal realization of its inevitable disintegration. He starts off: "let's get drunk, you can drive us to the harbor..." only to admit that they can only "get crazy, talk about our big plans" after some courage from the bottle. This forced seperation is apparent even before the the physical distance. McMahon is keeping his kingdom free of hassle, taking oncoming heartache and emotion and chucking it over his walls. He urges her to get crazy, talking "about their big plans," but its a farce...and he knows it. The scene is contrastive, with his girlfriend's anxiousness for the mysertious future met with his detachment and nostalgia. There's something special in his description of stars: his imagery is a feast, trying not-so-subtely to quickly allow the listeneer to relate to his feelings of love for the girl. Over-the-top? Yeah. But its mean't to be, as McMahon stealthy acknowledgers how younger relationship are dominated by infatuation and grandiose emotions.
To say this song is purely about "shattered dreams" is to generalize carefully crafted verses into some overall angsty and cliche recognition of pain in song. "Down" shouldn't be treated like some Dashboard lament. Why? Because McMahon is more versatile than that. The song takes us through the last night of a couple's relationship all the way though the brutal realization of its inevitable disintegration. He starts off: "let's get drunk, you can drive us to the harbor..." only to admit that they can only "get crazy, talk about our big plans" after some courage from the bottle. This forced seperation is apparent even before the the physical distance. McMahon is keeping his kingdom free of hassle, taking oncoming heartache and emotion and chucking it over his walls. He urges her to get crazy, talking "about their big plans," but its a farce...and he knows it. The scene is contrastive, with his girlfriend's anxiousness for the mysertious future met with his detachment and nostalgia. There's something special in his description of stars: his imagery is a feast, trying not-so-subtely to quickly allow the listeneer to relate to his feelings of love for the girl. Over-the-top? Yeah. But its mean't to be, as McMahon stealthy acknowledgers how younger relationship are dominated by infatuation and grandiose emotions.