Of the many things I love about this song, I love the way it ends. It's almost a fadeout, but it doesn't just dissolve - it gets quieter, and calmer, and it just ends in a whisper.
These are two people in pain, clinging to each other desperately because there's nothing else to cling to. They're the kids from "This Year," a matched pair of high-maintenance machines, always inches away from breaking down.
The hushed falsetto, the muted tones of the guitar and bass and piano, and - especially - the tenderness of the ending sound like a lullaby to me - like Darnielle is carefully and gently tucking the song into a soft bed and whispering to it that everything will be OK, even though it probably won't. It's an amazing moment.
Of the many things I love about this song, I love the way it ends. It's almost a fadeout, but it doesn't just dissolve - it gets quieter, and calmer, and it just ends in a whisper.
These are two people in pain, clinging to each other desperately because there's nothing else to cling to. They're the kids from "This Year," a matched pair of high-maintenance machines, always inches away from breaking down.
The hushed falsetto, the muted tones of the guitar and bass and piano, and - especially - the tenderness of the ending sound like a lullaby to me - like Darnielle is carefully and gently tucking the song into a soft bed and whispering to it that everything will be OK, even though it probably won't. It's an amazing moment.