Lyric discussion by 00Birdie00 

I read through some of the comments before writing my own opinion of the song's meaningful nature. Some of them were useless and a whole lot'a babble, others were religiously based, which made me want to gague and roll on the floor, and occasionally some good points were mentioned. My interpretation of the song will probably have the same reactions to the ones I'd seen above or worse of ones. So, here I go, I'll try and summerize as best I can!

Nothing Else Matters-Metallica

When I'd first heard this song I was stumped, I didn't know what they were talking about, how could such a melody have lyrics of such dark nature, well, this is how I percieve it after replaying it to the point of having 567 plays on my Itunes:


So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
And nothing else matters

Comment: The narrator speaks of a first love, or maybe even a true love after searching many years for him/her (perhaps also a signifacant other).  In love we need to trust, and even more so in ourselves.  The narrator says that in love trust and being true to your heart is all that matters.

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don't just say
And nothing else matters

Comment: The narrator is opening himself to him/her like a book, telling secrets and sharing things he/she'd of never imagined sharing.  He/she is having a spur of reality, rebellion even, deciding that their life is their own and that he/she is determined to live it how they want no matter what people say.  Being true to you is all that matters.

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new
Open mind for a different view
And nothing else matters

Comment:  The narrator now is finding a sense of belonging and trust in their significant other, learning new things and keeping an open mind towards what's happening.  Being open and willing to change is all that matters.

Never cared for what they do
Never cared for what they know
But I know

Comment: The narrator is accusing people of not caring enough for their actions and shaming them for not using their knoweledge.  He says he knows, something of the reality.  Perhaps a break in the trust? 

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don't just say

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us, something new
Open mind for a different view
And nothing else matters

Comment: The narrator repeats himself, obviosuly destressed from some event, telling you that he/she needs to stay true to themselves and rebuild a trust.  Again, he/she says that trust and staying true is all that matters.

Never cared for what they say
Never cared for games they play
Never cared for what they do
Never cared for what they know
And I know

Comment: Now we know there has been a break somewhere between then and now.  The narrator tells us that they don't care about their actions, that they're playing games and know it.  He/she might appear oblivious to what's going on, but he/she makes it clear that they KNOW what's happening, that they have and still do.

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
No, nothing else matters

Comment: The song ends with a specific cluster of lyrics, saying that you need to trust in you and not others.  He/she says that no matter how far you are, or how close you are to love or something more than what you have, always stay close and true to you, that's all that matters.

Anyway, that's my disection of the song, and how I interpreted it so many times over. Feel free to agree and disagree, but that's how I see it. A song is a song and a song holds a meaning; how we as individuals take in that meaning is how we as individuals will learn to appreciate the song as a piece of art, and even at times, a part of us. We relate and understand things differently, hope this helped!

Amazing :)

awesome i agree but... i dont think its bout... like a guy or girl that means a lot to him but his parents and and how they are going through caner or whatever... thats what i heard anyways but great response and it really does make me think every time i listen to a metallica song. btw if i come off as ignorant or stupid or something like that im not im 14!!!! :3 cheers tho now i kinda get it and i keep trying to do the same with other songs now like trying to analyse them :3

That to me is 100% on the ball! It makes perfect sense to the music, and the way he sings the different parts of the song. Even the parts that repeat he sings them differently and the music changes! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS!! Metallica is one of my favorite bands and this song kind of stumped me. Metallica puts so much meaning in their music, and as a listener I love hearing what other people think.

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