Love
It’s the air in your mother’s lungs
When her fathers tore her fences down
Plastic bags and the panadol was out
Love
Was a sold Gibson 335
And your father’s dream died that night
Just to keep that electricity on
And it’s the darkest side of my heart that dies when you come to me
And it’s the golden ticket I win when you kill my enemies
I hear the farthest cry and the softest sigh when I’m empty
But if you leave me I’ll hide in a game like SimCity
Oh when I die I’m alive
And when I lose I find
My identity
Son
If I died on my bedroom floor
Would you cry on your bedroom floor?
And tattoo my name underneath your arm
Love
That was alive in the olden days
Been put to death in this golden age
By our colour TV
And it’s the darkest side of my heart that dies when you come to me
And it’s the golden ticket I win when you kill my enemies
I hear the farthest cry and the softest sigh when I’m empty
But if you leave me I’ll get me gone and drown face down muddy in the water
Oh when I die…
When I die…
Die I’m alive
When I lose I find
My identity
Love
Was those dark clouds on the Friday
It was a holy shaking earthquake
And you were stuck up the tree
And it’s the darkest side of my heart that dies when you come to me
Oh it’s the golden ticket I win when you kill my enemies
I hear the farthest cry and the softest sigh when I’m empty
But if you leave me I’d hello goodbye and I don’t shine at night look I’m dead man
Oh when I die…
When I die…
When I die…
When I die I’m alive
When I lose I find
My identity
The Middle East 
Will you soak in some 335 (?)
i thinks its more along the lines of
with ur sold gibson 335
i know the gibson 335 part is right at least, its about a father that sells his dream to keep the family going
Brilliant. Of course. Thank you very much for that..
does anyone know what this song is about?
Hello,
yes its about Rohin’s parents. you’ve got a few of the words wrong. Here you are…
love, its the air in your mothers lungs,
when her fathers tore her fences down
plastic bags and the panadol was out.
love was a sold gibson 335,
and your fathers dream died that night
just to keep that electricity on.
and its the darkest side of my heart that dies when you come to me
and its the golden ticket i win when you kill my enemies
i hear the farthest cry and the softest sigh when im empty
but if you leave me i’d hide in a game like sim city.
oh when i die im alive when i lose i find my identity
son if i died on my bedroom floor
would you cry on your bedroom floor
and tattoo my name underneath your arm
mum, love was alive in the olden days
been put to death in this golden age
by our colour tv
ands its the …
but if you leave me id get me gone drown face down muddy in the water.
oh when i…
love was those dark clouds on the friday
it was a holy shaking earthquake and you were stuck up a tree.
and its the…
but if you leave me i’d hello goodbye and i dont shine at night look im a dead man
oh when i …
Thanks very much. I’ve updated above.
Ps, I am surprised to hear those are Rohin’s lyrics. I had just presumed that they were Jordan’s since he does the singing. Do you know who wrote any of the other tracks, like, Blood, Fool’s Gold, etc?
Well, most of the singing…
[…] Some stats You can see that there’s a lot of people looking for these lyrics… […]
listened to “Blood” while chatting with Bob…who lives in your dad’s house. Your dad was there while we listened…I got very teary….it reminded me of my mom who died of cancer. very nice moment to hear your song while your dad explained the history behind it. awesome…i wish you all the best.
Paula
Temple, TX
i like this song but i don’t get it??
caught them at beach road in bondi. One of the best gigs I have seen there! catch you guys at Laneway!
on the first verse of
Oh when I die I’m alive
And when I lose I find
My identify
it says identify, not the correct ‘identity”
tnx
Hello, I’d like to venture a shot at discussing the meaning of the lyrics in this song. I’m from Seattle, and I don’t know the band personally. So whatever I say is merely from my perspective, as I have meditated on the lyrics. Others may have their view and I would love their discussion.
In a summary statement, I believe this song is about self- sacrificing love and it’s resulting life.
It appears to be a very family, and biblically based meditative lyric, which I will try to show. (Someone else mentioned them being christian on another lyric page as well) I admit what I will say is overtly christian in orientation, which may offend you or mis-interpret TME, but I hope the opposite will occur instead. I hope, instead, that is may be compelling for consideration and discussion.
The themes. (The lyrics are much more beautiful and concise than my thoughts, so proceed with caution! :)
The sacrificing love of a Grand-father for his mother and family: It looks like some basic family needs were being helped by the her father i.e. Plastic bags, panadol (tylenol in the states), electricity etc. by tearing the fences down (perhaps to sell the wood), and sell his valuable Gibson guitar, giving up his own dreams to provide for his family.
The chorus, in my view, is a compelling description of salvation, e.g. regeneration, new-birth. “The darkest side” that dies appears as the corrupt part of our hearts that is killed, first thru the cross of Christ (see description below) and then thru sacrificial love of others. “The Golden Ticket” is the eternal Life of Christ and all the benefits of salvation. Enemies are killed: Sin, Satan, Death are destroyed. And, then he uses some interesting imagery (SimCity, Drowning in water, Dead Man) to contrast the hollowness and death of the absence of Christ (and perhaps loving family)
The Mother’s stanza: She seems concerned that her son remember her, and that he understand that TV has been flashy and hollow distraction, that kills loving connection in the family.
“When I die, I’m alive. When I lose, I find my identity” -the book of John 12:24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 l Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.”
“Love was the dark clouds on Friday”- is a clear reference the crucifixion of Christ. The sky darkened and was black, the earth shook, and Christ hung on the cross. (read Matthew 27) This is the ultimate expression of self-sacrificing love
[…] of ‘The Darkest Side’ ShaunS has posted some thoughts on the song’s lyrics. See here. Thanks Shaun. I’d never really understood the […]
Re the first verse, I don’t think of the fences as being literal. They seem more like a metaphor for the conflict in a troubled-home type situation between the grandfather and his daughter. It’s a stretch, but perhaps she was young and unexpectedly pregnant at the time…(?).
“plastic bags and panadol” – I admit is a little hard to to decode for me. I had never heard of panadol and thought it was maybe an anti-depressant or anti-psychotic until I googled it and found it was the same as tylenol, a basic pain killer. And, why would tearing the fences down be seen as love? Your take on it may be closer to reality. I was using the second verse more, to inform the first verse.
i obviously know what plastic bags and panadol are, but what do they have to do with each other?
if someone could have channeled a song about my life this is exactly how it would come out. its so exciting to me when one can find something so beautiful & relevant to ones life ! thanx
ShaunS, I enjoyed reading your interpretation of the lyrics very much, and what’s more is I think you are generally correct about much of the song, including the references to religion, which had not even occurred to me until I read your post. As for the first verse, I think it is like glosoli said, a case of troubles at home.
I am not sure whose mother the lyrics are talking about, but surely the line “Love, was the air in your mother’s lungs” is a reference to what is literally keeping her alive in response to “her father tore her fences down,” i.e. her father degrading her in one way or another. I am not sure to whom or what the ‘love’ is directed to but it is what is keeping her going.
Finally, the references to plastic bags and panadol are escapes from life that she could have taken. Plastic bags can be used for suicide, (perfect analogy to the previous line about “air in her lungs”) and panadol is simply a reinforcer to the idea of suicide with its function as a painkiller, or escape from reality.
Very good. I hadn’t figured out the suicide imagery before. Also there is the idea that you can attempt suicide by grinding up a whole pack of panadol and mixing it into your drink. And love is what makes her keep wanting to breathe. Shit.
Shit is right. I wonder to whom/what her love is directed..or where does this love stem from?
[…] More excellent analysis of the lyrics to ‘The Darkest Side’ “…the air in your mother’s lungs’ is a reference to what is literally keeping her alive as a response to…” […]
verse one.
my mothers father killed himself when she was ten years old. her upbringing before that event was hellish to put it kindly. her father and sister were schizophrenic, which meant the money and attention of her mother and family was poured into them. she and her sister had severe malnutrition and health problems. her fathers tore her fences down is a picture of the effect of that event (and another) which stripped her of her ability to function as a person. when i was 17 my family had been going through hell for about 7 years at a particular church. ma was working about 50 hours a week for nothing in a pretty vulnerable environment under a person who i guess was a father figure. and dad was working as a groundsman for next to nothing. that environment had a similar effect on her as her upbringing. this is the second father. (in the lyric it is fathers). after a particularly damaging incident ma came home locked her self in her room with a packet of panadol and a plastic bag and was going to kill herself. the thought of her fathers suicide and the effects it had on her and her love for me and my siblings was the only thing she said stopped her. she only told me a couple years later.
the song is about the few incidents in my life where love has been truely communicated to me. i may share more in the future.
Thanks for sharing that.
I hope I did not do too much damage to your lyric, by any misinterpretation.
As I was considering it further I thought there to be an might be an implicit, if indirect, call in the lyric for growth in maturity. Is this correct? The use of SimCity and Color TV suggest a modern type of distraction, and perhaps avoidance to growing in responsibility and love. And the father who sold his dream to provide for the family’s need, seems to call a man to die to his identity in things and talents for a greater love and faithfulness, no?
Does it say “I hear the fathers cry in (or and) the softest sigh…” instead of “farthest cry”?
don’t know what to say but wow, thanks for sharing this very personal story and thanks for making such a beautiful song
Thanks for that insight rohin, very kind of you.
Why thankyou Rohin.
I had no idea about that side of the story.
I read these lyrics here, and then a little later wrote something on the song at my blog. Thought I might as well post it here for interest, even if it’s not really a direct response.
http://iwearyourshoes.blogspot.com/2010/02/first-day.html
This is just so beautiful. Takes my breath away every time I listen to it. This is a song I’ll listen to throughout my whole life. Amazing.
I, too, am blown away by this song. I appreciate all of the comments, especially Rohin’s. The deepest pain can lead to profound beauty and clarity of vision, as this song clearly proves.
Love was what kept the mother alive when her “fathers” had done something that had made her want to commit suicide.
The mother’s husband sold his guitar (Gibson 335) and gave up his dream of playing music just so they could pay for the electricity (the electricity of the mothers life and their marriage as well as the electricity bills).
The feeling of pain ceases to exist when a particular person is in the presence of whoever is singing. Winning the golden ticket symbolizes a fantasy coming true when someone’s love is strong enough to get rid of the pain and fear in another’s heart. And when your feeling so pained and hurt, as if you can no longer go on, there is a distant voice that makes you stop and all of a sudden there is reason to stay alive because if you left that person (who is the in voice in your head) behind they wouldn’t be the same and their life would be lacking in wholesomeness and true love.
When I’m at that low point I suddenly realize I’m alive and needed by someone who loves me. When I lose my strength I find that I am somebody else’s source of strength.
Before the mother was about to kill herself she thought of her son, who needs and loves her, and how much it would hurt him if she did commit suicide. When the mother’s father committed suicide, he tore her fences down (took away her sense of strength and protection) and this is the darkest side of the mothers heart. However the love for her son, husband and/or other children gave her the strength to stand up and not kill herself.
Her fathers love used to mean a lot more to the mother before he killed himself but it died when the mother finally realized the love of her son, husband and/or other children was the air in her lungs that kept her alive because their lives were so much more happier than the olden days, when it was all black and white.
The love within the mother’s family stopped the storm of a suicide from hitting the tree (symbolical meaning for family?) and bringing them down.
Oh I know, they are such vulnerable lyrics. The honesty of this pain, and a sort of hope that doesn’t ignore pain but in fact understands it, is really something.
I think the tree must mean what happened at Easter-
“When I die I’m alive, when I lose I find my identity… Love was those dark clouds on the Friday. It was a holy shaking earthquake, and you were stuck up the tree. And it’s the darkest side of my heart that dies when you come to me…”
It’s hard not to ask where God is in these things. The world is broken, unfair, confusing, sometimes so lonely or painful for people… But here is a record of the Creator of this world holding our death inside himself and opening up our ‘resurrection’. Not standing aloof from it all, but sitting with us in the middle of it, to turn death and brokenness backwards through such a gift.
Why? Why would he? All this may not be explained yet, and brokenness hasn’t been stopped for good yet, but the hardest blow has been taken so that life can start to come to life in and around us. This is the sort of love that holds family and friends together in the darkest times; the record in the New Testament is a huge promise that we’re valued and held by the same love, if we’ll look more closely at it and let it in. For me, this song reflects on the most precious and difficult times I’ve had… Where somehow all this becomes more clear than ever, even through the confusion and waiting.
Amazing song, amazing band. I love how the lyrics, and the music tell a story. It’s absolutly beautiful.
Thankyou, The Middle East, for bringing such beautiful music into the world.
what a beautiful song
The other day I got a tattoo inspired by this song.
pic?
the first word is “blood”. not “love”
heard the song and loved it immediately. but I still dont get the name of the band?! Who sings this song?!
the band is called ‘The Middle East’
I’ve been listening to this song for months and have only just accessed the lyrics. They are truly phenomenal lyrics and music. Thank you so much for this .
hey I have a question, why the painting of their first album?, why the name of the band?, I would really like to know about the drawing, it means a lot to me.
thanks
This story ain’t one to be shared online. x
imi
thank you all. I’m just blessed to be able to conceive these feelings that are so beautifully expressed.
Plastic bags and panadol, thinking it may refer to cancer treatment, plastic bags (IV drip, possibly chemotherapy) and panadol are both used (though you’d want something stronger than panadol for the pain!). This also fits with love being the air in her lungs, meaning love is what’s keeping her breathing/ alive. And I can’t agree more about the reference to Easter, one of the most beautiful illustrations of Christ’s sacrifice that I’ve ever read.