“Then he pulled the bottle out, And then he showed me what love was.”
While ruminating over this regret she remembers, In the first verse, the speaker chastises herself, having almost “let him in ” again. Throughout the song, the speaker includes mentions of drinking in a manner that suggests that her position in her former relationship was similar to that of an alcoholic. This overarching theme is established in many ways, the most notable of which is a consistent allusion to alcoholism. As the narrative unfolds the sentiment of the speaker becomes more clear: healthy relationships can not flourish when one of the individuals is not healthy themselves. The song follows the speaker’s reminiscence of a previous relationship. The song “ Paul” was released in 2016 as a part of Big Thief’s album Masterpiece. The song serves to remind people that there are people in the world who love you and care about you and even though sometimes it may look like there is no hope left they are there to support you in getting better. Through this song, Bleachers conveys an important and powerful message to the world. Throughout the rest of the song the speaker goes through a back and forth on that overpass of whether or not they will keep living before, ultimately, the song resolves with the chorus of them deciding to keep living and get better. The speaker and audience may share some of the same feelings and emotions and provide solace for the audience by showing them that they are not alone in their feelings. In addition, the shifts in time throughout the song serve not only to communicate the backstory of the speaker, but also to provide a link between what the speaker is thinking in the moment to the audience. They feel alienated and alone and feel as though they have lost themselves, a feeling that many people share at some point in their lives. So now I’m staring at the interstate screaming at myself,īleachers use of the words ‘stranger’, ‘permanent’, and ‘mourn’ highlight the speaker’s desire to return to a consistent life that they once had. Mourn the years before I got carried away the linesĪnd I miss the days of a life still permanent It is only because of that one person in the speaker’s life that the speaker does actually want to get better and keep going.īleachers is able to detail the extent of the speaker’s sadness through use of specific words and phrases. It is also often difficult to know, like the speaker, the extent to which you are feeling lost or that there is no way out until it is too late. Many people face depression and loss on a daily basis and sometimes it looks like there is no way out or reason to keep living. Not only does it get stuck in your head, but it shows how the speaker is at their breaking point. Bleachers’ use of repetition serves multiple purposes in the song. Bleachers is able to demonstrate the importance of finding and keeping those people close to you for when it does seem impossible to keep going. This one person in the speakers life is the only one that gives them the motivation to keep going. I didn’t know I was broken ’til i wanted to change I wanna get better, better, better, better, I didn’t know I was lonely ’til I saw your face
The speaker then says, directly after the previous lines Although all else seems lost, they hold on to life because they have one person that inspires them to do so. Bleachers use of rhythm illustrates the overwhelming panic and pain that the speaker was feeling and how quickly they were driven to the overpass. The speaker is merely moments away from killing themselves in that instant, but they are stopped by a desire to get better. So now I’m standing on the overpass screaming at the cars, In a blaze of fear I put a helmet on a helmetĬounting seconds through the night and got carried away I was losing my mind ’cause the love, the love, the love, the love, the love
While my friends were getting high and chasing girls down parkway lines The speaker’s deep sadness and longing are highlighted through the lines The song, from the point of view of someone who is in a back and forth battle with themselves for their own life, details the extreme power depression can hold on a person and the devastating effects if that person can’t find an escape. Upon further listening to the lyrics, however, you quickly realize that it is an emotional experience about someone battling depression merely moments away from killing themselves. Upon a first listen, the song “ I Wanna Get Better” from Bleachers’ album Strange Desire can be seen merely as a catchy song to be blasted from car speakers while speeding down the highway.
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