Of Monsters and Men: Little Talks Meaning
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Song Released: 2011
Little Talks Lyrics
(Hey!)
(Hey!)
I don't like walking around this old and empty house
So hold my hand I'll walk with you my dear
The stairs creak as you sleep it's keeping me awake
It's the house telling you to close your eyes
Somedays I can't even...
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1TOP RATED
anonymous Jun 9th, 2012 6:16pm report
I thought this song was different than those interpretations, but i think you guys might be right.
"I don't like walking around this old and empty house"
( I thought it was a widow who's husband died recently, she feels the house is empty w/o him )
"So hold my hand I'll walk with you my dear"
( I thought this might be like his ghost talking to her )
"The stairs creak as you sleep it's keeping me awake"
( More of him being a ghost )
"It's the house telling you to close your eyes"
( He's telling her to go to sleep )
"Somedays I can't even trust myself"
( Just her not knowing what to do w/o him )
"'Cause though the truth may vary
This ship will carry our bodies safe to shore"
( Like they are eventually going to meet again )
"Well tell her that I miss our little talks"
( Him just missing her )
"Soon it will be over and buried with our past"
( Foreshadowing )
"We used to play outside when we were young and full of life and full of love"
( Nostalgia )
"Your mind is playing tricks on you my dear"
( Her seeing his ghost )
"You're gone, gone, gone away
I watched you disappear
All that's left is a ghost of you"
( Cus he's dead..)
"Now we're torn, torn, torn apart
There's nothing we can do
Just let me go, we'll meet again soon"
( This might be farfetched but i thought she was trying to end her life because she wanted him to let her die so they will 'meet again soon' )
"Now wait, wait, wait for me
Please hang around"
( He doesn't want her to die )
"I'll see you when I fall asleep"
( Like she seems him when she sleeps, so they can be together in her dreams )
And thats what i thought...maybe a little out there, but if you listen to the song, you can seriously picture this scenario...and when it plays the "Hey!" happy parts i feel like she is remembering happy memories of them together doing things...sorry i think of this in terms of a music video haha -
2TOP RATED
anonymous Mar 17th, 2012 3:16am report
Seems to be about an older couple who have been married for many years and now the wife is suffering from alzhiemers disease. It's a sad story of what they are going through with the wife struggling through this tragedy trying to keep her memories and just get through everyday functions. The husband who is dying inside as he sees his wife disappear a little each day trys to keep her comforted as this terrible thing progresses. He reflects on how things were when they were young and how he misses their conversations. There seems to be a part where she tells him not to take anything she says to hearts when she's not herself. He seems to try to pull her back when he sees moments of her normal self. This song should be the banner for the fight against a terrible plight.
-
3TOP RATED
anonymous May 25th, 2012 5:41am report
I think he is dead and she can't stop thinking of him. He tells her that he will hold her hand while she's walking alone. It's killing him to see her being so sad. He misses their little talks they had. I'd say that she's talking about him and he answers from afterlife... He wants her to let him go and forget him so she can be happy again, because they will meet again anyway when she dies too.
"You're gone gone gone away
I watched you disappear
All that's left is a ghost of you
Now we're torn torn torn apart, there's nothing we can do
Just let me go we'll meet again soon
Now wait wait wait for me
Please hang around
I'll see you when I fall asleep"
Thats the part I mean. They will see each other, when she sleeps. They will see each other in her dreams! -
anonymous Feb 22nd, 2:40am report
I think this song is definitely about a widow who was married for a very long time. Here is my reasoning:
"I don't like walking around this old and empty house
So hold my hand, I'll walk with you, my dear"
The house seems old and empty without her husband, but she hears his voice telling her that he is present and will stay with her.
"And some days I can't even dress myself
It's killing me to see you this way"
I think that the girl is so overtaken with grief that she can't really do anything, and the boy is sort of like a ghost, watching over her but not able to help.
"There's an old voice in my head that's holding me back/Well tell her that I miss our little talks"
I think this means that the boy/man (as a ghost or whatever) showed himself to the widowed girl/woman, and that she wants to believe he is real but the realistic part of her is "holding her back." The ghost/man wants to talk, but part of the girl thinks she's going crazy.
"Some days I feel like I'm wrong when I'm right
Your mind is playing tricks on you, my dear"
I don't know why, but I always find this part so sweet. I usually hear it as "Some days I don't know if I am all right" (but those aren't the words oops), and the boy/man/ghost thing is saying basically that she is all right/strong, and that she will be fine. <3
"You're gone, gone, gone away
I watched you disappear
All that's left is the ghost of you.
Now we're torn, torn, torn apart,
There's nothing we can do"
At this point I think it's the girl simply wanting the ghost of her husband to go away, so she can finish living her life and move on. She's saying, "you're gone...and there's nothing we can do" about it.
"Now wait, wait, wait for me
Please hang around
I'll see you when I fall asleep"
I think this is the ghost of the woman's husband pleading with her to stay with him in a sense, and not move on. The last line is her soothing him, saying that they'll meet up again in her dreams.
Hopefully that made sense:) -
anonymous Feb 12th, 2:14am report
It's about two people being uncomfortable with each others imperfections so the house is a metaphor for the things they don't like about being so close.
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anonymous Feb 10th, 2:56am report
I agree with most interpretations but my first thoughts were depression, loss, anxiety, loneliness, sadness and possibly suicidal. But while the song may be referring to these things hope seems to ring out loud and clear. Just a very well written song. I listen to it often.
-
anonymous Jan 20th, 1:38am report
My interpretation of this song was that the main female singer is mentally ill. At first it mainly highlights the female singer with lines such as "I don't like walking around this old and empty house" while the male comforts her saying that he'll hold her hand. It becomes increasingly obvious as she sings the line "Some days I can't even dress myself" and as the man responds "It's killing me to see you this way". When she sings the line "There's old voice in my head that's holding me back" it all came together and began to make sense. She most likely has a mild to severe case of schizophrenia which would explain the voices in her head as well as the way she acts as if the house is alive, hearing the stairs creak while she goes to sleep. The Male singer goes on to sing verses such as "your mind is playing tricks on you my dear" and sings of a past in which he and the female singer played together "full of life and vigor" he alludes to a past lost but not forgotten. His lover slowly grows weaker as she struggles with illness. The story takes a twist at the middle of the song during the chorus when the lovers sing in unison (or it may just be the male with backup) "don't listen to a word I say" and "the screams all sound the same" it becomes apparent that the female lover is not the only one struggling through this. To me it seems as though the male doesn't have any mental problems past the mental trauma that he is facing as his lover slowly fades away. As the end draws nearer in this song lines including "All that's left is a ghost of you," "now we're torn, torn, torn apart" and "there's nothing we can do" it becomes increasingly obvious that the female singer is dying. This is confirmed when the line "just let me go we'll meet again soon" is uttered. The male protests, singing back "Now wait, wait, wait for me, please hang around" but then he concludes "I'll see you when I fall asleep." Then of course there is the chorus verse: "Though the truth may vary this ship will carry our bodies safe to shore." This line is sung as a final resignation, an acceptance of death, but at the same time it offers up the hopeful prospect that they will meet again soon, not matter what happens on this earth, they will meet in the next life safe and sound. Sorry if this was a little long, but this is what I saw when I heard this song.
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anonymous Dec 6th, 12:02am report
Not my at all, by the lead singer "Of Monsters and Men":
THE REAL "LITTLE TALKS": Okay. "Little Talks" is... How we usually make our lyrics is, Raggi and I, sometimes we come up with stories or situations. That one is about a relationship. Sometimes we haven't wanted to give too much away. We like people to read their own things in the lyrics. I guess I could share it. It's about a couple and the husband passed away and it's from the conversation between the two of them. We don't know if she's going crazy or if someone's actually there. We've kind of been inspired by people that lived in my house. This old couple that lived there for 30 years. The woman passed away, so it was kind of different. -
anonymous Oct 20th, 10:50am report
This song, if intended, and it might just be seeing how beautifully directed and animated the video is, is a masterpiece in my opinion. One of the best in our era lyrically and musically. It is vague, and thus open to a variety of interpretations, but I believe it is still about a certain type of situation, which is the separation of two people, and the pain of separation. Be it love, friendship, brotherly/sisterly love (unlikely to be parent-child given the young voices in the song, it just wouldnt fit).
If taken as it is, this is pretty much the general theme. The pain, and how they attempt to cope with it, mostly the male attempting to insert reason into the emotional maelstrom of the female protagonist, attempting to salvage whats left of the relationship, and maintain the hope that is all there is left.
If taken together with the video, it becomes even more profound, and beautiful. I believe, like some other people have pointed out, that this song is about life, and pain in general when taken with the video. The video is about a journey, and adventure, sometimes very much like life is. We march along to the beat of time, like the 5 characters do. The 5 characters may be friends, or they may just represent different parts of us, at different stages of our life, or simply the different aspects of our character. We encounter various obstacles, and survive through sheer luck mostly (ship hanging on branch). But at the start of the journey, at the start of life, from out of nowhere, a guardian angel arrives. Do we all have this guardian angel? does it bring colour and beauty into our drab, miserable, bleak lives? perhaps. It gives a sense of safety to us, a sense that we can set out to do the things we want to do, to take risks, knowing we have her as a back-up. She seems to overcome the obstacles easily, banishing them into a shower of iridescent sparkles with a ball of light shot from her mouth. Symbolic of words perhaps? the 'little talks' the male is having with the female? are words that powerful? perhaps. Another point to make is the importance of imagination in life. Some have interpreted this as a case of alzheimer's, and it is possible, since an alzheimer's patient may be living in her own world, imagining what it was like to go on an adventure like that in the video. Words are enough to banish our imaginary demons, replacing them with a firework of colour, turning someone negative into a beautiful positive.
but at the end one shouldnt 'listen to a word I say', as words are merely words, they open doors into other imaginary worlds, that in reality might not be as colourful or exciting. The sobering fact is that 'theres nothing we can do', but the one redeeming fact that we know is the 'though the truth may vary', and that nothing is certain, 'this ship will carry our bodies safe to shore'. We will all eventually arrive at the destination of life that is death. Any pain or happiness is temporary. The video emphasizes the metaphorical nature of the 'ship' that we use. The ship destroyed, the characters continue to proceed, by walking, or climbing, or riding on an iceberg, in tune towards their destination, unhindered. I think this represents the incessant and unstoppable passage of time in our lives, we are always pushed towards our final destination every second of our lives. And every second is an adventure, bringing new obstacles, and we overcome them by luck (guardian angel), by resourcefulness (the rope), or by the use of 'little talks', words that dont mean a thing, but are enough to transform our reality such that it makes reality that little bit easier to deal with and overcome. But what is reality? and are we all but living in an illusion? this journey brings us from the heights of the sky to the depths of the sea, and then back up again to the sky, (arguably even higher than where it began) where it ends in the video. Perhaps it represents the ups and downs in life, and how we usually end up where we begin, the same components as we began, but with the added experience of life.
at the end, we realise that our demons and obstacles in the past make up who we are in the end, and having overcome them, however which way we had, represents the summation of our lives and who we are. These monsters are beautiful in retrospect, imagined or real. Its as if the characters are reflecting on their lives at the end of the video, a portfolio of their achievements and a story of their journey in one picture, including the guardian angel, and finally realise that they are ready to die, to get to 'shore'. It is a happy ending however, evidenced by the guardian angel smiling. It was a happy, well-lived life, full of adventure, risk, and despite all the hardship and struggle there was beauty, mostly in the form of the guardian angel. Does this all mean we need to believe in a higher power? I doubt so as there doesnt seem to be any traditional religious symbolism here. It seems this guardian angel is more of a secular, liberal version of the traditional guardian angels in christianity. Perhaps it is a broader metaphor, for friends, family, lovers who are there for the 'little talks' to help and guide us along the way in life, and make our journey more colourful whilst at the same time helping us overcome our fears and obstacles.
I could go on and on about the meaning of the facepaint on each of the characters (perhaps as above, different characters of us, or the same individual at different times in his life etc), the meaning of the number 5 (5 eyes on the guardian angel, on the final form of the monster, 5 characters; or it may just be simply the 5 members of the band), or the details of the makeup of the final monster, or the meaning of the guardian angel's facepaint. I could also go on about the various details of the journey and their meaning regarding each stage of our lives, or the dichotomy that exists throughout the video (every negative is countered by a positive, and the dual nature of the final monster (black fumes and monster mixed in with colourful sparkles), and also about the interplay between the lyrics, the music and the video etc.
I could go on and on, such is the beauty of this song and its video. One of my favourite all time. -
anonymous Oct 2nd, 10:42am report
I think it's about a woman with schizophrenia based on her confusion. "It's killing me to see you this way" the man says because he's watching his love slip into a mental disorder. A symptom is hallucinations and especially the music video looks it. "All that's left is a ghost of you" because once you have Schizophrenia, you are never the same person.
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anonymous Aug 23rd, 2014 8:47am report
I agree with most of these interpretations but I think the main chorus "though the truth may vary this ship will carry our bodies safe to shore", could mean every ones life on earth are different whether rich poor, dying young old, all these differences don't matter when we lose someone. Then the ship will carry on, like planet earth is our ship and it'll keep on spinning - like life will go on. Shore is definitely heaven or whatever or wherever you believe we go to reunite w our lost loved ones. Hope you like my thoughts ;)
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anonymous May 31st, 2014 5:26pm report
I think this is a widow talking about how she(This house) feels empty and lost without her husband and is contemplating suicide. The part about the ship carrying their bodies is talking about how they will be carried away(their dead bodies) together or they end up buried together and then they'll be reunited. Just my interpretation of this.
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anonymous May 24th, 2014 5:12am report
I agree with the dementia/ Alzheimer's disease theory. It sound like a woman slipping away from her husband who can do nothing but watch as his love can barely recognize him anymore... :( but they are reunited in death and can be together forever.
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anonymous May 20th, 2014 5:41pm report
I used to think it was a new couple where the man has bought a house that has not been lived in in many years and is trying to move in with her,but she realizes the danger,but it is too late and he dies in the house and she is all alone.
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Zora55605 Jan 11th, 2014 1:23pm report
This story isn't mine (I saw it on Grooveshark as one of the comments on this song) but the interpretation seems very accurate to me.
There were two close friends. He always never gave up while she was kind andtrustworthy. They go home together one night from a party and the girl was drunk and the guy stayed sober to watch over her. As they walked home, they were crossing an intersection. The guy stopped because a car was coming, while the girl kept walking and turned around wondering why he stopped for she didnt notice that a car was coming. The guy shouted at her, but she asks, "Why are you mad? I lov-" the guy pushed her before she could finish. The guy was hit by the car and the girl got up and saw what happened, and fell back to the ground crying. Four days later, the guy woke up in the girl's house. He finds the girl in her bedroom crying, with her parents trying to talk to her outside. He comes closer and sits beside her on her bed. He whispers "I'm here". The girl looks up and smiles and apologizes, cries even harder but with a smile. The guy whispers to her ear: "Move on, I'm here now." From there on, they talked to each other, making each other laugh. The girl's parents see her sometimes laughing on her own, thinking she has gone crazy but still whenever they would talk to her she seemed normal, thinking she had surely moved on. Weeks passed, and the guy starts to notice her mumbling how life is meaningless without him. Up to the point the guy realizes that the more he spent time with her in his afterlife, the more she was drawn to committing suicide. Though he realized too late. He ran as fast as he could back into her room. His eyes widened with a sad face. But, he realizes that he cant do anything to change her mind. He sits down at her bed and stared outside the window because he didn’t want to see her kill herself. The girl looks at the ceiling and says: “I know your there, why don’t you talk to me?” The guy kept silent and walked close to her and looked at her face. The girl continued for she knew for sure he was there: “This ship will carry our bodies safe to shore. Remember? You always told me when we were kids. Thank you.” The guy started to smile, he knew she already made up her mind, and for the truth’s side, he realizes how much he misses her “I remember, I thought you forgot.” The guy fell to the ground. The girl knew it was time, she says to him, “Your gone, all that’s left is a ghost of you. We are torn apart, just let me go and we’ll meet again soon.” The guy stood up, and said, “I guess I'll see you when I fall asleep then” as he walked towards the spot where he woke up. He closed his eyes and everything turned white. He tried to open his eyes but everything stayed white. He waited for something to happen, though afraid if he was going to be trapped there forever alone in the white. Then he hears a familiar voice behind him. He looks at the ground and cried with a smile, “I missed you so much.” -
anonymous Nov 10th, 2013 11:32am report
I agree with most people on their interpretations saying how she's a widow and her husbands dead but more specifically I have a slightly different interpretation. I think tha her husband is just very ill and she can't talk to him anymore because he's dying. Eventually he dies and before he dies maybe, she made a promise to him or something that keeps her from trying to commit suicide. Like when it says "just let me go we'll meet again soon" she feels like whatever she said or did for him before he died is keeping her from dying. But eventually whether it's from old age or just sickness she's starting to die. Now, she's saying "I'll see you when I fall to sleep" which means she now slipping away and finally dying. Which means she'll finally get to see him.
That's what I personally think but, I could always be 100% wrong. -
anonymous Nov 6th, 2013 11:22pm report
could the line about the ship carrying safety to shore have anything to do with Greek mythology and the boat that carried the dead away?
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InkNotMInk Sep 27th, 2013 9:52am report
Speaking with Interview Magazine, Hilmarsdóttir explained the song's meaning: "How we usually make our lyrics is, Raggi and I, sometimes we come up with stories or situations. That one is about a relationship. Sometimes we haven't wanted to give too much away. We like people to read their own things in the lyrics. I guess I could share it. It's about a couple and the husband passed away and it's from the conversation between the two of them. We don't know if she's going crazy or if someone's actually there. We've kind of been inspired by people that lived in my house. This old couple that lived there for 30 years. The woman passed away, so it was kind of different."
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