Rise Against: The Dirt Whispered Meaning

The Dirt Whispered Lyrics

She got down on hands and knees,
One ear against the ground,
Holding her breath to hear something,
But the dirt made not a sound tonight

Echoes of songs still lurk on distant foreign shores,
Where we danced just to please the gods that...

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   #1 top rated interpretation:
   anonymous

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   Mar 25th 2012 !⃝

   This song is obviously about waiting. But as for a girl waiting for her father/husband/boyfriend to return from war, I don't think that's what this song is about (of course we all have our own interpretations and I'm not saying those others are wrong).
   
   Let's think of it as Tim's wife and daughters for a moment.
   
   "She got down on hands and knees,
   One ear against the ground,
   Holding her breath to hear something,
   But the dirt made not a sound tonight"
   
   This is pretty self-explanitory. A girl is listening for the sound of when her man will return.
   
   "Echoes of songs still lurk on distant foreign shores,
   Where we danced just to please the gods that only ask for more,
   So it goes"
   
   This is the part where I think it's not about war (though it can be). If you picture Tim being the character who the girl is waiting for, WE - his fans - are the "gods." Rise Against tours all over the world, and sometimes Tim can't bring his family with him (he's said so in interviews). "Foreign shores" are places that aren't his home country, the USA. He does everything he can to please his fans, and even when he gives his all we still ask for pictures and signings and encores.
   
   
   "But still we give ourselves to this
   We can't spend our lives waiting to live"
   
   I think he's referring to the band as a whole here. He is saying that he gives in to the long interviews and crowds. Even though he LOVES his fans and would do anything for them, when you think REALISTICALY, we're taking his family-life away. He's ALWAYS on the road and is always busy. He saying he can't spend his entire life doing this and still expect to have a 100% functional family.
   
   "On cold nights
   In a prayer for dawn
   But the daylight
   Isn't what she wants
   
   The concrete
   Calls my name again
   I'm falling
   Through the cracks I slip"
   
   Here we go back to the girl (we'll use Blythe, his daughter, as the example). She's waiting for her dad to return from and oversea tour and keeps waiting night after night for him. For now, we don't know why she doesn't want the dawn when she prays for morning - but daylight has significance to her. We then go back to Tim who is called back to the roads (the concrete) and the more he's on the road, the more he is getting further from his family.
   
   "The postcard says wish you were here
   But I'd rather I was there,
   Holding on to the simple things before they disappear,
   That's what I meant"
   
   So since his family is feeling lonley, Tim besides to send them a postcard from whatever city he's currently touring in. The postcard says "Wish you were here!" but Tim is saying "I want to be there, with you. Not here." He tells himself that he needs to keep the simple things close to heart because all things come to an end sooner or later.
   
   "But that was then, and this is now
   I'll make it up to you somehow"
   
   He is saying that the "simple things" are no longer here - they're in the past(that was then, this is now). He makes a promise to make it up to his family by not coming home when he had planned.
   
   -chorus again-
   
   "A destination, a fading smile
   Another station, another mile
   Another day gone, I swore that I will
   Be there before dawn
   So be there, I will"
   
   Here this can be related to a soldier overseas but I still don't think of it like that.
   Anywho, the "destination" is the place of the concert. Still not home, so we're sad. ): The "station" doesn't have to be where a soldier is being stationed, it can be a radio station that Tim is being interviewed at or playing at, and the miles just keep on rolling. He keeps saying he'll come home but never does because of scheduling, but he SWORE he would be home before morning, and he is determined to keep that promise.
   
   
   "She got down on hands and knees,
   One ear against the ground,
   Holding her breath to hear something,
   Anything at all"
   
   Here, she's trying one last time to see if he really is coming home and she is nervous because she thinks she'll be let down again.
   
   "The dirt whispered, "Child, I'm coming home""
   
   YAY! Daddy is on his way home! Tim kept his promise and finally is on his way home to see his family.
   
   "On cold nights
   In a prayer for dawn
   But the daylight
   Isn't what she wants
   
   "The concrete
   Calls my name again
   I'm falling
   Through the cracks I slip"
   
   I think that even though he was able to come home and see his family after a while on tour, he still has to go back out and do the same thing in the next few weeks, so the family-time is cut short. Just like before, he has to go out into the world and start the cycle all over again.
   
   
   
   
   But like I said before, THIS IS MY OPINION. I'm not saying this is how it's meant to be, this is just what I thought of it as. I could be wrong. However it's your choice how you interpret this song. Just enjoy the music while you're at it. (:
2. anonymous

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   Jan 18th 2012 !⃝

   I think that, like many of their songs, this song has something to do with war. To me, the speaker is at war and is communicating with "Her" through letters and postcards. At some times, the speaker doesn't believe they will make it home. Finally, in the end, the Speaker knows they are coming home.
3. anonymous

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   Oct 17th 2011 !⃝

   This song seems to be about waiting.
   
   My interpretation is a stretch, but the speaker seems to be waiting on a girl to make up her mind - a girl that he's madly in love with.
   
   When the song talks about "the dirt." it's the speaker talking about himself...
4. anonymous

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   Aug 30th 2011 !⃝

   I think it's about a girls dad who left but said he would be back and she waits and prays and looks back on life

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