wait okay i have three interpretations of this happiness so far. this is just a brief rundown but bear with me.
the first thing i thought of when i listened to it was self-sabotage when you feel yourself starting to recover from a downwards spiral. the sun and moon metaphor, the reference to rubbing salt in the wound, the fact that they want somebody to save them, it all fits
started thinking about the allusion to under a dome and whether this song could almost be a prequel of sorts
this one is more based on the music video, but the idea of performative happiness, and forcing yourself to smile in order to stop everyone around you from seeing what you really are (the clown costumes, the magic tricks, the reactions of everyone else in the band)
thinking about when alligator had just been released and i was listening to it for the first time. and i misheard the lyrics and thought, with my entire heart, that nanna was saying “wake me up, i feel the trees”
someone: they’re so quiet, i wonder what’s on their mind?
my mind:staring out the window looking at the rainfall hoping for a starlight head is still an animal staring out the window looking at the rainfall hoping for a starlight head is still an animal staring out the window looking at the rainfall hoping for a starlight head is still an animal staring out the window looking at the rainfall hoping for a starlight head is still an animal head is still an animal
of monsters and men overestimated my ability to go on living as normal after hearing “i know that it’s a waste of time, chasing in the dark // so keep me in your clouded mind, until time ignites a spark”
wanted to elaborate on this because there is so much to say about the themes of this song and beneath the skin as a whole. we sink has lyrics like “colour in my sheltered mind // fill the gap between you and i” and “so please look away, don’t look at me // as we sink into the open sea” which form such a great parallel with the one i mentioned in the original post. and it very much draws upon the insecurity that we see time and time again in this album (very strongly in organs and i of the storm in particular, but hints of it can be seen in every song), yet equally it almost shows a state of inner peace. it’s as though the band is saying “i know that things are difficult. and i know how it is to feel like nothing will be okay again. but as soon as you need me, i am here for you. i will never forget about you, so please do not forget about me.”. which makes the fact that this song, and this lyric, is how they drew the album to a close, so much more significant.
beneath the skin is very much an album about humanity, and there is so much pain and self doubt buried in each song, but they chose an oddly comforting way of bringing it to a close, highlighting the fact that there is a light at the end of suffering.
of monsters and men overestimated my ability to go on living as normal after hearing “i know that it’s a waste of time, chasing in the dark // so keep me in your clouded mind, until time ignites a spark”
of monsters and men have single-handedly saved society by announcing the ten year anniversary edition of my head is an animal. nobody else does it like then.
