punchdrunk lovesick singalong
interpretation
by Shareef Elfiki
This song is about thoughtless devotion to a girl. The speaker's situation could be interpreted as either favorable or not, as there is an argument to both. But that's not really important.
"I wrapped you inside my coat when they came to firebomb the house. I didn't feel pain, 'cause no one can touch me, now that I'm held in your spell." This recalls a scene from George Orwell's 1984. A ship is attacked, and a mother wraps her arms around her child who is being shot at. It is a futile effort, as the mother's embrace would not keep the child from death. Such is the nature of Thom's protection. It is of no consequence at all, but it does carry meaning. This verse also portrays Thom's feelings of invincibility, a supporting fact for an optimist's interpretation of the song.
"A beautiful girl can turn your world to dust." At first glance, this line is dark in meaning. It seems to say, "A beautiful girl can make everything suck." But on another level, it could mean, "A beautiful girl can make nothing else matter."
"Sell me a car that runs. Sell me a house that stands up." This is a more negative lyric, not only suggesting a certain blindness in love, but also a willingness to accept anything that the girl offers. However, Thom contradicts this mood with the repetition of the line, "I never cared before." This adds a new depth to the second meaning of the chorus. It suggests, "Yeah, I don't care about anything but her. But before her I didn't care about anything but myself."
The last half-verse follows the same track the song started on.
"I stood in front of your face when the first bullet was shot." Thom's
love will not change anything, but it still exists, and that is real.
For all those who forget this wonderful song...
PUNCHDRUNK LOVESICK SINGALONG
Radiohead
I wrapped you inside my coat
When they came to firebomb the house
I didn't feel pain 'cause no one can touch me
Now that I'm held in your spell
A beautiful girl
A beautiful girl
Can turn your world into dust
Sell me a car that goes
Sell me a house that stands
I never cared before
I never cared before
I never cared before
Before
Before
Before
A beautiful girl
A beautiful girl
Can turn your world into dust
I stood in front of her face
When the first bullet was shot
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This was written during a critical time for the band, between their
first and second albums, during a major stylistic change/progression.
It was amusing to notice that the word "Punchdrunk" appears in the Paranoid
Android clip as grafitti on a wall. This clip was made about four
years after the song was released.
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This is obviously a very personal song to me. Is love blind?
Probably. Does that lessen it's "appeal"? Does that make it
worse? Can we change our fate? I don't know, and I actually
don't care. Just... I miss things... sometimes...
God... I'm so manically depressed.
Do you want me to scream it from the rooftops or what? Sometimes I fucking hate myself so much that I hang out on clifftops for enjoyment. Sometimes I care so much that I physically ache. Sometimes I feel like I should cut myself to see if I bleed. Sometimes I feel the need to burn myself to see if there is pain. Sometimes I lay awake wondering what is the fucking point. And sometimes, sometimes I feel the need to reach out and stare over that little line which keeps me sane.