Bright Eyes - From a Balance Beam

[ohmyupoorchild]

"Now I'm staring at my wrist, hoping that the timing is right. When the planets will align. There will be no planets to align. Just the carcass of the sun and those little painted marbles spinning senseless through an endless black sky." This song is amazing. I think it's more about salvation and him changing or wanting to change himself, rather than suicide.

[link090909]

@ohmyupoorchild I absolutely agree. I listen to the line "It was in a foreign hotel's bathtub I baptized myself in change; and one by one I drowned all of the people I had been. I emerged to find the parallels were fewer - I was cleansed. I looked in the mirror, and someone new was there," and can apply it to myself. I stop pretending to be someone I'm not, and in the end become more like my true self

[brightgreenbies]

<3

[AustinAsphyxiation]

I will marry conor oberst. I will. I fucking will

[melanieglenn]

@AustinAsphyxiation You Will. You? Will. You? Will. You? Will.

[mcrmyalyson]

@AustinAsphyxiation can we share him?:)

[garylindsay34]

nothing needs to be this good.

[11Jurriaan]

A day is gonna come, don't know when, but it's gonna come.. This somehow reminds me of another favourite song of mine.

[Skaegg]

Such a lyrical mastery! all props to BE !

[TheAdriGee]

This song can drag anyone out of apathy. Anyone.

[30degreeseverywhere]

This EP is overwhelmingly great.

[Kiuiv]

if more people knew about conor oberst and bright the world would be a better place, a sadder place but a better place.

[indiemusicisloveee]

It takes immense talent to write lyrics like that.

[jocarbu]

"It was in a foreign hotel bathroom, I baptized myself in change, and one by one I drowned all of the people I had been, and I emerged to find the parallels were fewer, I was cleansed, I looked in the mirror and someone new was there"

I cannot count the times I've sung this to myself for comfort or instruction

[luciano9009]

The first song I ever heard from them, still love this song.

[jaredong]

Here's some to suicide interpretations:

Narrator thinking of jumping down from a building, where policemen are talking to him down with a megaphone. Maybe he decided not to, but fell accidentally like a girl from a balance beam.

When he is "staring at his wrist" waiting for the right time to slit them and end the world. He dips himself into his tub (to die). But he doesnt die quite yet so he stares into the mirror. He feels like a different person, but still trapped in a body.

[joey999]

I often find myself staring at the sun waiting for it to explode.

[Gabypon]

@joey999 You'll go blind mate

[Frosstic]

@joey999 i thought i was the only one.

[Desolyt]

fuckin brill

[omgitsmegx]

Just the carcass of the sun

And those little painted marbles

Spinning senseless through an endless black sky

[ManfredMitchum]

Funny how a song that is both pessimistic and optimistic, filled with conflicting emotions and philosophies on religion and life instantly makes me happy without a thought every time it starts up. I learned and analyzed the lyrics a loooong time ago, but the melody always makes me happy, and this songs actually reminds me of some of the happiest times of my life. :]

[JESSiLiCi0USx3]

i forgot about this song. i'm falling in love all over again.

[scooterzja]

The theme of suicide in this song, especially in the context of the entire album, is too strong to overlook. He alludes to it also in the final song "Let's Not S**** Oursleves (To Love and to Be Loved)" where he sings of waking up in a Chicago hospital, apparently from a suicide attempt by overdose. But a major theme of the album is losing one's religion, of skepticism about belief, and how that can be liberating. Thus I doubt he would imply reading the Bible saved him from committing suicide.

[ManfredMitchum]

This is probably my favorite Bright Eyes song besides A Perfect Sonnet. The lyrics are complex and absolutely beautiful, and the melody is mystical, yet optimistic and heartwarming at the same time. It's just one of those songs where all the notes compliment each other, and the lyrics intertwine smoothly, and....ah. That's the beauty of music :]

[casr2]

one of my favourite bright eyes songs ;p

[arkangelzero]

I can see how your teacher thinks it is about suicide. It could be about both suicide AND religion. There are a lot of things to support this. Especially the part where he said "It was in a foreign hotel's bathtub

I baptized myself in change"

He could have talked about how he was reading a copy of the bible he found after he went to a hotel to commit suicide. People often do that. It is why they keep bibles in hotels. The parts about suicide are numerous. I wish I had enough text space.

[musicisloud]

@arkangelzero they dont keep bibles in motels for suicide commiters, this song has nothing to do with suicide, it has everything to do with rebirth, shut up.

[arkangelzero]

@musicisloud. Good thing this is YouTube where your 14 year old comment is accepted. School starts soon. You should consider going back. Let it educate you so you don't end up on the street.

[musicisloud]

@arkangelzero lol what? logical fallacy much? I dont remember writing what i wrote, but i do believe that this song is not about suicide.

[LarryBogary]

I dont think its about suicide and i think your english teacher needs to go back to school. IMO strichtly of course. Also IMO the cover on here looks like the Movie 9 a Tim burton film coming out, look up the trailer and see for yourself look at the ten minute one u will deffinatly see that he read the book it relates to or whoever made this cover did.

[mobydick187]

school can't teach you how to feel about lyrical content , school just gives you the language to be able to describe things without using words like good or bad or this song is the shit.

[HollowCouplet]

I think its about how hes skeptical about the existence of god or any other religion. "it was a spectacle.. no, I-I mean a miracle." He later says that, well, eventually were all going to die so we wont have to wonder or worry about what happens afterward. "...and well finally know the way out of here." Then he throws away his search for religion/belief because itll be standing in front of him. "throw away this wrinkled map..."

[HollowCouplet]

continued.

IMO You should have your beliefs but one day were all going to know the truth, whatever it may be, so just live life peaceful with one another.

[CountFerodo]

to be fair i think it's another classic conor set of lyrics that is about many many things. different lines seem to mean different things to me. better to know what it means to you, really :)

[PhoneLad]

what ever you want it to be about but i think its about big black cukle

[torkle]

Balancing belief (religion). Weighing out the odds. Rationalizing theories and finding out the concrete truth. Acting a certain way because someone wants you to only to find out you cannot 100% believe it. Mental reincarnation.

Thats what I think.

[epson999]

"Rationalizing theories and finding out the concrete truth"

Isn't that just describing the reilgion of Scientology?

[biafraiscool]

according to my english teacher, suicide

[ajmitch95]

your english teacher is cool if they listen to bright eyes but i don't think this is about suicide

it actually sounds a little religious

no that that's bad things