Changing of the Guards
Eternal Dance of Fate: The Gaslight Anthem's Changing Symphony
Lyrics
Sixteen years,
Refers to a sixteen-year span
Sixteen banners united over the field
Symbolizes unity and solidarity, possibly in a conflict or struggle
Where the good shepherd grieves.
A place of sorrow or lamentation
Desperate men, desperate women divided,
People in dire situations, possibly in conflict or at odds with each other
Spreading their wings 'neath the falling leaves.
Individuals seeking freedom or independence in challenging times
Fortune calls.
Opportunity or fate beckoning
I stepped forth from the shadows, to the marketplace,
The narrator emerges from obscurity into a bustling place
Merchants and thieves, hungry for power, my last deal gone down.
A setting involving both honest traders and deceitful individuals, referencing a failed deal
She's smelling sweet like the meadows where she was born,
Describing someone's fragrance and natural origins
On midsummer's eve, near the tower.
Specific time and place - midsummer's eve near a tower
The cold-blooded moon.
A harsh, unfeeling moon
The captain waits above the celebration
A figure of authority observing a celebration
Sending his thoughts to a beloved maid
Sending thoughts to a distant beloved with whom communication is difficult
Whose ebony face is beyond communication.
The beloved has a face that is inscrutable or impossible to understand
The captain is down but still believing that his love will be repaid.
Despite setbacks, the captain remains hopeful about love
They shaved her head.
An act of humiliation or submission
She was torn between Jupiter and Apollo.
A struggle between different influences or ideologies
A messenger arrived with a black nightingale.
An unexpected message arrives symbolically
I seen her on the stairs and I couldn't help but follow,
The narrator is compelled to follow a person of interest
Follow her down past the fountain where they lifted her veil.
Observing a revealing moment or action
I stumbled to my feet.
Recovering from a fall or setback
I rode past destruction in the ditches
Passing through a damaged or ruined area
With the stitches still mending 'neath a heart-shaped tattoo.
A personal symbol still in the process of healing
Renegade priests and treacherous young witches
Encountering unconventional figures with contrasting morals
Were handing out the flowers that I'd given to you.
A symbol of affection or love given away
The palace of mirrors
A place reflecting conflict or self-reflection
Where dog soldiers are reflected,
Soldiers or protectors seen through a distorted lens
The endless road and the wailing of chimes,
A journey with lamentation or warning sounds
The empty rooms where her memory is protected,
Empty spaces where memories are preserved
Where the angels' voices whisper to the souls of previous times.
A spiritual connection to the past
She wakes him up
Someone awakening another after a significant time has passed
Forty-eight hours later, the sun is breaking
A new day dawning after struggles or confinement
Near broken chains, mountain laurel and rolling rocks.
Symbolic references to freedom and obstacles
She's begging to know what measures he now will be taking.
A plea for understanding or information about future actions
He's pulling her down and she's clutching on to his long golden locks.
A physical connection amid desperation
Gentlemen, he said,
A refusal of authority or established order
I don't need your organization, I've shined your shoes,
Rejecting or being done with reliance on others
I've moved your mountains and marked your cards
A claim of having achieved significant tasks
But Eden is burning, either brace yourself for elimination
Warning of impending chaos or drastic change
Or else your hearts must have the courage for the changing of the guards.
A call to either prepare for change or find the courage to face it
Peace will come
Anticipation of peace with beauty and grandeur but without fulfillment
With tranquility and splendor on the wheels of fire
A belief that rewards won't come when false beliefs or icons fail
But will bring us no reward when her false idols fall
Even in defeat, death retreats with its harshness
And cruel death surrenders with its pale ghost retreating
A symbolic struggle between conflicting powers
Between the King and the Queen of Swords.
A reference to opposing figures or ideologies
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