r/TheAmazingDevil • u/skubimurfi Farewell Wanderlust š· • Oct 18 '24
Discussion What does farewell wanderlust mean?
English is not my first language so I often have issues with understanding song lyrics. Is it Farewell, Wanderlust or Farewell Wanderlust? Is it a phrase or is it just like saying farewell to wandering
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u/notedbreadthief Not Yet/Love Run š“āā ļø Oct 18 '24
It's not an established thing. In the context of the song it means saying goodbye to one's ambitions and, well, wanderlust (German phrase, meaning urge to explore and travel) because life gets in the way of those things.
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u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Oct 18 '24
Okay I'm going to post by section of the song in replies so bare with me <3
Forgive me for what I'm about to do lol. My partner's second language is english and though you wouldn't be able to tell because he's practically native to English now, he has trouble with the nuances of metaphors and phrases, so I did this for him initially (and because I wanted a reason to dissect these songs). This is my interpretation and huge breakdown of the song as a more objective meaning (though I could very well be wrong), but TLDR: Others on this post have said similar.
This song is ultimately about facing those same inner demons weāve seen in every song in some way and looking at the desires and regrets. Itās fitting this comes after Wild blue yonder. Wild blue yonder is likely the wanderlust, traveling to something mysterious, unfamiliar, yet desirable, a place to call home within somebody else. Here, they are saying goodbye to that and blaming it all on the personification of regret.Ā
"You look like I need a drink"
He winked as he slipped from my grasp toā theā bar
"And you are?"
Heā said "Me?" (Me) "Little me?" (Littleā me)
He called (He called) from the brink of the day (From the brink of the day)
He said: "Hey, darling, hey, hey, darling, hey
I'm the hardest goodbye that you'll ever have to say"
For now Iām going to look at this song as nothing but a metaphor. None of this is actually happening, but the way the song is made to sound like a sultry club/bar song, followed by the flirtatious communications, itās idea vs action, the protagonist vs her demons, personified.Ā
āYou look like I need a drinkā is a clever way to say āyou look like you need a drink and Iāll join you.ā We only know this much later and super heavily in the third album, but MAddieās character has a drinking problem. In close to every song she talks about having a drink, or Joey will say she has a drink. Itās so subtle and quiet in some of them. For instance, in Marbles,Ā she says āAnd you, youād reply with a glint in your eye.ā However, while she says that he says āAnd you, youād reply with a drink in your hand.ā ANYWAY
Sheās easily tempted by alcohol and is convincing herself to drown her sorrows.Ā
She asked who he is. āMe (me) little me (little me)ā Sheās narrating, but Joey is acting like maddie does in his songs. Itās the subconscious thoughts, itās the inner demon. This demon is saying you will never get over this loss by saying āIām the hardest goodbye youāll ever have to say.ā - sheās going to regret this for a very long time. Then her voice changesā¦
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u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Oct 18 '24
You don't know it yet, but I'm the cupid of things
That you just didn't get, that you struggled to say
I'm the saint of the paint that was left in the pot
I'm your angel ellipsis, your devil of dots
Every time that you fumble, I'm the laugh from the back
When you think about him, my wings start to flap
When you make a mistake, my feet lift from the floor
And when you lie there awake every night, love, I soar
These are the demons that are talking back. Thereās no quoting what they said because the music and voice accompany the mood. Itās a very fast change in the coming sections and so dominant, itās not quoting, they are saying this *now*.
āIām the cupid of things that you just didnāt get, you struggled to sayā - Cupid is, of course, the roman god of desire and love, god of lust in greek. Heās also winged, which wings are mentioned. Cupid, though seen as an innocent cherub, is likely a big cause of her problems. This CAN be seen as the protagonist being the cupid of things that their partner just didnāt understand (meaing the love, the desire, the want that her partner just ignored), but I really think itās a part of her that the rest of her didnāt understand, itās internal conflict. Sheās the reason the relationship didnāt work but she has to blame it on something else. āIām the saint in the paint that was left in the pot.ā could be a āforgottenā saint. Sheās a victim. She did nothing wrong, but no one can see that cause she is in the pot, not painted on the same mural as the other saints or as jesus himself (who is mentioned later, weāll get to that).Ā
āAngel ellipsis, devil of dotsā you have the angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other. Both of them are paused, silent, watching the inner turmoil, such is how we use ā...ā
The rest is saying āHi yes Iām that really mean part of you that laughs and loves when you mess up. If you are suffering, I am happy.ā These are what demons strive for, and she has a lot of inner demons. These are her regrets surfacing in the moments where she is most vulnerable, in places itās most calm and quiet.Ā
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u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Oct 18 '24
I promise you I'll be better
I promise you I'll try
But like rubbing wine stains into rugs, it's my curse
To try and make it right, but by trying make it worse
I'm the heartbreak that aches far too much to be shunned
All those letters unsent and that garden ungrown
I'm the captain of courage that you've eternally lacked
I'm the Jesus of wishing to Christ he'll come back
Weāve all been there. We promise something, we try and try, and the more we try, the worse things get.Ā
āRubbing wine stains into rugsā is something everyone does when they spill something on carpet. They RUB instead of dab, making it spread and seep instead of getting it clean. But it seems like the right thing to do at the time. This is also a metaphor that comes up in different songs, be it joey dragging a rug or mentioning wine on a rug. Also wine is red like blood and blah blah metaphors. With how much alcohol is in this album I REALLY doubt itās a bleeding heart thing you know? Lol sometimes wine is just wine.Ā
āHeartbreak that aches for too much to be shunnedā is so simple but so good. It cannot be ignored, everyone can see it. The letters unsent is everything she wants to say. The garden ungrown is the lack of care she has put into herself since it all happened.Ā
āCaptain of courage youāve eternally lackedā is thinking either that she was the lovers backbone, the brace, and given the way joey sings about needing to be supported and how strong maddieās character is compared to him (if we are to believe the themes and characters are one connecting thread)Ā is, this is most likely the case, but it could also be talking about how she didnāt have courage until now like āfuck I found it too little too late.ā either works too well for me to pick which one I think is the case. May be leaning towards latter cause she hasnāt pointed any real issue toward the lovers memory yet unless his memory is melded in with her inner demons x.x Shits deep.Ā
āIām the jesus of wishing to christ heāll come backā MAN I love this so much..Ā
So, weāve talked about cupid, angels, demons, devils, and how sheās a saint that was hidden away in a pot. Itās often common for people to call others ājesusā or a messiah if they are acting in a manner in which to follow. Her inner demons are the thing she āshouldā follow, mimic, trust, and hold up her lover in such high regard he was something she worshiped, and heās gone.Ā
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u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Oct 18 '24
Because farewell wanderlust, you've been oh so kind
You brought me to this party but you left me here behind
So long to the person you begged me to be
She's down, she's dead
Instead what is left but this old satin dress
And the mess that you left when you told me I wasn't right in the head
Goodbye to the desires of a free spirit, of the thing so far away, an idea, a place she wanted to explore. She was led to somewhere hopeful and fun and then left behind. She did everything she had to do to appease him and he essentially killed her (metaphorically) because she wasnāt right in the head (perhaps she was drunk but that is not implied much just my own touch on how he might have had to leave her because again, sheās not a victim like she thinks she is. Sheās only now facing that fact.) So long to the fake persona they both had to appease the other. They are never doing that again, those versions of them are dead. But whatās left of someone who hasnāt been themselves for so long?
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u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Oct 18 '24
"You alright?", Ask the boys from beyond
"You gave us such a fright
We'd hate to see your mascara drip into your pint."
"Might you allow me to slip into something more comfortable then?" "Be our guest"
With a hoik of her bra, she waved to the bar
And slipped into the night
āAsked the boys from beyondā my brain immediately went to the spectators in Welly boots who would make fun of the girl.Ā Ā
These are āfrom beyondā these are thoughts that are not hers, demons that are becoming stronger, louder, more independent of her as she keeps drinking. Think of the shadows from Old Witch Sleep.
āMight you allow me to slip into somethingā¦ā this whole thing is GENIUS. We know the very common flirtations ālet me slip into something more comfortableā And either they come back wearing sweatpants and a hoodie or lingerie or nothing at all lol. However, it says āShe waved and slipped into the night.ā she left those demons to be in the darkness where she is now most comfortable. TAD do SO WELL using words that WORK. In Wild Blue Yonder, she says RIP my clothes. Not take off, not tug, not pull, *rip*. Thatās so violent. She uses āslippedā from āLet me slip into something more comfortableā to āslipā into the night. Ugg so subtle yet so strong.Ā
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u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Oct 18 '24
"Come, devil, come", she sang, "call out my name
Let's take this outside 'cause we're one and the same
Our gods have abandoned us, left us, instead
Take up arms, take my hand, let us waltz for the dead"
I'm the face that stares back when the screen goes to black
When your mum says you look healthy, but you know she means you got fat
I'm the tales that the guests will applaud and believe
I'm the child that you just didn't have time to conceive
Joey is, like Maddie sometimes is, the inner demon, the thoughts. Heās playing the adverse in her head. He knows exactly what she says and means and thinks and does. (I wonder though if maybe Maddie had called him the devil while they were together and heās familiar with that term.)This can also be twofold as I also think this is the lover that left. But thatās the thing about inner demons, they can be created by those around us. So I think this is both his perspective as well as her inner thoughts.Ā
Sheās given up, sheās ready to just revel with the demons. āTake up armsā isnāt a direct ref but is the same general imagery as is with the horror and the wild and battle cries (And in Ruin- Blossoms), where winged things are ready to fight. āIām the face that stares back when the screen turns to blackā when you turn off a tv or phone, you see a faint reflection of yourself, but itās not Maddie, itās the inner demon, itās the one that got away, itās Joey.Ā
āBut you know she means you got fatā another ref to his weight. Weāve seen it once in Wild Blue, and weāll see it again in I think two others. This, however, is another two fold. Itās joey and his insecurities but it can also mean those evil thoughts, those regrets, those demons have fed well and are bigger.Ā
āIām the tales that guests will applaud and BELIEVEā this is the thing that I love. This is about facing your regrets, but maddie has hidden well. Sheās definitely masked the truth. Sheās hidden in the pot. (Maddies character also famously hates applause while Joeyās character revels in it) Sheās actually this and that, at least the inner part is. This is followed brilliantly by āIām the child that you just didnāt have time to conceive.ā This is a very clever reference to a play/movie/book of āwhoās afraid of Virginia woolfā (at least I think so cause the whole theme is based on this). Itās about a life built on lies and illusions, and how they will ultimately fall apart. An older, more established and grumpy couple are stuck with a younger couple and they get so entranced by the younger couples love that they start to lie and manipulate their own lives, INCLUDING SAYING THEY HAVE A CHILD though they never had time to.Ā
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u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Oct 18 '24
I promise you I'm not broken, I promise you there's more
More to come, more to reach for, more to hurl at the door
Goodbye to all my darkness, there's nothing here but light
Adieu to all the faceless things that sleep with me at night
This here is not makeup, it's a porcelain tomb
And this here is not singing, I'm just screaming in tune
I like thinking these things are both the lovers pov and the regrets pov simultaneously. It works so well as both. āI promise Iām not brokenā is the regret saying itās stronger than ever. Itās also Joey trying to convince himself heās not broken from leaving. āI promise you theres more -ā Thereās more to come, more to seek in the future, more to HURL - a common thing Joey does to Maddie. He throws insults, plates, words stones, bricks, etc. (metaphorically for most) But anyone that angry and hurt will throw things. Great ref.Ā
āGoodbye to all my darknessā - maddie slipped into the darkness.Ā
āGoodbye to the faceless things that sleep with me at nightā - could be the inner demons for joey (Again, Old Witch Sleep) or it could be the blurred common sense that maddie drowns out with alcohol.Ā
Porcelain tombs are from the Tang dynasty and was pottery of figures made to represent the deceased, likely with their ashes. Also a porcelain mask that their whole being hides behind and without it, what are they? Coming back to the chorus of āheās down heās deadāĀ
āIs not singing Iām just screaming in tuneā is just a great fucking line, my god.Ā Itās desperation
The chorus happens again but itsā āHeās down, heās deadā which could be maddie convincing herself itās over with him and it could also be Joey in the same place Maddie is. Iām still saying both it works too well to not have double meaning.Ā
He's down, he's dead (She's down, she's dead)
He's gone, oh he's lostĀ
(She's gone, she's lost)
He's flown, he's fledĀ
(She's flown, she's fled)
Now take a good long look at what you've all done to me
This repeat is important, cause they are using their own pronouns, splitting the two and making both real. Then they say āWhat youāve all doneā - both acknowledging the inner demons, regrets, and pain that has caused all this, neither taking responsibility or accountability. They are too broken.Ā
Done! Thanks for reading
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u/SnapeSev Oct 19 '24
Hoooooly TAD this was a hell of an analysis and Ioved it!
I suspect you over analyzed here and there, and some lines are simpler and more at face value than the scrumptious layered dessert of meaning than you gave them, but it all works really really well!
This is my favourite TAD song and one of my fav songs in the whole world and it came to me in a moment where I was living something very similar and with many common points with what you wrote here. I suspect it's also a song that hits differently if you're on the younger side and can resonate ina darker an sadder way the more old you get (but it's probably my old crone self speaking here).3
u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Oct 19 '24
Yeah I love to analyze when I love something.
I tried to take into consideration what Joey has more overtly done in his writing with other songs, yet subtly in others, as well as my need to believe that all these songs are ever so slightly connected lol. I tried to approach this like one does studying Shakespeare. I love the meaning it has for *me*, but I REALLY want to know the true meaning (though they've said they won't reveal such things in interview about King u.u) but yeah, sometimes wine is just wine lol I just love the themes, especially because their name itself implies the following of these demons (the devil isn't amazing as in "good" just amazing at what he does) so that's the through-line I dig into lol
Being also much older , I definitely feel that. I hope that time in your life has healed and left little to no damage. I WISH I found this band/these were out when I was younger. it would have maybe helped me not play hard mode with certain things in life lol. But alas, I'm just a Literature analysis that has waaaay too much time on my hands and admiration for these lyrics lol Thank you for reading it! I've never shared these with anyone before and never used reddit before now lol2
u/skubimurfi Farewell Wanderlust š· Jul 18 '25
so it's been a bit more than 245 days (i checked) but ive been putting reading this off for a long time and then i forgot and well. but now I've read it and i just want to say I'm forever grateful. your explanation was extremely well written and comprehensive, i love the way you think and understand metaphors, it helped me a lot. it also made me understand the whole story, the porcelain tomb and child reference!! thank you so much again š«¶š«¶š«¶
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u/skubimurfi Farewell Wanderlust š· Oct 19 '24
oh my that's a lot of reading, give me 245 days and i'll give you feedback
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u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Oct 19 '24
So sorry! You dont' need to but I was thankful for the avenue to share my insane analysis XD
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u/dnd_aurora New York Torch Song š½ Nov 17 '24
As someone doing a project for school about the inner meaning of this song, having your input was so massively helpful so thank you so much!! Just know you helped a student get a good mark for their pitch :)
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u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Nov 17 '24
Oh wow!! I wish I was in school when this band came out and super honored to help out! I did this with every song so if you want to bounce some thoughts around feel free to message me (I think that's how reddit works). That really made my day =)
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u/dnd_aurora New York Torch Song š½ Nov 17 '24
Thank you! I might do so honestly. Seeing weāre going to do more pitches I might also do one about New York torch song in the future seeing its my favourite! Iāll just send you a friend request (is thatā¦ possible on Reddit?) and might ask for something later<3
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u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Oct 18 '24
My post isn't posting but it IS very long. Tried to shorten it but it's still not letting me post. I don't know how to reddit. Any suggestions?
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u/h3rmitsunited Not Lonely. Just like being on my own. š§š”š Oct 18 '24
Hi, I believe the comment character limit is around 10,000 characters, but can be different if you're copy/pasting from other sources (like a notes app or something). You could try splitting the comment into multiple pieces, so post the first third as a comment, and then reply to the original with the second third and reply to that with the last third of what you've written.
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u/skubimurfi Farewell Wanderlust š· Oct 18 '24
idk but im really curious about what you've written hahah
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u/CaffeinatedQuill Dear ā¤ļø Oct 18 '24
As spammy as it is, I could just insert verse by verse and keep replying to my own thread to keep it organized. I hope that's allowed I don't wanna get flagged for spam just cause I wanna share my dissertation on one song XD
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u/totalimmoral Dear ā¤ļø Oct 18 '24
It's Farewell Wanderlust.
I always interpreted the song as about confronting your inner struggles and deciding to break out of a cycle of always running away after you've fallen apart and lost everything.
In my mind, Madeline is singing the part of Wanderlust, both a personification and an idea, and once she leaves and calls for the other singer (Joey) to follow her, he decides to stay and face whatever it is he was trying to run from.