I'm coming out of my cage
And I've been doing just fine
Gotta, gotta be down
Gotta, gotta be down
Because I want it all
It started out with a kiss
How did it end up like this?
It was only a kiss, it was only a kiss
Now I'm falling asleep
And she's calling a cab
While he's having a smoke
And she's taking a drag
Now they're going to bed
And my stomach is sick
And it's all in my head
But she's touching his chest now
He takes off her dress now
Let me go
And she's calling a cab
While he's having a smoke
And she's taking a drag
Now they're going to bed
And my stomach is sick
And it's all in my head
But she's touching his chest now
He takes off her dress now
Let me go
I just can't look, it's killing me
And taking control
Jealousy, turning saints into the sea
Swimming through sick lullabies
Choking on your alibis
But it's just the price I pay
Destiny is calling me
Open up my eager eyes
Because I'm Mr. Brightside
Okay, let's start with first lines first and go on from there.
I'm coming out of my cage
There are a number of things this could mean, but no matter how you look at it, he's been closed off from something. It doesn't say if it's by choice, but it does say that he's finally coming out and looking around.
And I've been doing just fine
He hasn't had any problems before now.
Gotta, gotta be down
He wants to be "down," meaning he wants to be knowledgeable about what's going on.
Because I want it all
He wants "everything", whatever that encompasses. No clue yet as to what that is, it could be money, it could be love.
It started out with a kiss
The current situation he's in started with a kiss. It doesn't say who kissed who. Only three people are mentioned in the song, the singer, "her", and "him". So it has to be one of those three. The singer never comes in contact with "him", so it can only be either the singer kissing "her", or "her" kissing "him".
How did it end up like this?
Whatever has happened is not what the singer had expected to happen from just a kiss.
It was only a kiss, it was only a kiss
I'm going to make a guess that the reason it's repeated twice, with the singer sounding like he's trying to convince someone (either himself or the listener), is that he's actually trying to convince someone. Again, either himself or the listener. If he's trying to convince the listener, it goes with the idea that the singer kissed the girl. If he's trying to convince himself, then it was the girl kissing the guy.
Now I'm falling asleep
The point in time when the singer is singing the song is later than it was when the kiss occurred - it's at night, he's in bed, all that.
And she's calling a cab
While he's having a smoke
And he's taking a drag
Now they're going to bed
This is all pretty plain. She calls a cab, he's having a smoke, she takes a puff from his cigarette. Then they "go to bed," which by the next verses of the song, I'm assuming means not going to sleep, but simply going into a bedroom and closing a door.
And my stomach is sick
The thought of all this makes him feel sick. He hates the thought of her flirting with another guy, because he loves her. Either that, or he has a crush on her.
And it's all in my head
The singer is stating that all this that's happening is in his head.
But she's touching his chest now
He takes off her dress now
They're doing things in the bedroom (in his mind).
Let me go
The singer clearly isn't talking to the listeners, nor is he talking to the girl. So what is he talking to? We'll need to come back to this later.
I just can't look, it's killing me
He wants to stop thinking about it, it's killing him emotionally.
It's taking control
The thoughts are taking control of his mind; he can't stop thinking about it even though he wants to. This is probably what he was telling to let him go - the thoughts of the girl with another guy.
At this point, there's only one real solution to who kissed who. If he kissed her, he wouldn't have seen her with another guy, since he's stated it's all in his head. Therefore, the singer witnessed his girl kissing another guy. It has to be his girl for this to make sense, or at least that's how the singer sees it. The thoughts of her cheating on him is driving him out of his mind.
Jealousy, turning saints into the sea
This verse is unclear, at first glance. The jealousy makes sense - he's feeling a great deal of it for his girl. There are only three people who could be saints - the singer, the girl and the guy. Let's keep going and come back to it.
Swimming through sick lullabies
The singer feels like he's "swimming" through these "sick lullabies" - the things he's imagining is happening between his girl and the guy, right as he tries to fall asleep. The "swimming" part matches the "sea" from the last line - the singer is the "saint", and he's fallen into the sea of sick lullabies because of his jealousy.
Choking on your alibis
He's not saying that his girl is choking on them - after the previous line, it's clear he's still talking about himself. He's choking (figuratively) on the reasons his girl is saying she can't have done anything with this other guy - he's having a hard time getting them down, a hard time believing them, and they're making things difficult. He's choking on them emotionally. He doesn't trust her anymore.
But it's just the price I pay
He says this is what he gets for something he did. What did he do, though? There are only three things the singer does in the song - 1. he comes out of his cage, 2. he witnesses the kiss between his girl and the guy, 3. he imagines her cheating on him. It can't be the third, as he couldn't be paying the price for paying the price. It can't be the second, either. He's already expressed disbelief that a kiss would have this effect on him. Therefore, it can only be the first of the three - he's saying that what he's going through is just the price he pays for coming out of his cage. We can assume at this point that "coming out of his cage" is starting to do things with his girl that she usually does by herself. He's going places with his girl that his girl likes to go (possibly she's wanted him to come along), and he's paying the price for it.
Destiny is calling me
Apparently he sees this as some sort of a turning point. If destiny is calling him now, while it wasn't before, he expects something big to happen in his life.
Open up my eager eyes
The singer is telling someone or something to open his "eager eyes". If he was saying he was opening his eyes, he would've phrased it "opening my eager eyes" as he did with "swimming through sweet lullabies". He made a clear point of saying "eager", so that's important, and could almost be emphasized. It's possible they're not "eyes" at all, but he's asking someone or something to make him eager about something. This whole line is cryptic and can mean a multitude of different things, by itself. He could be talking to: 1. his girl, 2. destiny, 3. his jealousy. All of those were mentioned in this section of the song. I'm going to guess he's talking about destiny - anything else seems a change of subject. Therefore, he's wanting this event to "open his eyes", or his "eager" eyes, more precisely. Possibly, he wants it to open his eyes and make him eager to do something.
Because I'm Mr. Brightside
He's saying he always looks on the bright side of things. With this in mind, it's possible that he's trying to look on the bright side of coming out of his cage, and seeing his girl kiss someone else. The only possible bright side of seeing your girl flirting with someone else and then being tormented by your imagination and jealousy is that it makes it easier to break up with them. He would actually be almost "eager" to break up with her, as it would end the waking nightmares he has about her cheating on him, through his paranoia.
Okay, so what have we come up with? The singer wanted to know about his girlfriend's life, so he started going places with her, and she kissed someone. Presumably it was somewhere she frequented - why would she kiss someone she didn't know? Especially in front of her boyfriend. The singer tries to convince himself it's only a kiss and it means nothing, but gradually his paranoia and nightmares take over until he's sure she's not only capable, but willing to cheat on him, and he makes the decision to end the relationship.
It's quite a bit different from what I'd hoped it was, but it makes sense. It's still a beautiful song, which is why I like it, especially the Thin White Duke remix. I highly recommend listening to it, and watching the music video. I've listened to it perhaps fifty times, and I still love it. And remember - this is coming from a guy who doesn't like too much music.
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