#and i do hope these sentiments are perpetuated throughout the album bc I TOO WANT ACTION

[ialwaysknewyouwerepunk]

as it was - a close reading

ooooooookay, here we are. i’m not that late, am i? SO. usual disclaimer: these are just my thoughts!! after a few weeks of getting familiar with the song, this is definitely the general feeling i have about it. you can bet i’m more than fucking excited to see what else he has in store for us in terms of loudness. the kid doesn’t give a fuck anymore and i am here in that front row seat munching popcorn watching it all unfold. alright enough of this here we go

LYRIC ANALYSIS

Come on, Harry, we wanna say goodnight to you

voicemail, supposedly - sounds a bit acted to me, could have originally been a voicemail that they rerecorded to be more hq

what does it mean as the intro to a song like this? an example of ppl who really care? / a bit sinister?

Holding me back Gravity's holding me back I want you to hold out the palm of your hand Why don't we leave it at that?

gravity holding him back - he wants to fly, go as high as he can, but he can't ～ sott

gravity: also the gravity of a situation - the weight of living

i want "you" (in general) to help me, support me, have my back; why can't it be that simple? why do you need reasons, explanations in order to have my back? (why can't you support me as who i am right in front of you? do i need to prove myself?)

⟶ he's held back bc he's constantly questioned, doubted

directed to "you" as his partner: baby take my hand i know wtf i'm doing. stop thinking and jump w me

Nothing to say When everything gets in the way Seems you cannot be replaced And I'm the one who will stay

good old trusted theme of (a lack of) communication - here h is saying it's no use to talk about it ⟷ we need to talk about it. sometimes talking about the same thing over and over gets you nowhere, just makes it worse

"everything" - external factors cause the issues

"you" - general you, or specific individual? - audience? partner? all possible options?

"if we talk about this, we'll go in circles. all i know for absolute certain is that i need you and i will never leave, so let's leave it"

"i'm the one who will stay" ～ mmith - patience, loyalty

In this world, it's just us You know it's not the same as it was In this world, it's just us You know it's not the same as it was As it was, as it was You know it's not the same

what we know is that we have each other

"this world" - this industry, this system, this life - us against the world (⟶ we used to not be alone against the world(?))

shit changes all the time and that's okay. i have accepted it, "you" knows it's true but needs more time to process (as usual)

people change, life changes, situations change, conditions change - their personal lives, their selves, their careers... it is what it is. good or bad

Answer the phone Harry, you're no good alone

who is speaking? are they saying the entire verse or parts of it? - apathetic, sarcastic, manipulative voice - someone who needs h up, well, kept an eye on

"you're no good alone" - "when you're alone you start having all these thoughts, darling, and we don't want that" aka don't be independent, silly

also h's own self-deprecating words about himself: says he's bad at being alone, doesn't want to be apart from his lover ～ mmith, tbsl, ftdt, canyon moon, etcetcetc

Why are you sitting at home on the floor? What kind of pills are you on?

"at home on the floor" - echoes of mmith ⟶ when he's alone, going through something, he deals with it by wallowing + substance abuse ("i'll be on the floor", "give me some morphine") - the voice asking him what kind of pills he's on sounds menacing, tho - assuming he's taking pills, while it might not be the case at all (bc this echo in another person's voice might imply that's in the past/a rumor/a false assumption)

Ringing the bell And nobody's coming to help

"ringing the bell" - for service (painting the picture of this washed out rock star on the floor of their house, like elton in his worst days perhaps) / sounding the bell for help / ringing a doorbell

⟶ "nobody's coming to help": he's asking for help, "hold out the palm of your hand", but he's not getting any - could someone else be still saying this? as in, "nobody's coming to help, harry"

Your daddy lives by himself He just wants to know that you're well

"your daddy" - whose daddy? who is daddy? random ass lyric as an excuse to mention a daddy, kink/gay culture?

is h talking? is someone saying this to h?

confirm to daddy you're well. that's all - sarcasm: your “daddy” doesn't really care about you

Go home, get (a)head, light-speed internet I don't wanna talk about the way that it was

2nd "home" in the song wow love that for us

he's def saying get head idgaf

fast-paced life ～ tpwk bridge "all we ever want is automatic all the time" + working from home, aka covid life

i do not want to talk about it - h doesn't want to look back

Leave America, two kids follow her I don't wanna talk about who's doing it first

stuntstuntstuntstunt

⟶ "doing it" = ending a stunt? or literally anything else bc this is just a word and it's also harry so anything could mean everything and vice versa

in any case, it doesn't matter who's doing it first: if we move forward in any way, we're good

SYNTHESIS

As with everything Harry has ever done in his artistic career, this song isn’t straightforward. But we don’t want that anyway, do we? We like to be challenged. 

In this first single for Harry’s Home, there are a lot of sentiments woven in from his previous albums. Especially Meet Me In the Hallway’s symbolism and lyrics have found their way in. He’s not recycling his old work, however; he’s building onto it. He’s still the person who’ll wait for his lover to come around, but now his lover doesn’t need to start talking, he needs to stop going in circles. They seem to keep discussing the same things and Harry’s ready to move on. Who they are now is not who they were, and that’s not a bad thing. They know they have each other and that they survived the challenges thrown their way so far. 

The chorus could be interpreted in multiple ways, I think. “You know it’s not the same as it was” can be melancholy, sad about the changes they’ve been through and the things that have been lost. About their relationship, about the world they live in, about their careers. It can also be a call for action. The time to talk is over, now it’s time to fucking make shit happen. The way I hear the entire song, I think it’s the latter. In the first verse, Harry calls out the lack of support or help. He states what he needs in literal terms, then wonders what the fuss is about. It's honestly one of the more assertive moments we've gotten from him. Then he continues to say that they need to stop talking about shit they’ve gone through time and again. Sometimes it’s no use to reiterate what happened. The same questions will remain unanswered. What Harry knows is they have each other, because they know they can never quit each other.

This low-key exasperated Harry gets even more daring with throwing bullshit out the window in the second verse, when he voices things others have undoubtedly said to him. It shows a lack of understanding of his personal life, that even people who have his number don’t know him, and, more dramatically, don’t care about him. They need him to perform, act normal, be good. The notion of him needing help or support and not getting it comes back here, which underlines its significance. Harry feels let down by those around him, those who are supposed to care. (His team, fans, anyone.) “In this world, it’s just us” sounds even more intense in that context - it’s us against the world, more than ever before, bc wow people have shown their true colors. 

Harry has realised something. After years of going in circles, doing the same things to keep things in place, trying to preserve what they have, he’s realised he wants action. Things change whether they want them to or not. Harry wants to embrace change, in himself and everything around him, because he knows it’s brought beautiful things before. And he and his love change beautifully through it all. The shit that “was” is what they need to actively move past. No more conversations about it, let’s just do it. Doesn’t matter what happens first. Something needs to. “It’s not the same”, in this light, to me, is Harry saying he’s realised their circumstances have changed to the point where they can’t stand still anymore. He’s seen the true nature of those around him, he’s found out what he really wants. 

It’s fascinating, really, how this song at first sounded regretful of change to me, when only after a few listens I realised it’s the opposite. It’s Harry welcoming change, and basically prodding his own personal story to get shit moving. He’s thrown scruple over his shoulder, calling a halt to all the running in circles (mv anyone?) and grabbing his lover by the hand, certain in the belief they can handle the biggest changes they’ll have to face yet.