An Interpretation of Coldplay’s Clocks
A beautiful song, and below is an interpretation which I liked the most. There may be others too, as Coldplay’s songs mostly have a lot of interpretations.
The lights go out and I can’t be saved
Tides that I tried to swim against
Have brought me down upon my knees
Oh I beg, I beg and plead singing
The protagonist in the song is in despair, he has lost all hope, he is doubtful, and is pleading for salvation. Tides which are the doubts that have brought him down to his knees.
Come out of things unsaid
Shoot an apple off my head
And a trouble that can’t be named
A tiger’s waiting to be tamed singing
You are
You are
The protagonist is reminiscing about a relationship, in which things were left unsaid, and now he has an unknown enemy, unknown despair, which can’t be named. A tiger, strongly referring to the protagonist, is waiting to be tamed, implying that the world is waiting for him to take action, to do something. ‘You are’ refers to the protagonist here.
Confusion never stops
Closing walls and ticking clocks
Gonna come back and take you home
I could not stop the tune i know singing
Confusion is all around him, time is passing by, the walls are closing about him, the clock is swiftly ticking by, and he doesn’t know what is going on. The protagonist is accepting that he is in a struggle to find his place in the world, and he is taking this struggle with him home.
Come out upon my seas
Cursed missed opportunities
Am I a part of the cure?
Or am I part of the disease? Singing
You are
You are
You are
You are
The protagonist is regretting the missed opportunities, is he part of the cure, or is he the disease, these tell us that he doesn’t know whether he is making things better or worse.
And nothing else compares
And nothing else compares
And nothing else compares
You are
You are
Home, home where I wanted to go, home ( you are)
Home, home where I wanted to go, home (you are)
Home, home where I wanted to go, home (you are)
Home, home where I wanted to go, home (you are)
Nothing else compares to his newfound challenge in life, which is giving him the zest for life and a purpose at hand. Home is where he wanted to go. He has resolved his doubt as he says “You are….home”.
