A Looking In View
Alice in Chains Lyrics
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The shadows give away
Someone outside the door
Won't let 'em in
Life damaged kids to crime
A rundown broke machine
That steals your peace of mind
Lay
Down
Wait
Silence burning
Hold your tongue
Keep us separate
Sullen, dumb
Hiding in the darkness under
Boiling to the surface
Stumble, fall
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
Ah-ah-ah
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
Ah-ah-ah
These things I hate in you
Also reflect, it seems
Distortion laced with spite
Takes you out of me
Lay
Now
Lay
Hiding in the darkness under
Boiling to the surface, somethin'
Crawling on your skin, discomfort
Makes you break and run, stumble, fall
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
Ah-ah-ah
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
Ah-ah-ah
It's why you never tell me heaven's on your mind
It's why you never tell me heaven's on your mind
It's why you never tell me heaven's on your mind
It's why you never tell me heaven's on your mind
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
Ah-ah-ah
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
Ah-ah-ah
It's why you never tell me heaven's on your mind
A vengeful mind
Oh God (oh)
Selfish plans, a vengeful mind
It's all gone (oh)
The song "A Looking in View" by Alice in Chains is a melancholic reflection on the struggles of life that lead to distorted perceptions of reality. The lyrics speak of hearing footsteps outside the door, a feeling of foreboding that suggests someone unwanted is trying to gain entrance. This metaphorical image can be interpreted as a metaphor for the intrusion of unwanted thoughts and feelings into one's psyche. The song suggests that life can sometimes seem like a rundown broken machine that steals one's peace of mind before they know it's gone, leaving them feeling lost and disconnected from the world.
The chorus of the song speaks of looking at life from the outside for too long, leading to desperate plans that make sense only in the context of a low life. The lyrics suggest a sense of resignation, as if the singer recognizes that their perspective has been distorted by their experiences and that they are unable to escape the vicious cycle of their existence. They also speak of a vengeful mind driven by selfish plans, suggesting a sense of bitterness and anger that comes from feeling trapped by circumstances beyond one's control.
Overall, "A Looking in View" is a haunting song that speaks to the universal human experience of feeling lost and disconnected from the world. The lyrics are evocative and relatable, and the music perfectly captures the mood of melancholy and despair that permeates the song.
Line by Line Meaning
Hear footsteps creak the floor
Perceiving footsteps that resonate loudly with the creaking floorboards.
The shadows give away
'Shadows' here can be taken as a metaphor for secrets being revealed involuntarily.
Someone outside the door
Someone trying to enter from outside where you are.
Won't let 'em in
Denying entry to whoever is outside.
Life damaged kids to crime
Children's lives that have been flawed may succumb to deviant behaviours.
A rundown broke machine
A dysfunctional device that is no longer functional.
That steals your peace of mind
That something is so annoying or painful that it affects your mental peace.
Before you know it's gone
Peace of mind is lost all of a sudden, without premonition.
Lay
Lie down, and rest.
Down
Means to cause something to rest, commonly used with 'Lay.'
Wait
Stay in one place and delay action until something else happens.
Silence burning
A heavy and intense atmosphere yet with no sounds to be heard.
Hold your tongue
To keep something to yourself and do not speak of it.
Keep us separate
To keep two groups apart from each other.
Sullen, dumb
Having a brooding and morose attitude without speaking.
Hiding in the darkness under
Crouching low to avoid detection in a dimly-lit area.
Boiling to the surface
Something becoming more evident and uncontrollable.
Stumble, fall
Tripping over something and tumbling to the ground.
A looking in view too long on the outside
Something that is being watched from a distance for an extended period.
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
When one hits rock bottom, they may resort to extremist tactics to get out of their predicament.
These things I hate in you
Despising the repugnant in someone else.
Also reflect, it seems
Believing that one's traits may rub off on others, changing their behaviour.
Distortion laced with spite
A warped representation of reality that is layered with vindictiveness or malice.
Takes you out of me
When behaviour or personality quirks become overly severe, it can lead to relationship breakdowns.
Lay
Lie down, and rest.
Now
'Now' has been used as an adverb to indicate immediacy.
Hiding in the darkness under
Crouching low to avoid detection in a dimly-lit area.
Boiling to the surface, somethin'
Something is being concealed, but it's starting to show its presence.
Crawling on your skin, discomfort
A creepy-crawly sensation that can cause discomfort or unease.
Makes you break and run, stumble, fall
Something so overwhelming that it affects one's pace, forcing them to trip and tumble.
It's why you never tell me heaven's on your mind
The reason some people feel drained and unhappy; they never express their true feelings.
A vengeful mind
Having feelings of wanting revenge.
Oh God (oh)
An expression of despair, exasperation, or surprise.
Selfish plans, a vengeful mind
A person whose ideas and goals are self-serving, with a burning desire for retribution.
It's all gone (oh)
Feeling like everything is lost and unrecoverable.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Jerry Cantrell, Michael A. Inez, Sean H. Kinney, William B. Duvall
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Zer0lla
This is a deep song. The reason for the rooms located next to each other is that they are a family, living in the same house, but the different colored lighting in each room is indicative of their mental distance despite their physical closeness.
The son has locked his feelings away from the outside world, and then internalization frustrates him as he tries to fix himself alone, hence the line "a run-down broke machine". He becomes angry with himself and tears down himself and the world around him, discarding the progress he might have achieved, as the little boy version of himself representing his hopes and dreams cries at the sight of such. I relate to this a great deal.
The daughter has a self-esteem issue connected to her appearance, which may have been the result of bullying by her peers or her parents. Whether or not she is physically drowning is somewhat irrelevant because she most assuredly drowning mentally, constantly trying to find the light of perfection, a land where who she is becomes good enough.
The father in the video is a clearly religious man, and his self-punishment may be the result of infidelity, or molestation as some people have pointed out so far. Or it may simply be sexual immorality of a more superficial kind, such as the very idea of committing such acts. His frustration with himself he takes out not only on himself, but also his children, and the video shows his son taking abuse in particular.
The son is shown walking outside his door, and the camera zooms out to reveal a field of identical stone heads making identical, distressed faces. This is to convey the idea that no one can truly see inside your world, and when you don't let anyone in, people only see the outside, and all that conveys is a distressed look. They might suspect that there is more to it, but if you don't respond, they will move on. But you can't move on; you're still stuck in your own personal hell you've either inherited or created. You are afraid to let someone in, because who you are isn't "normal", and they'd just think you were crazy and weird and leave you. "It's why you never tell me, what's on your mind"
So you push it down, and you don't let jt show, and you eventually reach a point where either you have to tell someone, or you decide that the "quick alternative" is a better choice. Or door number three, you engage in behavior that takes you away from reality while simultaneously slowly destroying whatever life you had on earth. The truth, the realness of it all becomes too difficult to bear without the crutch, until you crash and burn. Sound familiar? It should: two men named Layne Staley and Mike Starr took door number three not so long ago. I'm not saying they had any of the issues the people in the video have, but they share an inability to deal with their problems, because they shut people out.
The big closing moment of the video for me is the desert scene. Anyone else think the desert looks familiar? It should. Take a look at the album cover for Dirt, and then look back at the video. See the resemblance? Think about the songs on Dirt. Have you listened to all of them? If you did, you might notice that all of the songs ooze self-loathing, misery, sadness, anger, and fear. Now look what happened to the woman in the video. She embodies the victim of these feelings, and in the video we finally see her pick herself up, and she no longer feels like Dirt, both its literal form and the emotions associated with the album. She no longer drowns in her own desert. We can infer from the ethereal nature of the scenery that she probably succeeded in taking her own life with the mirror shard, thus ending her suffering here on earth.
@MariaM11
Hear footsteps creak the floor
The shadows give away
Someone outside the door
Won't let 'em in
Life damaged, gears to grind
A run down broke machine
That steals your peace of mind
Before you know it's gone
Lay, down, lay
Silence burning, hold your tongue
Keep us separate, sullen, dumb
Hiding in a darkness under
Boiling to the surface, stumble, fall
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
These things I hate in you
Also reflect it seems
Distortion laced with spite
Takes you out of me
Lay, down, lay
Hiding in a darkness under
Boiling to the surface something
Crawling on your skin, discomfort
Makes you break and run, stumble, fall
\m/
@sophieblue6289
Hear footsteps creak the floor
The shadows give away
Someone outside the door
Won't let 'em in
Life damaged kids to crime
Rundown broke machine
That steals your peace of mind
Before you know it's gone
Lay
Down
Lay
Silence burning
Hold your tongue
Keep a separate
So they'll know
Hiding in the darkness under
Boiling to the surface
Don't go far
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
These things I hate in you
Also reflect it seems
Distortion laced with spikes
Digs you out of me
Lay
Down
Lay
Hiding in the darkness under
Boiling to the surface
Crawling on your skin discomfort
Makes you brake and run, stumble, fall
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
It's why you never tell me whatevers on your mind
It's why you never tell me whatevers on your mind
It's why you never tell me whatevers on your mind
It's why you never tell me whatevers on your mind
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
A looking in view too long on the outside
Desperate plans make sense in a low life
It's why you never tell me whatevers on your mind
@lordiblees
The most powerful comeback in the history of metal/rock
@DanQuijote777
indeed. when this came out i just couldnt find any words to express how impressed and overwhelmed i was when i realized this was the new AIC stuff, and noting this was still the essence of the AIC i fell in love in the fisrt time
@sundigest1121
@DanQuijote777 same man
@bobthebear1246
Absolutely 100%
@RyanDMoore
I was geeked when this shit came out. Especially impressed with how well the lead singer can evoke Layne while still sounding like a new singer.
@pipebombhs1412
Rock 4life
@magneteye
Gotta love Jerry Cantrell. He's a fucking riff monster.
@Fuffuster
Way underrated member of that band because everybody still has a boner for Layne. Don't get me wrong, he was amazing, but Jerry is the sound behind Alice in Chains tunes and most of your favorite songs, probably.
@brianintn
Layne was much a force behind the success of Chains as Cantrell was, of course we have a boner for him. having DuVall singing his songs while the band still uses AIC is like Dave and Krist getting a Kurt sound-a-like fronting a reformed Nirvana. no disrespect, just my thoughts and opinions. although their Black gives way to Blue album was modest, i have been disappointed with every release since. Just doesn't sound like Chains anymore, Thank God!
@GrungeVirus
your face when this riff and solo was written and composed by Duvall