Reverb-drenched and bittersweet, Alvvays members Molly Rankin and Kerri MacLellan were childhood friends, who began playing music with Alec O'Hanley while in high school. Lead vocalist Molly Rankin is the daughter of John Morris Rankin from the popular Canadian folk family group the Rankin Family. Molly Rankin released a solo EP titled "She EP" in 2010 and then in 2011 formed Alvvays with MacLellan, O'Hanley, and new members Brian Murphy and Phil MacIsaac.
Following tours with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and Peter Bjorn and John, the group recorded a full-length album, Alvvays, which was released by Royal Mountain Records (Canada), Polyvinyl Records (US), and Transgressive Records (Europe) in July 2014. Chad VanGaalen, John Agnello, and Graham Walsh of Holy Fuck all contributed to the album's production. Simon Vozick-Levinson, writing in Rolling Stone, called the eponymous album an "indie-pop wonder". Alvvays went to #1 on US college charts on August 5, 2014.
Hey
Alvvays Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Have you lost your sense of place?
Hold a brush to your white toothpaste
Does the mirror look a little strange?
You
Satisfied with making do
(Don't think so, yeah)
(Don't think so)
I will land on my feet but I probably won't leave the house for awhile
And it feels like forever since you held me like I was a human being
And I am a human being
Blind in an alleyway
Assuring you I'm fine
Blind in an alleyway
Positive I'm fine, fine
Molly Mayhem
On your doorstep
At three AM
Fight and you run and you run
And it's likely over now
Fight and you run and you run
And you want it over now
Over now
Over now
This is the nineteenth round
And you know it
This is not the right crowd
And you know it
The lyrics to Hey by Alvvays can be interpreted as a commentary on the complexities and uncertainties of life. The opening lines, "Have you lost your sense of place? Hold a brush to your white toothpaste. Does the mirror look a little strange?" suggests a sense of confusion and disorientation. This feeling is further emphasized later in the song with the lines, "And it feels like forever since you held me like I was a human being. And I am a human being." The singer seems to be searching for a sense of identity and connection in a world that is constantly changing and unpredictable.
The chorus, "Blind in an alleyway. Assuring you I'm fine. Blind in an alleyway. Positive I'm fine, fine" is repeated throughout the song and can be interpreted as a metaphor for feeling lost or trapped. The singer is assuring others and themselves that they are okay, but deep down they may be struggling. The final lines, "This is the nineteenth round and you know it. This is not the right crowd and you know it" further emphasizes the idea that the singer is facing challenges and obstacles that they may not be equipped to handle.
Overall, Hey by Alvvays is a deep and introspective song that speaks to the complexities of human emotion and the struggles we all face in life.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey
Are you still yourself? Do you recognize who you are?
Have you lost your sense of place?
Do you feel disconnected from your surroundings?
Hold a brush to your white toothpaste
Do you feel like everything you do is mundane and empty?
Does the mirror look a little strange?
Do you recognize the person staring back at you?
You
Satisfied with making do
(Don't think so, yeah)
Should we pull the parachute?
(Don't think so)
I will land on my feet but I probably won't leave the house for awhile
And it feels like forever since you held me like I was a human being
And I am a human being
You're not content with just getting by, but you're not ready to make a drastic change. Even if you do make a change, it won't be easy and you might not be ready to face the outside world. You want to feel loved and appreciated as a person.
Blind in an alleyway
Assuring you I'm fine
Blind in an alleyway
Positive I'm fine, fine
You're trying to convince others (and maybe even yourself) that you're okay, but you feel lost and alone
Molly Mayhem
On your doorstep
At three AM
Fight and you run and you run
And it's likely over now
You feel like you're up against an impossible situation and you're not sure how to escape it. It seems like it might be too late to change things.
Fight and you run and you run
And you want it over now
Over now
Over now
You're tired of fighting and you want to break free from this situation, even if it means making a drastic change or taking a risk.
This is the nineteenth round
And you know it
This is not the right crowd
And you know it
You've been down this road before and you know it can't continue. You know that the people around you aren't helping you, even if they're the only people you have in your life right now.
Lyrics © ROUGH TRADE PUBLISHING
Written by: Alec O'Hanley, Molly Margaret Rankin
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind