The new focus on live sonic bludgeoning has refined Junior Battles’ songwriting approach, tightening their two-pronged vocal attack and locking down their drum and bass heroics. With eyes on all the records they fell in love with in high school, they’re trying to define the band they want to be: an honest one that those enthusiastic 16 year-old versions of themselves would flip their shit over.
Seventeen
Junior Battles Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
to never feel angry or get disappointed.
Our bodies growing old while our hearts languish in the GUTTER
and we're arm in arm in arm in arm.
In the back of a car parked in your old living room
We apologized and we eulogized
the nicest version of the longest lie.
and we always stay true to the ideals we held
when we were sober and we were 17.
So you wake up every morning and you compromise
and it's easy to forget the places where we tried to draw the line.
We're all just doing the best we can.
In the back of a car parked in your old living room
We apologized and we eulogized
the nicest version of the longest lie.
That we only answer to ourselves
and we always stay true to the ideals we held
when we were sober and we were 17.
So you wake up every morning and you compromise
and it's easy to forget the places where we tried to draw the line.
So you wake up every morning and you compromise
and it's easy to forget the places where we tried to draw the line.
We're all just doing the best we can.
You wake up every morning and you try to find out where to draw the line.
Wake up every morning and you try to find out where to draw the line.
Here's a list of reasons we're making this morning
to never feel angry or get disappointed.
Our bodies growing old while our hearts languish in the gutter
and we're arm in arm in arm in arm.
You wake up every morning and you try to find out where to draw the line
You wake up every morning and you try to find out where to draw the line
In Junior Battles's song "Seventeen," the lyrics touch on the idea of compromise and growing older while still holding onto the ideals and dreams of one's youth. The opening verse lists reasons for choosing not to feel anger or disappointment, perhaps as a way of staying positive in the face of growing older and facing the sometimes harsh realities of life. The line "our bodies growing old while our hearts languish in the gutter" suggests a feeling of being stuck or unable to move forward, despite the passage of time.
The chorus references a car parked in an old living room, where the singer and a companion offer apologies and eulogies for the "longest lie" - the idea that they only answer to themselves and stay true to their ideals. The repetition of the line "when we were sober and we were 17" emphasizes the idea of youth and the freedom and possibility that comes with it. The second verse echoes the idea of compromise, suggesting that it's easy to forget where one drew the line in the past, but that ultimately everyone is doing their best.
The final repetition of the line "you wake up every morning and you try to find out where to draw the line" seems to suggest that this struggle between compromise and idealism is an ongoing one, and that the search for balance and meaning continues even as we grow older.
Line by Line Meaning
Here's a list of reasons we're making this morning
We have a list of reasons to start our day and prevent ourselves from feeling negative emotions.
to never feel angry or get disappointed.
We want to avoid anger and disappointment.
Our bodies growing old while our hearts languish in the GUTTER
We are physically aging while our emotions are in a bad place.
and we're arm in arm in arm in arm.
We stick together in our struggles.
In the back of a car parked in your old living room
We are in a nostalgic place while having a conversation.
We apologized and we eulogized
We expressed remorse and reflected on the past.
the nicest version of the longest lie.
We tried to put a positive spin on a lie that we had perpetuated for a long time.
That we only answer to ourselves
We believe we are accountable only to ourselves.
and we always stay true to the ideals we held
We strive to maintain our core values.
when we were sober and we were 17.
We idealize our past selves at a specific point in time.
So you wake up every morning and you compromise
We all make compromises in our daily lives.
and it's easy to forget the places where we tried to draw the line.
It's easy to forget our previous boundaries and expectations.
We're all just doing the best we can.
We acknowledge that everyone is doing their best.
You wake up every morning and you try to find out where to draw the line.
We are constantly reevaluating our boundaries and expectations.
Wake up every morning and you try to find out where to draw the line.
We repeat the message that we are constantly evaluating our boundaries.
Contributed by Grayson W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.