Kevin Devine is an American songwriter and musician from Brooklyn, New York… Read Full Bio ↴Kevin Devine is an American songwriter and musician from Brooklyn, New York, who is known for alternately introspective and political lyrics and melodic acoustic guitar tunes. He cites his influences as Bob Dylan, Elliott Smith, Guns N' Roses, Brother Paramo and Nirvana, among others. He grew up in Brooklyn and Staten Island, and has spent significant time in Manhattan and Queens as well. Devine graduated Fordham University at Lincoln Center in 2001, majoring in journalism. He also played in an indie/punk/emo band called Miracle of 86 after the (Miracle) New York Mets. Even before that, he played with a popular band in the local Staten Island scene called Delusion. At Fordham he was able to hone his acoustic solo skills by playing at various open-mic and college events which made him very popular among the student body.
During this time he also appeared in regular stints at the Wetlands Preserve. Although still relatively unknown, Devine gained some popularity with his 2003 album, Make the Clocks Move. Newer songs reflect Devine's political views and the recent death of his father to a stroke. He has recorded records for Immigrant Sun Records and Triple Crown Records and has worked with Brooklyn based producer Mike Skinner, who is also credited as the drummer on his solo records as well as the drummer for Miracle of 86. He signed with Capitol Records, who released his fourth album, Put Your Ghost to Rest, on October 17, 2006. Only four months after his major label debut, Devine was dropped from Capitol Records due to EMI merging Virgin and Capitol Records.
Devine was able to gather a strong fan base as a result of his exposure through touring with Brand New. First appearing as their opening act in their 2004 spring tour, Devine made a small splash among their fan base. However, opening for them again in April 2006, and joining their 2007 Spring tour with Manchester Orchestra, Kevin's following was multiplying by the day. (Kevin also opened for Brand New as a surprise act at the Triple Crown Records 10th Anniversary Concert.)
Devine's late 2007 touring schedule included a tour with close friend Jesse Lacey (of Brand New) and Grace Read at the end of July through early August, followed by a short trip to London, a spot on the Austin City Limits Festival, and a tour with Chin Up Chin Up throughout Germany. In October 2007 he toured with Andy Hull from Manchester Orchestra and Owen.
Kevin posted numerous demos via his MySpace profile in late 2007/early 2008 and after negotiations with Capitol records, "Put Your Ghost To Rest" was re-released on April 20, 2008 by Procrastinate! Music Traitors.
Kevin toured Europe with Jenny Owen Youngs and Tournaments in May and other tours followed throughout 2008 with Jesse Lacey, Rachael Yamagata and Matt Pryor in August and September 2008.[1]
In late 2008, Kevin announced his new album Brother's Blood would be released in early 2009 on Favorite Gentlemen records, as well as a tour with Manchester Orchestra and the I Could Be With Anyone EP in support of both.

Tomorrow's Just Too Late
Kevin Devine Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

You drag your tiger's paw across
Your chapped and cracking lips
And open up a crimson slur
You spread each time you kiss

The broken boy you bargain with
To turn back to the man
That you fell in love with once

But never saw again
Is he in there? Do you think he drowned to death?
Well it's his decision to show his face again

You grind your tired teeth
And curse the day that you were born
To a sunken line of Irish wives a million miles long
Devoted to the suffering they're certain they deserve
A husband's a cross to bear
Worry lines and a silver string of hair
Come too early, come to steal your sainted youth
Well it's your decision to stay or else to move

And I'm not a man of faith, no gospel oak for me
But you wear a crucifix to broadcast your beliefs
And the god I've read about can't go where he's not asked to go

So you've got a choice to make
Shut him out, save yourself, or sit and wait
But you're waiting on a man who will not move
So you must move for him and do what he can't do

'Cause it's worth it, that's the one life you can change
And I'm sorry sister, but it has to end this way
Yeah, it's scary sister, but tomorrow's just too late

So stand up sister
There's an albatross to shake

Overall Meaning

The first verse of Kevin Devine's "Tomorrow's Just Too Late" presents an image of a woman who is self-destructive - she has chapped and cracking lips that bleed every time she kisses somebody. The person she longs for is not the same as the person she fell in love with, and she might be drowning in her own self-pity. However, the man she loves, who seems to be broken, has the choice to heal himself and become the man he once was - but it's his decision. The chorus of the song begins by saying "I'm not a man of faith, no gospel oak for me," which sets up the following lines to be a message that she needs to take control of her own life, rather than waiting for somebody else to change for her.

The second verse of the song seems to describe the woman's background - she comes from a family of Irish women who believe that they deserve to suffer, and that their husbands are crosses to bear. They age prematurely and lose their youth as they focus on suffering rather than taking control of their own lives. The woman in the song wears a crucifix to broadcast her beliefs, but if God cannot go where He's not asked to go, then she must take matters into her own hands. The final lines emphasize this point - she must move for the man she loves if he cannot move for himself, and it's worth it to take control of her own life, even if it's scary to do so.

Line by Line Meaning

You drag your tiger's paw across
You absent-mindedly drag your fingers across your lips, which are dry and cracked from neglect.

Your chapped and cracking lips
Your lips are dry and cracking, showing evidence of your neglect in taking care of yourself.

And open up a crimson slur
You open your mouth and reveal a red mark that has formed on your lips from all the times you've bitten them.

You spread each time you kiss
The red mark spreads each time you kiss, a physical manifestation of the emotional pain you're experiencing in your relationship.

The broken boy you bargain with
The flawed man you're in a relationship with, the one you're trying to help fix.

To turn back to the man
To go back to the person he once was before he was broken, before the relationship became troubled.

That you fell in love with once
The person you originally fell in love with, the one you hope to reconnect with.

But never saw again
The person who disappeared, leaving you with only memories of the past.

Is he in there? Do you think he drowned to death?
You're wondering if the person you once knew is still there, or if the struggles of the relationship have drowned him out entirely.

Well it's his decision to show his face again
It's up to him to choose to be the person he once was, to show his true self.

You grind your tired teeth
You're grinding your teeth in frustration and stress, tired of the constant struggles in your relationship.

And curse the day that you were born
You're so unhappy that you're even cursing the day you were born, feeling a deep sense of regret and despair.

To a sunken line of Irish wives a million miles long
You feel like you're part of a long line of women who are constantly burdened by suffering and pain, and you feel like you'll never be free.

Devoted to the suffering they're certain they deserve
You feel like you're supposed to suffer, that it's your fate and something you deserve, even though it's not fair or just.

A husband's a cross to bear
You feel like you're carrying a burden, like a cross to bear, because of the struggles in your relationship and the responsibilities you feel.

Worry lines and a silver string of hair
You're getting older prematurely, with worry lines on your face and silver hair that seems to have appeared too early.

Come too early, come to steal your sainted youth
This aging process has come too early, robbing you of the vibrancy and youthfulness you once had.

Well it's your decision to stay or else to move
You have a choice to make, to stay and continue suffering or to move on and find a better life for yourself.

And I'm not a man of faith, no gospel oak for me
The singer doesn't have a strong religious faith, no fixed beliefs or practices that could offer comfort in difficult times.

But you wear a crucifix to broadcast your beliefs
You are religious and wear a crucifix to show your faith, broadcasting your beliefs even when they don't bring you peace or solace.

And the god I've read about can't go where he's not asked to go
The artist knows that God can only help you if you ask for help, and it seems like you're not willing to ask for help or seek guidance.

So you've got a choice to make
You have to make a choice in your life, whether to seek help and make positive changes or to continue on the same path of pain and suffering.

Shut him out, save yourself, or sit and wait
You can either shut yourself off from the possibility of change, save yourself by making decisions that are best for you, or wait for someone to save you instead of taking action.

But you're waiting on a man who will not move
You're waiting for someone who won't take action or make positive changes, which means you can't hold your breath and hope for things to get better on their own.

So you must move for him and do what he can't do
If you want things to change, it's up to you to take action, to make positive changes in your life even if the other person won't or can't.

'Cause it's worth it, that's the one life you can change
It's worth it to make positive changes in your life, to take control of your own happiness and not wait for others to make you happy.

And I'm sorry sister, but it has to end this way
The singer is empathizing with you, but they also know that sometimes relationships have to come to an end for positive change to happen.

Yeah, it's scary sister, but tomorrow's just too late
The thought of making big changes in your life might be scary, but if you don't do it now, you might regret waiting until it's too late.

So stand up sister
It's time to stand up for yourself, to take the first steps towards a better life.

There's an albatross to shake
There's a heavy burden, an albatross around your neck, that you need to shake off in order to move forward.

Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: KEVIN PATRICK DEVINE

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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