Lydia Cole spent the last 18 months in hibernation, where she turned to her allies - music, art and time - for healing. The outcome is a powerfully intimate collection of songs about love, loss and hope - Lydia's debut full-length record ME & MOON.
Lydia partnered once again with trusted producer Nic Manders in the creative sanctuary of Roundhead Studios. It was in the quiet here that the songs found their voice, with help from instrumentalists Jono Wilson (Seth Haapu, Geneva) and Jol Mulholland (Mulholland, The Mots).
ME & MOON is both personally and musically a huge leap ahead of Lydia's 2009 EP "Love Will Find A Way". A beautiful offering, the album includes artwork and songs from Lydia's own hands and heart.
The record's first single is Blind Boy, a bold step for the shy folkster that shows greater lyrical confidence and personal strength, gained through the lessons learned from heartbreak. Written and recorded within a few days at the end of the project, Blind Boy is a revelation of strength and determination.
The ride thus far has seen Lydia share the stage with the likes of Boh Runga, Greg Johnson, Nathan King, and Luke Thompson, with support slots for Brooke Fraser on her Australasian ‘Flags’ tour, and jazz legend Diana Krall, and even a spontaneous song on stage with Jon Foreman (Switchfoot).
While the future remains a mystery, this young songstress looks ahead to the kinds of adventures and experiences that have shaped her music to date, eagerly awaiting the next step… whether taken in darkness, or the bright light of day.
Sober
Lydia Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And maybe it's just the drink
Tonight you're buzzing on me
Tomorrow what will you think?
And "Why are you single
When you're such a catch?"
But you flip it around
Just want a sober exchange
At the end of the day
We went out to the bar
Knowing just about where we'd end up
Played a couple of fools
But then I guess that might be what we are
And while you're living two lies
Some of us are just trying to live one
But you'll do what you like
And, it seems, so will I
Just want a sober exchange
At the end of the day
And I'll have nothing to blame
In a sober exchange
And there on the lawn
All the stars, they just saw us as dust
We nervously laughed
All our words spilling out on the grass
My eyes found your eyes
And my lips found your lips, yeah, we kissed
In the morning you left
Disappearing into a cold mist
Just want a sober exchange
At the end of the day
And I'll have nothing to blame
For the way I behave
In a sober exchange
Riding around town on the cheap
We were nothing unique
Just a couple of sneaks
Feelings will go and then we will know
We were nothing unique
Just a couple of sneaks
All of the time you played on my mind
We were nothing unique
Just a couple of sneaks
Lydia Cole’s song Sober is a melancholic ballad about a night of drinking and hooking up with someone, knowing that it might lead to nothing. The song opens with the singer expressing surprise that the other person is interested in them, and wondering whether they will regret their attraction to each other in the morning. The chorus repeats the desire for a sober exchange, implying that the consumption of alcohol is interfering with their potential for real emotional intimacy.
The second verse takes a more introspective turn, with the singer acknowledging that they are living one lie by pretending to be happy when they are really not, while their partner is living two lies by drinking and pretending to be something they are not. The lines “you'll do what you like / And, it seems, so will I” indicate a mutual disinterest in forming genuine connections, or perhaps a sense of being jaded and disillusioned by past relationships. Yet, the final verse finds the two characters in a moment of real connection, with a kiss that feels both electric and fleeting. The final lines reiterate that the two are unremarkable in their sneaking around and playing with emotions, but there is a sense of longing for something more.
Overall, the lyrics of Sober are a poignant meditation on the difficulties of forming meaningful relationships in the modern world, especially when alcohol is involved. The repetition of the phrase “just want a sober exchange” indicates a desire for both honesty and clarity, but also a recognition that this is hard to come by. The song shows how fleeting moments of real intimacy can emerge even in the midst of superficial encounters, but also how easily they can be lost.
Line by Line Meaning
I didn't know you'd be keen
I didn't expect you to be interested in me
And maybe it's just the drink
Maybe it's just the alcohol talking
Tonight you're buzzing on me
Tonight, you're attracted to me
Tomorrow what will you think?
Tomorrow, you might feel differently
And "Why are you single
When you're such a catch?"
You asked why I'm single when you think I'm great
But you flip it around
And now you're asking me that
You turned the question back to me
Just want a sober exchange
At the end of the day
I want a genuine interaction, without the effects of alcohol
We went out to the bar
Knowing just about where we'd end up
We went to the bar expecting to hook up
Played a couple of fools
But then I guess that might be what we are
We acted foolishly, but maybe that's just who we are
And while you're living two lies
Some of us are just trying to live one
While you're pretending to be someone else, some of us are just being ourselves
But you'll do what you like
And, it seems, so will I
You'll do what you want, and so will I
And there on the lawn
All the stars, they just saw us as dust
Out on the lawn, we were small in comparison to the universe
We nervously laughed
All our words spilling out on the grass
We laughed nervously, our words tumbling out
My eyes found your eyes
And my lips found your lips, yeah, we kissed
We shared a kiss
In the morning you left
Disappearing into a cold mist
You left without saying goodbye
And I'll have nothing to blame
In a sober exchange
In an interaction without alcohol, I won't have any excuses for my behavior
Riding around town on the cheap
We were nothing unique
Just a couple of sneaks
We drove around town, without anything special about us, like sneaky teenagers
Feelings will go and then we will know
We were nothing unique
Just a couple of sneaks
Our feelings will fade, and we'll realize we're just like everyone else
All of the time you played on my mind
We were nothing unique
Just a couple of sneaks
You were on my mind, but we're not special, just two ordinary people
Contributed by Claire E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@poet1972
There are a few songs out there with a magic sound. Like this one.
@LydiaCole
Thank you!
@dikless222
Gets me every single time. Extraordinary.
@doctor19741
mesmerising...love her music!
@MultiPowerpole
Such a tune. Really beautiful melody. Keep on this kind of sound
@VerenaHacker
You have such an amazing voice..I love ur guitar playing..ur lyrics..;) greetings from Austria
@AlissaJane11
This is SO BEAUTIFUL
@stefveedub123
Gave me shivers!! beautiful song cant wait for the album :)
@listentosnowfall5025
Nice tune!
@esoligh
VERY dope! :)