Marissa Nadler is an American dream folk musician and singer-songwriter. Sh… Read Full Bio ↴Marissa Nadler is an American dream folk musician and singer-songwriter. She plays six string guitar, 12 string guitar, piano, ukelele, banjo, and voice.
Nadler studied painting at the Rhode Island School of Design, where she began her performing career after writing songs for many years.

The foundation of her sound is her haunting mezzo-soprano, and a delicate 6-string acoustic guitar, often accompanied by a variety of instruments, including electric guitar, theremin, and piano. Nadler writes strange, yet classic, melancholy songs. Her voice is often bathed in a wash of reverb and space echo and creates a ghostly, atmospheric feeling to the music.

She has American Gothic leanings; her songs often take place in an imagined, idealistic time with a cast of characters of her own creation.

Official Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Marissa-Nadler/300932499775
Bandcamp: http://marissanadler.bandcamp.com/

Dead City Emily
Marissa Nadler Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I was coming apart those days
I don't give a damn about the way
Colors on the trees change from red to green
It's a dead city, Emily
But it was a blaze, still, I had to stay
With that band, Emily
I saw the light today
Opened up the door

And the other man would run, run away
And we're stuck inside the moon
And the other man would run, run away
And we'll need something more
I was coming apart those days
I don't give a damn about the way
Birds fly in the breeze, things you say to me
It's a dead city, Emily
I cannot recall leaving, we said all
It's a dead city in between
I saw the light today
Opened up the door
And the other man would run, run away
And we're stuck inside the wall
Oh, it looked so bright today
Opened up the door
And the other man would run, run away
And leave something more
And the other man would run, run away
From the house and to the shore
Dead city, Emily
Dead city, Emily

Dead city, Emily
Dead city, Emily

Overall Meaning

The song "Dead City Emily" by Marissa Nadler is a poetic account of a troubled past. The singer reminisces about a time of emotional turmoil and isolation, where the colors of the leaves changing was insignificant in comparison to the heaviness of their inner turmoil. They were part of a band with a girl named Emily but the city they were in felt dead, devoid of life and hope. However, despite the bleakness and darkness around them, the singer found a light that shone through and opened up a door. They were able to break free from their emotional walls and the person that they were once fearful of became insignificant. The song hints at a promising future, even though the journey there might be turbulent, as the singer is now no longer stuck inside the walls of their emotional prison but rather outside, experiencing a newfound sense of freedom.

Line by Line Meaning

I was coming apart those days
I was going through a difficult time

I don't give a damn about the way
I didn't care about anything

Colors on the trees change from red to green
The leaves on the trees change color

It's a dead city, Emily
The city feels lifeless

But it was a blaze, still, I had to stay
Despite feeling lifeless, I had to stay

With that band, Emily
I was with a band named Emily

I saw the light today
I had a moment of clarity

Opened up the door
I had an opportunity to change

And the other man would run, run away
Others would leave when they had the chance

And we're stuck inside the moon
We feel trapped

And we'll need something more
We need something to change