Three
Penelope Isles Lyrics

The lyrics of Penelope Isles's song "Three" seem to be about a person who is trying to understand the thoughts and feelings of someone else. The first stanza suggests that one person is wondering if the other person even knows that they are there. The questions, “Does she speak at all? Know that I am here right behind the wall?" indicate a sense of frustration and difficulty in communicating with that person. The lyrics carry on to question if they know the score or if they understand what's going on. The line "Does she know the score, baby?" suggests a possible romantic context which the song highlights more explicitly later.

The second stanza, which begins with the line "Tell me why you play these games," is directed at the same person who is elusive and hard to pin down. The lyrics here suggest that the person is playing games and engaging in mischievous behavior that is causing confusion and frustration. The singer says "You might as well be here my dear. You might not as well be here my dear," implying that the person's presence or absence makes no difference considering how elusive they are, as if they are an apparition or constantly shifting. The last two lines of the stanza, “Don't be scared. You lost your cause got lost in the rips of the ocean floor” suggest frustration and perhaps anger at this person's behavior, and a sense of hopelessness in trying to understand them.

Overall, the lyrics of "Three" convey a sense of confusion, frustration, and disconnect. Penelope Isles use imagistic language, and there is an apathetic quality to the way the song is sung, the lyrics evocative of someone who knows the situation is dire but is too frustrated and unsure to approach it in a more direct way.