In August of 2002, the group upped the rock quotient on its second album (and first for In the Red), Time Bomb High School, and the group landed a high-profile gig opening for Swedish garage wunderkinds the Hives on their North American tour. Alex Greene dropped out as a full-time group member by the time 2004's Too Much Guitar was released, though he did appear on the disc as a guest musician, and the band followed its release with more touring, both as a headliner and once again as opener for the Hives. The band also gained another well-known champion in Little Steven Van Zandt, who gave the band frequent airplay on his syndicated radio show. In September 2005 Reigning Sound released Home for Orphans through Sympathy for the Record Industry. It featured reworked versions of Too Much Guitar material along with some unreleased tracks.
Their album Abdication… For Your Love was originally available in 2011 solely as a promotional giveaway, but was given a wide release in 2019 on Merge Records.
Debris
Reigning Sound Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With your heart on your shelf you must be pleased with yourself it's slowly turning into stone
Is there another lover there in your room, does he even know about me?
Can there be any doubt that from here on out
This debris, it's all that's left of me
When you look down deep into the pit of my heart can you find the weakest link
With your low little reef and your broken teeth I ain't never gonna be your friend
And can there be any doubt that from here on out
This debris, it's all that's left of me
The only interest you have in love is to see it broken down
You would tear it apart just to prove that you're smart, you would burn me down
Is there another lover there in your room, does he even know about me?
And can there be any doubt that from here on out
This debris, it's all that's left of me
The Reigning Sound's song "Debris" is about a broken relationship where the singer feels left behind and discarded. The lyrics suggest that the only time the person thinks of him is when they play the game of Scrabble and need a letter "R" or "O". The metaphor illustrates how insignificant he has become to the other person. The line "With your heart on your shelf, you must be pleased with yourself, it's slowly turning into stone" suggests that the person has closed themselves off to love and has become cold-hearted. The singer wonders if there is another lover in the room and whether they know about him. The repetition of the phrase "this debris, it's all that's left of me" emphasizes the feeling of being discarded and reduced to nothing.
The second verse of the song continues with the metaphor of a broken heart being like a pit. The singer wonders if the other person can find the weakest link, indicating that they have been hurt and vulnerable in the relationship. The line "with your low little reef and your broken teeth, I ain't never gonna be your friend" suggests that the other person is not trustworthy or reliable. The singer realizes that their relationship is over and the only thing left is debris. The third verse highlights the destructive nature of the other person who is more interested in tearing love apart than building it up.
Line by Line Meaning
The only time you think of me now is when you're in between an R and O
You only remember me when you're playing a word game and need a word that starts with R and ends with O.
With your heart on your shelf you must be pleased with yourself it's slowly turning into stone
You've become so self-satisfied that you've grown cold and hard - like a stone - and you no longer care about anyone else's feelings.
Is there another lover there in your room, does he even know about me?
Are you with someone else now? Do they know about me?
Can there be any doubt that from here on out This debris, it's all that's left of me
There's no question that I'm now just a mess of broken pieces, useless debris to you.
When you look down deep into the pit of my heart can you find the weakest link
If you were to really try to understand my feelings, could you pinpoint the one area where I'm the most vulnerable, the weakest link in my emotions?
With your low little reef and your broken teeth I ain't never gonna be your friend
You're being deceitful and your damaged appearance makes me want nothing to do with you, including friendship.
The only interest you have in love is to see it broken down
You only seem to care about love when it's falling apart or failing - you enjoy the destruction of it.
You would tear it apart just to prove that you're smart, you would burn me down
You'd go so far as to purposely break someone's heart to prove to yourself that you're clever or superior in some way, you'd completely destroy me in the process.
Is there another lover there in your room, does he even know about me?
Are you with someone else now? Do they know about me?
And can there be any doubt that from here on out This debris, it's all that's left of me
There's no question that I'm now just a mess of broken pieces, useless debris to you.
Contributed by Gabriella V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.