Rival Tides is a Los Angeles-based rock band that thrives on mixing aggress… Read Full Bio ↴Rival Tides is a Los Angeles-based rock band that thrives on mixing aggression with positivity. Since their formation, the group continues to pour their hearts into their music and live performances to create deeper connections with their fans.

The band is currently in the studio, recording their first full-length album with Beau Burchell (Saosin, The Bronx, Senses Fail).

Oceans
Rival Tides Lyrics

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When I was a child, my mother said "don't dwell on the regrets of the day
Because worry and fear were meant for shallow men and your soul is much deeper than oceans
You could drift away... there's a sea in you"
The older I get, the more I see because people they kill for what they don't need
I'm trying so hard to be this man I swore as a child I would never be
Was walking this desert 'til I found you
One look in your eyes and I crashed into
Oceans, I could drift away

There's a sea in you
Oceans, I could drift away
There's a sea in you
Oceans, I could drift away
There's a sea in you

Oceans, I could drift away
What I see in you

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Rival Tides's song "Oceans" start with a reminiscence of the advice that the singer's mother gave them as a child - to not dwell on the regrets of the day as worry and fear were meant for shallow men and that their soul was much deeper than oceans. This advice maybe presented as a metaphor for the vastness, depth, and mystery of the human soul. The first verse concludes with the singer realizing that they could drift away because there's a sea in them. The next verse talks about how the older the singer gets, the more they realize that people often kill for what they do not need. The singer is trying hard to not become this kind of person who engages in such a meaningless act.

The chorus starts with repetitions of the word "oceans" indicating, perhaps, the immense strength of the human soul that is beyond expression. The singer could drift away in these oceans of their soul that they know are profound and infinite. The song ends with the singer declaring that they see something in the person they are addressing that speaks to the same depth of humanity that they recognize in themselves.

Overall, the lyrics of "Oceans" seem to suggest that the human soul is like the depths of the oceans - very profound, mysterious, and vast. It also suggests that it is easy to get lost in this vastness and lose one's sense of self. However, the singer is trying to stay true to the depth of their being and not engage in meaningless acts that shallow people do. Finally, the song seems to suggest that the depth of the human soul can be recognized in other people and that connecting with this depth in others can be a source of great strength and comfort.

Line by Line Meaning

When I was a child, my mother said "don't dwell on the regrets of the day
As a child, my mother told me not to focus on my mistakes and regrets.

Because worry and fear were meant for shallow men and your soul is much deeper than oceans
My mother believed that only shallow people worry and fear, and my soul is deeper than oceans.

You could drift away... there's a sea in you"
My mother suggested that I could escape from my worries since there is a vast ocean within me.

The older I get, the more I see because people they kill for what they don't need
As I grow older, I realize that some people kill for things they don't even need.

I'm trying so hard to be this man I swore as a child I would never be
I am struggling to become the person I promised myself I would never become.

Was walking this desert 'til I found you
I felt lost and alone until I met you.

One look in your eyes and I crashed into
Your eyes captured me completely.

Oceans, I could drift away There's a sea in you
You have a vast and deep soul, and being with you makes me feel like I could escape into the ocean.

What I see in you
You possess qualities that I admire and cherish.

Lyrics © DistroKid
Written by: Alex vonHollen, Caleb Healey, Gregory Fulleman, Jason Friday, Robyn Reinstadler

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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