Stabbing Westward is an American industrial rock and alternative rock band … Read Full Bio ↴Stabbing Westward is an American industrial rock and alternative rock band composed of Christopher Hall, Walter Flakus, Stuart Zechman, Jim Sellers and David Suycott. They formed in 1985 in Chicago, Illinois and began recording in the 1990s. Their major label debut was Ungod. Sales were sluggish but Stabbing Westward built a solid fanbase by relentless touring. In 1996, their Wither, Blister, Burn & Peel became a moderate success aided by the singles Shame and What Do I Have To Do.

The follow-up was Darkest Days. Despite several strong singles including Save Yourself, It failed to sell as well as its predecessor, although it attracted attention in Canada and Australia, and the band was dropped from Columbia Records. They signed to Koch Records, issuing Stabbing Westward, which was a considerably more commercial effort than previous albums, but failed to make any impact on the mainstream charts. Before a fifth LP could be recorded, Stabbing Westward broke up in late 2002.

Since then, lead singer Hall has formed The Dreaming.

In 2019, the band reformed and began to release new (and archival) materials on COP International Productions intending to release a full-length album in 2022.

Bizarre Love Triangle
Stabbing Westward Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Every time I think of you
I feel shot right through with a bolt of blue
It's no problem of mine but it's a problem I find
Living a life that I can't leave behind
There's no sense in telling me
The wisdom of a fool won't set you free

But that's the way that it goes

And it's what nobody knows
While every day my confusion grows
Every time I see you falling

I get down on my knees and pray
I'm waiting for that final moment
You'll say the words that I can't say

I feel fine and I feel good
I'm feeling like I never should
Whenever I get this way, I just don't know what to say
Why can't we be ourselves like we were yesterday

I'm not sure what this could mean
I don't think you're what you seem
I do admit to myself
That if I hurt someone else

Then I'll never see just what we're meant to be
Every time I see you falling
I get down on my knees and pray

I'm waiting for that final moment
You'll say the words that I can't say

Overall Meaning

Stabbing Westward's cover of New Order's Bizarre Love Triangle is a song about unrequited love and all the emotions and complications that come with it. The song's protagonist is hopelessly in love with someone and "every time [they] think of [them], [they] feel shot right through with a bolt of blue." This love seems to be burdensome as they are "living a life that [they] can't leave behind." There are hints that this love is unrequited as the singer "wait[s] for that final moment/You'll say the words that [they] can't say." This fixation with the object of their affection seems to confuse the singer as they admit "I'm not sure what this could mean/I don't think you're what you seem." Despite the confusion and self-doubt, the singer continues to pray for that final moment, showing how love can be all-consuming and difficult to move past.

The lyrics in the second verse take a turn as the singer reflects on the emotions they are feeling. They are "feeling like [they] never should" and "just don't know what to say." The desire to return to the way things used to be is strong as they ask "Why can't we be ourselves like we were yesterday." The sense of self-awareness is expressed with the line "That if I hurt someone else/Then I'll never see just what we're meant to be." This shows that the singer understands the consequences of their actions and decisions.

Overall, Bizarre Love Triangle is a song about the trials and tribulations of love. The lyrics express the overwhelming feeling of love, its ability to consume a person's thoughts and emotions, and the desire to be with the object of affection. However, the song also touches on the complications of love and how it can be difficult to truly understand its meaning and consequences.

Line by Line Meaning

Every time I think of you
Whenever I remember you

I feel shot right through with a bolt of blue
I get filled with intense emotions

It's no problem of mine but it's a problem I find
The issue isn't mine but it bothers me

Living a life that I can't leave behind
Existing in a situation I can't escape from

There's no sense in telling me
It's useless to try advising me

The wisdom of a fool won't set you free
Advice from an unwise person won't help

But that's the way that it goes
That's the nature of the situation

And it's what nobody knows
A secret that no one else knows

While every day my confusion grows
I get increasingly confused every day

Every time I see you falling
Whenever I see you in trouble

I get down on my knees and pray
I start praying

I'm waiting for that final moment
I'm waiting for a crucial moment

You'll say the words that I can't say
You'll say something I can't bring myself to say

I feel fine and I feel good
I feel happy and content

I'm feeling like I never should
I feel like I shouldn't be feeling this way

Whenever I get this way, I just don't know what to say
Whenever I feel this way, I don't know how to express myself

Why can't we be ourselves like we were yesterday
Why can't we act like our past selves

I'm not sure what this could mean
I don't know what this might signify

I don't think you're what you seem
I think you're not being genuine

I do admit to myself
I confess to myself

That if I hurt someone else
If I cause harm to someone else

Then I'll never see just what we're meant to be
I'll never find out what's meant to be for us

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BERNARD (GB 2) SUMNER, GILLIAN LESLEY GILBERT, PETER HOOK, STEPHEN PAUL DAVID MORRIS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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