in April/May 2006, the quartet played six shows in Ireland to support the release of The Swell Season. Later in the year (October & December) they also played a number of shows in the US to support the release of the album there. The huge success of the film Once resulted in Glen and Markéta touring the US constantly during 2007 and the line-up morphed over time (Glen and Markéta being the core members). The current Swell Season line-up also includes three members of The Frames: guitarist Rob Bochnik, violinist Colm Mac Con Iomaire, and bassist Joe Doyle. Graham Hopkins joined the tour on drums in spring of 2008.
Hansard and Markéta starred in the film 'Once' by writer/director John Carney (a former bass player of The Frames). Many songs of The Swell Season are used in this film, which won the World Cinema Audience Award at Sundance 2007. Hansard and Irglová won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for the song "Falling Slowly" in February 2008.
For more info: http://www.myspace.com/oncethemovie
Tour dates and audio streams are available from www.theswellseason.com.
The Verb
The Swell Season Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To take a knife and hack away at it
You keep saying, well that's the last time
You'll pretend to, stand aside no matter what we did
I'm not playing,
All in all then just enough to
Keep us sliding back to where we were
I'm not waiting
And that's the last time you'll get friends who
Will tell you that you walked away with it
When you barely scraped through
I'm tired of fighting she said
Your words just rattle my head
All joy escapes in the dark
And I can't make this make sense
Your words are lost to me now
I cannot take it I'm out
I'm stuck here kidding myself
You're out there caring somewhere
So what's the verb to
Kick it off to
Take the time and walk away from it
I'm not playing,
That'll never sit with us well
We're far too pious to get out of it
And we're on our way
I'm tired of fighting she said
Your words just rattle my head
All joy escaped in the dark
And I can't make this make sense
Your thoughts are lost to me now
I cannot take it I'm out
I'm stuck here killing myself
You're out there drinking somewhere
This time I've lost all my hope
I cannot take it no more
I'm stuck here killing myself
You're out there laughing somewhere
I'll tear my heart out no more
I'll burn this bridge till its gone
I'm stuck here killing myself
You're out there laughing somewhere
All joy is lost to me now
I cannot take it I'm out
I'm stuck here killing myself
And you're out there drinking somewhere
Running away won't change anything it only puts it off
Stuck here killing myself
Stand on the spot work out where you are and take it all from there
Running away won't change anything it only puts it off
The Swell Season's "The Verb" is a song about the struggle to let go of a toxic relationship. The lyrics open with a rhetorical question about the meaning of the verb "to cut it off." The singer reflects on the various attempts to distance themselves from the negative dynamics of the relationship, but despite their best intentions, they keep sliding back into old patterns. The chorus emphasizes the futility of pretending that things will magically get better without taking action.
The second verse centers on a conversation between the two parties, with the female character expressing fatigue and frustration at the impact of her partner's words on her mental health. The singer acknowledges that the relationship has reached a breaking point and contemplates the possibility of walking away, even if it goes against their sense of morality. The bridge highlights the singer's feelings of hopelessness and the sense that the other person is living their life carefreely, while they are stuck in a cycle of self-destruction.
Overall, "The Verb" is a poignant reflection on the difficult process of disentangling oneself from a situation that is causing pain and harm. The lyrics capture a sense of exhaustion and of being trapped, but also suggest that there is an opportunity to make a change for the better if the singer can summon the courage to take action.
Line by Line Meaning
What's the verb to cut it off
What action can we take to end this?
To take a knife and hack away at it
To take a sharp and swift action to end this.
You keep saying, well that's the last time
You keep claiming it's the final chance for us to make it work.
You'll pretend to, stand aside no matter what we did
You'll act like you're not involved, regardless of what happened between us.
I'm not playing,
I'm serious and not entertaining anymore of these games.
All in all then just enough to
After everything that has happened between us, it seems that there's only just enough left.
Keep us sliding back to where we were
We're slowly returning to the same place we were before.
I'm not waiting
I'm done waiting for something that may never happen.
And that's the last time you'll get friends who
You won't have any more friends who
Will tell you that you walked away with it
Will make you think you won this.
When you barely scraped through
When you barely made it out intact.
I'm tired of fighting she said
She is exhausted from all the arguing.
Your words just rattle my head
Your words are having a negative effect on me.
All joy escapes in the dark
I can't find any happiness in this situation, even in the dark.
And I can't make this make sense
I can't understand why this is all happening.
Your words are lost to me now
Your words don't have any meaning or impact on me anymore.
I cannot take it I'm out
I can't handle this anymore and I'm leaving.
I'm stuck here kidding myself
I'm still deluding myself even though I know it's not going to work out.
You're out there caring somewhere
You're somewhere else caring for someone or something else.
So what's the verb to
What can we do to
Kick it off to
End this once and for all.
Take the time and walk away from it
To take the necessary time and space to end this.
That'll never sit with us well
It's not something that we'll ever be comfortable with.
We're far too pious to get out of it
We believe too strongly in what we are doing to give up.
And we're on our way
We're determined to keep going despite everything.
This time I've lost all my hope
This time, I have no hope left for us.
I cannot take it no more
I can't handle this anymore.
I'll burn this bridge till its gone
I'm going to end this completely and finally.
All joy is lost to me now
I can't find any happiness in anything anymore.
Running away won't change anything it only puts it off
Avoiding this issue won't fix anything, it will only delay the inevitable.
Stand on the spot work out where you are and take it all from there
Stay still, figure out where you stand, and start from that point.
You're out there laughing somewhere
You're somewhere else laughing and having a good time.
Stuck here killing myself
I'm painfully stuck in this situation.
And you're out there drinking somewhere
You're somewhere else drinking and having a good time.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: GLEN HANSARD, GLEN JAMES HANSARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind