Young Man is Colin Caulfield from Chicago. Regarding his music, "It’s enoug… Read Full Bio ↴Young Man is Colin Caulfield from Chicago. Regarding his music, "It’s enough to make you stop and say, “What is that?” It being the gorgeous melodies and lean, spellbound guitar lines of Colin Caulfield, an English/French lit major who’s about to change what it means to be a shape-shifting singer-songwriter in the YouTube age.

Just ask Bradford Cox. He knows. Why, just a year ago, the Deerhunter frontman stumbled upon Caulfield’s organ-grinding rendition of “Rainwater Cassette Exchange” and said it’s “fantastically superior to the original. It actually sent shivers up my spine, especially during the second verse.”

Believe it or not, that chilling cover was just a warmup session. As killer as he is at capturing the very essence of everything from Animal Collective to Ariel Pink, Caulfied’s true talent is in telling his own Young Man stories. The first chapter of which goes by the name Boy, a deceivingly-simple suite of songs about wanting to grow up without having the slightest idea of what ‘being a man’ actually means.

Now that’s a reason to hit rewind, from the tone-setting tenderness and psych-infused harmonies of “Five” to the restless rhythms (Caulfield was a drummer well before he became a singer/guitarist) and room-engulfing intimacy of “Up So Fast.” Both of which feature some of the most hopeful/haunting choruses you’ll hear all year.

And that’s just the beginning, of course. Since Young Man was conceived as a concept project about the passing of time, love, and loss, Caulfield already has two loosely- linked LPs on tap—a faceless collection of fragile characters that could be any one of us, really.

“A lot of it’s autobiographical,” explains Caulfield, “but it’s universal at the same time, because everyone goes through these things.”

Listen closely. It’ll all make sense soon enough. Trust us."

Nothing
Young Man Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

To go away
And stay for nothing
And I know these days
Unliving like ain't something

Yes, I been around
And it's time for change
And I'll go away

And stay for nothing

Trying, trying
To find a wa, wa a wa, wa
A worsening

When we were something
When we were something
When we were something
When we were something

Lover divine
I-I'll take, take what's left

I care and I care
When I had time to blame for it

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Young Man's song "Nothing" paint a picture of someone going through a transition. The lines "To go away / And stay for nothing" indicate a desire to leave a place or a situation with no specific end goal in mind. The following line "And I know these days / Unliving like ain't something" seems to suggest that the current state of affairs is unfulfilling and that a change is necessary.

The singer states that they have been around and it's time for change. They seem to be seeking some sort of resolution, as the repeated line "Trying, trying / To find a wa, wa a wa, wa / A worsening" suggests. It's unclear what specifically is worsening, but it could be the singer's mental or emotional state.

The chorus, which repeats the line "When we were something" four times, doesn't provide us with any clarity either. It could be interpreted as a lament for a past time when things were more meaningful or significant. Finally, the last stanza introduces the idea of a lover who the singer will "take what's left" of. It's unclear what this means, but it could be read as a confession of love or a desire for connection.

Line by Line Meaning

To go away
Leaving a current situation

And stay for nothing
Leaving without receiving any benefit or reward

And I know these days
Awareness of current circumstances

Unliving like ain't something
Living an unfulfilled life

Yes, I been around
Having experienced various situations

And it's time for change
Realizing a need for a different path

And I'll go away
Leaving the current situation

And stay for nothing
Leaving without any material benefit

Trying, trying
Putting in effort to find a solution

To find a wa, wa a wa, wa
Searching for a way out

A worsening
The situation becoming more difficult or hopeless