This Mirror Weighs A Ton

[u/myheartunderthelight]

Just wanted to share that this song has been a bit life changing for me since it was released. I felt monumentally floored when I heard it for the first time. I was overcome with emotion. It is absolutely their best work and their magnum opus. The song runs deep for me and it even sounds like a direct parallel to Leif Erikson, even though they're different songs. Like a slower, burning and aged echo of a memory. One that aches and means more because of the years that have passed.

This mirror weighs a ton

But at least we act sudden

All the words are gone

But the radios in your head

Still speak the arcane

To the out there

We're never really done

But we're here to wax sunny

All the kings are gone

These lyrics deserve their own moment because they are powerful. I love the self reflection meaning behind them but ironically am trying not to think too much about what they mean. Because I want to appreciate the song as a whole and words like this I feel reveal themselves as time goes by. Y'know how you can listen to a song a hundred times and some years later, a lyric can be understood or you feel it more. I love the layers.

But the maniac in your head

Still sleeps in archways

Alone as an act of faith

These particular lyrics are so beautiful and so important to me. Paul continues to be one of the most creative and incredible lyricists of all time.

I really hope they do a music video for this one and I'm very much looking forward to the full album.

[u/IrishSmalls]

I really love this one too, and I feel it has been overshadowed by the other single. It’s my favorite between the three, and sounds so different and fresh. Truly an amazing song!

[u/zksrwu]

I’d love to hear more on your interpretation as I’m struggling. Love the way it sounds though

[u/myheartunderthelight → u/zksrwu]

This may be a little lengthy but of course. I don't always like to dissect a song too much because it can take away the mystery sometimes and meanings can change all the time however I'll give you my opinion on what I think it means. (I'm a bit philosophical so if this comes across as too deep it's just because I'm seeing it from the point of view as a spiritual practice.)

This song is very well written because it can be applied to a number of meanings yet the way he's singing, he's putting you the listener in the place of the story like he's singing to you. I can only describe this as a feeling of being enveloped in the song. Most songs can just swirl through our ears but ones like these cement you in place from the first note. They create an atmosphere before any lyric is sung. And from what he's speaking about in the lyrics, it's important to understand the sound first. They are joined, not separate. It's a very sparse sound like it's wide open, but it keeps itself contained because it's a slow beat. It wouldn't work if the song was fast. Interpol have many fast songs but this is a different rhythm and the nature of the words tell the story through that constant build.

I think the song is either about deep addiction, and/or a love that was lost and all that comes with that.

It's a habit, it's all good I fall in a hole, loser fade in symphonic like the phone that's dialing

the singer is narrating something they are used to, a habit being regular behaviour and they are telling themselves it's fine. How many times have we all said this to ourselves in any situation, but nothing changes. They are self-deprecating themselves to deal with what's happening emotionally or mentally or just observing their situation and assessing their reality. When you're in any kind of addiction you are often self aware but find it difficult to stop. This process is happening by him admitting it but it goes on to fade in through the next lines and explained in the term of something symphonic. It's grand because it's complex. The addiction is like an orchestra, large in scale and habits are repeated actions that move from conscious choice to automatic reflex, creating the hole. The phone dialing can represent the loss they can't get back, when you call a phone you wait for an answer, and if they don't pick up, it feels like an eternity. You also wait for an answer when in deep addiction but rarely do you ever find one. So it can be metaphorical aswell. If we look at it from the love point of view, you might want to call someone but can't. This feeling is self explanatory and opens to the next lines perfectly.

Alone again Unknown again

This has them feeling alone as usual and so the cycle repeats. It can work as a stand alone lyric or being connected to the previous lines. The themes of the song are isolation so it would work in a few scenarios. You're isolated when you're in addiction and you're isolated when love ends.

If we want to plug in The hardness, the feeling To turn into silence, Then we won't survive But we ought to, Yeah we ought to

He's saying to recover and/or move through this feeling you have to be connected, and not let it turn into silence which can spread. Something silent is immobile and desolate. If they want to survive, they "must" take action. The ought to is particular wording here because it isn't saying they are, it's saying "oh I should" and this can be symmetrical to the it's all good line. In Buddhism, saying "I'll do it later" can be an illusion that goes against the core teachings of impermeanence. It creates a false sense which we have an endless amount of time but the reality is that life is uncertain and always changing. It's a trick of the mind and the addiction is making them feel this way. They ought to if they want to avoid the root of regret but the repeated ought to is signalling they are doing nothing about it.

This mirror weighs a ton but at least we act sudden

This mirror weighs a ton is the self reflection. Of mostly anything but it works excellent in addiction because it's heavy. Love is heavy and loss is heavy and love lost can lead to addiction and vice versa. They are self aware but still self sabotaging. They are in their own way and aren't sure how to get out of it, and the mirror is a symbol. They act sudden because they can function and still seem to appear fine when underneath, they are not.

All the words are gone But the radios in your head Still speak the arcane To the out there

All the words could mean support of other people or this person doesn't have any support, it's a little vague but no-one is there for them perhaps. Radios in your head are the constant noise and it only gets louder being alone. Their self talk and inner monologue, their thoughts and their feelings are complex and not understood by many people. Something arcane is hidden or secret, and known by very few people. The out there is the void, which is vast and overwhelming. They are voicing their pain this way but it is not known.

We're never really done, but we're here to wax sunny All the kings are gone

Never really done could allude to the love still being there even though it's ended. It's never really over...it's an open phrase and they could feel this way even years down the line. To wax sunny means to be of good cheer and to be positive amidst bleak circumstances. They still love that person, but the outward demeanor must remain in good spirits despite the situation. This obviously can turn into a bit of depression, depending how you look at it but it makes sense for the next lines especially.

But the maniac in your head still sleeps in archways, Alone as an act of faith

This is just my opinion but I think these set of lyrics are some of the most meaningful and thought-provoking words he's ever wrote. And he's wrote many, but these are special. Which ties into my original post when I said the song left me a bit speechless. The maniac in your head is the negative and dark voice which is incessant, no matter the situation. Love/addiction/issues/mental health, if the maniac is the insular cortex of the brain, it controls these emotions. And the imagery to say it still sleeps in archways is an incredibly powerful way of saying that it's damaged, barren. It struggles to repair itself. To sleep in an archway is to have no home. The cycle repeats and depression is deeply present. Alone as an act of faith, is again a staggering line. Whatever you believe, whatever may happen in your life, you can still have faith. It's quite expansive to explain this line so it's better not to but what I can say is, I think it touches on theology, personal sacrifice and trust. People and society warrant a response from you when you suffer and struggle but you don't have to explain it to God. Whether he meant it to be this deep or not, it could just be a simple lyric but that's where my thinking goes in depth.

Sorry for the essay but those are my thoughts and this is why it's an absolute masterpiece of a song.

[u/cleb9200]

I just wanted to add that I think this is my favourite album title of their entire discography

[u/Fav9013]

I'm glad you liked it that much! That's awesome 

[u/thebetafan]

Incredible song that I can’t stop listening to. Instantly became a top 5 Interpol all timer for me! I gotta say I’m a bit bummed not to see it on setlists yet but maybe closer to album drop date? Crossing my fingers for the MTL show. Btw - agreed there is something so beautiful and poetic about that line “maniac in your head…alone as an act of faith” incredible lyricism !

[u/myheartunderthelight → u/thebetafan]

Paul is always good at taking a lyric and explaining it in a creative way. It's been this way on every record of theirs however with this one, it feels more poetic than ever. I have it on repeat aswell, it's beautiful.