Lyrical Overanalysis: "Story of My Life," One Direction

source: One Direction's Facebook page

You know one of my favorite things to do is to take a simple pop diddy and critically analyze the eff out of it. So hope you're having a wonderful Saturday afternoon ... and here is my newest victim, "Story of My Life" by One Direction.

First off, kudos to the boys for being smart and running with the whole folk-acoustic-Mumford&Sons sound. Which, after decades of boy bands thinking more or less inside the box, is a relatively big risk. The sound of "Story of My Life" is the type of music I like listening to, and although I'm not in the band's target demographic, it's the music I've been hoping boy bands would make for at least ten years now. Naysayers, of course, will say that the boys are still a boy band and they're still not playing instruments or writing their own songs. And it's true.

"Story of My Life" was actually written by a trio: Jamie Scott, John Ryan and Julian Bunetta, who have in some form or another written for One Direction's previous endeavors.

To cut to the chase -- the song sounds like Mumford & Sons and U2 and Men At Work all at once. Not a bad mix for a boy band, really. The lyrics (and for fun, I'll color code them for those of you who are still learning who's who ... Harry, Liam, Zayn, Niall, Louis):

written in these walls are the stories that I can't explain
I leave my heart open, but it stays right here, empty for days
she told me in the morning she don't feel the same about us in her bones
it seems to me that when I die, these words will be written on my stone

and I'll be gone, gone tonight
the ground beneath my feet is open wide
the way that I been holding on too tight
with nothing in between

chorus
the story of my life: I take her home
I drive all night to keep her warm, and time
is frozen
the story of my life: I give her hope
I spend her love until she's broke inside
the story of my life

written on these walls are the colors that I can't change
leave my heart open, but it stays right here in its cage
I know that in the morning I'll
see us in the light upon your ear
although I am broken, my heart is untamed still

and I'll be gone, gone tonight
the fire beneath my feet is burning bright
the way that I been holding on so tight
with nothing in between

chorus

and I been waiting for this time to come around
but baby running after you is like chasing the clouds

the story of my life: I take her home
I drive all night to keep her warm, and time
is frozen
the story of my life: I give her hope
I spend her love until she's broke inside
the story of my life

the story of my life
the story of my life
the story of my life

The thing about songs that are a departure from the "oh girl"s is that they can be kind of ... cryptic. And not always in a good way (e.g. "I Want It That Way"). The overall message seems to be that the protagonist feels that he is constantly missing out on love. Every time he finds someone, he finds that he is not truly in love though he is going through the motions, and inevitably ends up hurting each girl he's been with.

But I can see how this song is a metaphor for what boy bands do. Not the singing and the touring and the fame and fortune, but the psychological aspects of what boy bands represent, and the shelf life of a boy band.

Let me explain. "The story of my life: I give her hope," yes? Then: "I spend her love until she's broke inside" ... a bit of a stretch for those not in-the-know, but many a teenaged girl's heart has been broken by a boy she's never even met. Or you could replace the word "love" with "parents' money."

Now the first two lines of the chorus are tailored to One Direction: "the story of my life: I take her home / I drive all night to keep her warm" ... the guys' first album was called "Up All Night" and their second album was called "Take Me Home." [This third album (which is called "Midnight Memories") might as well be called "The Story of My Life."] But also, these lines could represent both the touring aspects of their lives and their role in a fan's life, and in growing up "with" their fans.

So when a fan decides one day that "she don't feel the same about us in her bones," the boy bander's world effectively falls apart: "and I'll be gone, gone tonight / the ground beneath my feet is open wide / the way that I been holding on too tight / with nothing in between." He realizes that all this time he's spent giving hope to all these girls and chasing skirts backstage, he hasn't (necessarily) been living his own life or developing himself. What's left is a big, gaping void.

What he has left is the legacy of having been a part of a lot of girls' childhoods and adolescences: "written in these walls are the stories that I can't explain ... it seems to me that when I die, these words will be written on my stone." But his heart's hardened over time. It "stays right here, empty for days" and "stays empty in its cage," not quite knowing how to love. He's "been waiting for this time to come around," when he can love without restraint and settle down, though "running after [what I assume is the perfect girl] is like chasing the clouds." He's still looking, though he's not sure he can change his ways: "although I am broken, my heart is untamed still."

... have I made a convincing argument? Probs not, but it's all in good fun. One can turn a love song into a love song about anyone. That's the beauty of music and art.