YourFavoriteWeapon Posted August 28 Posted August 28 (edited) The way this song just perfectly encapsulates the feelings of veering from being a teenager to stepping into adulthood is a testament to how strong Vanessa's pen game is. Below will be my interpretation of the lyrics in the song: Quote [Verse 1] Crashed on the floor when I moved in This little bungalow with some strange new friends Stay up too late, and I'm too thin We promise each other it's till the end This first verse showcases the emotions of moving out of your parents house and living on your own for the first time. Vanessa does not know these people, but still wants to have fun with them ("stay up too late") while comparing her physical flaws to everyone else's ("and I'm too thin"). The last lyric in particular reads as very bittersweet considering I've been in many situations where I formed new friendships with people and convincing myself that the friendship would never fizzle out or end despite the strong likelihood of that happening. Quote [Verse 2] Now we're spinning empty bottles It's the five of us With pretty eyed boys girls die to trust I can't resist the day No, I can't resist the day Vanessa shares how she feels about her playing spin the bottle with her new group of friends and it comes across like it's not something she usually does, but she doesn't want to "resist the day" aka she's so caught up in the moment and doesn't want to miss out on a new experience now that she has a newfound sense of independence. Quote [Verse 3] Jenny screams out and it's no pose 'Cause when she dances, she goes and goes And beer through the nose on an inside joke And I'm so excited, I haven't spoken Vanessa depicts the emotions of feeling inadequate to someone who is a lot more lively and outgoing than you. She paints a picture of how observant she is when it comes to Jenny's tendency to "make a scene" and be the life of the party, while she remains timid and quiet due to anxieties and insecurities. Quote [Pre-Chorus] And she's so pretty and she's so sure Maybe I'm more clever than a girl like her The summer's all in bloom The summer is ending soon She recognizes that Jenny is a beautiful woman who comes across as very sure of herself, but deep down Vanessa knows that Jenny is not as clever as she is. Is she going to use this to her advantage? Perhaps will she try to sway one of the guys living with her to take interest in her versus Jenny on the basis of her thinking brains are more important than beauty? Quote [Chorus] It's alright And it's nice not to be so alone But I hold on to your secrets In white houses Vanessa states that despite her feeling inadequate compared to Jenny and feeling a rush of anxiety over being thrust into a new environment with total strangers, it's "alright" and that she'd rather have this than live a life of solitude all by herself, all while promising to hold onto all of her roommate's secrets. Quote [Verse 4] Maybe I'm a little bit over my head I come undone at the things he said And he's so funny in his bright red shirt We were all in love and we all got hurt Vanessa depicts the feeling of being immediately infatuated with someone and feeling like you can let loose and "come undone" around someone you trust and connect with, all while observing the color of his shirt as a way to showcase that she's going to remember every little detail of this moment. (I will be bringing up the "bright red shirt" lyric again when I get to bridge). Quote [Verse 5] I sneak into his car's cracked leather seat The smell of gasoline in the summer heat Boy, we're going way too fast It's all too sweet to last There is a double meaning to the last two lyrics: she says they're "going way too fast" to paint a picture of him speeding the car, as well as how she has enough self awareness to know that they're getting way too ahead of themselves when they finally decide to sleep together. Quote [Chorus] It's alright And I put myself in his hands But I hold on to his secrets in white houses Love, or something ignites in my veins And I pray it never fades In white houses She describes the feeling of falling in love with this guy while praying that it never fades, despite how the possibility of that is more than likely. She says love "or something" ignites in her veins because she isn't exactly sure what she is feeling and how she feels about him. Is it love? Is it insecurity? Lust? Trust? There are a whirlwind of emotions going through her head as her and this guy get closer and closer and while she isn't sure how she feels about him, she knows she never wants these feelings to end. Quote [Bridge] My first time Hard to explain Rush of blood, oh And a little bit of pain And on a cloudy day It's more common than you think He's my first mistake In this infamous bridge (that caused the song to get banned by both MTV and various radio stations), Vanessa describes the feeling of losing your virginity and how hard it is to explain how it feels on the inside, in both a mental and physical sense. The "rush of blood" lyric refers to both the feeling you get when you lose your virginity as well as the boy's shirt that she claimed was bright red but is now possibly even more red due to Vanessa's hymen being stretched and causing her to bleed on him. The "a little bit of pain" lyric is her sharing the brutal truth that losing your virginity is Not Like The Movies.mp3 and is instead, more often than not, a pretty painful experience. She concludes the bridge by acknowledging that it was a mistake for her to sleep with him, clearly regretting her choice. Quote [Verse 6] Maybe you were all faster than me We gave each other up so easily These silly little wounds will never mend I feel so far from where I've been She paints a rather sad picture of the friend group that she once thought she was going to last "until the end" has now split apart and that they all gave each other up. By her stating that the "wounds will never mend", she's possibly alluding to there being damage done to the friend group that is unfixable and the fallout of the friend group breaking apart makes her feel farther than she initially felt when moving in. Quote [Chorus] So I go And I will not be back here again I'm gone as the day is fading On white houses I lie Wrote my injuries all in the dust In my heart, it's the five of us In white houses And you, maybe you'll remember me What I gave is yours to keep Vanessa shares that she impulsively decided to leave the house she moved into after the drama and tension between the friend group got too much to bear. She finished the final chorus with "What I gave is yours to keep" as a message to the guy who took her virginity: she'll never be able to "recover" her virginity again as it's now "given" to him. If you took the time to read this long lyrical analysis, thank you Now go stream it if you haven't! Edited September 4 by YourFavoriteWeapon 4
YourFavoriteWeapon Posted August 28 Author Posted August 28 @Bloodflowers. @undermyskin @Minto @Poxy @drivers license @collinGet in, all my fellow Nessaholics 2
drivers license Posted August 28 Posted August 28 1 minute ago, YourFavoriteWeapon said: @Bloodflowers. @undermyskin @Minto @Poxy @drivers license @collinGet in, all my fellow Nessaholics oh the spillage... the way Harmonium sounding like a "diary entry" that's why it was bashed by the so called critics at the time, when it would have been praised if it was released recently she was kinda the OG T. Swift for me, i was invested in finding out what her songs were about 1
Buffy Posted August 28 Posted August 28 Who's To Say is her best song ever. And this is the best version of it. She only sang the bridge this way once (4:30) and never again. Should've been a radio single! 1
Bussea Posted August 28 Posted August 28 Well, yes! Definitely one of the songs I fell in love with when i first got into her 10+ years ago. I can't believe there was backlash over this.she MADE POINTS 1
YourFavoriteWeapon Posted August 28 Author Posted August 28 4 minutes ago, drivers license said: oh the spillage... the way Harmonium sounding like a "diary entry" that's why it was bashed by the so called critics at the time, when it would have been praised if it was released recently she was kinda the OG T. Swift for me, i was invested in finding out what her songs were about She's even better at being poetic than Taylor is and I can admit this as a huge Swiftie. If Vanessa released Harmonium today I'm 110% sure P4K would give it a high 8.6 score, if only 4 minutes ago, Buffy said: Who's To Say is her best song ever. And this is the best version of it. She only sang the bridge this way once (4:30) and never again. Should've been a radio single! Dddd I love her so no shade but the way she can't sing this anymore, @undermyskinsent me a vid of her recent performance and it was…interesting.
Minto Posted August 28 Posted August 28 (edited) i love this song she really captures the essence of early adulthood innocence and the melody is so gorg it just makes me want to cry urgh …the way it's her last hot 100 entry ever is so sad esp because the resurgence of singer/songwriter smashes happened like a year or two after it dropped Edited August 28 by Minto 2
YourFavoriteWeapon Posted August 28 Author Posted August 28 1 minute ago, Minto said: i love this song she really captures the essence of early adulthood innocence and the melody just makes me want to cry…the way it's her last hot 100 entry ever is so sad esp because the resurgence of singer/songwriter smashes happened like a year or two after it dropped In another and more perfect world, she would be Taylor Swift 1 1
Buffy Posted August 28 Posted August 28 18 minutes ago, YourFavoriteWeapon said: She's even better at being poetic than Taylor is and I can admit this as a huge Swiftie. If Vanessa released Harmonium today I'm 110% sure P4K would give it a high 8.6 score, if only Dddd I love her so no shade but the way she can't sing this anymore, @undermyskinsent me a vid of her recent performance and it was…interesting. She can't sing lots of songs anymore lol. I heard she doesn't like her baby voice so she tries to sound not like herself.
drivers license Posted August 28 Posted August 28 25 minutes ago, YourFavoriteWeapon said: She's even better at being poetic than Taylor is and I can admit this as a huge Swiftie. If Vanessa released Harmonium today I'm 110% sure P4K would give it a high 8.6 score, if only Taylor couldn't write "Half a week before the winter" about archenemy Scooter even if she tried 1
YourFavoriteWeapon Posted August 28 Author Posted August 28 4 minutes ago, drivers license said: Taylor couldn't write "Half a week before the winter" about archenemy Scooter even if she tried As much as I love folklore and evermore, they're lowkey giving diet Rabbits On the Run/Liberman dd
Goofy Posted August 28 Posted August 28 wow, I've never heard this song or seen the music video. So beautiful! 1
drivers license Posted August 28 Posted August 28 3 minutes ago, YourFavoriteWeapon said: As much as I love folklore and evermore, they're lowkey giving diet Rabbits On the Run/Liberman dd i've always said folklore was giving rabbits 1
drivers license Posted August 28 Posted August 28 Just now, Goofy said: wow, I've never heard this song or seen the music video. So beautiful! omg wait really? stan sis! 1
YourFavoriteWeapon Posted August 28 Author Posted August 28 17 minutes ago, Buffy said: She can't sing lots of songs anymore lol. I heard she doesn't like her baby voice so she tries to sound not like herself. I just can't get down with her current vocal style dd, I'm still able to enjoy her recent records but her tone is just so jarring different to how raw and angelic it used to sound. 1 1
Bloodflowers. Posted August 28 Posted August 28 46 minutes ago, drivers license said: oh the spillage... the way Harmonium sounding like a "diary entry" that's why it was bashed by the so called critics at the time, when it would have been praised if it was released recently she was kinda the OG T. Swift for me, i was invested in finding out what her songs were about I also shared White Houses to one of my gay best friends when we were playing 2000s music and sharing our favorite songs and his immediate reaction was how Taylor Swift copied her style after hearing this song for the first time We need Ms. Swift to bring Vanessa on stage with her some time!!! So that she can perform WHITE HOUSES instead of A Thousand Miles 2
YourFavoriteWeapon Posted August 28 Author Posted August 28 2 minutes ago, drivers license said: i've always said folklore was giving rabbits Rabbits from Shein sis. 3 minutes ago, Goofy said: wow, I've never heard this song or seen the music video. So beautiful! GIRL GET INTO HER MUSIC OMFG
YourFavoriteWeapon Posted August 28 Author Posted August 28 Just now, Bloodflowers. said: I also shared White Houses to one of my gay best friends when we were playing 2000s music and sharing our favorite songs and his immediate reaction was how Taylor Swift copied her style after hearing this song for the first time We need Ms. Swift to bring Vanessa on stage with her some time!!! So that she can perform WHITE HOUSES instead of A Thousand Miles I'm like 99% sure that Taylor put White Houses in some Spotify playlist a couple years ago unless I'm mistaken? It would be funny if she did knowing that Vanessa came for her throat unwarranted then started licking her ass when folklore came out dd
Afterglow Posted August 28 Posted August 28 I've been a Vanessa fan since her debut. White Houses is one of the best pop songs of all time, in fact a lot of her music is some of the best pop music of all time. 4 minutes ago, YourFavoriteWeapon said: I just can't get down with her current vocal style dd, I'm still able to enjoy her recent records but her tone is just so jarring different to how raw and angelic it used to sound. Is it? I've seen her live probably 5 times now, she sounds literally the same as she did when she debuted especially when she sang White Houses and Carousel.
Bloodflowers. Posted August 28 Posted August 28 13 minutes ago, Goofy said: wow, I've never heard this song or seen the music video. So beautiful! You nasty hoe dragged me when I posted this exact same song on ATRL after I lost my virginity few years ago. Fake ass hoe!
Bloodflowers. Posted August 28 Posted August 28 4 minutes ago, Wicked said: Yes,and it's on a great album too. Harmonium was DELAYED for months by her record label after White Houses underperformed due to MTV and radio ban and yet she STILL opened with over 100k pure sales. She had GIRLS IN A CHOKEHOLD, she really was og Taylor Swift
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