Cul-de-sac Lyrics
I've been leaving messages
On an answering machine
In a house that's always empty, so I know nobody's listening
I've been confessing my transgressions over tape hiss
The silence makes me sick
No good can come from this
[Chorus]
I'm letting go
I've been hanging on like poison ivy
Out of cold suburban concrete
From this careless urban sprawl
I'm letting go
You know we can't keep out of trouble
I thought my kids would call you uncle
I thought we'd never be alone
[Verse 2]
Well I got images
Of you inside my head
Outside of the gas station where we always used to shoplift
It's car-crash rhetoric
We fucked up everything we came in contact with
Just boyhood recklessness
I'm letting go
I've been hanging on like poison ivy
Out of cold suburban concrete
From this careless urban sprawl
I'm letting go
You know we can't keep out of trouble
I thought my kids would call you uncle
I thought we'd never be alone
[Bridge]
If you walked me home
Then you'd know how weak my arms got
I just can't carry you
If you walked me home
Well, I know that I'd have flashbacks
Of snow angels and gut laughs
If you walked me home
But you won't, you're all alone
On some bullshit, pill-bottle vision quest
If you walked me home
Well, I don't know when I would finally
Work up the backbone
To walk alone
[Outro]
I’m letting go
'Cause I loved you
But I have to
I'm letting go
You know we can't keep out of trouble
I thought my kids would call you uncle
I thought we'd never be alone
I’m letting go
(If you walked me home...)
About
“Cul-de-Sac” describes the painful crumbling of a friendship. Dan Campbell here lays out the reasons why he has decided to break things off with a childhood friend he grew up with, something that is never easy to do.
A cul-de-sac is another word for a dead end : Campbell has tried everything to salvage the friendship, but he has run out of options.
To make matters more difficult, the friendship seemingly fractured over Campbell’s friend’s drug use. “Cul-de-Sac” comes at a time when Campbell, who abstains from substances, had pretty much separated from straight edge ethos, which has often been called anti-addict. The conflict between trying to shed off his ingrained prejudice and his very real inability to keep going with the friendship adds an extra layer to the song.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
- 1.There, There
- 8.Chaser
- 11.Madelyn
- 12.Cul-de-sac