Beyond The Song: 'Catch Fire' by 5SOS
‘Catch Fire’ is the sixth song on Sounds Good Feels Good, 5SOS’ second studio album. The song is very popular among fans. It was also on the set list of the Sounds Live Feels Live tour. Catch Fire was written by Luke and Michael along with help from others such as Alex Gaskarth.
Before we look more in depth at the song, please know that this is down to interpretation of the lyrics. We hope you enjoy reading it and it might open up a new outlook at the song for you!
Overall the sound of the song seems quite upbeat. If you listen to the lyrics they can have a lot of meaning behind them and tell us a story. Our favourite lyric from the song is “The words you speak, surrounding me, this is broken love in the first degree”. It really ties the whole song together and shows off Calum’s vocals at the same time.
Now lets look at some of the lyrics in more detail!
Oh say, can you see? This is not who I’m supposed to be, without you I’m nobody, killing time
The first line is quite interesting because it’s as though Luke is having a conversation with somebody.”You” and “I’m” are used a few times which makes it seem more personal and on a conversation basis. We can tell from this that he’s acknowledged that he doesn’t feel himself and who he is, is not who he is ‘supposed to be’.
From the line “without you I’m nobody” we start to realise the general meaning of the song and that it could be to do with a breakup or being left by somebody. The way “nobody” is used suggests that he feels lost and as though he has no importance anymore. Then it goes on to say “killing time” which tells us that now he has been left, his time is just wasted and he feels like he is just relying on time for something to happen and sort itself out.
I tried to deceive, tried to win you desperately, now I’m lost in this swirling sea of your sorry eyes
Again there is use of the first person which makes it seem much more personal. “I tried to deceive” could be him trying to lie about the situation and say that it’s not as bad as it seems so that he doesn’t lose anyone in the process. It is like he is deceiving somebody to win them over again. He is now lost within her eyes because an apology has been made and things seem as though they are becoming resolved. “Swirling” could suggest the rough times that have happened and that everything wasn’t as straight forward as predicted.
All my life I’ve been waiting for moments to come, when I catch fire and watch over you like the sun
He has been waiting all of his life to finally experience this. Everything has built up to this one moment. If he is watching over like the sun it could tell us that he will always be around and there for them. The fire and sun both could mean warmth and light which tells us that things are actually better and there is a light at the end of the tunnel for them.
I will fight to fix up and get things right, I can’t change the world but maybe I’ll change your mind
He is so dedicated to this person that he is willing to fight for them both and fix everything that is wrong. He realises that he doesn’t have the power to change anything huge like the world but he is able to convince them that things can be fixed. “I can’t change the world” could relate back to the sun in the last line. It could mean that he has power to bring the warmth and light into their life but he cannot do anything more at the moment because of the situation.
CATCH FIRE! pic.twitter.com/XLYOfNt8YS
— 5 Seconds of Summer (@5SOS) October 23, 2015
Summary
In general ‘Catch Fire’ allows people listening to explore how they’re feeling. It also lets them know that it is okay to not be able to change things for other people. 5SOS don’t want fans to feel like they’re not enough.
What is your view on the lyrics to ‘Catch Fire’? Let us know by tweeting us @CelebMix
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