Annotations for Its Not a Fashion Statement Its a Deathwish

Lyric: (Let’s go!)
Annotation:
Start off with the rest of the lyrics

Lyric: Lay still like the dead
Annotation:
The man will kill the person who killed him back in demo lovers. He will ‘lay still like the dead’ as in like the other souls he’s killed.

Lyric: We could lose ourselves
Annotation:
As he kills the 1000’s souls he ‘loses himself’ and goes insane

Lyric: You’re running out of places to hide from me
Annotation:
The protagonist of the song knows that revenge will come soon. This line gives a dark and almost serial killer vibe and it’s meant to represent the overall loss of sanity and reason by the protagonist in the pursuit of revenge.

Lyric: Been holdin’ on forever
Annotation:
The protagonist has been trying his hardest to bring 1000 souls down to hell. Even after all these days and frivolous attempts,  he still clings onto the hope that he will eventually see his lover again.

Lyric: I’m comin’ back from the dead
 And I’ll take you home with me
Annotation:
Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge is a concept album that tells the story of a man who dies and makes a deal with the devil: kill 1,000 evil souls and be able to live again with his true love. However, he learns after killing 999 evil men that the last man he must kill is himself. In this line, the narrator could be talking to his wife, promising that they’ll be together in the afterlife, or could be warning an enemy about revenge coming their way.

Lyric: When you go, just know that I will remember you
Annotation:
Usually when this lyric is sung a person thinks about somebody leaving or going away for a while. Though this whole song has a message about self harm, hidden behind the upbeat and cool guitar solos. Therefore this lyric tells the person or people this song is directed towards that if they take their own life they will be missed and remembered by at least one person.

Lyric: We never got that far
 This helps me to think all through the night
Annotation:
Thinking about the revenge he’s going to take and the promise of being reunited with his lover help to settle his thoughts at night instead of letting his head be haunted by his mistakes and what he’s done to fulfill his deal with the devil: murdering.

Lyric: I’m taking back the life you stole
Annotation:
In the song, he’s talking to a person, or concept that made him suicidal and turned him into the preson he is now. So, when he says that he’s going to take back the life they stole, he means that he’s going to get revenge and fight back against whatever made him so miserable.

Lyric: (Woah-oh-oh-oh-oh) Bright lights that won’t kill me now or tell me how
Annotation:
Bright lights are obviously a refrence to fame. His sudden growing fame has changed who he is as a person. If you look at this metaphorically, however, bright lights could be a refrence to positive things, influences, or people in his life that he’s blocking out completely, so they won’t be able to help.

Lyric: I will avenge my ghost with every breath I take
Annotation:
His “ghost” represents the person that he used to be before his life came crashing down. He used to be happy. He used to be kind. He feels that he owes it to the person that he used to be to avenge himself against whatever made him the way he is now.

Lyric: The damage you’ve inflicted, temporary wounds
Annotation:
I think “temporary wounds” mean self harm, specifically cutting. Whoever he’s singing about clearly affected him very much and may have caused him to lose himself and cut. Like in their song “Helena” “And like the blade you stain”

Lyric: And paint these walls in pitchfork red
Annotation:
Pitchfork red represents the devil, as the devil holds a pitchfork. Since the characters in the song are “painting the walls”, they are surrounding themeselves with bad, or “devilish” things and influences. They could be losing themselves in drugs, alchohol, or even self harm (red represents blood), it really depends on the interpertation.

Lyric: Just you and I, your starless eyes remain
Annotation:
“Starless eyes” means tearless eyes. Basically whoever he’s singing to has become apathetic to the world and their own problems. They’ve been through so much that that they just don’t care anymore.

Lyric: Hip-hip-hooray for me,
Annotation:
As a major theme of this song is revenge, the narrator is giving himself the honor of being  cheered for sweet revenge. “Hip hip hooray” is a direct play off the album’s title,  Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge.  Typically, when someone says ‘Three cheers,’ they are honoring someone, usually at a party or large gathering.  The rest of the crowd then exclaims, ‘Hip hip hooray!’ three times.

Lyric: Promise me that when I’ve gone, you’ll kill my enemies
Annotation:
The narrator pleads for his lover to destroy his demons.  His final wish is that the mistakes that would haunt him until death never haunt her again.

Lyric: From the razor to the rosary
Annotation:
The rosasary represents religion; an object that requires devotion and shows your dedication to your faith (as you have to repeat a load of prayers from memory). Comparing this religious devotion to razors suggests that he has become so obsessed with cutting that it’s become like religion to him.

Lyric: Do you remember that day when we met?
 You told me, “This gets harder,” well, it did
Annotation:
The protagonist reminisces an exchange he had with another individual in the past who warned them of tomorrow’s difficulties. This is likely an example of the protagonist having a one-way conversation with his lover, as she is out of reach to him.  He remembers her telling him that their love wouldn’t always be easy, but this isn’t at all what he expected. The protagonist’s relationship with his lover is like that of a chasm.  He feels as if she is right there with him the whole time to talk to, yet he can’t get to her.  It’s as if the bridge that once kept them together is broken, and he is left with a seemingly meaningless communication.

Lyric: If livin’ was the hardest part, we’ll then one day be together
Annotation:
Gerard himself states that while the album is a horror story, it more importantly discusses and expresses the struggles of loss, and life itself. These lines especially reflect this.  The character is expressing how he has almost given up.  He isn’t  quite there yet, but he is at the point where he is almost expecting it to happen. This is approximately the point in the song (and arguably, the entire album) where the protagonist begins experience legitimate depression.  At the start of the song, he expresses the agenda of bringing her back with him, but now, he is realizing even if he did save her, they will inevitably die and go to hell.     Depression These sorts of statements are very common among individuals who struggle with depression.   Depression is known for the persistent dejecting of hope itself among the illness' victims.    Ultimately, nothing is eternal, and nothing can stay young and beautiful. Things change, relationships end, and people die. The seasons ultimately change, and in the end, the leaves (just like people) fall.

Lyric: You talk to me
 But would you kill me in my sleep?
Annotation:
She talks to him, but it seems to be insincere. Their relationship as acquaintances or even more doesn’t mean much to her, and she would have no problem betraying him in the future if it ever came to that. However, she would mess with him in a sneaky way, to catch him off guard.

Lyric: For what you did to me or what I’ll do to you
Annotation:
This person’s actions have triggered the protagonist of the album to do something in return- he’s going to get revenge on them, and give them a taste of their own medicine.

Lyric: This hole you put me in wasn’t deep enough
 And I’m climbin’ out right now
Annotation:
The “hole” is the grave, but the protagonist is coming back from the dead, so it means that that hole wasn’t deep enough to stop him from climbing out and take his revenge.    The significance of this lies in the album’s context.  [Seen Here]. The concept for the record Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge, was the story of a man and a woman who are separated by death in a gunfight and he goes to hell only to realize by the devil telling him that she’s still alive. The devil says he can be with her again if he brings the devil the souls of a thousand evil men and the man agrees to do it, and so the devil hands him a gun. That was the idea behind the concept, the record ended up being much more about loss and real life than anything, so I would say it’s a good split.  –Gerard Way    The character knows the individuals that killed him are evil and he can kill them in order to pay back his debt.  He is allowing revenge to fuel his agenda to ultimately get back to his lover.

Lyric: You get what everyone else gets, you get a lifetime (Go)
Annotation:
Here Gerard Way references a quote by Death in the comic,  The Sandman: Brief Lives, by  Neil Gaiman (1994). You lived what anybody gets, Bernie. You got a lifetime. No more. No less.

