Foster the People: Helena Beat Meaning
Song Released: 2011
Helena Beat Lyrics
Pulls you down before you know it, it's gone
And you're dead again
I've been places and I won't pretend
Yeah I'd make it out just to fall on my head
Wake up strange and take the walk downstairs
Hit...
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1TOP RATED
#1 top rated interpretation:The song "Helena Beat," is an autobiography on Mark Foster. The beginning of the song talks about how he struggled with the normal struggles that a drug-addict would have. He talks about how he would "hit the pawn up on the corner and pay for my rent." Talking about how he is selling his items because he most likely doesn't have a job because of his addiction. In the beginning of the song, he also says, "sometimes life, it takes you by the hair." Hinting at the way drugs very violently take over your life. He also talks about how he has nothing to live for by saying, "got nothing to lose." "Tie my hands up to a chair so I don't fall that way," That may be talking about side-effects of the drug, possibly becoming physically unstable. Then he mentions "taking a sip of something poison," the poison being the drug, but then he says "but I'll hold on tight." Showing that he is still holding on to life, realizing there might be something to live for. "By not getting out of bed and getting lost in your head," this is probably a stage where since you have not taken the drug, you are experiencing depression, and he is also physically suffering from going away from the drug, which is normal. Explaining why his "joints are all stuck." He is also trying to convince himself to take the drugs again by saying "it's not the only way," and " I never knew if I could convince myself to change. Then he takes the drugs again, but still remembers there is something to live for. He repeats the phrase many times " yeah yeah and I'm alright, I took a sip of something poison but I'll hold on tight. That resembles his victory over drugs because it goes from "yeah, yeah it's ok," to "yeah yeah and I'm alright."
Thanks for reading,
M.W. -
2TOP RATED
#2 top rated interpretation:It's about a youth with a life being rough, and wanting to commit suicide but still holding on. For example when it says "I tie my hands up to a chair so I don't fall that way" he is saying how he tried to hang himself, but he's tying his hands to a chair so he doesn't fall and break his neck. And when it says "I took a sip of something poison but I'll hold on tight" it's saying literally that he tried to poison himself didn't take a big enough dose to kill him because he still has hope in his life. It also plays into all the songs on the album which have a theme of someone with a troubled life holding on to hope.
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3TOP RATED
#3 top rated interpretation:When you're a kid, you can't wait to be grown up. As an adult, you appreciate how carefree being a kid actually was. This is a song about wishing you could relive your youth with everything you know now.
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This song is Foster’s rebellion against his own self-destructive behavior. He both renounces and praises his self-destructive traits, while also talking about his will to survive and his combat against the same issues.
This song deals with his lethargy, cutting, abuse, drug problems, mental instability, and mood problems.
An altogether emotional song, Foster does a wonderful job instilling his emotions in the listener, and makes an altogether beautiful musical composition. -
It's about Foster's ex girlfriend, Helena Reznor. She is a party girl and aspiring rapper. Evidently not very good at either.
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I think the interpretation is both one and two. He misses his youth/childhood and that probably depresses him to the point of suicide since you can't relive it (the Music Video is too fictional.) Anyways, I think these quotes stick out
"Yeah yeah and it's Ok
I tie my hands up to a chair so I don't fall that way
Yeah yeah and I'm alright
I took a sip of something poison but I'll hold on tight."
the attempt to commit suicide of course. However, he is afraid of it and he starts to "hold on tight" to life. I guess thats a childish characteristic he's living in: fear. Or maybe it's not suicide since kids like to do dangerous stuff.
"You play the game but you kind of cut
Cause you're coming down hard and your joints are all stuck"
He tries to relive it but bones can break down when you get older. I think he's a senior in his life so that could explain why the joints are all stuck
"hug the prison
I've been living in"
I think the prison is his fantasy of childhood. He's never going to let go of it since he cherish it. -
When your a kid, your "clean," thats why he turns back into a kid. The songs obviously about getting through a drug addiction. I dont know what drug, but when he turns back into a kid he's shaking his addiction to drugs. When he's an adult he's "on drugs" or "unclean." Thats what I think its about. Not "enjoying your youth."
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You people overthink things. This song is about getting over an addction, probably on drugs. "Slip and fall I'm dodging calls, hug the prison I've been living in" shows that he was stuck to being an addict and finally realised it and is trying to get over it. The lead singer and songwriter, Mark Foster, used to be a drug addict himself therefore it makes even more sense.
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I don't think it's about suicide because it says clearly in the chorus "Yeah, yeah it's ok" and if it's ok, why would you commit suicide? I think it's about life being rough but you're making it through. Like when it says, "I took a sip of something poison but I'll hold on tight" it's not literal, it's metaphoric. Like you aren't drinking poison, just something bad happened, say you lost a ton of money, but you'll hold on tight and make it through. And when it says "I tie my hands up to a chair so I don't fall that way" it's not about worrying about tipping over so you tie yourself to a chair, it's also metaphoric. It means you're trying to keep up with your life and stay financially or mentally stable. Lastly, when it says, "That I'd make it out just to fall on my head" they're not literally falling on their heads, they're making it out of a scenario out of their favor, or in a bad way. So therefore, I think this song is about when life gets rough and it's difficult, but it's ok because you're making it through.
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I interpret this song as being always addicted to something that you don't possess. For example, as a child you desire adulthood and as an adult, you comprehend your childhood and wish that you were again a child.
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I think for mark foster it's about drugs (because he had a drug problem before he the joining of the band) but it doesn't have to be about drugs it can be about any kind unhealthy routine that someone's stuck in and they know its unhealthy but they just can't seem to make the right choices and fix things, but they shouldn't give up i.e keep fighting until you can make things right for yourself again. 'i took a sip of something poison but i'll hold on tight'
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Helena Beat was written by Mark Foster about many young adults in LA, particularly a girlfriend he had. It talks about how young people aren't always responsible and party a lot. Their time a young people seems to fly by. They talk about how life "takes you by the hair pulls you down before you know where its gone and youre dead again." he continues to talk about how he barely makes it out of some situations to get into new ones. The person doesn't have money to pay for their rent so they have to go to the pawn shop. They "tie their hands up to a chair so they dont fall that way" And take a sip of something poison and hold on tight." So it's about young people who party to hard and et into bad situations. Their time seems to fly by and they are rapidly being forced to mature.
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Mark Foster lived with druggies during his youth, i would say this song is about the struggles he faced while period during his life when drugs where a heavy part.
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It's about drugs and death and trying to retain some type of optimism on this crazy place known as earth
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For several people, the weekly paycheck is 'take-home pay' because property is the sole place they can afford to choose it.
An advertising agency is 85 percent confusion and Fifteen percent commission. -
The song is about durg use and how it harms us. And the title comes from the singers, Mark Foster, ex-girlfriend, her name is Helena and she liked to party and drink alot
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Its about heroin, helena is slang for h. Coming down from a heroin high makes your joints feel all stuck.
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I think this video of this song means that the city has war, the younger people lived by themselves and they turned into that.
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