Panic! At The Disco: Trade Mistakes Meaning
Trade Mistakes Lyrics
Gracing your skin with the side of my hand.
If I ever leave I could learn to miss you
With sentimental boy as my nom de plume.
Let me, save you, hold this rope.
I may never sleep tonight,
As long as...
-
1TOP RATED
#1 top rated interpretation:I also think it's about a boy who died talking about the girl he loved.
"Place in a smile at the perfect event"
This could be talking about his funeral.
"If I ever leave I could learn to miss you"
He didn't appreciate their relationship until it was too late and he died.
"Let me save you of this wrong."
He doesn't want her to die or be depressed by his death or memory. Maybe she considered committing suicide so she could be with him or she could be weighed down by the mistakes he made in their relationship or how unappreciative he was. He doesn't wan her to commit suicide. He wants her to forget about his mistake so she can move on with her life.
"I may never sleep tonight,
As long as you're still burning bright.
If I could trade mistakes for sheep,
Count me away before you sleep.
I'll stay awake 'till I trade my mistakes,
Or they fade away."
He won't rest (go to where he belongs after death, because currently, he's stuck on earth as a soul) until he makes sure she won't commit suicide for him, or until she forgets about his relationship mistakes. He wants her to let his mistakes fade away so she can move on and stop grieving.
"Deserted, my organs can go on without me.
You can't fly these wings.
You can't sleep in this box with me."
This further proves he is dead and doesn't want her dying too, to join him in "this box" (coffin) which is at the funeral mentioned in the first line of the song.
"Let me save you of this wrong"
Also supports how he doesn't want her to commit suicide or how he doesn't want her injured by his mistakes.
And finally, the bridge:
"So ,
Then I'll pull you in.
Cause I am an anchor, save her oar
Feel it sinking in.
Let me save you of this wrong
I am an anchor, sinking on."
Her memory of him is swaying her to commit suicide or her bad memories of him are preventing her from moving on (He's an anchor dragging her down and he wants her to be saved)
So, basically, a boy died and left his girl behind, who is haunted by his memory which is depressing her into suicide. He wants to save her from this so that they can both move on. -
Allow me to merge everyone's explanations together:
Basically, a boy committed suicide, and it harmed someone very close to him, probably his girlfriend, who is now thinking of following his example to be with him.
Line by Line:
"place in a smile at the perfect event"
The girl is faking a smile at the funeral, pretending she is alright enough not to do anything drastic
"gracing your skin with the side of my hand"
He is either remembering their relationship, or lamenting on how his spirit/ghost can touch her, but she cannot feel his attempt at comfort
"If I ever leave I could learn to miss you"
The boy states that if he left to the afterlife, he might be able to understand the intensity of sadness she is feeling
"But "Sentimental Boy" is my nom de plume"
But the boy realizes he's never been sentimental, only pretends to be - literally saying Sentimental Boy is his pen name
"Let me save you, hold this rope"
Other than the obvious, probably correct explanation, it COULD also be saying "hold" as in "hold off, don't" and "this rope" could be reffering to a rope he used to hang himself, telling her not to do the same. Double meaning?
"I may never sleep tonight,"
Boy: I may never be able to move on to the afterlife
"As long as you're still burning bright."
as long as the the girl still has feelings for him so "bright" that she could commit suicide out of pain for him OR as long as the girl is alive, because he feels personally responsible for her and cannot move on until he is SURE she died a natural death
"If I could trade mistakes for sheep,"
Double meaning: 1. A wistful beginning indicating a wish, with the allusion of sheep signifying innocence,so basically "I wish I could trade sins for innocence" 2. If sheep were the same as mistakes, basically the same as the literal meaning except when tied to the next line
"Count me away before you sleep."
The boy indicates he has made so many mistakes that he IS a mistake, or her having a relationship with him was, so he asks her to forget about him
"I'll stay awake till I trade my mistakes
So they fade away"
Boy: I will continue as a ghost until I find a way to fix my mistake of committing suicide
"I feel marooned in this body
Deserted, my organs can go on without me.
You can't fly these wings."
The boy could be saying that the girl won't become an angel/go to heaven if she commits suicide (Hamlet considered this problem too)
"You can't sleep in this box with me."
Reference to his coffin, basically just saying "don't do it"
"So, let me save you
hold this rope and ill pull you in
Cause I am an anchor
save her or Feel it sinking in"
The boy notices the two meanings to "anchor", which sinks in order to steady a ship, save it from going away with the metaphorical currents of life, OR if it is heavier than the boat, like on a lifeboat, would sink it. He states both options.
"Let me save you, hold this rope
I am an anchor, sinking her"
The boy comes to a conclusion that he only harms/sinks people, not helps ground them. -
I don't know why but it kind of relates to suicide to me.
"Let me save you, hold this rope."
I think it talks about a guy that dies and the girl is thinking about suicide to be with him.
The guy tries to "save her" so she can move on and not think about killing herself for him. -
The story of this song, I think, is about a guy that died. And his death is a tragic loss.
He is telling his girl(in her dream maybe) that he will not rest in peace until she tells the truth.....
And that truth is revealed if you watch the video of Ballad of MonaLisa -
i feel that his death is a metaphor for him leaving , because he feels hes pulling her down she deserves better ."you can't sleep in this box with me " saying your to good to be on my level.he wishes he could save her. "i am an anchor" he pulls and wears her down , but all he wants to do is help .
-
"If I could trade mistakes for sheep, Count me away before you sleep"
To me that sounds like he's telling you that he's a mistake, that if all mistakes were sheep, he would be one that you could count away and get rid of. So shortly, to me those lines mean: I'm a mistake. -
This song is a little like truth about heaven by armor for sleep. The lead is a ghost that just died and he's worried about i think a gf or someone very close to him. "Placing a smile at the perfect event, gracing your skin with the side of my hand" he is remembering what it was like being with her and how he loved seeing her smile and touching her (can't now cause hes a ghost). "If I ever leave..." He is saying that he could leave and go to heaven but he'd miss her so he want to make sure shes ok first. She might be contemplating suicide and he wants to save her which is a metaphor for grabbing a rope. "I may never sleep...." he is saying that he can't rest peacefully until that special person starts to move on with their life. He wants to trade his mistake (His death) so that his loved one can finally get to sleep and start the recovery process so the pain will fade away. "I fill the room in this body deserted my organs can go on without me. You can't fly these wings, you can't sleep in this box with me." Basically he is at his funeral and his loved one is thinking more about killing themself and joining him in the coffin (box) and in heaven (wings) but they are still alive so they can't join him. The loved one is about to commit suicide now "Don't let me save you..." this means don't let this be your way out grab back onto your life line (the rope)."Then I'll pull you in cause I am an anchor save her or feel it sinking in." Desperate to save her (we now find out said loved one is a girl) he says to basically forget about him or you'll sink with him (and kill herself)
-
I think this song is about the boy singing about a girl he loved. In the beginning, he's talking about the memories, then in the second verse saying she can't come in the box (coffin) with him or fly his wings (angel wings) with him. So he obviously had died. He regrets his mistakes and wishes she wouldn't look on the bad, but the good.
-
I think this song may be about a guy (singing) who has made a lot of mistakes but all in all loves this girl and wishes he could undo all his mistakes.
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