Fall Out Boy - This Aint A Scene, It’s An Arms Race
I am an arms dealer. Fitting you with weapons in the form of words And don't really care, which side wins As long as the room keeps singing That's just the business I'm in Peter Wentz is claiming that...
I am an arms dealer.
Fitting you with weapons in the form of words
And don't really care, which side wins
As long as the room keeps singing
That's just the business I'm in
Peter Wentz is claiming that he is an arms dealer! This is a very interesting move, seeing as being an arms dealer is actually frowned upon in the modern age – not necessarily in America of course, where as long as you have the necessary paperwork your free to sell guns. Nothing wrong with that of course because its America. But its all wrong for people from other nations to sell guns to other nations. However, Peter then claims that this is all a ruse – he is merely giving us weapons in the form of words. Which would surely then imply that he, and not our parents, was the person who taught us all to talk? A very unlikely scenario indeed, unless he is teaching us new words that have special effects when you utter them – which is all a bit Harry Potter for my liking. He doesn’t then care who wins (a true arms dealer), as long as everyone keeps “singing” (or if we’re continuing the metaphor, shooting each other up. Again, a true arms dealer). What a conscience that man must have (or lack thereof).
This ain't a scene, it’s a god damn arms race
This ain't a scene, it’s a god damn arms race
This ain't a scene, it’s a god damn arms race
I'm not a shoulder to cry on, but I digress
Peter then declares that this isn’t a scene, its an arms race – but hang on a minute here. What does Peter mean by “scene”?
- He may well mean a beautiful picturesque scene in the English countryside, something that a realist artist may well paint for one of their family birthday cards (My grandma does this. It doesn’t make her cheap, it just means that she’s spreading her talent).
- Peter could be referring to a scene from a book – whether this is as picturesque as a Jane Austen novel or a scene from an erotic novel is hard to tell, but either way – this isn’t it.
- It could be a scene from a film or a theatre production – I figure this again to be unlikely as I never really thought that the theatre was Peter Wentz’s sort of thing, whilst a film isn’t beyond the realms of possibility. It could imply that this song is not being used in a film, and really – quite rightly so.
- It could infer to a community of people linked by common interests. This could well be what Peter Wentz is referring to, as it seems far more likely that he is a community man than a man who is keen on his traditional English literature or realist artwork. Is Peter really a man of Claude Monet? I doubt it somewhat.
Meanwhile Peter then claims that he is not a shoulder to cry on – before then acknowledging that this is somewhere off the topic and that he should move on. I don’t think he should, as this is evidently something that he needs to confess to and I would far rather he had written about his personal relationship with someone and how it had come under strain than something about picturesque scenes from an English book and some guns.
I'm a leading man
And the lies I weave are oh so intricate, oh so intricate
I'm a leading man
And the lies I weave are oh so intricate, oh so intricate
Peter Wentz is a liar! We’ve been here before (Sugar, We’re Going Down Swinging) and it is clear that Peter carries on these themes between songs. There is little indication as to what these lies actually are (unless he is lying about the fact he is a leading man – and I for one would agree with this, because apart from a average emo-pop band who probably won’t have the lasting power of, say, Pink Floyd or The Beatles, he hasn’t really lead anything or anyone. He certainly isn’t my leader. No, that’s Morgan Freeman (or at a push Jim Trott)), but nevertheless they are most certainly intricate. Cleverly weaved one might say (though we have no idea what they are, nor does Peter seem to want to give us any clue, so we will never know if they really are oh so intricate).
I wrote the gospel of giving up
(You look pretty sinking)
But the real bombshells have already sunk
(Pre-Madonnas of the gutter)
At night we're painting your trash gold while you sleep
Crashing not like hips or cars
No, more like p-p-p-parties
Well it appears that Peter Wentz is not exactly one for sticking at it – he appears to have written the song about giving up. Which is ironic really as if he really was all about giving up then he would have never finished that particular song, but I digress. Peter then claims that the subject (who has not featured much) of the song looks pretty sinking – goodness knows what Peter is actually saying here. Is he saying that the subject is pretty when they are sinking, or that they make sinking look desirable? It is a most confusing line indeed. There are no further surprises allegedly, whilst at night Peter and friends partake in the quite frankly bizarre (yet seemingly generous) act of painting the subjects rubbish golden – is this in order to attempt to sell it on ebay? Is it a weird attempt to be spiteful and remind the subject of their sheer lack of gold?
Leave a comment