Rat a Tat by Fall Out Boy Lyrics Meaning – Deciphering the Anarchistic Anthem
Lyrics
(Rat a tat tat Rat a tat tat hey)
No thesis existed for burning cities down at such a rampant rate
No graphics and no fucking PowerPoint presentation
So they just DIY’d that shit and built their own bombs
She’s his suicide blond, she’s never in gold
Are you ready for another bad poem?
One more off key anthem
Let your teeth sink in
Remember me as I was not as I am
And I said “I’ll check in tomorrow if I don’t wake up dead,”
I kept wishing she had blonde ambition and she’d let it go to my head
Rat a tat tat
Rat a tat tat tat hey
If my love is a weapon
There’s no second guessing when I say
Rat a tat tat
Rat a tat tat tat hey
If my heart is a grenade
You pull the pin and say
We’re all fighting growing old
We’re all fighting growing old
In the hopes
Of a few minutes more
To get on St. Peter’s list
But you need to lower your standards
‘Cause it’s never
Getting any better than this
We are professional ashes of roses
This kerosene’s live
You settled your score
This is where you come to beg, unborn and unshaven
Killing fields of fire to a congress of ravens
This is what we do, we nightmare you
I’m about to make the sweat roll backwards
And your heart beat in reverse
Our guts can’t be reworked
As alone as a little white church in the middle of the desert
Getting burned
But I’ll take your heart served up two ways
I sing a bitter song
I’m the lonelier version of you
I just don’t know where I went wrong
Rat a tat tat
Rat a tat tat tat hey
If my love is a weapon
There’s no second guessing when I say
Rat a tat tat
Rat a tat tat tat hey
If my heart is a grenade
You pull the pin and say
We’re all fighting growing old
We’re all fighting growing old
In the hopes
Of a few minutes more
To get on St. Peter’s list
But you need to lower your standards
‘Cause it’s never
Getting any better than this
(Rat a tat tat Rat a tat tat tat hey)
It’s never
Getting any better than this
(Rat a tat tat Rat a tat tat tat hey)
It’s never
Getting any better than this
(Rat a tat tat Rat a tat tat tat hey)
It’s never
Getting any better than this
(Rat a tat tat Rat a tat tat tat hey)
It’s never
Getting any better than this
She’s sick and she’s wrong
She’s young dirty blonde
And you sink inside her like a suicide bomb
He says “I’ve seen bigger”
She says “I’ve lit better”
And they throw the matches down into the glitter
Not a dry eye left in the house
Go boy, go boy, run for your life
Go boy, go boy, run for your life
Go boy, go boy, run for your life
We’re all fighting growing old
We’re all fighting growing old
In the hopes
Of a few minutes more
To get on St. Peter’s list
But you need to lower your standards
‘Cause it’s never
Getting any better than this
(Rat a tat tat Rat a tat tat tat hey)
It’s never
Getting any better than this
(Rat a tat tat Rat a tat tat tat hey)
It’s never
Getting any better than this
(Rat a tat tat Rat a tat tat tat hey)
It’s never
Getting any better than this
(Rat a tat tat Rat a tat tat tat hey)
It’s never
Getting any better than this
Are you ready for another bad poem?
At first listen, Fall Out Boy’s ‘Rat a Tat’ from their album ‘Save Rock and Roll’ might strike as a high-energy punk-pop track layered with rebellious undertones and bombastic riffs. But beneath the surface, this song, featuring the distinctive voice of Courtney Love, serves not just as a musical triumph but also as a complex narrative, brimming with allegories and raw emotion.
Analyzing ‘Rat a Tat’ requires peeling back the layers of its frenetic presentation to reveal the intricate motifs and messages. The track is a raucous journey through defiance, struggle against conformity, and the internal battles that accompany growth and change. Let’s dive into the rebel yell to decode the subtexts and unravel the messages intricately woven by the poetic pen of Pete Wentz.
The Anarchistic Call to Arms – A Dive into Discontent
The opening lines, devoid of ‘thesis,’ ‘graphics,’ and ‘PowerPoint presentation,’ reject traditional structures for conveying messages. Instead, the song champions a do-it-yourself attitude reminiscent of the punk ethos. The DIY culture not only elicits a sense of rebellion but is also reflective of society’s growing disillusionment with systemic failures.
This disillusionment is symbolized by the ‘suicide blond’ and her ‘blonde ambition,’ a reference that may evoke comparisons to historical figures known for their drastic actions. The female persona could be seen as both muse and destroyer – an agent of chaos that disrupts the status quo and incites the protagonist to embrace their destructive instincts.
Off-Key Anthems and the Battle Against Obscurity
‘One more off-key anthem’ hints at the struggle of self-expression against the backdrop of an ever-homogenizing culture. The ‘bad poem’ becomes a metaphor for raw, unfiltered truth, which may not always harmonize with mainstream tastes but resonates with authentic experience.
The anthem revolts against the fear of obscurity and the relentless march of time—’We’re all fighting growing old.’ The repeated call to get ‘on St. Peter’s list’ juxtaposes the desire for eternal recognition with the reality of our fleeting and often undistinguished place in history.
Unraveling the Song’s Hidden Meaning: Love as Warfare
Delve deeper, and you’ll find that ‘Rat a Tat’ positions love as both weapon and battleground. ‘If my love is a weapon, there’s no second guessing when I say’ underscores commitment as a double-edged sword—a means of connection that can also cause harm. Love, like a grenade, becomes a volatile promise of both creation and destruction.
Moreover, the interplay between love and violence reflects on the battles we fight internally and in relation to others. By personifying love as a weapon, the song suggests that our deepest passions and connections often come with collateral damage, or the potential thereof.
Memorable Lines: ‘This is What We Do, We Nightmare You’
The evocative assertion, ‘This is what we do, we nightmare you,’ strikes the chord of antagonism towards the establishment. Here, the song crafts a haunting image of rebellion, painting the artist and the youth as creators of nightmares for those in power. In this battle cry, we witness a call for uprising, symbolizing resistance against conformity and societal norms.
The lyrics depict a scenario where the disenfranchised find empowerment in becoming the fears of their oppressors. This narrative offers a sense of unity and purpose for those feeling marginalized and misunderstood by a system they view as adversarial.
Contemplating the Cathartic Crescendo of the Chorus
The chorus of ‘Rat a Tat’ reinforces the song’s mantra of combatting the inevitable—’We’re all fighting growing old.’ It’s an anthem for those recognizing that the prime of life is perhaps a fleeting moment, yet they continue to rage against the dying of the light.
Embracing the nihilistic notion that ‘it’s never getting any better than this,’ the song doesn’t just mourn the passage of time but celebrates the chaos of the present. This chorus isn’t a defeatist lament; it’s an existential challenge to squeeze meaning out of the now, despite the encroaching shadows of age and irrelevance.
