Some Nights!

            By now, I'm sure the majority of people have heard Fun's song Some Nights. I must say, I absolutely love this song; it's very catchy and the lyrics are easily understood. And, it's a pretty fun song to sing along to. Once I got the lyrics down to a point, I wondered what the story was behind the words, and why the music video was set back in the Civil War. After studying the video and the lyrics, I thought I'd try and figure out what the song meant.

"Some Nights"

Some nights, I stay up cashing in my bad luck
Some nights, I call it a draw
Some nights, I wish that my lips could build a castle
Some nights, I wish they'd just fall off

But I still wake up, I still see your ghost
Oh Lord, I'm still not sure what I stand for oh
What do I stand for? What do I stand for?
Most nights, I don't know anymore...
Oh whoa, oh whoa, oh whoa oh oh
Oh whoa, oh whoa, oh whoa oh oh

This is it, boys, this is war - what are we waiting for?
Why don't we break the rules already?
I was never one to believe the hype - save that for the black and white
I try twice as hard and I'm half as liked, but here they come again to jack my style

And that's alright; I found a martyr in my bed tonight
She stops my bones from wondering just who I am, who I am, who I am
Oh, who am I? mmm... mmm...

Well, some nights, I wish that this all would end
Cause I could use some friends for a change
And some nights, I'm scared you'll forget me again
Some nights, I always win, I always win...

But I still wake up, I still see your ghost
Oh Lord, I'm still not sure what I stand for, oh
What do I stand for? What do I stand for?
Most nights, I don't know... (come on)

So this is it? I sold my soul for this?
Washed my hands of that for this?
I miss my mom and dad for this?

(Come on)

No. When I see stars, when I see, when I see stars, that's all they are
When I hear songs, they sound like this one, so come on
Oh, come on. Oh, come on, OH COME ON!

Well, that is it guys, that is all - five minutes in and I'm bored again
Ten years of this, I'm not sure if anybody understands
This one is not for the folks at home; Sorry to leave, mom, I had to go
Who the f*ck wants to die alone all dried up in the desert sun?

My heart is breaking for my sister and the con that she call "love"
When I look into my nephew's eyes...
Man, you wouldn't believe the most amazing things that can come from...
Some terrible lies...ahhh...

Oh whoa, oh whoa, oh whoa, oh oh
Oh whoa, oh whoa, oh whoa, oh oh

The other night, you wouldn't believe the dream I just had about you and me
I called you up, but we'd both agree
It's for the best you didn't listen
It's for the best we get our distance... oh...
It's for the best you didn't listen
It's for the best we get our distance... oh...

            From the video, you can see that the main soldier has a relationship with some girl. One can take this song literally and think it's from the perspective of this soldier, and he's singing to his girlfriend back home as he's away at war. He's asking himself, who am I? What do I stand for? As if he's unsure as to why he's fighting, why he's risking his life when he could be safe at home with his girl. In the seventh stanza (not including the repeated chorus) he mentions selling his soul for fighting, leaving his family, wondering if it's all worth the trouble.

            This song could also be taken figuratively, and quite metaphorically. The soldier at war could be a metaphor for someone who's just looking for their place in life. They're "at war" with themselves and they're not sure what they were put on this earth to do. I think it's a metaphor for the band's lead singer, Nate Ruess, and his experiences with his music. In the first stanza, he sings "Some nights, I stay up cashing in my bad luck / Some nights, I call it a draw / Some nights, I wish that my lips could build a castle / Some nights, I wish they'd just fall off". I think he's referring to writing music, and how he's pushing boundaries and "cashing in his bad luck" when he's writing new songs. Sometimes he's confident with it -- Some nights, I wish that my lips could build a castle -- and sometimes he's not -- Some nights, I wish they'd just fall off --, but "he still wakes up", or he continues to write music no matter what.

            Later on, in the third stanza, it says "This is it, boys, this is war - what are we waiting for? / Why don't we break the rules already?" and I think Nate is talking to his fellow band members, kind of as a "pep talk" to get the band going. At the end of the third stanza, he says "I try twice as hard and I'm half as liked, but here they come again to jack my style", and I think that means even though the band's trying to make it big, they aren't as popular as they'd like to be. In my opinion, I'm surprised they weren't as widely heard of a while ago; at least their hits should have hit mainstream sooner than they did. The last little section about "jacking my style" might refer to other artists using some of their musical stylistic elements because, since Fun got so much hype for their music, others thought it would help their music, too, if they used the same thing. This ties in with the lines "No. When I see stars, when I see, when I see stars, that's all they are / When I hear songs, they sound like this one, so come on." saying the "stars" or other artists are just other artists like them, and that their songs all sound the same because they took the same elements from Fun's music: autotone would be an example.

            Some of the lyrics I'm not too sure about, like their reference to seeing a ghost or the "martyr in their bed", and I'm not saying my interpretation of the song is correct or even close; it can be taken different directions, this is just my opinion. The coolest thing for me is just the song itself, not necessarily the story behind it. 

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