you versus the sea

today's topic is the daphne loves derby song, you versus the sea. i've had it on repeat a lot these past few days for some reason.

i'll try to keep this one short, i promise, but proceed with caution. this song is emotionally heavy.

you versus the sea is part of a 3(i think)-song series in daphne loves derby's 2005 album, on the strength of all convinced. the lyrics can be a little vague at first, but the general story explores the singer revisiting memories of a past love. in my overall daphne loves derby post, i also described it as the story of "a lonely defender against great storms, in vain."

which is still rather true. the singer calls her the encyclopedia's example of bravery and strength, relying on no one and nothing else but "the cross around her neck" (religious beliefs in general, i'm guessing) for comfort. they're responsible for maintaining and holding the walls around their town, keeping them strong against great storms that threaten the lives of all. 

at some point, the singer tries to persuade them to leave, but they refuse. they plead with the singer to hold out for a little while longer, because everything will eventually work out. the singer doesn't understand, and from the way i read it, eventually leaves on their own. leaving the defender behind.

from time to time, they still think about her. was it hope that she had, to keep on fighting and living? was she even living, with so much of her existence consumed by the need to defend so often?

lately, the singer's been having dreams of her. along the shoreline, they find her standing in the sea. it's where she's been all this time, and after so long, the cold waters are warmer than her.

the singer tries to reach her, to help her out of the water, but with each step she retreats further into the waves. eventually, again, she's lost forever. the defender, alone and strong for so long, has lost. this sort of recontextualizes the singer's original musing about whether or not she had hope, because... what was she holding on to, for her to lose so soon? there's some guilt over how they didn't understand her, before they left i think.

when i first listened to this song, i thought of a common trope in youth media: the chosen one. if this were a novel with said trope, i'd imagine this defender was the only one who actually had the abilities to protect this town, despite being so young. naturally, she'd want to rely on other people, learn from them so she can protect the town and herself. but she can't. and there's the pressure of being the town savior, of needing to help everyone and not let anything bad happen. and no one can help her.

there's this sort of helplessness, or hopelessness about oneself that arises; as adults are some of the first people youth learn to trust and look up to, what happens when they can't help them at all? who can they trust, then? she turns to religion, and the singer at first, it seems. she has a connection with the singer, but no one else (at least, in the singer's memory). but how often is that enough, for a young person who's just learning how to navigate themselves in the world? 

there's also something to be said about the presence of home in this song. this town would be the defender's hometown, what should be comfortable and safe for them, but isn't.

... my favorite song by daphne loves derby is pollen and salt. but this one, based off of the impact that isolation has on people in their struggles, is very relatable to me. now that i'm busy with college stuff and i have you guys, i don't feel it as strongly, but it's still there. it's the sort of thing that lingers without much of a voice, making it hard to put into words. but this song does-- and that's why i love it so much.

if you haven't heard it before, you can do so here. i hope you like it. goodnight.

sotd: dirt doesn't travel by daphne loves derby