Released: 2018
The Chainsmokers’ track “Beach House” is an evocative narrative about an intense love affair, that’s liberally coated with hints of nostalgia, lust, and a hint of mystery. In its pulsing beats and candid lyrics, it encapsulates the delicate dance of surrender and yearning, set against the backdrop of a beach-side romance and underlaid by a sense of ephemeral transience.
When diving into the lyrics, the first verse of the song sets the scene with “Woke up on the West Side Listening to beach house, taking my time“. This signals not just geographic location, but also the languid, laid-back mood of the narrative. The verse surfaces the protagonist’s penchant for a certain type – a dark-haired beauty riding shotgun, who effortlessly drags him into a whirlwind romance.
The chorus is a fervent plea to the beloved, repeating the phrase, “Oh, darling of mine“. There’s a raw vulnerability in the admission of feeling alive when she is in his bed, coupled with an urgent plea not to let go. This woman clearly has a grip on his psyche, his physicality, and his heart.
“On a train through Japan” shifts the location and introduces an international element. With a “red pill in my hand”, the protagonist might be making a literature-culture reference to The Matrix, a choice between a stark reality (the red pill) and blissful ignorance (the blue pill). This girl is not all sunshine – she’s a “paranoid cutie with a dark past”, suggesting that their romance isn’t a straightforward, light-hearted affair.
We see echoes of a previous romance or perhaps a cycle in his relationships as he laments, “I’ve been here before. It’s a certain type of thing. She gets bored of everything. Not the type you can ignore.” This invokes the sense that this love feels painfully familiar, and he’s been here again and again, enamored by the allure of a woman who grows quickly restless.
The closing lines, “She’s taking what she wants. Baby, you can have it all“, speaks to the protagonist’s willingness to surrender everything for this love, despite knowing the possible consequences. They both impart a sense of resigned acceptance and a breathless anticipation of the inevitable.
Through “Beach House”, The Chainsmokers weave a narrative that’s equal parts true-to-life and dreamy, replete with evocative imagery, intense emotion and an undercurrent of fatalistic allure. This trip through romance, self-reflection, and heartache, is what makes this song stay with the listener long after the final notes have faded.
