Song Meanings: The Mountain Goats "No Children"

The Mountain Goats "No Children"

I hope that our few remaining friends
Give up on trying to save us
I hope we come out with a fail-safe plot
To piss off the dumb few that forgave us

I hope the fences we mended
Fall down beneath their own weight
And I hope we hang on past the last exit
I hope it's already too late

And I hope the junkyard a few blocks from here
Someday burns down
And I hope the rising black smoke carries me far away
And I never come back to this town again in my life

I hope I lie
And tell everyone you were a good wife
And I hope you die
I hope we both die

I hope I cut myself shaving tomorrow
I hope it bleeds all day long
Our friends say it's darkest before the sun rises
We're pretty sure they're all wrong

I hope it stays dark forever
I hope the worst isn't over
And I hope you blink before I do
And I hope I never get sober

And I hope when you think of me years down the line
You can't find one good thing to say
And I'd hope that if I found the strength to walk out
You'd stay the hell out of my way

I am drowning
There is no sign of land
You are coming down with me
Hand in unlovable hand

And I hope you die
I hope we both die

This song accomplished the rare feat of being a celebration of depression. It also expressed an ever-changing stream of conflicting desires, subtly capturing the fatality of indecision.

In the first two stanzas, "I hope we are doomed."
In the third stanza, "I hope to escape."
In the fourth stanza, "I hope no one else gets involved."
In the fifth and sixth stanzas, "I hope this suffering continues."
In the seventh stanza, "I hope we move on."
In the last stanza, "I hope this ends soon."

Tell me that this couple met in AA, and I would 100% believe it! It is easy to imagine them being in a broken, desperate state when they met, falling in love and building a renewed positive outlook on the future. Each thinking that the other was the missing piece in their life. Their short courtship was spent on Cloud 9, leading to a brief engagement and joyous nuptials. 

But that ever after lasted longer than their happiness, and those old habits creep back into their lives, leading to an unhappy situation magnified by the power of two.