I really just get the feeling of leaving everything behind and starting anew. The whole "let the sun fade out and another one rise" line sets that thought in stone for me.
i thought i'll be gone was an advanced song after when they come for me.. since the track is same number 5 in the album..and the chester part in WTCFM is "When they come for me,i'll be gone"
Here's a conversation I was having in another thread about I'LL BE GONE. Jack was having a hard time figuring out the meaning of the words in the bridge...
I've always felt this song was the most straightforward on the album in terms of lyrics. My interpretation is basically that its about a soldier that is about to go to war and accepting that fate. "Like shining oil this night is dripping down, stars are slipping down, glistening. And I'm trying not to think what I'm leaving now, no deceiving now, it's time you let me know." Sounds to me like this is the soldier the last night before getting shipped off to wherever the war is. Night dripping/stars slipping are the image of the night sky moving very quickly, meaning the night seems to be going by too fast for the soldier's liking. Just taking it all in, trying not to get too caught up in leaving behind the life they had, but the soldier can't lie to him/herself anymore. Everything is going to change. "When the lights go out and we open our eyes, out there in the silence I'll be gone. Let the sun fade out and another one rise, climbing through tomorrow I'll be gone." The acceptance. By the time day breaks, the soldier will be on the way to war. And will be gone every day after that, which is a bit ominous. "The air between us is getting thinner now, into winter now, bittersweet. And 'cross (across?) that horizon, this sun is setting down, you're forgetting now, it's time you let me go." So the soldier has survived to the winter, which is bittersweet because, while alive, it means the soldier still has to be in a living hell and away from the people he cares about. As the days go by, the soldier feels paranoia; as if maybe a very special loved one is starting to move on, maybe it's becoming harder to keep a relationship going in such conditions. But maybe it's better that way. "And tell them I couldn't help myself, and tell them I was alone, Oh, tell me I am the only one, and there's nothing that can stop me." My personal favorite part of the song, this seems to be the point where something bad happens, perhaps the war takes a turn for the worse, and the soldier is now facing certain death. This seems to be his/her last words, as well as his/her last thoughts/feelings. The "tell thems" are what he/she wants people to tell his/her friends, peers, fellow soldiers, etc. The circumstances of the soldier's death, why the soldier had to do what he/she did, things like that. "Oh, tell me I am the only one, and there's nothing that can stop me" is like the last plea to whomever the special someone is. The soldier knows that he/she faces certain death, but as long as that one someone is with them emotionally and in spirit, the soldier will always have the courage to do what needs to be done. As for WTCFM/IBG, Mike confirmed that was coincidence, although I'm not sure how it could have been. Finding out what the connection between the two songs was was one of the things I was looking forward to most before LT came out.
I think its about moving on, new music new sound. Leaving the past behind, new journey going forward. That's what I think I'll Be Gone is about .
I'll be gone is a GOOD SONG! anyway if mike has a part or not! Mike hasn't a part in many songs like what i've done, numb, new devide, shadow of the day, and so on All are good songs. Again It'sa good song and i think one of the best of the album!
^If you're talking to me, I have no problem that Mike isn't on the track. It isn't about Mike at all, the song begins with a pretty boring guitar, I don't like the verses and the chorus is... okay. The breakdown is bad, and that's why I don't think it matches up with other LP songs...