CHVRCHES is a Scottish music band whose music primarily features synth-pop, often paired with electronic pop, indie pop, and indie rock. Lauren Mayberry, Iain Cook & Martin Doherty are the official members of the trio, with Lauren being the lead vocalist and the other two alternating between the instruments. Created in 2011, the band has released one EP and four studio albums.
Every Eye Open is a 2015 synth-pop album by the Scottish band CHVRCHES, making it their second album. The album had 11 tracks, with the deluxe version including three additional songs. All the songs on the record, including Leave a Trace, were collectively written by the band members. Virgin EMI Records and Goodbye Records released this self-published album in September 2015.
Now let’s dive into Leave A Trace lyrics meaning:
What Does the Title mean?
Leave a Trace is a sarcastic jib at Lauren’s past boyfriend, with whom she had a mentally abusive and draining relationship. Through the lyrics, the singer calls out her ex for his unacceptable behavior & asks him to keep a trace of the man she once knew. Because he seems to be losing track of his old personality with his destructive behavior.
Through Leave a Trace, Lauren warns him not to lose his dignity and humanity and says goodbye by venting her anger and frustration. In addition to being a catchy pop number, the song is also an anthem for women about recognizing their self-worth and choosing themselves over a toxic relationship.
Verse 1 – What Does It Mean?
I gave up on time
Just like you said you would
There are tiny cracks of light underneath me
And you say I got it wrong
But I tried hard to uncover them
Understanding the Leave A Trace Lyrics Meaning the song starts with the singer addressing her ex-lover and telling him that she is giving up on their relationship. She is taunting him by saying she is doing the brave thing by giving up & is disappointed because he promised to do it but never delivered on his words.
The tiny cracks represent hope for a better future, and the singer views them as a welcome sign despite falling out of love in her relationship. Her boyfriend tries to convince her otherwise, stating that her opinion of him is inaccurate. However, she will not budge as she took her time uncovering his traits and has made her mind that she can’t stay in this suffocating relationship any longer.
Verse 2 – What Does It Mean?
I have somehow got
Away with everything
Anything you ever did was strictly by design
But you got it wrong
And I’ll go anywhere but there
In the following lines, the singer talks about how she got away from the relationship despite her ex’s best attempts to manipulate her to stay. In this verse, the singer’s sarcasm is evident where she explains the calculating tactics used by her past boyfriend to blindside her.
The subsequent line shows that every aspect of their relationship was a pre-planned move aimed at keeping her under his thumb. The singer implies that his actions had an ultimate motive and were never out of his love for her. She then explains that he was wrong if he ever believed she would fall for his cajoling and continue their imbalanced and manipulative relationship.
What Does Pre-Chorus Mean?
And you had best believe
That you cannot build what I don’t need
And I know I need to feel relief
And I know you’ll never fold
But I believe nothing that I’m told
And I know I need to feel relief
The pre-chorus talks about his arrogance and how the singer’s ex was overconfident and knew everything about her likes and preferences. Because of this egoistic nature, he never spent any time getting to know about what she wanted and learning her inputs in any matter.
The singer talks about how she needed to break this vicious cycle and experience the relief of freedom. She admits that she knew how his ego would never allow him to accept his mistakes or apologize for them. But she was smart enough not to fall for his gaslighting tactics. She knew that she deserved to break free from this unhealthy relationship and regain her independence.
What Does the Chorus Mean?
I know I need to feel released
Take care to tell it just as it was
Take care to tell on me for the cause
I know I need to feel released
Take care to bury all that you can
Take care to leave a trace of a man
Going through the chorus to learn the Leave A Trace Lyrics Meaning, we see the singer rejoice having gotten away from her ex and their traumatizing relationship. Knowing her ex and his habit of villainizing her, she asks him to be honest about their relationship and avoid his usual manipulative narratives. She, however, gives him the freedom to share the cause of their breakup.
She, however, gives him the freedom to share the cause of their breakup without any lies and deception. She then says goodbye to him by asking him to bury all parts of their relationship. In the end, she asks him to retain some trace of his old self that he seems to have along the way. She despises this newer version of him for his lack of courage and humility.
Verse 3 – What Does It Mean?
I will show restraint
Just like we said we should
You think I’ll apologize for things I left behind
But you got it wrong
And I’m as sane as I ever was
The song continues with the singer showing her maturity in her refrain from commenting about her relationship. It is a direct jab at her ex, who continues to paint himself as the victim, despite previously agreeing to be amicable, continues to be a hypocrite and a liar.
She then taunts her ex-boyfriend, saying that if he expects her to apologize, he has another thing coming. She is unapologetic about her decision to end the toxic relationship. The singer then expresses that she is as sane as she always was, signifying that she didn’t sustain any mental damage from the relationship.
Verse 4 – What Does It Mean?
You talk far too much
For someone so unkind
I will wipe the salt off of my skin
And I’ll admit that I got it wrong
And there is grey between the lines
The last verse further lists the unpleasant qualities of her past boyfriend, including his habit of talking too much. As per the singer, her ex hardly has anything pleasant to say, but that doesn’t stop him from running his mouth. The following line about wiping off the salt has two interpretations.
The first could mean that the singer has brushed off her tears, a synonym for salt, off her skin. It could mean she has burnished the hate & negativity he tried to feed during their relationship & continues to show her skin is healed despite him rubbing salt on her wounds. Lastly, she admits that she had some blame to share as well. According to the singer, the responsibility falls on both partners, as nothing is ever truly black or white.
Conclusion
“Leave a Trace” is the first promotional single from Chrvches’ second studio album titled Every Open Eye. The song depicts the story of one of the past relationships of the lead singer Lauren Mayberry. It is a catchy pop number that, according to the artist, is also the nastiest, snidest tune on the album, saying goodbye to her ex-lover in a highly sarcastic manner.
The song received a good reception from fans peaking at the seventh position on the US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs Chart. The song also landed on the 19th position on the US Alternative Airplay Chart and 86th position on the year-end US Hot Rock Songs Chart. The lyrical video for the song has close to 2 million views on YouTube.
The music video for Leave a Trace is complimentary in helping viewers understand the Leave A Trace Lyrics Meaning. The official music video has over 26 million views and sparked controversy with an internet forum, 4chan. Lauren rightfully defended herself against the sexist and misogynist comments on Twitter, where her bandmates came to her support.
