title and registration- death cab for cutie

The glove compartment is innacurately named
and everybody knows it
so im proposing a swift orderly change

cause behind its doors
there's nothing to keep my fingers warm
and all i find are souvenirs from better times
before the gleam of your taillights fading east
to find yourself a better life

I was searching for some legal document
as the rain beat down on the hood
when i stumbled upon pictures i try to forget
and thats how this idea was drilled into my head
cause its too importan to stay the way its been

Theres no blame for how our love did slowly fade
and now that its gone, its like it wasnt there at all
and here i rest where disappointment and regret collide
lying awake at night

Theres no blame for how our love did slowly fade
and now that its gone, its like it wasn't there at all
and here I rest where disappointment and regret collide
lying awake at night
when I'm lying awake at night


This song could be interpreted in a lot of different ways, straight forward or metaphorically. The way I look at it is him relating a glove compartment to his life. He feels as though his life has been messed up. He was looking for something in his glove compartment, like his title and registration, and he came upon something that was in there that reminded him of his past love which he was trying to forget. The taillights fading east are from his past lover leaving to find a better life. Now the memories that were kept in the glove compartment are stuck in his head.