‘In The Living Room’ by Maggie Rogers - Lyrics & Meaning

Arriving out of the blue in October 2024, the heartbroken, aching ‘In The Living Room’ serves as the first release from alt-leaning singer-songwriter, Maggie Rogers, since she dropped her widely lauded third studio album, Don't Forget Me, in April.

‘In The Living Room’ feels as though it's been cut from the same cloth as Don't Forget Me, with Rogers exploring the struggle of processing the pain of someone you love walking out of your life, while still wanting to hold onto the happy memories made with them. The uptempo track was accompanied by a sparse, minimalist set of visuals starring Maggie Rogers and Luke Isaac playing the ex-lovers.

Throughout ‘In The Living Room’, Maggie Rogers’ yearning vocals cut through a misty, hazy instrumental comprising atmospheric guitars and an emphatic drum pattern. The distinctive, distorted cry of the electric guitar that arrives partway through the hook seems to mirror the swelling angst and frustration that underpins Rogers’ delivery. It all combines to give ‘In The Living Room’ a decidedly nostalgic, autumnal ambience that brings the song's September-based narrative to life.

“You trace your steps back to the start
See the clock there slowing
The hindsight's been the hardest part
Hurts to see you glowing”

The themes of memories and the visceral feelings these can bring back to the surface pervade ‘In The Living Room’, which opens with the narrator reflecting on the tail-end of the relationship. With the benefit of hindsight, she can see when things started to slow down between them, and the impending break-up started to loom on the horizon. She suggests it's painful to see her ex so happy and ‘glowing’ now.

“'Cause I remember late September
Your silhouette on blue wallpaper
In the hallway
You drew the line and pulled me under
But do you ever stop to wonder
About me?”

Here the protagonist provides some details as to when the relationship reached its conclusion, which appears to have been in the Fall, before painting a vibrant picture of the moment her old flame told her it was over. She remembers him standing against blue wallpaper as he “drew the line” under their relationship, an experience she describes as ‘pulling her under’ and making her feel as though she was drowning.

“All of the things we pulled apart
I let it go, it doesn't matter
The seasons changed, it broke my hеart
But I will always remember you
Whеn we were dancing in the living room
Oh yeah”

These lines capture the bittersweet mood of ‘In The Living Room’, as the protagonist underlines that she's embraced the way things are now, which enables her to look back on their time together with fondness. She warmly recalls how they used to dance gleefully in the living room, and this level of specificity creates a sense of comfort and cosiness, contrasting with the isolation and coldness of the verses where the narrator is detailing how her partner let her down.

“I see it now who I was back then
So young and hungry
You loved me strong and you were my friend
When the world felt empty”

The song seems to follow the progression of the protagonist as they become more and more accepting of the break-up, evolving from the pain and anguish of the opening lines to this verse, which finds the narrator toasting the way in which her ex loved her.

“But I remember sentimental
Sleepless nights, I set the table
And just waited
All along, I would have given
Every song I've ever written
Just to spend all day with you”

Nonetheless, even though our protagonist has made peace with the breakdown of the relationship, here we get an indication as to some of the reasons things began to fall apart. She implies her old flame was somewhat unavailable, and often let her down when they'd made plans together, describing a lonely scene of her setting the dinner table and waiting to no avail. The narrator emphasises that, at that time, she'd have willingly given up all the successes she's gained through music and each of songs she's penned, in return for one whole day spent with her partner.

“But when you think of me completely
Hope it doesn't freak you out
And when you love somebody new
I hope you say it out loud”

The protagonist stresses that she wishes her ex nothing but happiness, and offers some gentle advice to be more vocal about being in love again, when he manages to find someone new. This again suggests he was closed-off when they were together. This again highlights the evolution of the narrator, compared to the opening lines, in which she laments how her ex looks as though he's ‘glowing’.

“So in love and high on our own fumes
Oh, that's how I will remember you
You”

We get a final dose of the contentment and euphoria that accompany the vignettes that Maggie Rogers constructs throughout ‘In The Living Room‘. She depicts their love as being as potent as a drug, with both lovers getting “high on our own fumes”. The narrator concludes that she wants to remember him in this rose-tinted way, rather than associating his memory with the distress and agony of the break-up.

Taking to socials on the track's release date, Maggie Rogers revealed she penned it following her third record, “This song was written shortly after [Don't Forget Me] in march 2023, and much like the album it’s a song about memory, about the people that haunt us, and the stories we tell ourselves as we create new realities”.

The ‘If Now Was Then’ singer-songwriter expanded by expressing her gratitude to her team, “A massive thank you to the many wonderful collaborators that made this song + video possible. this video is, in many ways, the most raw and vulnerable i’ve been on screen and i’m so grateful to grant and the entire crew for holding that space”.

Maggie Rogers concluded with a tongue-in-cheek message directed at her fans, “for the love of all creative people, please watch it on a laptop or a tv and turn it loud”.

In a separate statement, Rogers explained, “‘I wrote ‘In The Living Room’ in March 2023, a few months after writing Don’t Forget Me. My co-writer/co-producer, Ian Fitchuk, and I were back in the studio and decided to try for one more song. Like so much of the album, it’s a song about the beauty and pain of memory, and the way that interweaves with reality when you’re processing the exit of a person in your life. Ultimately, Don’t Forget Me as an album is about how we remember people, and the stories we tell ourselves in the process of creating new realities”.

“You trace your steps back to the start
See the clock there slowing
The hindsight's been the hardest part
Hurts to see you glowing

-

'Cause I remember late September
Your silhouette on blue wallpaper
In the hallway
You drew the line and pulled me under
But do you ever stop to wonder
About me?

-

All of the things we pulled apart
I let it go, it doesn't matter
The seasons changed, it broke my hеart
But I will always remember you
Whеn we were dancing in the living room
Oh yeah

-

I see it now who I was back then
So young and hungry
You loved me strong and you were my friend
When the world felt empty

-

But I remember sentimental
Sleepless nights, I set the table
And just waited
All along, I would have given
Every song I've ever written
Just to spend all day with you

-

All of the things we pulled apart
I let it go, it doesn't matter
The seasons changed, it broke my heart
But I will always remember you
When we were dancing in the living room
Oh, I will always remember you
When we were dancing in the living room
Ooh

-

But when you think of me completely
Hope it doesn't freak you out
And when you love somebody new
I hope you say it out loud

-

All of the things we pulled apart
I let it go, it doesn't matter
The seasons changed, it broke my heart
But I will always remember you
When we were dancing in the living room
But I will always remember you
When we were dancing in the living room
Oh, I will remember you

-

So in love and high on our own fumes
Oh, that's how I will remember you
You”

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