'Loose Strings' by Gavin Adcock – Lyrics & Meaning

We didn't know it then, but when 'Loose Strings' was released earlier this year, the tune would signal the beginning of an exciting new era for its singer, Gavin Adcock.

The conflicted ballad, so full of warring emotions, would be the first trickle of a floodgate of singles, an outpouring of rowdy and regretful anthems that would ultimately culminate in the release of Adcock's new studio album, Own Worst Enemy.

The album, which arrived on Aug. 15, is a 24-track collection of all that Adcock has become and all that he has learned on his meteoric rise to country stardom.

"Over the last 4 years I’ve spent my life writing, traveling, and trying to find time to breathe," the artist shared of the release in a post on social media. "It doesn’t always add up on paper like it would seem, but through the happiness, hard times and self destruction I’ve found the best part of my job is letting out music for my fans. I can’t thank y’all enough for sticking with me for this long. I’m the furthest thing from perfect and I don’t ever plan to be."

Here, we're diving into the song that initially kicked off this new chapter.

'Loose Strings' seems to be among the most subdued of Adcock's offering, his Own Worst Enemy mostly brimming with raucous country twangers. The cautionary song, however, is all pensive beats, acoustic riffs and the rising star's clear vocals.

It's a delicate number, one that perfectly mirrors the fragile relationship unveiled in between the tune's calculated rhythm and shimmering steel.

"Left your jacket in the backseat, that's why I'm calling you now
I found it tucked up in a ball when I was cleaning the odor out
Swing by the house anytime you want or I can drop it off"

'Loose Strings' is set in the midst of that age-old predicament of being heartbroken but still hanging on. Adcock, especially, has it bad.

The song begins with him calling up his ex. She's left an item of hers behind, giving him the perfect excuse to ring her up. The tune continues with him spilling his guts, rehashing everything that went wrong in the relationship he can't seem to shake.

The way they left things seems messy. As he describes it: "You know whiskey makes me honest, tequila makes you mean / Last thing I remember you were cussing, my keys were in the weeds."

The drunken fight sent him staggering home alone, left to deal with the pain of the breakup and the difficulty that comes with moving on.

"So I staggered home alone, still thinking about you
I'm through talking about all the things you can't change
It's hard moving on, I don't want you gone
Ain't it strange the way we keep trying to tie down this thing
With these loose strings"

Together, this couple has some unfinished business, their issues with one another having gone unresolved for so long. The difficulty comes with trying to put a bow on something when you're working with all these loose strings.

That's where they're are at, unwilling to make up and unable to move on because of certain hang-ups. According to the song, it's because they're both stubborn and want things to be a certain way – as Adcock sings: "Maybe if we weren't so hard headed, maybe we wouldn't fight ... You say you can't live with it, oh but you can't live without."

It's those things that keep him hesitant to make amends, but it's the love he feels for this person that keeps him coming back. He's too tied up in all their loose strings to be able to move forward and also keep him from looking back.

"We keep tying ourselves down with these loose strings"

Left your jacket in the backseat, that's why I'm calling you now
I found it tucked up in a ball when I was cleaning the odor out
Swing by the house anytime you want, oh I can drop it off

You know whiskey makes me honest, tequila makes you mean
Last thing I remember you were cussing, my keys were in the weeds
Threw them out to the love to see you leave
But I won't let you go, kill yourself or get busted by the po-po

So I staggered home alone, still thinking about you
I'm through talking about all the things you can't change
It's hard moving on, I don't want you gone
Ain't it strange the way we keep trying to tie down this thing
With these loose strings

Maybe if we weren't so hard headed, maybe we wouldn't fight
And if you weren't so damn pretty, I would've slept last night
You say you can't live with it, oh but you can't live without
It's the little things that I think about

When I staggered home alone, still thinking about you
I'm through talking about all the things you can't change
It's hard moving on, but I don't want you gone
Ain't it strange the way we keep trying to tie down this thing
With these loose strings

Ain't know what you're gonna be, babe
What you get is what you see, babe
We can try to lock it down, in my hole for now
But that ain't you and me, babe

We keep tying ourselves down with these loose strings
Every time I turn around, loose strings
You and us just tangled up in loose strings
Every time I think I love you, loose strings
Loose strings
Loose strings
Loose strings
Loose strings

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