About The Song

Time is Running Out - Muse

Depending on the person's perspective, "Time is Running Out" can be interpreted in several different ways. However, in order to truly appreciate the entire piece, it is important to understand the creator's true perspective. Understanding this allows us to empathize with the band, opening the door to a full musical experience. For the most part, it is obvious that this song is about some type of an obsession, whether it be material, television, drugs, money, sex, or anything other addiction. This is evident when looking at the first few lines:

"I think I'm drowning, asphyxiated. I want to break the spell that you've created. You're something beautiful, a contradiction. I want to play the game, I want the friction."

A better understanding of what this song is truly about can be discovered by simply taking a closer look at the rest of the songs on the Absolution album. Very similar to Linkin Park's "What I've Done", but released in 2003, Absolution is the concept of being forgiven for your sins. Sandwiched between the songs "Apocalypse Please" and "Sing for Absolution," "Time is Running Out" is clearly about the end of the world and literally, about how our "time is running out." To further emphasize this perspective, the last song on the album "Rule By Secrecy," is an allusion to Jim Marrs' "Ruled by Secrecy," a non-fiction book about the world being ruled by a secret shadow government. At first, this explanation may not be very obvious, but when looking back at the song with this in mind, certain aspects of the song make a lot more sense. The "It" they refer to several times in the chorus is the truth. "I won't let you murder it". To sum it up:

"How did it come to this?"

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