Why “Time is All Around” by Regina Spektor is a Spirit Box Radio Song
Hello and welcome to my ramble. Lyrics in bold italics. Contains spoilers for pretty much most of Spirit Box radio, so maybe listen to that before u read this. Im not sure why you would be reading this if u havent listened.
Anyway this song has been giving me sbr and i cant Not think about sam enfield every time it pops up
link for the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNEAwQUnMeg
You step on all my parts And then you walk right out the door
Marie abusing Sam his whole fucking life, thinking of him as a means (The Heir Apparent) rather than as a child/human with needs, only to abandon him. She knew she was going to be murdered by the Sins and she decided to leave Sam post it notes telling him what a chair is.
And I know that your Love ain't never Comin' back no more
Madame Marie is dead lol. Good fucking riddance.
Time is all around Except inside my clock
Time as a metaphor for arcane energy, season 1 part 1 Sam feels that everyone has arcane ability except for him
Everybody's Waiting for their Lover to unlock
Leaves become most beautiful when they're about to die When they're about to fall from trees When they're about to dry Up
Oliver Boleyn, love interest since episode 12. That guy that Sam has spent many many minutes gushing over.........Is literally suspended at the moment of death.
In this song, Oliver is a leaf. Which is funny. Because he’s a florist. And a Hedge Witch
Time is all around Time is all a... round
The Arcane, These bitches everywhere. Specifically, once again with time as a metaphor for the arcane, this idea that Scourge (and i guess now strife and scarcity too) is Everywhere, all at once
I hallucinate A cat between my feet
We are aware that Sam sometimes deals with really fucking weird arcane shit, and a lot of the time it must be pretty difficult to assume it’s real but also: Sam Enfield and Cats <3.
Also, the fact that Revel and the gang are now Sam’s major arcana. Sam doesn’t just have cats, he has magic cats.
I'm stepping lightly so as not to Hurt It
Yes, this is in reference to the cat hallucination but also! I feel like it represents Sam really well in the earlier seasons. They are trying so desperately to control their powers and not hurt anyone. Interestingly there are more and more moments as we get into season2part2 that Sam uses his powers with what seems like less moral quandary (such as with Oliver)
Everybody wants To say that you have changed Of course you've changed, you've changed, you've changed Your mind's been rearranged
This is relevant on so many levels.
Firstly, regarding Anna and Kitty’s view of Sam. They’ve watched their brother be in a coma for fucking ages, and all of a sudden, his life gets turned upside down. They watch him realise that Marie was abusive, realise she’s DEAD, realise he’s got some Grand God Awful Destiny and also that he’s super fucking powerful. And all of this happens in a short space of time.
The last line, your mind’s been rearranged, speaks for all of that new knowledge that Sam is dealing with. I think its particularly poignant in sbr2.23 Wedlock, where there is a point that Sam can see all of the world’s arcane energy. The show describes The Arcane as so grand and unknowable, and to be able to see the threads of it must be incredibly taxing on the brain. I think that there’s a reason that the only other people who can do that sort of thing are the Major Arcana, who literally are not people anymore/have made deals to become incredibly, excessively powerful. Whilst Sam has got some fancy blood rose heritage, he’s still (at least in my opinion) human.
But leaves become most beautiful when they're about to die When they're about to fall from trees When they're about to dry Up Leaves become most beautiful when they're about to die When they're about to fall from trees When they're about to dry Up
Once again! Oliver Boleyn! The Gang are gay! Gay people! Its Pride Month (at the time of writing)!
But also, maybe something about the fact that Sam refuses to take Oliver’s deal because, if he did, they would have the choice between prolonging his torture/existence that Oliver clearly wants to end, OR knowingly and willingly killing his boyfriend.
Why am I supposed to love if I don't want to love? Why am I supposed to I'm so tired Why am I supposed to love if I don't want to? I don't want I don't want to I don't want
This bit is three things. The first is a commentary on Sam’s powers. Their powers literally force people to do and say things that they otherwise wouldn’t.
The second is the fact that Sam doesn’t want this fucked up destiny he’s been landed with. There are so many points where they convey that this isn’t what they wanted. There are so many people(?)/arcane beings trying to control what Sam is doing, even if its for the best. At the beginning of the show, you had Anna trying to convince him to stop hosting. Scourge, of course, has been fucking shit up since day 1, and his agenda seems to be the most on display of everyone; they’re very clear that there is a timeline that Sam needs to follow to reach whatever goal is planned.
Thirdly, its stated a few times that Oliver was basically set up to be Sam’s love interest, primarily so that Sam would take his deal. I don’t think this means that Sam loves him any less, but I think that Sam has spent a lot of his life not Actually being in control of what’s happening, and to find out that this random guy that u hate set u and ur boyfriend for an elaborate scheme,,,,well that must be weird.
When they're about to dry Up
Lastly, this bit as a metaphor for Sam’s “goodness”. We keep seeing Sam make decisions that season1 Sam absolutely would not make. I personally don’t think we’re gonna get a Full corruption arc but like, Sam is certainly changing because of the power. As scourge states in 2.18, scourge hadn’t been seen because everything was going to plan. And although Sam taking the sins deals wasn’t part of the plan, its still indicative of them gaining more and more power and influence
