The Heartbreaking Meaning Behind Lizzy McAlpine’s Funeral Song “Doomsday”

In “Doomsday”, Lizzy McAlpine details a slow demise in real time. It’s a stirring and darkly clever take on romance and the kind of permanent destruction that happens when things irreversibly sour. All of which leads the singer-songwriter to plan her own funeral.

Funeral Plans

McAlpine’s bluesy dirge uses a death metaphor to describe the final moments of a crumbling relationship. In the opening verse, she wishes to postpone pulling the plug—an effort to have some say in how her life ends.

Pull the plug in September,
I don’t wanna die in June.
I’d like to start planning my funeral,
I’ve got work to do.

Pull the plug, make it painless,
I don’t want a violent end.
Don’t say that you’ll always love me,
’Cause you know I’d bleed myself dry for you,
Over and over again.

The end is near, but as she twists inside the chaos, her partner stares blankly, which makes the disorienting separation worse.

Doomsday is close at hand,
I’ll book the marching band.
To play as you speak.
I’ll feel like throwing up,
You’ll sit and stare,
Like a goddamn machine.
I’d like to plan out my part in this,
But you’re such a narcissist,
You’ll probably do it next week.
I don’t get a choice in the matter,
Why would I, it’s only the death of me.
Only the death of me.

Pull the Plug

The chorus ends in near silence as McAlpine speak-sings in a resigned voice. A faint kick drum is heard, like the small quivers of a heart giving up. She searches for light amid the darkness and for now, she’ll try to endure this withering romantic chapter.

Pull the plug, but be careful,
I don’t wanna die too soon.
I think there’s good in you somewhere,
I’ll hang on till the chaos is through.

Finally, when the end arrives, it occurs in silence. She says she feels freer under six feet of dirt than she’s felt in years. She would have married this person, but thankfully, didn’t.

Perhaps the only thing worse than dying is being forced to endure a living hell one can never escape.

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