“I Love You Like an Alcoholic” by The Taxpayers is a powerful and lyrical love song that examines the complexities and intensity of romantic love. We’ll look at the strong metaphors and very visceral imagery (“compelling magnetized eyes,” “dangerous men” and “heart attacks”) utilized by the band in their songs to portray the narrator’s sentiments for their spouse in this article.

Setting the Scene

In the opening stanza, the narrator “some handsome dark stranger” and their lover first meet on a “heavy humid night” at the Park and Main crossroads. The narrator believes that their partner’s grin at first sight has the ability to alter the color of their veins. As their love for their partner grows into an all-consuming passion (“I absolutely knew I was six steps in when I fell into you”) the narrator’s bodily reaction sets the tone for the remainder of the song.

A Metaphorical Collection of What Love Means

One of the most notable lines in the song is when the narrator compares their love to an alcoholic’s craving for booze (“Like An Alcoholic”). The narrator’s love, according to this metaphor, is not just powerful but also potentially toxic. This concept is best expressed by the expression “I need you like a broken leg,” which compares the narrator’s love to a need that would be almost difficult to live without.

The song’s narrator compares their love to anything from a “statuette” to a “pack of dogs” throughout the song. These parallels emphasize the narrator’s emotional complexities, implying that their love is a complicated, nuanced experience rather than a simple sensation.

How Fate and Destiny Affect Love and Luck

The song’s narrator tells how a seemingly unconnected chain of circumstances led them and their spouse together, invoking thoughts of fate and destiny. The statement “You must have lost as you grew older” implies that the narrator’s spouse has experienced some form of loss or disappointment in the past and that their love helps them overcome it. The line “One final kiss” appears many times throughout the song, heightening the narrator’s feeling of urgency and emotional intensity. It implies that although the narrator is completely aware of their love’s intensity and depth, they are also conscious that it may not endure forever.

An album review from Dying Scene said: “I Love You Like An Alcoholic” is in the style of The Taxpayers’ folkier material, and is one of the strongest songs on the album, effectively slowing the pace for a little introspection. But to say one song is better than another is really a disservice to the consistently excellent songwriting displayed throughout God, Forgive These Bastards…, an album like this doesn’t have any bad songs.

The song “I Love You Like an Alcoholic” is intense and heartfelt, capturing the nuances and passion of love. Metaphors, allusions, and repetition effectively convey the narrator’s fury and sense of urgency. The song lyrics meaning shows how love can be both beautiful and toxic, and how it can virtually take over our bodies.

In a live performance the band said the song is “about a man named Henry Turner.” And while the whole band (Rob Taxpayer, Noah Taxpayer, Phil Gobstopper, Danielle Taxpayer, Kevin Taxpayer, Andrew Link, Alex Saxplayer) is credited with producing the song, Rob Taxyper allegedly may have written the lyrics.

Lyrics

Heavy humid night, corner of Park and Main
Cast that first glance: your smile, my veins
At maximum capacity, blood pumping so fast
My girl, if looks gave heart attacks
The dangerous men in the shadows were like an audience, and even the meanest among them had a special little shine in their eyes when they saw us walk by
Walked about twenty blocks talking about good bars and better towns than this one
Kissed that first night, and then the rain opened up the sky to get…

One last kiss
I love you like an alcoholic
One last kiss
I love you like a statuette
One last kiss
I need you like I need a broken leg

I was getting off the late shift
Attempting to recover
Crumpled up the bus pass
Tossed it into the gutter
Some handsome dark stranger
You were standing there on the corner
You had those compelling magnetized eyes you must have lost when you got older
Seven blocks in, my fingers brushed your hand
I blushed and you laughed, but you seemed a little sad
I ain’t one to jump a ship, but I absolutely knew
I was six steps in when I fell into you

One last kiss
I love you like a broken pot
One last kiss
I love you like a pack of dogs
One last kiss
I need you like I need a gaping head wound

One last kiss
I love you like an alcoholic
One last kiss
I love you like a negligee
One last kiss
I need you like I need a broken leg

Listeners that enjoy this song about Breakup, might also appreciate the song Every Morning by Sugar Ray.

Editor’s Note: This article was first published on February 1, 2023, and last updated on March 24, 2023.