"Maps" in Song

A couple of years ago, a friend and I were playing Rock Band (or Guitar Hero, one of those) and he told me, "You have to hear this song. You'll love it." He was right. The song is "Maps" by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and it's oddly melancholy and beautiful, predominated by a rather sad chorus sung over arching instrumentals. In the video, the vocalist even begins to cry, then sings the chorus, which is:


Wait, they don't love you like I love you
Wait, they don't love you like I love you
Maps, wait!
They don't love you like I love you...


I've never found out just what the lyrics indicate, but it left me with the impression of someone leaving, packing bags and consulting maps, just as she is able to tell him how she feels-- perhaps too late.

Above is the song, via youtube.


As much as I love the song as it was intended, as a sad love song, I found that the meaning began to change for me the more that I studied GIS and became a complete map nerd.  Suddenly I was hearing the chorus differently, as if it were the maps that they didn't love as much as I did.  I would find myself working on a map late at night and humming to myself, "Maps wait!  They don't love you like I love you!"  (It is currently on my shortlist of songs to learn to play on accordion. If anyone has the sheet music, please let me know.)


Below is perhaps the craziest cover I have yet found of "Maps".  It is performed acapella by one man who sings the drum, guitar, lead vocal, and backings.  If you can make it through the clip, you will be impressed.  Enjoy.