Siste Kvartal

Song Meaning

The lyrics paint a stark picture of returning soldiers, "warriors from the stock exchange and cathedral," finding themselves back in Oslo after conflict. The initial scene is quiet, "empty streets, no cars, Oslo lies in peace," a stark contrast to the implied chaos they've left. Yet, this peace feels temporary, as the narrator notes, "They may have won the battle, but the war has just, just begun." This immediately sets up a tension between the end of one struggle and the looming continuation of another, perhaps a different kind of war. The core conflict emerges in the morning after, when the "warriors" recount their experiences. The mundane details of "who fucked whom" and the "fallen, including Nils" are juxtaposed with the almost absurd image of "the foss guys who puked after one and a half beers." This suggests a blurring of lines between the profound trauma of war and the often-petty dramas of civilian life, or perhaps the aftermath of their own "battle" – a night of heavy drinking. The chorus, with its "disco all night long" and "livin' tha life," feels like a desperate attempt to recapture a sense of control or normalcy, even as it hints at self-destructive behavior. The mention of "little carbon monoxide poisoning, but we gon' be alright" is particularly striking, suggesting a reckless disregard for safety, a byproduct of their wartime experiences or a coping mechanism. The "four bottles of Zalo" (dish soap) and "last call at the bar" further emphasize a chaotic, perhaps desperate, revelry, leading to the somber realization that "the stock exchange has closed down / This is the final quarter." This "final quarter" seems to represent a point of no return, a moment where the consequences of their actions, both in war and in their immediate aftermath, become undeniable. The lyrics suggest that while they may have survived the literal war, the true battle is now internal and societal, a struggle to reintegrate and find meaning. The closing lines, "Everything ends and everyone leaves / Nothing lasts forever, therefore this final play," underscore a profound sense of impermanence and the melancholy realization that even this chaotic, self-destructive present is fleeting.