"The Camper Velourium II: Backend of Forever"

Album Art by Bill Scoville.

**"The Camper Velourium II: Backend of Forever"** is a song by the American rock band Coheed and Cambria. It is the eighth track on their 2003 album *In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3*. It is the second song in the "Camper Velourium" suite of songs.

## Lyrics

**[Verse 1]**

Rocked silent in a soft lullaby

Panic stirred me, awakened by a ringing phone in time

Where and when would I see her?

Crazy were the words that scribbled out your mouth

I stuttered, replacing your face to those words

Where and when would I kill her?

I'll wish on this, I'll wish with this

I, I wish... to the bitter end of my day

Where were you?

**[Pre-Chorus]**

So you had your turn, and you made it work

Now I'm the laughing stock of your joke

Crazy as it may seem, I cried for you when you

Told me to date all of the things

That made you end up in my life

And I'll believe anything, I have no luck with girls

**[Chorus]**

I overheard that you were unhappy too

Misleading trust into a relationship that makes no sense

Over and out, Connecticut

But you had your back turned, there, as you faded away

At the end of my day I found out

You weren't worth what I thought of you

What I thought of you

**[Verse 2]**

Write this down in your diary you abuse

Can we make plans? Can I just get through to you?

Is this weird...

Do I scare her?

I'll wish on this, I'll wish with this

I, I wish...

That you could share the love you'd shared with others

With me...

**[Pre-Chorus]**

So, you had your turn, and you made it work

Now I'm the laughing stock of your joke

Crazy as it may seem, I cried for you when you

Told me to date all of the things

That made you end up in my life

And I'll believe anything, I have no luck with girls

**[Chorus]**

I overheard that you were unhappy too

Misleading trust into a relationship that makes no sense

Over and out, Connecticut

But you had your back turned, there, as you faded away

At the end of my day I found out

You weren't worth what I thought of you

What I thought of you

**[Outro]**

*(What I thought of you)*

This isn't love

So, forever let it go...

Forever let it burn

This isn't love

There on the backend of forever

I wish I would never

Hurt again...

*(I wish I would never hurt again)*

No...

*(I wish I would never hurt again)*

And I wish I would never hurt again

*(I wish I would never hurt again)*

*(I wish I would never hurt again)*

## Story Context

While the previous song gave us a general look at Al in the present, this song gives us a deeper dive into his past with Luci. We get the lines, "Rocked silent in a soft lullaby / Panic stirred me, awakened by a ringing phone in time / Where and when would I see her?" to start. This describes how Al was pretty happy with his life before Luci suddenly tells him their relationship is over. Now he is uneasy, and because he is obsessed with her and can't believe she would want things to end, he continues to think about seeing her. The following lines, "Crazy were the words that scribbled out your mouth / I stuttered, replacing your face to those words / Where and when would I kill her?" take place after he's broken into her home and hid in the closet while she showers, scaring her when she emerges by popping out of the hidden spot. She again confirms that they are over and kicks him in the crotch, which not only leaves him literally breathless, but completely changes his obsession of love to one of hate. "I'll wish on this, I'll wish with this / I, I'll wish to the bitter end of my day / Well... where were you?" closes the verse and drives home the obsession he feels.

The pre-chorus gives us a haunting, uneasy feeling with the lines, "So you had your turn, and you made it work / Now I'm the laughing stock of your joke" which show us how Al takes Luci's actions personally, so even things that aren't about him become a personal affront. The "turn" she took was shipping out on a different ship (*The Connecticut*) and Al, originally thinking it was a literally joke, now feels that it's meant to turn him into a joke. "As crazy as it may seem, I cried for you when you / Told me to date all of the things / That made you end up in my life / And I'll believe anything, I have no luck with girls" shows us that he now believes Luci is just trying to hurt him in a vindictive way; that all the things they've done together, all the time they were together, were some big joke or bet or happenstance and she really doesn't love him.

In the second verse, we get a look at how Al dealt with Luci's breakup immediately after. "Write this down in your diary you abuse / Can we make plans? Can I just get through to you? / Is this weird? / Do I scare her!?" He continues to pester her and stalk her. He thinks if he just keeps showing back up, one day she'll forget whatever it was that upset her, and take him back. Obviously, this behavior only further drives her away. We then get, "I'll wish on this, I'll wish with this / I, I'll wish / That you could share the love you shared with others / With me..." Luci has moved on, but Al continues to think only of her, obsessing over her. He sees her with others and his jealousy grows.

The outro shows Al's final conclusions which we had a preview of in the first verse. "What I thought of you / But this isn't love / So, forever let it go / Forever let it burn" marks the moment he decides he doesn't love Luci anymore, but completely hates her and wants to destroy her. In this instance, the line "There on the backend of forever" which is used in the title, refers to death. "Forever" may be something he told her (I'll be with you forever, I'll love you forever, and so forth), but now, it's a perversion of that concept. It's followed by "I wish I would never / Hurt again..." which drives home the point that he feels he can be "normal" again if he just kills Luci. (A concept revisited in the next chapter.)

## Trivia

* "The Camper Velourium" Suite of Songs has also be credited as "The Velourium Camper" in some instances.

## References

1. ↑ Coheed and Cambria. Booklet. *In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3*, Equal Vision Records, 2003.
2. ↑ https://genius.com/Coheed-and-cambria-the-camper-velourium-ii-backend-of-forever-lyrics