Lorde - Ribs Lyrics Meaning

Lorde is describing her nostalgic disposition toward her childhood / early adolescence. Her voice becomes more exhausted and more frantic as the song progresses to embody her efforts to keep up with the pace at which life moves. She provides specific visuals tied to this era in her life: spilled drinks, the same song on repeat, and then her friends from her childhood. Lorde directly reminisces on this time of innocence through the lyrics, “you’re the only friend i need, sharing beds like little kids, laughing til our ribs get tough, that will never be enough”