I am trying to remember one-hit wonders, hymns
-- The speaker (Line 3)

Importance: This line uses juxtaposition to highlight the breadth of human experience. The words of “one-hit wonders” and “hymns” are contrasted in metric quality, as well as in connotation. One-hit wonders are a secular part of modern culture, and are by their nature ephemeral. Hymns, by contrast, are sacred and part of an eternal tradition. This also alludes to the poet’s upbringing and religious influences.

echoes of these old songs / and my ghosted lovers
-- The speaker (Lines 7-8)

Importance: This line, opening the second stanza, introduces the idea that music and love are being correlated. The speaker uses “ghosted” as either an adjective or a verb, rather than its noun form, which heightens the parallel with “echoes”. In contemporary vernacular, “ghosted” can also mean one who has been left behind without warning.

It seemed incredible then
-- The speaker (Line 16)

Importance: This initially ambiguous line refers to both music and love in...