Most of the disc consists of grim songs that, while morally neutral, cast a depressing shadow. Whether it's a woman abandoning her dreams ("Cath..."), a futile pilgrimage to the site of a loved one's death ("Bixby Canyon Bridge") or a person trading in a queen-sized bed after giving up on ever having someone to share it with ("Your New Twin-Sized Bed"), it's one downer after another. On "You Can Do Better Than Me" a flirtatious man elects to stick with his partner simply because he knows he can't do any better. Elsewhere, a couple sips wine while watching a vineyard burn to the ground (the poetically fatalistic "Grapevine Fires"). Passing references to "lovers" suggest a loose sexual ethic ("I Will Possess Your Heart," "Long Division," "Pity and Fear").