Highlands’ song Lisbon is a moving depiction of love, time, and isolation in its lyrical poetry. The song captures moments of stillnessamidst a bustling city where people experience love, loss, and the devastations of time. Highlands uses simple yet powerful imagery to make these emotions real and recognizable.

The lyrics place the artist in Lisbon, overlooking the world from theroof. There’s wonder in how the city lights, the ocean air, and the people on the ground below create small meaningful stories. Highlands discusses couples falling in love and growing old, bringing out the beauty in the everyday moments. These are the touches that make the song sound intimate, like the listener is standing beside the artist, watching life unfold.

But as the song progresses, a subtext is created—loneliness. While some find love, others are left behind. The image of a man eating alone at a table, holding a photograph, is extremely moving. It is contrasted with the images of being together in the earlier part and leaves us with a reminder that love, as beautiful as it is, can lead to loneliness and loss too.

The chorus introduces a further level of emotion, considering time slipping away between fingers like summer days into the ocean. Highlands is considering what kind of heritage they are leaving, if traces in the sand are all that remain. The lyrics are subdued in sorrow, but also have a sense of optimism, as if love—no matter how fleeting—is still meaningful.

Overall, Lisbon is a sensitively composed song that both captures the happiness and sadness of love. Highlands’ lyrics are moving and touching, and they make the song intensely personal yet very universal at the same time.