Lyrics Page
The Valley Of The Shadow Of Planned Obsolescence
5 views
Nov 4, 2026 updated
Departures album
Verified editorial review
Song Meaning
Jon Foreman starts with a gadget dropped for a newer model and lets the sad joke grow: “Planned obsolescence works too well,” and the refrain “Feeling disposable and old” lands as the feeling of a person, not a product. The verses stack up dated references, a top-eight friends list, likes and followers, favorite CDs sitting in thrift-store hands, to show how quickly the things people prize turn into relics.
Beneath the humor the questions turn serious. What happens when the colors leave our eyes, when the platform dies, when the final chorus ends? The answer he keeps returning to is simple: “I want to be with you, just holding hands.” The title borrows from Psalm 23:4, and the line “Everything dies, just as sure as the sun will rise” sets mortality beside the sunrise as the one certainty, close to James's picture of life as a mist that appears for a little while.
A late verse wonders whether people could make amends if they dropped their pride and finally saw the light, and the closing lines call the rest “just pretend” and “make believe.” Rather than ruling on technology, the song ends on a wish to hold a hand instead of a trend, trading passing relevance for lasting presence.
Lyrics Verified by Editorial Team
What did you do
With the old one you used to use?
I remember when you two were simply inseparable
Now she seems only disposable and old
Without a call, bound to fall
She was just a model after all
In a line of lonely models
Built to sell
Planned obsolescence works too well
Feeling disposable and old
So what will we do when the colors leave our eyes?
On the day our ashes rise
Will we still be friends?
And how will we know when the final chorus dies?
On the day my spirit flies
I want to be with you
Just holding hands
Remember my space with my top eight so-called "friends"
Now justin timberlake is apparently involved
But I haven't been there for a while
Feeling disposable and old
Back in the day
Following and likes meant other things
And pretty soon another made up world's gonna start
But I think I just rather play the guitar
Feeling disposable and old
What do we do with the things we used to prize?
When my favorite CD's lie in the good will's hands?
How will we know that the world will be just fine
Even if the platform dies
I want to be with you
Just holding hands
Everything dies
Just as sure as the sun will rise
We live in the valley of the shadow of that death
Breathing breath in after breath
Feeling disposable and old
But here's a fact, yes
The Internet's just a fad
I only give it a couple more thousand years or so
Until we surrender the illusions of disposable and old
What would we do if we finally saw the light?
If we dropped this accursed pride could we make amends?
How will we know when it's time to call it time?
On the day my heart beat dies
I want to be with you
The rest is just pretend
Just make believe
I don't want to hold a trend
I want to hold your hands