Musical Wednesdays: "Blood Bank" and the Iceberg Theory

I was recently reading about Hemingway's "Iceberg Theory," which is about subtext, as exemplified by "Hills Like White Elephants," which never uses the word "abortion" but leaves very little question, at least in my mind, that it's the subject of the story. Here's the exact quote:

"If a writer of a prose knows enough about what he is writing about he may omit things that he knows and the reader, if the writer is writing truly enough, will have a feeling of those things as strongly as though the writer had stated them. The dignity of movement of the iceberg is due to only one-eighth of it being above water. The writer who omits things because he does not know them only makes hollow places in his writing."

What does this have to do with music? Well, the other night, I was driving home and Bon Iver's Blood Bank came on the radio. I'd heard the song before, but always as sound in the background and never for what it was saying. But I realized, listening to it alone, that it makes use of the iceberg--under the surface, there is an entire story, a secret. It mentions that there is something kept from the audience, but never what it is. I don't know if it's a true example of the Iceberg Theory, because it's not completely obvious (to me at least) what the subject is. But it is a beautiful song.

I met you at the blood bank
We were looking at the bags
Wondering if any of the colors
Matched any of the names we knew on the tags

And you said, "See, look that's yours,
stacked on top of your brother's.
See how they resemble one another,
Even in their plastic little covers."

And I said, "I know it well."

It's that secret that you know
But you don't know how to tell,
And it fucks with your honor,
And it teases your head
But you know that it's good, girl
'Cause it's running you red

Then the snow started falling
We were stuck out in your car
You were rubbing both my hands
Chewing on a candy bar

And you said, "Ain't this just like the present
To be showing up like this?
As a moon waned to crescent,
We started to kiss.

As I'm typing this out, I'm thinking of the Iceberg Theory (I hadn't thought about the fact that the song talks about being stuck in the snow) and I think I understand what the song is about, or at least what I interpret it to be about. I think she's pregnant, unexpectedly, and they're trying to figure out their next step, sharing the news--"fucks with your honor" reminds me of "ruining your reputation." I like the image of being at the blood bank to donate blood and finding out you're pregnant. But that's my interpretation.

Let me know what you think if you've heard it, and if you haven't, go listen to this song. It's fantastic and haunting.