Album Review of Empty days and Sleepless Nights

Album Review

Defeaters Empty Days and Sleepless Nights

          Many are drawn to the idea of using an album to tell a story. Instead of releasing a collection of different themed songs as an album, metal, hardcore, and even punk bands have recently taken to creating ‘Concept’ albums, which focus on one theme throughout. In the realm of concept albums, the theme or story is either extremely well executed, or ends up boring and limiting to the band’s songwriting ability. One of the most complete, thought-out efforts is Empty Days and Sleepless Nights by Boston based hardcore act Defeater.

            Empty days and Sleepless Nights is the latest installment of Defeaters storytelling. This album follows their debut, Travels, which followed the life of a broken family, post World War II.  In Travels, the band introduces a brother who has killed his father and left his older brother and mother to deal with the aftermath.  Through the eyes of the older brother, the aftermath is what this album focuses on. The different struggles endured by the family are laid out in each song. His rage towards his often-called ‘coward’ brother, his mother’s drug addiction, and his recent wife’s death are explained through the first 9 songs. In the tenth and final song of the story, the younger, murderer brother returns home for a climax to remember.

            From the first few seconds of opening track “Warm Blood Rush”, it is easy to identify the hardcore-punk style that Defeater plays. Derek Archambault delivers a typical hardcore scream, which is more like a harsh yell. The opening song is marked by Archambault repeating furiously, “I ain’t no forgiver, forgetter” as the song picks up the story from Travels with no confusion to who the new speaker is. The song describes the older brothers thirst for revenge and his refusal to forgive his coward brother. The line, “those same rail ties where you dodged those trains. When we were just two kids” holds an important scene, the train tracks return later in the story.
          The second and third tracks, "Dear Father" and "Waves Crash, Clouds Roll" continue the story with trashy instrumentation, fast drum fills, and emotional vocals. "Dear Father" is the only single on the album, mainly because it's the only song that contains a chorus/verse structure. The song basically continues "Warm Blood Rush" with the older brother swearing revenge. Track three describes the older brothers hardships at home with his mother. His mothers life is seemingly in ruins following her husbands death, "her weak will, the addiction, the needle" shows the sons pity for his mother, but also his resentment towards her weakness.
         Next, the older brother meets his wife. He has started to drink on a regular basis at a place called "The Copper Coin" and it is here he meets his future wife. The straight-forward lyrics describe the situation, " An empty or a half full glass, it all goes down the same. And that's the way that it's been, years later she took your name". However, the marriage does not fill him with the hapiness it should in "No Kind of Home", track 5. The song describes the fighting that goes on in the house and his increasing visits to The Copper Coin.
         Track 6, "White Knuckles", is a turning point in the album. Foreshadowed earlier by his fathers debt problem that he died with, this song describes a bookie hunting down the brother at The Copper Coin. The druken brother narrates the confrontation, "Take one more look at her, and it will be the end of your days. You low-life bookie, you don't scare me. I ain't settling no debt, I ain't saving no face". A fight breakes out and the brother stays at the bar extra late. When he returns home, he finds his wife murdered.  Drowned in remorse, he is about to give up on life. Track 7 is "Cemetary Walls" which tells about the brothers daily visits to his wifes grave.  He would drink, then go to the grave and talk to her.
        The following two tracks, "Quiet the Longing" and "At Peace", deal with the mother again. "Quiet the Longing" is a song describing the brother giving into his mothers demand for drugs for the sake of her being quiet. In "At peace", the brother wakes to find his mother dead, "needle in her arm". The final words to this song transition to the final track, "So you sit in that chair, waiting for death, barrel to your head".
        The last song is called "White Oak Doors". The song is a suspensful end to a well-crafted story. It begins with the older brother hearing a knock at his door and opening it to find his younger brother for the first time since the murder. Overcome with fury and revenge, the older brother recits, "Your addict mother is dead, all thanks to you. Her addiction got worse after you left you damn fool. What you did to our father, I promised you'd pay up. I'm going to take your life, but it don't feel like enough". The older brother then proceeds to stick "a gun in his back" and lead him down to the same train tracks that they played on when they were kids. The line, " But this time, the dodge ain't going to end so pretty. Either a bullet or that train steaming just ahead is going to end your days", paints a scene very clearly. From here, the song is getting increasingly louder and building up. As the build up gets more and more intense, the younger brother turns the tables on the older one so that they're both in the path of the train. The song is getting louder and louder as the train aproaches, but the older brother simply states, "You don't cry, you don't beg. You've been waiting for this". As the song reaches the line "I rather die at the hands of my own family", the song abrupty stops, mid measure and in the middle of the word "family so that it's "fami". This is the end of the album, unless you count the 17 minutes of silence following the end of track ten.
        Finally, the last four songs are acoustic tracks that re-tell some of the stories, just in more-listenable form. "Brothers" tells of the boys playing on the tracks while they were young, "I don't mind" descrbes the good times of when the older brother and wife were married. This song is basically a soft version of "Empty glass" which showed up at track four. Finally, "Headstone" is an acoustic "Cemetary Walls" as it tells the story of the older brother visiting his wifes grave.
       Overall, Empty days and Sleepless Nights is an album that goes beyond expectations. It's creative and versitile. From screamed vocals to acoustic songs, Defeater includes multiple genres. This is a very strong effort by not your typical hardcore band, like a breath of fresh air, Defeater impresses.
       

Song Lyrics

The Wind has changed again
Carrying us toward another horizon
I can feel the oceans storm coming on
The tides have shifted
The sharks arrive at dawn

And everyday, our ship continues on
In our own direction
But every passing day,
We've watched as friends jump ship
Sailing towards the darkest seas

We've lost son many
To the merciless sea, to the unforgiving waves
Carrying the ones we love
To early shallow graves
And all we do is remind ourselves
"Some cannot be saved"

While everyone we used to know
Sets sail on a vessel called change
Through every shifting tide
You and I will remain
Drifting on, I promise you this friendship will never sink
Until we reach the endless horizon, our destiny
We'll never be swallowed by the sea
We'll drift on endlessly

This is a ship of friends
Proven strong through every year
We'll be together until the end
And this much I know is clear
We belong right here
We belong right here

Song choice "Unbreakable" by Have Heart

"Unbreakable"

He was a kind hearted man in a hateful world
who caught every thing that life ever hurled
like the oldest mountain he always stood so tall
forever showing what it means to be unbreakable 

Paycheck to paycheck, 
3 jobs a day, 
he's the ransom for his family's pain
in the coldest world with the warmest heart, 
he puts to shame what you consider hard 
he's the man you don't see in the mirror
while the world was screaming death, 
he chose a different song to hear

He’s the band that’s playing while the ship sinks
the song of hope, he forever sings 
he taught the sun to shine 
now please teach this "son" to shine 
how can this world never break 
your warm heart in this frigid f***ing place?
You’re like the river: 
always flowing and growing, 
never changing; rearranging 
how can this world always never take 
your solid stance in these turbulent time?
You’re like the tree in the burning forest 
that never was burned down 
and what he said to me was this

"Just love the world that won't love you back" 

old man look at my life 
I'm nothing like you are
take a look at my life 
I'm so very f***ing far
from the person I aspire to be

UNBREAKABLE 

Back Mascking assignment

                The idea of subliminal messages in songs, by a method called backmasking, has become a topic of discussion among many famous artists and songs. In my opinion, most of the “controversial messages” are not even there. I think people play a song backwards searching for something crazy. It seems like a way to criticize or put a bad spotlight on musicians. The most recognizable example is Led Zeppelins “Stairway to Heaven.”

                Many songs, including “Stairway to Heaven”, have been accused of containing satanic worship messages when played backwards. “Stairway” is convincing to many because the original line, “If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow, don’t be alarmed now/It’s just a spring clean for the May queen”, is a very strange lyric to begin with. When played backwards it supposedly reads, “Here’s to my sweet Satan/I sing because I live with Satan”. I’m skeptical because the original line is very odd, but in the end I don’t believe anything is really hidden. I think someone went looking for something strange and thought they heard the name Satan. Plus, if you listen to it, there is no way you can hear that line if you don’t already know what it is. Another famous song, “Hotel California” by The Eagles, has been accused of hiding the line “Yeah Satan organized his own religion”. Once again, I hear nothing in this song that makes me believe The Eagles were up to anything fishy.

                Other songs are more believable in my opinion. The song “Help” by The Beatles is accused of supporting drugs when played backwards. After listening to it, it is easy to hear the line, “Now he uses Marijuana”. The message is audible, unlike the Led Zeppelin example, and the actual meaning of the song “Help” was written by The Beatles about their drug abuse, so it makes sense. I’m not completely convinced that The Beatles did this on purpose, but it isn’t as absurd.  Another Beatles track “Revolution 9” is definitely more believable. The song repeats the words “number 9” over and over, which is strange. When reversed, the line reads “turn me on dead man”. These Beatles examples are highly possible, mainly because they’re the Beatles, where as the prior Satan examples are farfetched to me.

                Finally, some artists use the technique of back masking to obviously “hide” messages, sometimes as a joke. The comedy artist Weird Al Yankovic uses backmasking to poke fun at backmasking, ironic.  In his song “Nature trail to hell” he purposely hides the mocking line of, “Satan eats Cheez Whiz”, which is a direct joke on the people who claim songs have hidden Satanic messages, such as “Stairway to Heaven. Another example of intentional backmasking is the song “Announcement service public” by the band Linkin Park. The song is a mostly instrumental bit, only around 2 minutes long, but towards the end you can hear the vocalist screaming nonsense. He isn’t communicating anything when the song is played forwards, but as the title suggests (Public service announcement would make more sense that announcement service public) there is something when heard backwards. The message heard when back masked is, “You should brush your teeth and you should wash your hands”. It’s obvious that Linkin Park recorded this song with the intent to make a humorous hidden message. Weird Al and Linkin Park are newer artists, so the idea of back masking has been around for a while and they seem to find the concept funny. They used back masking intentionally to try something different, where as I think The Eagles and Led Zeppelin simply made amazing songs that people dissected way too much.

                I think back masking is a fun idea and finding messages can be fun, but in the end I find most of it is ridiculous. The use of it now is mostly intentional, meaning to be found, and it’s easy for computers to do this for newer artists. The supposed use of back masking back in the 60’s and 70’s was, in my opinion, never even there. Many people consider “Stairway to Heaven” the greatest song of all time. The people that took the time to tear it apart and accuse them of supporting Satan took away from its greatness. The same could be said for “Hotel California”, it is an extremely well written song and well-recognized, but there will always be people that claim it’s flawed and controversial.  As for The Beatles examples, they’re The Beatles and no one can ever be as appreciated and loved, so they get away with weird things like in “Revolution 9”. Back masking is simply a product of boredom and people’s desire to find flaws in great things. Back masking would not exist today if it weren’t for people that had too much time on their hands.  

Infected

I’ve been running for hours, or for days, I can’t be sure. My frail diseased legs cannot fail me now, but I sense the weakness closing in. My world is closing in, the trees spin, I know I’ll soon collapse. They’ll find me, I swear they’ll find me, but I swear it’s not my fault. It’s not my fault.                      

This is a nightmare. My eyes deceive me. This is either a figment of my imagination, or some demented illustration that my mind has constructed in my deep sleep. I will wake up and be home, surrounded by light shining in from the brilliant morning sun, and I’ll turn over and smell the sweet fragrance of my love, Abigail. She’ll be awake and her enchanting smile will make me melt into the glistening sun that shines upon her face. Together, we will take in the morning’s grace. My canvas will await me patiently by the window. My latest sketch will be displayed and I’ll show it to Abigail. She’ll smile, but leave me to my time, and I’ll start to sketch.

Later that day, Abigail will hurry off to work. Past the food vendor, past the tavern, and past the newspaperman in the top hat, she will beckon the eyes of every man in the drunken old tavern and the envious stares of every woman on the cobblestone street. I’ll look beyond my dear canvas, to watch her go and I’ll feel so warm inside.

But slowly I now realize that I’ve been long awake. This is not a dream and I’m no longer in a familiar place. My eyes, which I swear betray me, dance from side to side. I see water. I see endless oceans everywhere I look, colliding into the falling sky. Behind me, there are men. These men are sick and diseased. They’re rotting away and spitting blood onto the golden sand. Monsters. I feel sick. Where am I? Where’s Abigail? Who are these men? I’m so sick. I feel myself coughing in fits, I have no control. Blood runs freely from my mouth and onto my bare feet. Overcome with hysteria, my eyesight disappears and I crumble. 

I awake for a second time, instantly alert. I’m in a tent.  There is no Abigail; there is no warm sun, no delightful fragrance, but I’m reminded I must stay calm. I rise from where I lay and find a note on my chest. I’m aware that the note will reveal everything that does not make sense. It will reveal my worst nightmares, but even so, I feel my trembling fingers unraveling the note that will crush my already unraveled life.

I struggle to contain my nerves, my fingers twitch, sweat cascades down my face; I am not ready for this,

“Dear subject 106,

          You are unfortunately infected. You are infected with a disease that is extremely contagious and we are unable to cure it at this time. You have been exiled on a remote island with the other subjects until we can find a way to bring you home.”

The blood. The blood I’d coughed up before I’d passed out, the blood I’d seen running down those men, it’s Blood flood, it must be. I’d seen Abigail’s papers that talked about this Blood flood sickness. She’s been so busy, working overtime, trying to find a cure.  Day in and day out, I’ve seen her eyes grow bloodshot; reflecting sleepless nights. She still never looked so beautiful. I miss her.

Suddenly aware that I’m a sick man, in the presence of sick men, I am overcome with the impossible truth that stares me in the eyes. But I am no longer terrified to the point of fainting. I climb to my unstable feet and set out to explore my new home.

I wander into daunting lands ahead not knowing what to expect. I soon spot a group of tents near the shore of a falsely breathtaking sea. As I approach, I’m tentative and nervous, but I march on towards the beach of disease. Some men stir and look my way; I freeze tempted to turn back. They all stare, some men who had been walking nearby stop to stare. I can do nothing but continue to where I was headed. The men greet me and I notice the weakness and bony figures. One man, a bearded man named Phillip, tells me that he’s expecting to die very soon. As I look at him, I can almost see him wasting away, parts of him slipping away with the wind and into the ocean.

Another man alerts me of some men on the island, “See those men over there”, said this dying man, “They’re what we call Wanderers. They’ve lost a bit of their minds being marooned on this Island. We stay away from them. You seem like you’re okay, why don’t you move your tent over here?” I accept his advice and I feel warmth knowing that these men are friendly at least.

“My eyes open to another day of hell in this soulless land. We are all waiting to die, rotting slowly. I wish I’d never wake up. Waking up without Abigail is torturous. I can’t bare this place any longer. Morning returns far too often. Sleep is my only friend in the land of the infected, the land of wanderers, the land where we all waste away.”

Waking up kills me more and more. I’ve been here 18 days, and each one has taken its toll on my dying body. Mentally, I feel stable still, but my heart longs for Abigail’s pale blue eyes. I set out again to stroll along the same old shore and I make small talk with newcomers who haven’t given up yet. We talk of what it’s like back home and I miss my sketches so I move on, drowning in hopeless thoughts.

I spot a ship coming in from the west, new victims of the blood flood. I sit down by the sea and dip my feet into the water waiting for the newcomers. When it arrives to the island, I sense something is different. It came in from a new direction and it’s a ship I’ve never seen before. I stand up and a figure moves from the upper deck.

Down the stairs and onto down a ramp into the shallow water walks Abigail, my love. Once again, I swear that my eyes betray me. Such a beautiful sight lies before my teary eyes and I crumble. She approaches me. I’m weak, crying, like a child, on the sand. Her graceful hands touch my infected face and I know that my eyes have not failed me. My tongue is now my weakness, as I cannot find words. Instead, she kneels down and I rest my head upon her.

“I have the Cure. It’s going to be alright”, she whispers.

I manage only but a cough of blood that I’m forced to swallow.

She tells me I’m going to be fine and asks where the other men are, “They’re over there” I say pointing. “I have enough medicine for each one of you. I’ll give you each the cure and we’ll be able to return to the mainland.” She says with a smile.

I suddenly fell that I need the cure right away. I tell her to inject me.

“Well what about the others? Shouldn’t we tell them the good news first”

“No. I fear for myself. Please understand, I need the cure now. Besides, some of those men are dangerous. I don’t want them to see you and go crazy, there are no women here and some of them would probably kill you.”

“Then we can go together! They don’t seem very harmful from here. Come on, lets go break the news…Oh look! They’re coming towards us!”

Something powerful takes me by storm and I feel myself strike her. She crumbles in a heap at my feet, and my world is turned upside down. I didn’t mean to, I swear. I peer to the wanderers who close in on me, and I pick up Abigail’s unconscious body. I run with her in my arms as fast as my legs will carry me. Over my shoulder, the men are speeding up as well. I enter the jungle and hope to find a place to hide. Everywhere is a mess of green and vines, but I frantically press on.

I find a small cave where I lay Abigail down. I tell her I love her, but it’s no use. She still doesn’t stir. What has come over me? Am I a wanderer? I’m so selfish. Will the wanderers kill me? I know some have guns. I’m so sorry Abigail. I’m so sorry.

The wanderers block the entrance to the cave. They’ve found me. I’m dead. One reveals a gun and I beg him to let me live. Abigail restored all hope of life in me just minutes before, and I’ve put hers in danger and I’m begging for mine. Yesterday, I would have begged to die.

I lung at his gun and tackle him to the ground. The others jump on me and a shot goes off. The gun is in my hands. Another goes off and the man on me I lifeless. The other wanderer struggles with me, but I’m on my feet now. I shoot but I miss and the bullet heads toward the ground. It heads toward where Abigail lay.

She lies even more lifeless than before. I fall to my knees. My love is dead. The cure is gone. I’m dying. I’m sick. This isn’t happening. I feel cold steel against my head. I feel my finger on the trigger. I feel nothing. Once again, I crumble.

Song for Fiction Story "Vestige" by Alesana

Washed on a shore enchanted lies and I am breathless

Struggling for reason

How could it be such a wondrous place is trapped in silence

Give them redemption

Time is melting away, I can’t explain but my eyes are begging to stay

I must say a sunny day helps to push the memories away

 I can’t imagine my leaving here... It sounds so peaceful...living in solace.

A perfect vision of ecstasy, a dreamy palaceHome to the soulless..

Time is melting away, I can’t explain but my eyes are begging to stay

I must say a sunny day helps to push the memories away

Walk along the shore of an ocean of rage.. Gazing in amazement at each screaming wave

Everywhere I look there’s agony and pain..

What’s the point of fighting when there’s nothing to save?

Time is melting away, I can’t explain but my eyes are begging to stay

 I must say a sunny day helps to push the memories away

Caution must be obeyed on an island of decayed..

SA #2 "Prophets" by Counterparts

Some people spend years searching for who they truly are. Weather they’re living as someone that they’re not, or they simply don’t know where they belong, it’s not easy to become yourself and establish a true identity. It may be difficult to stand out, but it’s something that we’re all capable of. The Canada based hardcore band, Counterparts, often uses songs as messages; portraying individuality and comfort with who you are as a person. Creating an uplifting message in “Prophets”, Counterparts utilizes forceful points of view, invincible mood, and all-powerful hyperbole in order to illuminate that everyone can “be what you want to be” and even though “others may tell you how to live” you must “chase your dreams”.

The point of view effectively shifts from first to second point of view, but in an assertive way. The start of the song is in second person point of view, “Others may tell you how to live/but I can assure you that your life is in your own hands”. Paired with lines like, “Anyone can follow blindly/but it’s up to you to rise above the masses” the speaker is telling listeners directly and forcefully that in the end, a person’s life is up to them and them only. The speaker may be dominant and almost punchy, but he shifts from second to first with “You cannot lead us from our path”. Instead of an almost overwhelming message being thrown violently on the listener, the shift reveals that the speaker is on the reader’s side by using the word “us”. Furthermore, a sense of togetherness is reestablished a couple lines later, “And all the force in the world cannot make us falter”. Here, the speaker’s assertive voice is shown true as someone that simply wants listeners to know that they have strength no matter what. Finally, the use of the word “us” is dropped and replaced by “I”, “I know exactly who I am”. The speaker finally shows that he is proud of who he is and that he wants listeners to feel the same way.

The mood conveyed by Counterparts is one of indestructibility, which correlates nicely with the confident point of view. The mood is overall very confident, proud, and invincible with previously mentioned lines like “It’s up to you to rise above the masses”. The word “rise” is used to show the speakers growing hope. Meanwhile, “the masses” are representative of everyone who blends in and are accepted in society. The speaker is encouraging being different, standing out, and individuality.  Later on, he states, “We are all prophets in the making/and our legacies are beginning to unfold”. Words like Legacies and prophets give a feeling of strength to listeners who may be questioning their purpose. Also, the lines repeated for emphasis at the end are “I know exactly who I am/and I know exactly what I will become”. Confidence is key in the speaker’s mood here, as he knows “exactly” who he is and knows “exactly” what his future holds. The mood of the speaker is extremely uplifting to listeners to say the least.

The exaggerations used in “Prophets” fit well with the message the song displays. They have a larger than life aspect to them, “But I can assure you your life is in your own hands/and you can mold it into any shape you want” is representative of making choices and choosing paths that are right for you. The speaker uses hyperbole to point out the persons control of their life, and ultimately they’re happiness.  The lines, “We are weighed down by our own ambitions/and all the force in the world cannot make us falter” are amplified in order to show the speakers strength. His confidence and pride are showcased throughout the entire song, but the exaggerations add to the effectiveness of the song.

We all have an identity waiting out there for us. Each and every one of us is unique in our own ways, but only some are confidant with who they truly are. Society is strict with radical people and being “normal” is something people want in their lives. Counterparts argue against “the masses” in their song “Prophets”. They send a positive message of individuality and self-confidence through the eyes of someone who is proud of who they are, and they encourage us to “chase our dreams”.