The band is best known for their heavy yet anthemic music and their tendency to destroy their equipment at the end of their performances (a rock and roll tradition usually associated with The Who). According to the band's website, the name "...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead" is taken from both an ancient Mayan ritual chant and an Egyptian burial text. Band members have also claimed that they made it up because it sounded cool and discovered the association after the fact.
The chief creative element of the band consists of Jason Reece and Conrad Keely. The two switch between drumming and lead vocals and guitar, both on their records and during their shows. (On some songs, [former] bass player Neil Busch sings lead vocals). Keely and Reece have been friends since their youth, meeting originally in Hawaii. They each formed their first band in 1993 soon after moving to Olympia, Washington. Keely started a band called Benedict Gehlen that only lasted a year. Nancyville was Keely's next project, though it also was short lived. Reece started with Honeybucket and then formed Mukilteo Fairies while living in Olympia. Dissatisfied with the northwest, the two ventured south to Austin, Texas and started playing as a duo under the moniker, "You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead". The band expanded to include guitarist Kevin Allen and bassist Neil Busch. They then officially changed their name to "...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead" (adding the conjunction and then the ellipsis for effect). The band is also known by the shorter name "Trail of Dead".
By 1998 they had issued their first release (a live cassette on local Golden Hour Records), followed by a self-titled full-length on Trance Syndicate. In early 2002, Trail of Dead released Source Tags & Codes to immediate critical acclaim, and made numerous critics' year-end top 10 lists.
In 2003, an EP named The Secret of Elena's Tomb followed up, which included amongst others "Mach Schau", which was the first recording of a song the band had written in their early days, as well as "Intelligence", a song with dominant electronic sounds, which was pulled from Jason Reece's electro side-project called A Roman Scandal.
In 2004, Neil Busch left the band due to health issues and was replaced by Danny Wood of The Rise. Together with additional drummer Doni Schroader (ex-Forget Cassettes) and keyboarder David Longoria (The Black), a revamped Trail of Dead embarked on an extensive worldwide tour in 2004-2005, which covered USA and Canada, and cities throughout Europe to promote their album Worlds Apart, which was finally released in January 2005 after some annoying issues with the label's corporate policies.
After the tepid critical and commercial reception of Worlds Apart, Conrad Keely became very frustrated and considered quitting the band altogether. Luckily, the band regrouped to record an EP, but the group's creativity blossomed, resulting in enough material for an album. Their latest full-length album, X: The Godless Void and Other Stories, was released on January 20th, 2020.
Relative Ways
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's so hard to perceive
To find an expression for what it all means
All panic and struggle, all death and decay
Are coming together in relative ways
This electric guitar hanging to my knees
A couple verses, I can barely breathe
It's coming together in relative ways
It's started to happen,
It's started to change
With the movement upon us
Hope we make it okay
If it takes a life or a couple of days
It's coming together in relative ways
This electric guitar hanging to my knees
A couple of verses I can barely breathe
But it's all right, it's okay
It's coming together in relative ways
It's okay
I'm a saint
I forgave your mistakes
The lyrics of Relative Ways by ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead seem to be a reflection on the struggles and challenges of life. The song begins with the acknowledgment of the difficulty in comprehending the meaning of it all, with panic, struggle, death and decay all converging in relative ways. The electric guitar is then introduced as a symbol of expression, with the verses barely being able to be sung due to the overwhelming nature of the emotions expressed in the lyrics. Despite this, the chorus repeats the message that no matter what happens, it is all coming together in relative ways.
As the song continues, it seems to shift towards a sense of hope and positivity. It mentions that things have started to change and that there is movement happening. There is a hope that things will be okay, even if it requires sacrifice, as it is all coming together in relative ways. The repetition of the chorus further emphasizes this sense of acceptance and reassurance that everything is happening as it should. The final line about forgiveness adds a layer of moral and spiritual reflection that encourages a focus on positivity even in the face of adversity.
Overall, the lyrics of Relative Ways convey a sense of acceptance and resilience that is essential to navigate the trials and tribulations of life. It is a reminder to keep moving forward, even if it is difficult, as everything comes together in relative ways.
Line by Line Meaning
It's hard to imagine
It is difficult to form a mental picture of what is happening
It's so hard to perceive
It is difficult to understand and grasp what is happening
To find an expression for what it all means
To discover a way to articulate and explain the significance of it all
All panic and struggle, all death and decay
All the fear and difficulty, all the rot and decomposition
Are coming together in relative ways
Are converging and connecting because of their shared relationship and context
This electric guitar hanging to my knees
This instrument, currently in my possession, hanging from my waist
A couple verses I can barely breathe
I am having difficulty in delivering a few lines of lyrics
But it's all right, it's okay
However, it is not a source of worry, I am fine with this
It's coming together in relative ways
All of this is coalescing due to their contextual interrelation
It's started to happen
The occurrence has commenced
It's started to change
The alteration has commenced
With the movement upon us
With everything moving quickly around us
Hope we make it okay
I hope everything ends up being okay in the end
If it takes a life or a couple of days
If it takes a life or small period of time
It's coming together in relative ways
Everything is uniting in a relevant manner
It's okay
It is okay, there is no problem
I'm a saint
I am a holy figure
I forgave your mistakes
I pardoned your errors
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Shark Phin Soop
I've seen roughly 100 or so shows in my life. These guys aren't my favorite band (but I do like them). But holy hell... if you've got the opportunity to see these guys live, do not miss it. Ranks in the top 3 shows I've ever seen...quite possibly number one.
beatsyndrom
I saw them twice in Germany and I 100% agree with you. Live these guys are just on such a different level, it's obscene. Definitely two of the best live shows I've ever seen in my life.
bh617
I saw them at Toad's Place in New Haven, CT around their peak.. holy shit that was a loud show lol
Rossco- DPS
God Damn. This moves me. I keep coming back to this haunted composition every two, three or four years.
The track following it is absolutely complimentary to it.
Whoever is watching this video, think yourself lucky to have discovered it.
Orkid. music
2001! I was 15 years old. These guys have been with me for a long time. I used to wander around Edinburgh as a teen with trail of dead blasting in my ears.
Jonathan Wright
they'd love that, they're really big fans of Scotland
Alexis Arrizon
I agree I was 13 in 2000, I bought Madonna and have been hooked ever since.
Gabby Pennington
Gawwd I was obsessed with this band when I was a senior in high school, this takes me back to 2009! Still love their sound!
This Leprechaun Writes
For years, I thought they were death metal. Their name of their band was definitely a factor and their album covers looked like the type of music that was dark and negative, like Deicide or something as sh*t but when I got Conrad Keely's solo album it didn't make sense how good it was to what I pictured his band being, so, I went back and gave them a listen for the first time - so glad I did. People may think, why didn't you just listen to them? Well, I literally am into thousands of artists and just forgot about them. Only ever was exposed to their name and covers which I pre-judged, not their awesome music.
Billyshead133
These guys always make haunting music. Like their style.