Early years (1992 - 2000)
In 1993, drummer Trevor Reilly, guitarist John Carvalho and bassist Jonathan Teves formed the band Adam's Crack and recorded a Nirvana-inspired demo cassette. In 1994 Reilly and Carvalho started a side band with Nuno Pereira on vocals, and others. The side band played one show before disbanding. Members from the two bands would merge into one, taking the name Koen. The lineup of Koen consisted of Pereira (vocals), Reilly (drums), Teves (bass), Carvalho (rhythm guitar) and friend Mat Demelo (lead guitar and trumpet). Under the name Koen, the band released one cassette titled "The Big Fall...", this time with their sound evolving more into skate punk and ska. In 1997, the band changed its name again, this time to Smackin' Isaiah, and released a cassette titled "Give Girls More Beer...". Mat Demelo left the band shortly after. During this time, Reilly would switch between drumming and guitar duties, with an unknown drummer playing in the band for a brief amount of time. Nicholas Angelini was eventually tapped to play drums on a permanent basis. In 1998, the band released another demo cassette, titled "Gets Eaten Alive".
Tank Records era (2000 - 2001)
The band's first CD release was on Tank Records, a record label created by Carvalho and Teves. The CD was a split release with the bands Moronique and Merrick, entitled "6:6:6" after the number of tracks each band contributed. Soon after, the band released its debut album, "The Way to a Girl's Heart Is Through Her Boyfriend's Stomach". The band considers this their first "real" release, as all the songs had been written after Angelini joined the band. In retrospect, they consider it their most cheerful record. It was reissued the following year on All About Records, but the band stayed with Tank Records to release its second album, "Benefits Of Thinking Out Loud. During the album's recording, the band members had a strained relationship as they argued over its production. Six outtakes from the album's recording sessions were compiled onto an EP entitled "The Champagne of Bands... We Know Sexy" released by Fork in Hand Records. Following its release, Carvalho left the band. Christopher Levesque quickly replaced him.
Final name change and move to Nitro (2002 - present)
With the band moving to a more serious style with Benefits, they decided to once more change their name, finally settling on A Wilhelm Scream. Signing with new label Jump Start Records, they re-released "Benefits of Thinking Out Loud" under their new name. After touring the United States and Canada a few times, they then began recording their next album, "Mute Print", with Jump Start Records. For the recording of the album, the band decided to put "as much shit as you can possibly fit into a song and pull off live" into the songs, to which they attribute their faster, more aggressive and more technical sound. The album was produced by Bill Stevenson and Jason Livermore, whom the band looked up to. Although the album was finished while the band was signed to Jump Start Records, the rights to the album were then bought by Nitro Records, who released it in 2004.
Only a year after "Mute Print", the band released a second record on Nitro Records, again produced by Stevenson and Livermore. The record, entitled "Ruiner", was released on August 16, 2005. Following stress from touring, founding member Jonathan Teves left the band, and was replaced by bassist Curtiss Lopez. They then embarked on their first European tour with Lagwagon, and also toured with Less than Jake. Midway through the latter tour, Lopez abruptly quit the band. This left A Wilhelm Scream without a permanent bassist until Brian J. Robinson joined in April. The band continued to tour throughout 2006. They also released an 7-inch Extended play titled "Diver" on Jump Start Records. This was because the title track was recorded during the "Mute Print" sessions, but left off the album, and thus was not purchased by Nitro Records.
In 2007, the band returned to the studio with Stevenson and Livermore to record their third album with Nitro Records. The record, according to the band, was "very, very fast" and a few songs were dropped for not being fast enough. The record, "Career Suicide", was released on October 9, 2007. However, only two weeks before its street date, long-time guitarist Chris Levesque announced that he was leaving the band, elaborating with the following statement:
"I have maintained for the duration of my time in Smackin' Isaiah/A Wilhelm Scream that when it stopped being fun, I would give it up. The bottom line here is that I just don't enjoy the day-in, day-out grind of being on tour anymore.... There are no personal or creative differences between any of us. None of that bullshit. I still love this band and everything it stands for. The six years that I've spent in SI/AWS have been the best of my life. We've accomplished more than I ever expected, and I take with me with more amazing memories than most people experience in a lifetime."
The band began their tour in support of "Career Suicide" with several rotating guitarists, before Mike Supina, formerly of the Detroit-based band Alucard, was announced as Levesque's permanent replacement. The tour brought the band to over eighteen different countries, finishing in September 2008. Following its conclusion, guitarist Trevor Reilly announced in his blog that the band would take a break for the rest of the year, but implied that they would write new songs soon.
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Die While We're Young
A Wilhelm Scream Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What a life: no advice and no guidance.
Worked through the weekend at my bullshit job
With the pumps and the mops and the tire irons.
Now us slaves break bread and go to work.
And these pigs will tread on our backs.
Every bastard to pass through the grinder
I had to go to class but just drove on
Through the rain and fog up Route Six past the mall.
Drank through paychecks, they don't last so long.
But Monday we're on. Please, Monday, come.
Now us slaves break bread and go to work.
And these pigs will tread on our backs.
Every bastard to pass through the grinder
Can just laugh at the mania of his own nerves.
And embossed in the gold top half of his nickel-plated watch:
"Let's die while we're young."
"Let's die while we're young."
"Let's die while we're young."
While we're still young.
While us slaves break bread and go to work,
Where sick pigs will shit down our backs.
Every bastard to pass through the grinder
Our resolve is a reminder we are guts and bone.
And attached to the three ring binder,
Reminders of our old pact:
Let's die while we're young.
Let's die while we're young.
Let's die while we're young.
But now we're too old for that.
The opening line, "It's been years since I sold my soul", sets up the singer's disillusionment with the world that he lives in. He feels like he has no guidance or advice, and by saying "sold my soul", he could be referencing the Faustian idea of selling your soul to the devil for success or pleasure. The first verse talks about his job, where he works all weekend and does menial tasks like pumping gas and mopping floors. The line "Now us slaves break bread and go to work" emphasizes the fact that he feels trapped in his job, and that they are all just slaves to the system.
The chorus talks about how the pigs, or those in power, are just walking all over the singer and his fellow workers. The line "Every bastard to pass through the grinder can just laugh at the mania of his own nerves" refers to the idea that those who work hard and do their best are still just being used in the system, and that even those who rise to the top are just grinding themselves into nothingness. The singer wants to escape this world, and the line "Let's die while we're young" represents the idea that it's better to die young than live a life that feels like a prison. However, by the end of the song, the singer realizes that he is already too old for this kind of rebellion, and that he is stuck in this world.
Line by Line Meaning
It's been years since I sold my soul.
I haven't been myself for a long time.
What a life: no advice and no guidance.
It's been a mess without any direction.
Worked through the weekend at my bullshit job
With the pumps and the mops and the tire irons.
I was stuck doing a job that's not worth it.
Now us slaves break bread and go to work.
And these pigs will tread on our backs.
We're the oppressed workers who are being taken advantage of by our bosses.
Every bastard to pass through the grinder
Can just laugh at the mania of his own nerves.
Those who don't experience what we go through can't understand our struggle.
I had to go to class but just drove on
Through the rain and fog up Route Six past the mall.
I pretended to go somewhere when I really just needed to escape my reality.
Drank through paychecks, they don't last so long.
But Monday we're on. Please, Monday, come.
I waste my money on drinking to cope with my dreadful job. I just hope for the weekends or anything to get me through.
And embossed in the gold top half of his nickel-plated watch:
"Let's die while we're young."
"Let's die while we're young."
"Let's die while we're young."
While we're still young.
We might as well end our misery while we're young and not have to suffer any longer.
Our resolve is a reminder we are guts and bone.
And attached to the three ring binder, reminders of our old pact:
We're reminded every day that we're nothing but our bodies and we're not living the life we wanted. And we made a promise to ourselves to escape this hellhole.
But now we're too old for that.
We've given up on our dreams of escaping this life because we're too old and tired.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mark Tennant
This whole album is great.
Liam
Punk Rock masterpiece.
Renan
nossa lembro que baixei esse cd em 2008,pra falar a real num curtia hardcore com as guitarras muito trabalhadas meio que perde o stilo old school...Mais esse CD mudou minha visão pra isso expandi ainda mais meu estilo musical...OLHA O CLIMA DESSA PARTE 2:06
Mariangel Noriega
great band!
John Kane
this album kept me alive
alpine9x
i could listen to :22 - :36 on repeat forever
Andy
This is awesome.
Jose Charlie
Let us die young, or let us live forever!
JayVex
Why does 480p have worse sound than 360p?
Bill Ward
ffuck yes!