Van Laere began his career as quite a reasonable tennis player. The story goes that he was standing in front of the mirror one day and turned his racket around into a guitar. Van Laere withdrew into the oeuvre of Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Hank Williams and taught himself to play the guitar and the piano. As a musician, he took the name of Admiral Freebee, from On the Road, the novel by Jack Kerouac.
Belgium got its first extensive taste of Admiral Freebee during Humo’s Rock Rally 2000, the most important rock competition in the Low Countries. Backed by a bass player and a drummer, The Admiral won the silver medal and the price awarded by the public. When performing live, Admiral Freebee is versatility itself. Whether he performs solo and acoustically or with a well-oiled rock machine, the audience can only do one thing - according to fans: listen, see and be silent, only to shout out in admiration in the end.
In 2003 his debut album Admiral Freebee appeared, a record that met the high expectations. In the 12 songs Van Laere shows that he can just as easily come up with a moving country/pop ballad (see for instance the phenomenal single Rags 'n' Run) as a stadium rocker (Ever Present), and that he can just as effortlessly melt the two together into one song (There's a Road (Noorderlaan)) without turning it into a gimmick.
March 2005 Admiral Freebee’s second album was released. It was called Songs and it included 13 of them. Two of them were released as a single: Oh Darkness and Carry On – more to follow. The album was recorded live over the course of five days at The Village Recorder in Los Angeles. John Hanlon (famous for his work with Neil Young & Crazy Horse) sat at the mixing board. The sparing overdubs – backings and solos – took place in the Shangri-La Studio a bit further down the road. The Admiral was called 'The Talent'; whenever he was ready to record, the band recorded.
Studio lineup :
* Guitar/vocals/’Songs’: Tom Van Laere
* Guitar: Jesse Tobias (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Morrissey, Alanis Morissette, The Twilight Singers)
* Bass: Ric Markmann (Chris Cornell)
* Drums and backing vocals: Dean Butterworth (Morrissey, Ben Harper)
* Backing vocals: Tommy Funderburk (Toto)
* Production and technique: John Hanlon (Neil Young & Crazy Horse)
His latest album, Wild Dreams of New Beginnings, has been released to positive critical acclaim in November 2006.
Under My Secret Skin
Admiral Freebee Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
By junkie flat boys
And sex refugees, colleges graduates
Out to get their kicks
Freeloaders and lunatics
She's bored with being bored
She's tired of being tired
But it's something you'll never see
There's a lot of hurt a her heart can't take
But it's something you'll never see
So don't stop her to ask to remove her mask
She's letting nobody in
Under her secret skin
He feels confused and disappointed
Frustrated, alienated
Crushed and distorted
And most of all
It's making him angry
But it's something you'll never see
There's a lot that a heart can't take
But it's something you'll never see
So don't stop him to ask to remove his mask
He's letting nobody in
Under his secret skin
Maybe tomorrow
I will stagger down the street
And I will be everyone I need
And I will be part of a big bird with no wings
Who knows about the secret meaning of things
And I'm not really trusting anybody
And I'm not really stopping anybody
I'm just bored of being bored
And I'm tired of being tired
And all this small talk
Is making me angry
But it's something you'll never see
There's a lot of hurt that a heart can't take
But it's something you'll never see
So don't stop me to ask to remove my mask
I'm letting nobody in
The song "Under My Secret Skin" by Admiral Freebee explores the frustration and isolation felt by the two protagonists, who are surrounded by a world that they feel disconnected from. The first verse focuses on a female character who is tired of the shallow people around her. She feels like she is surrounded by junkies, former college students, and others who are only interested in seeking their own pleasure. This makes her angry and tired, but she keeps her true feelings hidden beneath a mask. She is letting nobody in under her secret skin.
The second verse shifts to a male character who is similarly frustrated and alienated. He feels crushed and distorted by the world around him, but he also keeps his true feelings hidden beneath a mask. The chorus, which repeats the phrase "But it's something you'll never see", underscores the idea that even though these characters are surrounded by people, they feel completely alone in their struggles.
In the final verse, the singer of the song expresses a sense of detachment from everything around him. He imagines himself as a bird with no wings, searching for the secret meaning of things. He, too, is tired of being bored and is angry about the small talk that surrounds him. The song ends with the singer declaring that he, too, is letting nobody in under his secret skin.
Overall, the song is a poignant exploration of the difficult emotions that can come with feeling disconnected from the world around us. It's a reminder that even though we may feel alone, we are not the only ones feeling this way.
Line by Line Meaning
She feels surrounded
She feels overwhelmed and surrounded by the people around her.
By junkie flat boys
She is surrounded by people who are wasting their lives away.
And sex refugees, colleges graduates
She is surrounded by people who are lost, aimless, and disillusioned, who were meant to be successful.
Out to get their kicks
She is surrounded by people who only care about their own pleasure.
Freeloaders and lunatics
She is surrounded by people who are taking advantage of others, and people who are behaving in a crazy and irrational manner.
She's bored with being bored
She is bored of her current situation.
She's tired of being tired
She is tired of being emotionally drained.
And small talk is making her angry
She is angry because people around her are making trivial conversation.
But it's something you'll never see
She is hiding her true feelings from everyone.
There's a lot of hurt a her heart can't take
She is hurting inside and cannot bear to show it to anyone.
So don't stop her to ask to remove her mask
She does not want anyone to ask her to reveal her true emotions.
She's letting nobody in
She is not opening up to anyone.
He feels confused and disappointed
He is confused and disappointed about his current situation.
Frustrated, alienated
He is frustrated and feels out of place.
Crushed and distorted
He is emotionally crushed and feels twisted up.
And most of all
Above all else.
It's making him angry
His emotions are making him feel angry.
But it's something you'll never see
He is hiding his true emotions from everyone around him.
There's a lot that a heart can't take
He is in pain and cannot bear to show it to anyone.
So don't stop him to ask to remove his mask
He does not want anyone to ask him to reveal his true emotions.
He's letting nobody in
He is keeping everyone at arm's length and not letting anyone get close to him.
Maybe tomorrow
Perhaps in the future.
I will stagger down the street
He will walk aimlessly and without direction.
And I will be everyone I need
He will find everything he needs inside of himself.
And I will be part of a big bird with no wings
He will feel like he is part of something greater than himself, but has no way to take off.
Who knows about the secret meaning of things
He has some sort of secret knowledge or insight into the world and its hidden meanings.
And I'm not really trusting anybody
He does not trust anyone around him.
And I'm not really stopping anybody
He is not making an effort to stop anyone around him from leaving or betraying him.
But it's something you'll never see
He is hiding his true feelings from everyone.
There's a lot of hurt that a heart can't take
He is in pain and cannot bear to show it to anyone.
So don't stop me to ask to remove my mask
He does not want anyone to ask him to reveal his true emotions.
I'm letting nobody in
He is keeping everyone at arm's length and not letting anyone get close to him.
Contributed by Taylor F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
VINCENZO CERVELLI
ho fatto una grande scoperta!