The band formed in December of 1996, originally consisting of Skiba, Rob Doran (bass/vocals), and Glenn Porter (drums/vocals). 1997 saw the release of the band's first EP, Sundials. This was followed shortly after by the departure of Doran. He was replaced by Andriano, who had been the singer for Tuesday and bassist for the ska band Slapstick. The band released their second EP, entitled For Your Lungs Only, in 1998, which began to build them a sizable fan base in the American Midwest. Later that year, they released their first full-length album, Goddamnit, followed by Maybe I'll Catch Fire in 2000. Both were released on Asian Man Records. Also in 2000, the band released a collection of their previously-released EPs on a self-titled album.
Following the success of their Asian Man releases, Alkaline Trio signed to Vagrant. Joined by new drummer Mike Felumlee (previously of the Smoking Popes), From Here to Infirmary was released in 2001. It was their first album to see any interest from alternative radio and the mainstream media, with the semi-hit punk single "Stupid Kid" and the inclusion of the song "Armageddon" on the Tony Hawk's Underground as well as Tony Hawks American Wasteland video games. Their cover of "Over at the Frankenstein Place" was included in the compilation The Rocky Horror Punk Rock Show, an album made to pay tribute to the movie The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
After the release, Felumlee left the band too and was replaced by Grant, previously of The Suicide Machines.
Their next full-length album was Good Mourning, released in 2003, with the album's launch single "We've Had Enough" seeing a considerable amount of commercial success. The album was a significant departure from earlier works, featuring greater production value and a noticeable move toward a more mainstream sound.
The band has also appeared on various compilation albums, notably Plea for Peace Vol. 1 and Rock Against Bush Vol. 1. Skiba and Andriano have both independently recorded split records, Skiba with Kevin Seconds on Asian Man Records and Andriano with Mike Felumlee on Double Zero Records, as well as jointly performing backing vocal duties on the album This is Unity Music by Common Rider. They have also recorded two split EPs with bands who are no longer together: one with Hot Water Music in 2000 and the other with One Man Army in 2004.
Alkaline Trio released their fifth studio album on Vagrant Records, entitled Crimson, on May 24, 2005, which featured the single "Time to Waste." The single for this song also included bonus tracks produced by Mass Giorgini. The tracks "Mercy Me" and "Burn" have also been released as singles from the album.
In 2004 Andriano became a member of The Falcon, a super-group of consisting of The Lawrence Arms' bassist/co-vocalist Brendan Kelly (with who he had played with in Slapstick), and Neil Hennessy, drummer from The Lawrence Arms. The band released a 5-song EP in 2004, and its first full-length Unicornography in September of 2006.
In 2006 Matt Skiba collaborated with Josiah Steinbrick for the band Heavens.
In 2008 Alkaline Trio released Agony & Irony on Epic Records. The album charted at #13 on the Billboard 200.
Alkaline Trio's 7th studio album, This Addiction,was released on February 23rd 2010. This was their first album under their own label, Heart & Skull, an offshoot of Epitaph, and the album debuted at #11 on the Billboard 200, making it the highest the band has ever charted to date.
Alkaline Trio's eighth studio album, Damnesia,, was released July 12, 2011. Consisting of "a selection of beloved fan favorites selected from the group's extensive catalogue and presented in an intimate semi-unplugged format", the album also included two new songs, "Olde English 800" and "I Remember a Rooftop", as well as a cover version of the Violent Femmes' "I Held Her in My Arms".
On April 2nd, 2013, Alkaline Trio released "My Shame Is True".
On August 31st, 2013, Alkaline Trio released "Is This Thing Cursed?".
On June 8th, 2023, longtime drummer Derek Grant left the band due to mental health reasons and intentions to pursue music production as well as graphic design. He was replaced by Atom Willard, formerly of bands such as Rocket from the Crypt and Against Me!. The band then released the single, "Blood, Hair, and Eyeballs" on October 17th, 2023, and announced an album of the same name due for a release date of January 26th, 2024.
This Addiction
Alkaline Trio Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I feel you coursing through my veins
I once tried to kick this addiction
I swear I'll never kick again
Won't ever kick again, no
This addiction, can't seem to live without you
This addiction, no going clean
Sick with this addiction in me
Well those others were like methadone
I took to get me through the day
Now I'm trying to find my way back home
Staying clean along the way
Hold out for the real thing, yeah
This addiction, can't seem to live without you
This addiction, now going clean
This addiction, I go through withdrawal without your
Sick with this addiction in me
This addiction
I go off the rails without your
Sick with this addiction in me
The lyrics to Alkaline Trio's song "This Addiction" speak to the intense hold that love and addiction can have on a person. The comparison to heroin addiction, with the line "You hit me just like heroin, I feel you coursing through my veins," is a bold way of expressing the intensity of the addiction. The singer then reveals that they have tried to kick the addiction before, but they "swear [they'll] never kick again". The repetition of "This addiction" throughout the song emphasizes just how difficult it is to overcome.
As the song continues, the singer acknowledges that they have tried to replace their addiction with other things ("those others were like methadone"), but nothing has worked the way that their love/addiction does. They are now trying to find their way back to a healthier place, but it's a struggle to resist the intense hold that their addiction has on them. The final lines of the song, "I go off the rails without you, sick with this addiction in me," encapsulate the sense of desperation and hopelessness that can come with addiction.
Overall, "This Addiction" is a powerful and raw portrayal of the complex and often overwhelming emotions that come with addiction, whether it be to a substance or a person.
Line by Line Meaning
You hit me just like heroin
You have an intense and immediate effect on me, like a powerful and addictive drug.
I feel you coursing through my veins
I can feel your presence in every part of me, deeply and strongly.
I once tried to kick this addiction
I tried to stop wanting you and needing you, but it was unsuccessful.
I swear I'll never kick again
I promise to never try to stop this addiction again because I can't bear the pain of being without you.
Won't ever kick again, no
I am determined to stay addicted to you forever, no matter the cost.
This addiction, can't seem to live without you
My addiction to you is so strong that I can't imagine life without you; you are everything to me.
This addiction, no going clean
I can't rid myself of this addiction to you, no matter how much I may want to.
This addiction, I go through withdrawal without your
When I'm away from you, I experience physical and emotional pain like someone trying to quit a drug.
Sick with this addiction in me
I am constantly affected by this addiction to you, and it's making me sick both physically and mentally.
Well those others were like methadone
Past relationships I've had were like substitutes for you, but they never really satisfied my addiction.
I took to get me through the day
I settled for those other relationships because I needed something to distract me from my addiction to you.
Now I'm trying to find my way back home
I am trying to get back to a place where I am fully addicted to you, and nothing else will satisfy me.
Staying clean along the way
I'm trying to keep my distance from other temptations as I work my way back to you.
Hold out for the real thing, yeah
I am waiting for the true object of my addiction, which is you, to come back into my life.
I go off the rails without your
When you're not around, I lose control and fall apart because I am so addicted to you.
Sick with this addiction in me
Regardless of the pain and sickness it causes me, I cannot escape this addiction to you.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: DEREK GRANT, MATTHEW SKIBA, MICHAEL ANDRIANO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ones Skiba
You hit me just like heroin
I feel you coursing through my veins
I once tried to kick this addiction
I swear I'll never kick again
Won't ever kick again, no
This addiction, can't seem to live without you
This addiction, no going clean
This addiction, I go through withdrawal without your
Sick with this addiction in me
Well those others were like methadone
I took to get me through the day
Now I'm trying to find my way back home
Staying clean along the way
Hold out for the real thing, yeah
This addiction, can't seem to live without you
This addiction, now going clean
This addiction, I go through withdrawal without your
Sick with this addiction in me
This addiction
I go off the rails without your
Sick with this addiction in me
Abraham Rojas
You hit me just like heroin.
I feel you coursing through my veins.
I once tried to kick this addiction
I swear I'll never kick again, won't ever kick again, no.
This addiction.
Can't seem to live without you.
This addiction,
No going clean.
This addiction,
Go through withdrawal without you.
Sick with this addiction in me.
Well, those others were like methadone
I took to get me through the day.
Now I'm trying to find my way back home,
Staying clean along the way.
Hold out for the real thing, yeah.
This addiction.
Can't seem to live without you.
This addiction,
No going clean.
This addiction,
Go through withdrawal without you.
Sick with this addiction in me.
This addiction.
This addiction.
This addiction.
I go off the rails without you.
Sick with this addiction in me.
Cam Ferguson
Alkaline trios just not the same without Tom
Matthew Ayvar
Fake blink fan
Robert Espinoza
@Benji blink with Matt isn't Blink, at least not to the ones who grew up on Blink and their rise.
Happy Fables OD
I miss him everyday he needs to make Alkaline Trio great again
Myles Simmons
😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂💀⚰️
Thijmen The Turkey
@Benji Well well well, how the turntables
Ones Skiba
You hit me just like heroin
I feel you coursing through my veins
I once tried to kick this addiction
I swear I'll never kick again
Won't ever kick again, no
This addiction, can't seem to live without you
This addiction, no going clean
This addiction, I go through withdrawal without your
Sick with this addiction in me
Well those others were like methadone
I took to get me through the day
Now I'm trying to find my way back home
Staying clean along the way
Hold out for the real thing, yeah
This addiction, can't seem to live without you
This addiction, now going clean
This addiction, I go through withdrawal without your
Sick with this addiction in me
This addiction
I go off the rails without your
Sick with this addiction in me
Beezy Beez
Alkaline Trio is the best !!! But you need to listen to Winding Roads by SLT right now🤘 you’re missing out :( !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
BigboneTeebone
this song hits home for me.. Im a recovering Opiate Addict.. 2 months clean.. this song has been the last 8 years of my life.. and im only 23.. to anyone looking at this message, thats in that boat.. hang in there.. its greener on the otherside.. people dont understand addiction, and i was one of them. 61 days clean.. and ive never felt better in my life, and never LOOKING BACK.. i will never put myself back to Day 1... I promised myself that.. and for the ones I hurt with my addiction -TOM
BigboneTeebone
@Nick Kelly Turning 34 on Dec 9th , Glad i made it this far ! alot of folks that struggle with addiction don't make it to the other side unfortunately. and your 100% right - life is alot better sober even when we are having those "down" periods in our lives .. but we're all in this crazy thing called life like a rollercoaster.. here for the ups, downs, and big ass loopy loops!