The music is a mix of intimate melodic personal songs about death, life and faith. The music is inspired by bands like Pedro the Lion, Low and Red House Painters. Sometimes they sound like Sixteen Horsepower, a band they have toured with.
In 2002 their debut album was released, called Zalig zijn de armen van geest (Blessed are the Poor in Spirit). In 2003 the ep If You Spoke To Me came out, while it was actually recorded before their debut. In 2004 they released a concept album about the disaster of the sinking Estonia in the Baltic Sea in 1994. The album is called The Silja Symphony, after the ferryboat that first arrived at the place of the disaster and saved the lifes of many. Also in 2004, they recorded a live album and a dvd, called The Sound of Someone Watching Me. In 2005 De geluiden van weleer (The Sounds of Bygone Times) came out, with lyrics in Dutch that could have been written in the fifties. The cd is packed in a book with lyrics and paintings. In march 2007 a remix album was released, called Leaves you puzzled. The special edition package contains a puzzle. The album features remixes of ATCOED-songs by Hood, Styrofoam, Solex, Sylvain Chauveau, Dialect, Spinvis, The Dead Texan, Diefenbach, Kettel, Wixel, Marshall Watson, Stafraenn Hakon, 01:00 am, Mormo, Hillmadelow and Donato Wharton. The latest album of ATCOED is called ' troostprijs'. While the title is in dutch, the lyrics are in english. It features a greater variety of instruments, like banjo, wurlitzer and flutes, than the other albums.
ATCOED is also known by their covers of 'Under the Milky' by The Church and 'Bang' by Doe Maar. On De geluiden van weleer, Spinvis sings with Spinvis on the song 'Het hellend vlak'.
Minco has also played in Rollercoaster23, The Spirit That Guides Us and has his personal project, called ME (Minco Eggersman). He works also as a producer for some bands.
Axel has also played in The Spirit That Guides Us and still plays in This Beautiful Mess and Rowing On The Lakes Of Canada. He also works as a producer for other bands, like Brown Feather Sparrow.
The maria tales
At The Close Of Every Day Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Not one wide open nor of hope
The pictures she took don't show herself and Jim
But just some old charches of the dales
Maria sleeps
Maria is in love with a priest
Please Maria don't think that your secret is lost
That night in the hotel both Maria and Jim knelt down
To spend some quiet time in prayer
If to suffer is to live and die is really gain
When that night was their salution
Maria sleeps
Maria is in love with a priest
Please Maria don't think that your secret is lost
The morning Jim died on Stephen's road in killingsworth
This tale died along
1200 times the pain and no one to tell her grief
Did god ask for this?
Last night she left again through the window she climbed out
Not one wide open nor of hope
Maria sleeps
Maria is in love with a priest
Please Maria don't think that your secret is lost
The lyrics of "The Maria Tales" by At The Close of Every Day are steeped in sadness and loss, telling the story of a woman named Maria who is in love with a priest. The first few lines describe her leaving again through the window, perhaps indicating a sense of secrecy and shame around her feelings for the priest. The pictures she took don't show herself and Jim, but just some old churches of the dales, hinting at a sense of nostalgia or longing for a simpler time.
The song then describes a night in a hotel with Maria and Jim praying together, perhaps seeking some kind of solace or forgiveness for their forbidden love. The lyrics ask if suffering is to live, and if dying is really gain, suggesting a sense of despair and hopelessness.
The final verse reveals that Jim has died on Stephen's road, leaving Maria to grieve alone. The song ends with a repetition of the chorus, urging Maria not to think that her secret is lost.
Overall, "The Maria Tales" is a haunting and emotional song about the pain of forbidden love and the difficulty of keeping secrets. It raises questions about the nature of suffering and the power of grief to overwhelm even the strongest of emotions.
Line by Line Meaning
Last night she left again through the window she climbed out
Maria left her home secretly at night through the window
Not one wide open nor of hope
There was no opportunity or chance of hope for Maria's situation
The pictures she took don't show herself and Jim
The photos Maria took did not capture her and Jim together
But just some old charches of the dales
Instead, they only showed old churches in the countryside
Maria sleeps
Maria is currently sleeping or resting
Maria is in love with a priest
Maria is romantically interested in a priest
Please Maria don't think that your secret is lost
Someone is reassuring Maria that her secret is still safe
That night in the hotel both Maria and Jim knelt down
Maria and Jim both knelt in prayer together in a hotel room that night
To spend some quiet time in prayer
They were taking time to pray calmly and quietly
If to suffer is to live and die is really gain
They pondered the idea that the experience of suffering may be what life truly is, and death could be seen as a positive thing
When that night was their salution
The night they spent praying was seen as their solution to their problems
The morning Jim died on Stephen's road in killingsworth
One morning, Jim died on a road in Killingsworth called Stephen's Road
This tale died along
The story of Maria and Jim's love affair and tragedy had ended with Jim's death
1200 times the pain and no one to tell her grief
Maria's grief over Jim's death was immeasurable and there was no one to help her through it
Did god ask for this?
Maria wondered if God had intended for Jim's death to happen
Maria sleeps
Maria is still sleeping or resting
Maria is in love with a priest
The fact that Maria is in love with a priest is still true
Please Maria don't think that your secret is lost
Someone is reassuring Maria for a second time that her secret is still safe
Last night she left again through the window she climbed out
Maria secretly left her home again through a window
Not one wide open nor of hope
There was still no opportunity or hope for Maria's love life
Maria sleeps
Maria is presumed to be still sleeping or resting
Maria is in love with a priest
The fact that Maria is in love with a priest is still true
Please Maria don't think that your secret is lost
Someone reassures Maria for a third time that her secret is still safe
Contributed by Brooklyn Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.