Awake! Awake! is a New Wave, Indie band from Murfreesboro, TN. They formed… Read Full Bio ↴Awake! Awake! is a New Wave, Indie band from Murfreesboro, TN. They formed in March of 2007 after the two halves of the band met. They started playing shows and soon after released their first album "We've Been Strangers".

Bio (by David Johnson/Andrew Goodwin)

We got off to a promising start...more promising than maybe we even realized. I think we underestimated ourselves. It seemed preposterous that people would actually want to hear our art. Near the end of 2007, we released our first record We’ve Been Strangers. It was recorded entirely independently in the upstairs bonus room of a college home in Murfreesboro, TN. The whole process was a blast! Everyone had tons of ideas and the energy was fantastic. The positive feedback we kept getting was both a tremendous shock and encouragement to us. It was a phenomenal atmosphere for a developing band.
But it’s been a whirlwind of time and circumstances since we released that first record. Being a part of this band has been one of the most fun and rewarding experiences of our lives...but it hasn’t always been easy. There were times when we were frantic and stressing, learning-on-the-go how to get our first set of songs out there, then re-assessing our hopes after band mates and close friends decided to move in different directions...even on the best of terms. In these last few years, we’ve experienced doubt, uncertainty, and the loss of both relationships and opportunities. We’ve also experienced countless new possibilities, new birth, and a re-invention of ourselves and our sound. We hope we’re better for it all. And we hope the proof is in the songs.
This is the story of Bittersweet Horizon...

Recording the new album:

It was 8:00 a.m. on a Saturday morning, and while most people were sleeping off the night before, we were hauling in our gear to Bonhoeffer’s, a local gathering for music and coffee. The air crisp, our eyes blurred, we were there to take advantage of the peace the early hours bring. I arrived with a freshly brewed quart of black as I often did. With our thoughts clear and filled with nothing but creative expectancy, we began to write. It’s what we’ve always done, just not like this.

Several more early morning sessions passed, and we began to sense our disjointed ideas starting to take shape into something more solid. We weren’t finished yet, but we knew we had to start before the songs waned. Combining efforts with some great friends, we managed to capture drums for twelve songs in a weekend. I remember us laughing at Bono’s dancing skills in the video for “I Will Follow” before rushing off to fourteen-hour sessions in the basement studio. We mixed and matched equipment, rented a snare for $25, and tested the patience of the pregnant woman upstairs. On the last song, Blake’s crash cymbal buckled under the weekend of beatings and cracked. We don’t know where in the track it happened, just that it became part of our sound. With the long hours past us, we celebrated on the deck with a Fat Tire. Drums were quite an effort, but exciting, because they marked the dawn of Bittersweet Horizon’s physical arrival.

In the days to follow, I began carefully weaving music in between the beats. Our philosophy was “try everything” and we did. Countless tracks were recorded, only to be discarded. It’s much like a sculptor carving definition out of a block. Thought must go into his work before it’s attempted. Our busy schedules of day jobs and families allowed just that. It was decided early on that our sound would take a modern approach on the New Wave era of the 80’s. Synth would play a large role in the communication of our emotions and we would strive to make it just as genuine as the folk singers with their loosely tuned acoustics. June brought the bass booming and wrapped the songs in warmth. It was a grateful effort, a favor from a friend. Words began filling in the final holes in early July. Writing was still occurring, because we and our sound had grown quite a bit by this point. September flew in and we all had an unmixed version of our new album. Mixing began in the last of September in the same apartment room that most of the tracking was completed in. Among lots of belongings and a baby’s crib, I carved large spaces for the songs to breathe. This was an indie project. We borrowed, asked favors and worked long, late hours to complete it. We didn’t let our surroundings defeat our music…we just allowed them to shape it.

On July 1, 2010 Awake! Awake! is releasing a brand new album called "Bittersweet Horizon".

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Awake! Awake! Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Collapse inside
Shadows confiscate the space between the lines
My thoughts collide
Colors cannot rise when frozen by this night

Jet black, my mind
Is older than my age
At last, someone

Show me my escape

Illuminate my silhouette
Capture my gaze
Show me I'm not over yet

This place in time
Darkened alleyways and lonely city lights
I realize
The clock will not relent across my heart's skyline

Jet black, my sight
Is blinded by these days

Such lights, your eyes
Come echo back in mine

Overall Meaning

The first lines of the song "Collapse inside, shadows confiscate the space between the lines" seem to be a metaphor for feeling isolated and disconnected from the world around you. The idea that shadows could confiscate the space between the lines implies that there is something missing or inaccessible in the singer's life, as if they are not seeing the full picture. The next lines, "My thoughts collide, colors cannot rise when frozen by this night" reinforce the sense of disorientation and confusion. The singer's thoughts are not connecting in any meaningful way, and everything seems muted and dull.

The second verse, "Jet black, my mind is older than my age/At last, someone show me my escape" suggests that the singer is grappling with feelings of despair and hopelessness, beyond what might be expected for their age or situation. The plea for someone to show them an escape implies that the singer is trapped, whether by circumstance or their own sense of inertia. The chorus, "Illuminate my silhouette, capture my gaze/Show me I'm not over yet" seems to be a call for someone or something to bring the singer back to life, to help them see themselves as more than a mere shadow. The phrase "capture my gaze" also implies that they have become passive, and need something to focus on in order to move forward.

The last verse, "Jet black, my sight is blinded by these days/Such lights, your eyes come echo back in mine" seems to be a turning point, where the singer encounters something or someone that breaks through the fog of their depression. The contrast between "jet black" and "lights" suggests that the singer is finally seeing the world in full color, and that this is due to the presence of another person. The fact that "your eyes come echo back in mine" implies that the singer has found a relationship that is nourishing and reciprocal, and that they are beginning to see themselves reflected in the eyes of another.

Line by Line Meaning

Collapse inside
I feel like everything around me is falling apart, and it's affecting me internally

Shadows confiscate the space between the lines
My mind is clouded with darkness and I can't see things clearly. It's like the shadows are taking over my vision and my thoughts.

My thoughts collide
I can't seem to get my ideas straight. They keep running into each other and it's hard to focus or make sense of anything.

Colors cannot rise when frozen by this night
It's hard to find or experience happiness or creativity when I'm feeling trapped in darkness or negativity.

Jet black, my mind
My mind is filled with darkness and negativity, like a black hole that's hard to escape.

Is older than my age
I feel like I've been through a lot, even though I'm still young. My experiences have aged me in some way.

At last, someone
Finally, I've found someone who understands me and my struggles.

Show me my escape
Help me find a way out of this darkness and into the light.

Illuminate my silhouette
Bring me into the light, show me who I really am, and help me shine.

Capture my gaze
Get my attention, make me focus on what's important and positive.

Show me I'm not over yet
Remind me that I still have a future to live, and there's a lot more to experience and enjoy.

This place in time
Right now, in this moment.

Darkened alleyways and lonely city lights
The world around me feels dim and lonely, like there's no one else around or nothing else to look forward to.

I realize
I come to understand or appreciate something important.

The clock will not relent across my heart's skyline
Time keeps moving forward, no matter how much I wish it would slow down or stop. It's hard to keep up with the pace of life sometimes.

Jet black, my sight
I can't see clearly because of the darkness and negativity that surrounds me.

Is blinded by these days
I feel like my vision or perspective has been limited or obscured due to my current struggles or circumstances.

Such lights, your eyes
Your eyes light up my world and bring me some sense of hope or joy.

Come echo back in mine
I feel a connection with you and it's like my own eyes are reflecting the light or positivity that you bring into my life.

Lyrics © DistroKid, TUNECORE INC
Written by: David Johnson

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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