A t… Read Full Bio ↴Bad Books, simply put, is Kevin Devine and Manchester Orchestra.
A true accident if there ever was one; Bad Books was never an intended nor calculated side project of Kevin Devine and Manchester Orchestra’s Andy Hull. Though the two musicians have collaborated and performed together on tour and within the Favorite Gentlemen community of artists for years now, the genesis of Bad Books came from a simple idea to fill space and time off the road by collaborating on a small batch of songs together at the top of the year. With no agenda and no expectations, what was birthed just one week later was Bad Books, a fully realized album encompassing five compositions each from both Devine and Hull, with the members of Manchester Orchestra filling out the sound and the band. The self-titled debut will be released October 19th, 2010 via Favorite Gentlemen Recordings, the record label that was founded and has been run by Manchester Orchestra since 2007.
As songwriters go, Hull and Devine could not be further apart in terms of creative approach. The methodical wordsmith Devine, an English major from Fordham, is known to pine away for great lengths of time just to accurately pin-point one word within a lyric. “I was doing a take of ‘You’re A Mirror I Cannot Avoid’ and stopped myself for fifteen minutes because I was having trouble justifying ending two lines in the same chorus with the word ‘back.’ Just sitting there, staring at the screen, writing different word choices. I asked Andy if he thought it mattered, and he said, ‘Of course it doesn’t.’ Somewhere in that exchange is I think what differentiates us as songwriters. I think Andy trusts his instincts to lead him to the right place in a song, and sometimes I want to outthink my instincts because I’m scared of repeating myself, of resting on my laurels. And I think together, those two approaches meshed really, really well,” Devine said.
Hull echoes that sentiment: “Kevin is very meticulous, where I came in with a few ideas and fleshed them out literally as we were recording. Kevin’s songs were awesome and he was cool enough for me to throw in some ideas to change a part or add a bridge here or there.”
In contrast to previous outputs from Manchester Orchestra and Devine, Bad Books cradles a much more noticeable pop aesthetic and energy than either artist has probably ever showcased before. Nowhere is this more evident than in songs like “You Wouldn’t Have To Ask” and “Holding Down the Laughter”.
Engineered by Robert McDowell (of Manchester Orchestra) with help from drummer Ben Homola, and mixed by Chris Bracco (of Devine’s ‘Goddamn Band’), Bad Books progressed in the most organic and natural way possible. Free from any boundaries or restrictions, Devine and Hull were able to craft a beautiful body of melodies, highlighting arcs of high and low throughout, and utilizing the stark imagery and storytelling for which both of them are known. “There was no governing framework,” Devine says: “No, ‘let’s write these kind of songs and say these kind of things’. We just wrote, arranged and played each song to its end, followed where it led, and I think it brought us both to some pretty unexpected places.”
For Devine, Hull, and the rest of Manchester Orchestra, choosing the direction of the road less travelled resulted in sonic harmonies and woven textures that meshed what these best friends do best. Some accidents were just meant to be.
Please Move
Bad Books Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I only think the truth unless it you
Don't move
I tried to be the best and there's no proof
Please move
Its a long time coming
A long time making you
I hope that it will get the best of
The key to the end of it all
I really hoped it would be okay
To save it for another day
For another day'
I hope you
Can take it slower than we are used to
Don't lose
Your hope in me if there is actually proof
Don't move
I'm a long time coming
A long time making you
I didn't know you wouldn't have
The key to the end of it all
Now I would make it to be okay
To save it for another day
For another day'
There's no use
It's a long time coming
A long time saving you
The lyrics to Bad Books's song "Please Move" are somewhat cryptic and open ended, but essentially seem to be about a failed relationship or a situation where two people are struggling to connect with one another. The opening line sets the tone, with the singer telling the other person not to move. This could be interpreted as a plea for them to stay in the relationship, or a warning not to take any actions that could damage the tenuous bond between them.
The next lines suggest a sense of failure or disappointment on the part of the singer. They say they "only think the truth unless it's you" - perhaps suggesting that they struggle to be honest with the other person for fear of hurting them or damaging the relationship. They also say they've "tried to be the best" but that there's no proof of their effort.
The chorus then repeats the phrase "please move" several times, which could be interpreted in a number of ways. Perhaps the singer is asking the other person to move on from the relationship, since they've clearly hit a rough patch. Alternatively, they could be asking for the other person to make some kind of affirmative gesture to show that they're still invested in the relationship.
Overall, the song seems to be about someone struggling to navigate the tricky waters of a relationship that feels like it's on the verge of collapse. They're honest about their own failings and unsure of what the future holds, and they're asking the other person to stick things out even as they both struggle to connect with one another.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't move
I hope you can be patient with me and not give up on us.
I only think the truth unless it you
I promise to always be honest with you, except when it comes to hurting you.
Don't move
Please don't leave me, even though I know I can be difficult to deal with.
I tried to be the best and there's no proof
I did my best to be a good partner, but I don't have any evidence to back that up.
Please move
We need to make progress in our relationship and move forward together.
Its a long time coming
We've been struggling for a while now and it's been a long time coming for us to work through our issues.
A long time making you
I've put a lot of effort into our relationship and I hope it's been worth it.
I hope that it will get the best of
I pray that we can overcome our past and work towards a better future.
And I didn't know you wouldn't have
I never expected you to not have the answer to our problems.
The key to the end of it all
The solution to our problems and the way to move forward together.
I really hoped it would be okay
I truly believed that everything would work out for us if we kept trying.
To save it for another day
Let's not give up on our relationship just yet, let's try again another day.
There's no use
It's pointless to give up on each other now, we've come too far.
It's a long time coming
We've been struggling for so long, let's not give up yet.
A long time saving you
I've been trying to save our relationship for a while now, and I won't give up on us yet.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: JOHN ANDREW HULL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind