Borland states that Black Light Burns is the culmination of the various projects he has been working on ever since he quit Limp Bizkit in 2001. Things began with Big Dumb Face, a solo project that Borland had worked on during his time with Limp Bizkit. Borland didn't take the project too seriously, and used it to basically test the waters, and see how hard it would be to do something serious on his own, without the aid of his band mates. After he quit the band, he began working on several different projects. The first of which was supposed to be an instrumental album one could listen to and simply relax. Simultaneously, he began Eat The Day. With this project, he became cocky, and thought because of his previous success with Limp Bizkit, duplicating that success with a new band would be simple. Borland soon found out this wasn't the case. Eat The Day eventually unravelled itself, as, in Borland's words, "I think everybody involved in that project had different ideas about the direction that it should go". Borland became self-absorbed, and along with continuous pressure from the label, and struggles finding a lead singer for the band, the project eventually disbanded.
In terms of their lineup, the band is somewhat of a successor to the brief project The Damning Well, which consisted of mostly the same members. The main difference this time around being that Borland has taken vocals into his own hands, after many attempts to find a proper vocalist in various projects.
After the 'failure' of Borland's various projects, he returned to Limp Bizkit once again, turning down the spot as Nine Inch Nails touring guitar player. According to vocalist Fred Durst, Borland only agreed to return to the band on the condition that their label, Geffen, agreed to support his solo project, Black Light Burns.
It began only as a side project, with Borland writing many of the songs during his time off from Limp Bizkit, but soon things in Limp Bizkit became very quiet, and Borland himself stated that Black Light Burns was now his main project, and anything else he did, including Limp Bizkit, was a side project. Eventually arguments broke out on MySpace between Borland and Durst, and Borland left Limp Bizkit once again, although according to him, the band members had already gone their separate ways, he simply decided not to return.
The Black Light Burns song titled "I Have a Need" was instrumentally written to be included on the Limp Bizkit release The Unquestionable Truth (Part 1) in 2005, but was cut in order for the EP to remain mostly metal oriented. It features Limp Bizkit's bassist Sam Rivers on the track, and Wes was allowed to use the song for Black Light Burns when the song was turned down for use by Limp Bizkit.
On June 16, Borland announced that the band and Geffen Records had parted ways. There was little word in the following months over the situation regarding a new label, though as of October 25, the band is in negotiations with a label, and are hoping to release their debut album early 2007.
Borland has stated that he is the only constant in Black Light Burns, as the other members of the studio lineup are expected to be mostly unable to participate in touring with Black Light Burns, such as the notoriously busy Josh Freese.
The initial touring lineup of Black Light Burns includes Nick Annis (previously in Open Hand, Turn of the Screw) as a guitarist and Marshall Kilpatric (previously in The Esoteric) on drums, as well as Wes Borland himself.
Black Light Burns' first tour was previously set to begin in fall of 2006 with From First to Last, who Borland also plays bass for on and off. This tour was to feature Borland doing double duty as the singer/guitarist for Black Light Burns and then bassist for From First to Last afterwards. However, Sonny Moore (singer of FFTL) developed a node on his right vocal chord and has to get surgery, thus ending Wes Borland's current touring stint with From First To Last.
In late 2007-early 2008, after a scheduled break from touring for the their label to secure an overseas release of Cruel Melody, Black Light Burns announced plans for a covers album that also includes remixes and b-sides from Cruel Melody, and a DVD containing live and behind the scenes footage of the band. Artists PJ Harvey, INXS, The Jesus Lizard, Love and Rockets, The Swans, Fiona Apple, Lard, and Borland's own old side project Big Dumb Face will be covered for the release. The two discs will be released together in spring of 2008.
On March 30, 2008 Wes Borland made a post on the band's MySpace about how he filled in for the band X Japan and was "looking forward to coming home and getting back to work on the next BLB album", by which he means the second full length Black Light Burns album, due to the fact that their cover song album was already complete by that point in time.
As of August 2008, at the ETP Conference, it was announced that Borland is now the current Marilyn Manson tour guitarist.
Also Two new songs have appeared on http://www.myspace.com/wesleyborland. They are entitled Cats and Cats And Cats, B4Lf3r
Much like Nine Inch Nails, Black Light Burns consists of two entities, the studio band, and the live band. Some members of the band that recorded in the studio may not be able to tour with the band, and future live members might contribute to future CD releases, therefore lineup changes could occur. Borland did all of the vocals, guitar, and bass on the album.
Studio Line-up
1. Wes Borland - (previously in Limp Bizkit, Eat The Day, Big Dumb Face)
2. Danny Lohner - (previously in Nine Inch Nails, A Perfect Circle)
3. Josh Freese - (The Vandals, Nine Inch Nails, A Perfect Circle, many more)
4. Josh Eustis - (Telefon Tel Aviv)
When asked on Black Light Burns's MySpace if the studio band listed above would return for the band's second record, Wes Borland replied "Probably not. Marshall is the full time drummer for BLB now, but Danny Lohner may be returning for some input on the next record."
Live Line-up
1. Wes Borland - Vocals, Guitar
2. Marshall Kilpatric - Drums (previously in The Esoteric, Today is the Day)
3. Nick Annis - Guitar (previously in Open Hand, Turn Of The Screw, shortly played for Seether while on tour in Ozzfest)
4. Dennis Sanders Jr.-Bass
Wes Borland's MacBook Pro will be playing the keyboard or loops that the four above bandmembers can't/won't be playing live. According to Borland, Josh Eustis, who played keyboards and sound design on Cruel Melody, was supposed to join the live lineup, but opted to do production instead, leaving Borland to use his laptop to reproduce samples and keyboards live.
Grinning Like a Slit
Black Light Burns Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You can talk to the dead
You can run to the city lights
But it's all in your head
You can look to a stranger
But all you'll find is a wall
You can wish all you want
But no one answers at all
Goodbyes
They are flies
The rise from shit
And I was skinning
A new beginning
While you were grinning
Like a slit
You can try not to cry out
As you wake in the night
You can stare at the blackness
But it's taken your sight
You imagine a face there
That you can almost touch
You can reach all you want
But it's only a crutch
Goodbyes
They are flies
That rise from shit
And I was skinning
A new beginning
While you grinning
Like a slit
Where are you now?
Where is the crowd?
These sleeping streets
Are speaking aloud
And I couldn't recall
The feeling at all
The moment I realized I was going to fall
The lyrics of Black Light Burns’s song “Grinning Like a Slit” convey a sense of intense frustration and loneliness. The opening lines suggest a search for meaning and comfort from external sources, such as mountains, the dead, and city lights, but ultimately the singer finds that everything is within their own mind, and the world they inhabit is a lonely, difficult one. The use of the phrase “all in your head” highlights the theme of introspection, as the character realizes that they must look inward to find what they are searching for.
The second verse adds to this feeling of isolation and anxiety, with the singer waking from a nightmare and being unable to escape the darkness that seems to envelop them. The inclusion of the lines “you can imagine a face there/that you can almost touch, you can reach all you want/but it's only a crutch” emphasizes the idea that no matter how much the character tries to connect with others, they are ultimately alone.
The chorus of the song is an interesting contrast to the verses, as the repeated line “goodbyes, they are flies/that rise from shit” offers a sense of detachment and flippancy. However, this is undercut by the following lines of “and I was skinning/a new beginning/while you were grinning/like a slit,” which offer a more sinister and painful image. The final lines, “where are you now?/where is the crowd?/these sleeping streets/are speaking aloud/and I couldn't recall/the feeling at all/the moment I realized I was going to fall” offer a sense of finality and resignation, as the character accepts their isolation and inability to connect with others.
Line by Line Meaning
You can look to the mountain
You may seek higher power
You can talk to the dead
You may speak to spirits or the past
You can run to the city lights
You may seek refuge in a bustling city
But it's all in your head
But ultimately, it's all a mental construct
You can look to a stranger
You may seek solace in unfamiliar faces
But all you'll find is a wall
But you may encounter barriers to connecting with others
You can wish all you want
You may desire something fervently
But no one answers at all
But the universe remains silent to your pleas
Goodbyes
Parting ways with someone or something
They are flies
Like pesky insects
The rise from shit
Emerging from unpleasant situations
And I was skinning
But the artist was shedding their old skin
A new beginning
And embarking on a fresh start
While you were grinning
Meanwhile, someone else was pleased with the singer's troubles
Like a slit
With a twisted, sinister demeanor
You can try not to cry out
You may attempt to stifle your emotions
As you wake in the night
As you lay awake during the dark hours
You can stare at the blackness
You may fixate on the darkness that surrounds you
But it's taken your sight
But it has obscured your vision
You imagine a face there
You believe you perceive a visage
That you can almost touch
That you feel you could almost reach out and grasp
You can reach all you want
You may stretch as far as you can
But it's only a crutch
But it provides you with temporary support and comfort
Where are you now?
Where have your experiences led you?
Where is the crowd?
Where are the other people?
These sleeping streets
This quiet, deserted area
Are speaking aloud
Seem to be expressing themselves nonetheless
And I couldn't recall
The artist struggled to remember
The feeling at all
The sensation they had previously experienced
The moment I realized I was going to fall
When the singer recognized they were headed towards failure or ruin
Contributed by Aria O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.