Taking Barker from blink-182 and David Kennedy they recorded their self-titled album, "Box Car Racer", in 2002. On the album Tom did all the bass work, but Anthony Celestino was their touring bass player. Guests on the album included Mark Hoppus from blink-182, Tim Armstrong from Rancid and also Jordan Pundik from New Found Glory.
Tom and Travis claim the band was heavily influenced by Dischord Emo, citing influences such as Rites of Spring, Fugazi and later era post hardcore bands such as Quicksand.
Box Car Racer took a hiatus after their headlining tour in 2003. Tom has stated publicly that Box Car Racer is now defunct and will never reunite. Their website was taken off the Internet in late March 2005 and has since been put back online. Many people speculated that Tom's new project was going to be a new Box Car Racer album when he initially announced that he was working on a new album but those rumors were dismissed after the announcement of +44 and Angels & Airwaves. But now blink-182 is back - and touring!
Origin of Name
The band's name comes from the B-29 Bomber which dropped the second atomic bomb (to be used in warfare) on the Japanese city of Nagasaki. The plane's name was "Bockscar". Tom has said in an interview that he has seen the name misspelled as "Boxcar".
Members
Tom DeLonge - Vocals, Guitar (blink-182, Angels & Airwaves)
Travis Barker - Drums (blink-182, +44, The Transplants, The Aquabats)
David Kennedy - Guitar (Over My Dead Body, Hazen Street, Angels & Airwaves)
Anthony Celestino - Bass (Over My Dead Body)
Cat
Box Car Racer Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I fell down again
But I can't complain
Another false step
Could drive me insane
I only got myself here to blame
So I shake off defeat and I start again
Oh no I said
But I can't win the shit
And I'm gonna stay on track
Yeah, make a deal like that
I keep my head up
But I never react
I wrote it down a list a month ago
Sixteen chapters of one thing you've blown
The best thing yet
To help you through and through
That she was
I feel her more than you
Don't leave
Don't leave her
I get up just to get knocked back down
I sit up just to get knocked around
I wanna say something
But your out of town
I don't wanna have another show down
I say stand up (hey, yo)
Lets make it clear follow you home (no)
You were not there you saw him comin' (jump)
You disappear
Oh no everything seems so clear
You think you see me here all along
Got my crew comin' now
One by one
Two by two
Three by three
Four by four
Lets do some more
Call me back when word is that she's gone
Cat like thief she stole air from my lungs
Leave me standing on this lonely grave
I dug it out in case she turns away
Don't leave (don't leave her)
Don't leave her (don't leave her)
Don't leave (don't leave her)
Don't leave her (don't leave her)
You think you seen it
All along got my crew comin'
One by one
Two by two
Three by three
Four by four
Lets do some more
Don't leave (don't leave her)
Don't leave her (don't leave her)
Don't leave
Don't leave her
Don't leave
Don't leave her
Don't leave
The lyrics of Box Car Racer's "Cat Like Thief" are about heartbreak and the struggle to move on. The singer acknowledges his mistakes that led to the heartbreak but refuses to give up. He talks about his attempts to stand up and move forward, only to be knocked back down repeatedly. However, he refuses to react negatively and keeps his head up. The singer mentions a list he wrote a month ago, containing sixteen chapters of things that remind him of the person who broke his heart. He acknowledges that she was the best thing to happen to him but still feels the pain of her absence. The chorus talks about not wanting her to leave and how she stole the air from his lungs, leaving him standing on a lonely grave that he dug out in case she turns away.
Line by Line Meaning
I fell down again
I made a mistake again
But I can't complain
I can't make excuses for my mistakes
Another false step
Another mistake
Could drive me insane
It's frustrating and could make me lose my mind
I only got myself here to blame
I'm responsible for my own mistakes
So I shake off defeat and I start again
I don't give up, I try again
Oh no I said
I'm disappointed
I wanna go back
I want to change the past
But I can't win the shit
But it's not possible to change it
And I'm gonna stay on track
So I'll keep moving forward
Yeah, make a deal like that
That's how I choose to handle the situation
I keep my head up
I stay positive
But I never react
I don't let it get to me
I wrote it down a list a month ago
I made a list a month ago
Sixteen chapters of one thing you've blown
I wrote sixteen chapters about how you messed up
The best thing yet
The best solution
To help you through and through
To help you completely
That she was
That's what she did
I feel her more than you
I feel the pain more than you do
Don't leave
Don't abandon her
Don't leave her
Don't abandon her
I get up just to get knocked back down
I keep trying, but I keep failing
I sit up just to get knocked around
Even when I recover, I still face obstacles
I wanna say something
I want to speak my mind
But your out of town
But you're not here
I don't wanna have another show down
I don't want to have another argument
I say stand up (hey, yo)
I say let's face this (hey, yo)
Lets make it clear follow you home (no)
Let's be sure you have a safe way home (no)
You were not there you saw him comin' (jump)
You weren't there, but you knew what was coming (jump)
You disappear
You left
Oh no everything seems so clear
Now it all makes sense
You think you see me here all along
You've always thought you knew me
Got my crew comin' now
I've got my friends coming
One by one
One after another
Two by two
Two after two
Three by three
Three after three
Four by four
Four after four
Lets do some more
Let's keep going
Call me back when word is that she's gone
Let me know when she's gone
Cat like thief she stole air from my lungs
Like a cat stealing prey, she took my breath away
Leave me standing on this lonely grave
Leave me alone to deal with my pain
I dug it out in case she turns away
I prepared myself for her rejection
Don't leave
Don't abandon her
Don't leave her
Don't abandon her
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Tim Armstrong, Tom De Longe, Travis Barker
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind