The Chicago scene… Read Full Bio ↴Here is the story…the whole truth in its entirety.
The Chicago scene, in all of it’s incestuous nature, has offered all types of music and collaborations for as long as music has existed in this Windy City, and rather than honing in on the sonic traditions that have been oh so prominent among a vast array of punk rock and hardcore groups, Break the Silence has ideas of their own to express. Substituting tradition and repetition with reinvention, the band has been most commonly accepted as an embodiment of originality.
Forming from the ashes of a handful of Chicago bands such as 88 Fingers Louie, SKG, All Else Fails, Mike, and Every Light Red, the members have all had different ideas to bring to the creative table and help shape the unique sound that Break the Silence has continued to deliver.
I guess it really started with All Else Fails recruiting Dan Precision as guitarist (Mr. Precision had worked with AEF frontman Andy Lareau before in a melodic hardcore group called Nice Guys Finish Last).
Shortly after Precision was recruited, Lareau decided to leave the band. Brian Phee, Jay Gronwick, Mike Ford, and Dan Precision were all left back at square one.
Taking everything as opportunity rather than failure, the boys decided to form a new group, under a new name, with a new sound. They decided to name the project Break the Silence, and began extensively writing music…still in search of a voice to tie everything together.
Meanwhile, 19-year-old Dan Wintercorn had musical wheels turning as well. He had been writing songs on his own for a solo project, which was later to expand into melodocore group Every Light Red. Later, while attending Warped Tour ’02, Wintercorn came across a flyer for vocal auditions for BTS. Since options with ELR were quite limited, he decided to pass along an early demo of some of the ELR songs to them, and immediately caught their interest.
At that exact moment, Wintercorn had spent every free minute writing lyrics to the demo that was given to him by Gronwick, and completed 3 songs (which were later to be named ‘Close My Eyes’, ‘Forgiven, Not Forgotten’, and ‘Iris’) to audition with.
When the audition took place, the band was taken aback by the fact that Wintercorn was laying these intense screams of this pristine melodic hardcore, yet accompanied it with melodic vocals all at the same time. This fashion has been commonplace for Wintercorn’s style, but seemed relatively foreign to the BTS boys, so needless to say, at first the band as a whole were quite indifferent, but still quite impressed.
After 3 auditions and 2 demo sessions with BTS, Wintercorn was asked to be the vocalist of Break the Silence, and the band as a whole was born. Now began the intense writing, until about 1 month later, when they finally put together enough music to perform on November 7th, 2002 with Fall Out Boy, Much the Same, Belvedere, and Near Miss. The band was received with seemingly open arms, but realized that they were still a work in progress.
As time went on, BTS stayed in creative mode for the next few months, playing a few sporadic Chicago area shows in between, and made plans to begin recording their debut “Near Life Experience” in early February 2003. During the final steps of the recording process, BTS was invited by Hopeless/SubCity Records to fill an open slot in the highly anticipated SXSW (South by Southwest) Music Festival that takes place every year in Austin, TX. Without hesitation, the band seized the opportunity immediately and put recoding on hold for that weekend. This would prove to be the best career move the band has made to this day.
BTS immmediatley clicked with the good people at Hopeless/SubCity, impressed them with a heartfelt and intense performance for SXSW, and stayed in contact. About 3 weeks later, they were offered to join the Hopeless roster.
Since then, the band has been up and coming worldwide, due to the hard work of the people at Hopeless and the bandmates themselves. The band took the golden opportunity to perform on the first week of the Vans Warped Tour ’03 over the summer, shared the stage back home at Metro with melodic hardcore giants Rise Against (in which Precision was a founding member until 2001) and in Autumn were featured on the Vans Off the Wall tour with hardcore legends Sick Of it All, Boston street punk veterans The Unseen, the mighty Avenged Sevenfold, and other great bands such as Western Waste and Sworn Enemy. Since then, the band has released their debut full length titled “Near Life Experience” in Feb 2004 and supported that with nationwide touring. The band also returned as sophomores to the 2004 10th Anniversary Warped Tour for 21 dates.
As of right now, the band is continuing to tour extensively, as well as craft and rehearse new material. They plan to tour nationally & worldwide (including the UK, Europe, and Canada), and wrap up the year with recording the new material for their second album for Hopeless Records.
Close My Eyes
Break The Silence Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The lyrics to Break The Silence's song Close My Eyes are an expression of gratitude and appreciation for the unwavering support of a loved one. The songwriter portrays their newfound sense of clarity and optimism as a result of the support received from this person. The lines "finding light through all the darkness" and "the fire inside still burns completely" indicate a sense of renewed hope and passion that has been ignited by this person's presence in their life. Further, the repeated refrain of "When I close my eyes, I can feel that you're still here with me" emphasizes the depth of connection that the two share, even when physically separated.
The songwriter also acknowledges the struggles that they have gone through, and the importance of having someone who is there to lift them up during difficult times. This is highlighted in the lines "Falling down, rising up so many of these times, to provide the strength through everything" and "Position for reaction, you're here by my side, and you're living on wherever everyone else died". The metaphor of falling and rising up suggests the cyclical nature of life's challenges, and the need for a constant source of support to get through them.
Overall, Close My Eyes is a heartfelt tribute to the power of love and companionship, and the role that they can play in overcoming life's obstacles.
Line by Line Meaning
These days I'm coming clean, finding light through all the darkness.
I am being honest and open about my struggles, and I am finding hope even in difficult times.
You're here supporting me, always faithful, always shining.
You are my source of support and encouragement, and you always show up for me.
Our time, our energy is locked inside our hearts forever.
The bond between us is strong and enduring, and we will always hold a special place in each other's hearts.
What we need to be free is ourselves, our unity.
We can only find true freedom and happiness by being true to ourselves and staying united.
When I close my eyes, I can feel that you're still here with me. As my heart beats on, the fire inside still burns completely.
Even when we are physically apart, I still feel your presence and our connection remains strong.
When it all unfolds, when it all goes down, it reassures me loud and clear that you are around.
In moments of chaos or uncertainty, the thought of you brings me comfort and hope.
Falling down, rising up so many of these times, to provide the strength through everything, the truth: it never dies.
We have been through many ups and downs together, but our bond and the truth of our connection remain unbreakable.
And, even if it's not forever, you've strengthened my life. For who you are and what you mean, I know I can confide.
Even if our time together is limited, the impact you have had on my life is immense and I trust you completely.
Your honesty keeps healing me from all of those who lied.
Your honesty and transparency are the antidote to the hurt caused by those who have lied or betrayed me.
Falling down, rising up so many of these times, gives me strength. Position for reaction, you're here by my side, and you're living on wherever everyoneâ?¦where everyone else died.
Our resilience in the face of adversity is a testament to our strength, and I am grateful to have you by my side no matter what happens.
There's three words I will say for those times you gave me my life.
I am forever grateful to you for the times when you have literally saved my life.
When I close my eyes, I can feel that you're still here with me. As my heart beats on.
Even when we are physically apart, I know that our connection remains strong and that you are with me.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Walter Afanasieff, Mariah Carey
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind