Although Brighten has been playing together for nine years, they only formed a band in 2004. In high school, they went by the name Sincerely Me, though after high school, due to minor conflict, they changed their name to Brighten.
They independently released their debut EP, Ready When You Are, on November 9, 2005. The EP was extremely well-received by critics, and has since sold out.
In 2006, Victory Records sued Carbon Copy Media, and in the resulting turn of events Brighten's debut album, King vs. Queen, could not be released. After selling a 9-track version independently at their concerts, Brighten discovered in March 2007 that the album had in fact been released.
Brighten have played with many other bands such as; Hawthorne Heights. From First to Last, Taking Back Sunday, Number One Gun, The Junior Varsity, Lydia, Waking Ashland, Eisley, This Holiday Life, This Providence, Cute Is What We Aim For, Eisley, and All Time Low.
Brighten is represented by Tim Kirch and Tanner Radcliffe at Sound The Music Management.
In 2008 the bands drummer Jimmy raised enough money to travel to Africa and minister African children. On July 8th, he formally resigned on the Brighten myspace. A month later, Brighten announced that Ben Spear (ex Parade The Day) and Austin Gibbs would play with Alex and Justin on the upcoming tour.
In 2009 Justin helped record an album with the band A Rocket to the Moon. A Rocket to the Moon announced that Justin would be the band's official guitarist. Justin is going to play in both bands. Brighten is scheduled to record a new album summer of 2009.
They have finished recording a new album in March 2011 and it was released late 2012, named Peace and Quiet.
Swing
Brighten Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I'm not attracted to alcoholic veins
The way you love your cigarette more than me
Is driving me insane
I hate my eyes for loving you
You're not worth love
So lust is what I'll blame
Do you think of me at night?
The way I make it even colder,
And send shivers down your spine?
The truth is never easy here,
Its time, no lies,
Make up your mind
I've got my lions den
It's there to put you in
Don't say that your sick,
That your sick of it
And think that you can get away,
Get away with it
Your heart is nothing,
Are you ready to give in?
Don't say that your sick,
That your sick of it
And think that you can get away,
Get away with it
You know that I can't love you but
I'm dying just to keep you alive
HA!
Your single mind sees truth and happiness
With wedding rings of gold
My double vision sees unhappiness
While you're lonely and getting old
I can't swing your heart from loving something
I can't even see
I can live with only oxygen
But oxygen can't live with me
I've got my lions den
It's there to put you in
Don't say that your sick,
That your sick of it
And think that you can get away,
Get away with it
Your heart is nothing,
Are you ready to give in?
Don't say that your sick,
That your sick of it
And think that you can get away,
Get away with it
You know that I can't love you but
I'm dying just to keep you alive
I know you're desperate
Don't get too desperate
To get it wrong
We're so far along
I know you can't handle it
My hands can't handle it for very long
If we're right or wrong
I don't know
I've got my lions den
It's there to put you in
Don't say that your sick,
That your sick of it
And think that you can get away,
Get away with it
Your heart is nothing,
Are you ready to give in?
Don't say that your sick,
That your sick of it
And think that you can get away,
Get away with it
I've got my lions den
It's there to put you in
Don't say that your sick,
That your sick of it
And think that you can get away,
Get away with it
The Brighten song "SWING" is a complex love ballad with a tinge of bitterness and anger. The song is about a person who is in love with someone who is not good for them, but they cannot help themselves. The singer is fully aware of the flaws of their lover, who is an alcoholic and does not prioritize them over cigarettes. They acknowledge that loving the other person is not worth it, and so they resort to lust instead. However, despite this realization, the singer still longs for their lover but knows that they cannot love them.
The chorus "I've got my lion's den, it's there to put you in" is a metaphor for the singer's protective nature towards their lover, with lions representing danger and the den representing safety. The singer tries to convince their lover that they cannot get away with their behavior, and they need to make a decision about their relationship. The song ends with the singer becoming desperate and questioning the longevity of their relationship.
Overall, "SWING" is a song that captures the pain of loving someone who is wrong for you and trying to protect them while also recognizing the need to let them go.
Line by Line Meaning
You've got that kiss of death
Your presence is harmful and off-putting
And I'm not attracted to alcoholic veins
I am not attracted to someone who has addiction issues
The way you love your cigarette more than me
Your prioritization of smoking over our relationship is maddening
Is driving me insane
It's making me go crazy
I hate my eyes for loving you
I am ashamed that I still have feelings for you
You're not worth love
You do not deserve love
So lust is what I'll blame
I will blame my physical attraction to you as the reason I feel this way
Oh I am dark and I am scary
I am a person who is intimidating and unpredictable
Do you think of me at night?
Do you ever think about me before going to bed?
The way I make it even colder,
The way I create an atmosphere that is even more unwelcome
And send shivers down your spine?
Does it make you feel uneasy?
The truth is never easy here,
The truth is difficult to accept
Its time, no lies,
It is now time to be honest
Make up your mind
Decide what you want
I've got my lions den
I have created a space where I can be safe from you
It's there to put you in
It's there to protect me from you
Don't say that your sick,
Do not claim to be tired of this situation
That your sick of it
That you dislike it and want to leave
And think that you can get away,
And believe that you can escape from this
Get away with it
Get away with leaving
Your heart is nothing,
Your emotions are irrelevant
Are you ready to give in?
Are you ready to surrender to me?
You know that I can't love you but
You are aware that I cannot love you
I'm dying just to keep you alive
I am struggling to hold onto you, despite knowing it's futile
Your single mind sees truth and happiness
You believe that truth and happiness can be achieved through monogamy
With wedding rings of gold
Through the symbol of marriage
My double vision sees unhappiness
I believe that monogamy will only lead to sadness and failure
While you're lonely and getting old
While you are alone and aging
I can't swing your heart from loving something
I cannot change your desire to be in a monogamous relationship
I can't even see
I do not understand
I can live with only oxygen
I do not need much in life
But oxygen can't live with me
But even the necessities of life cannot coexist with me
I know you're desperate
I understand that you are in need of something
Don't get too desperate
Don't become too obsessed or needy over it
To get it wrong
To make a mistake
We're so far along
We are both too invested in this to back out now
My hands can't handle it for very long
I am not capable of handling this for much longer
If we're right or wrong
Whether or not our actions are justified
I don't know
I am uncertain about it
Contributed by Addison D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.