Cause & Effect is an electronic fusion of cleverly crafted pop arrangements against a backdrop of layered synth textures and acoustic rhythmic flourishes. Intelligent, thought provoking lyrics and pleading melodies embedded in lush sonic soundscapes that are sure to captivate the senses of even the most discriminating listener. Cause & Effectās Rob Rowe (co-founder) and Keith Milo return with their fifth studio album, āARTIFICIAL CONSTRUCT.ā
After developing and perfecting their own brand of electronic pop for nearly two decades, āARTIFICIAL CONSTRUCTā marks a new level of maturity songwriting, and new way of thinking about how music is released and sold. Breaking with tradition, āARTIFICIAL CONSTRUCTā has been designed as a three-part series to be released as individual EPās over the course of 2010 and 2011, rather than a conventional ten to twelve-song album release.
āWe wanted to try a new way of putting out our music this time around,ā says Milo. āThere are no rules anymore. The digital age has turned the entire industry on its head and itās made us all rethink things. Are we artificially constructing an album by releasing it in āparts,ā or is the 12 song album as weāve come to know it just an ARTIFICIAL CONSTRUCT?
Led off by the deeply contagious first single āHAPPY?ā where Miloās sleek electronic bed of synth driven melodies lay the foundation for Roweās silky smooth vocals and sardonic lyrical content. āEverybodyās happy dreaming of the future,ā Rowe croons seductively in a tale about finding a sense of purpose and meaning in the mundane mediocrity of corporate life. And while āHAPPYā bridges the gap sonically between previous C+E albums, it also sets the tone for the rest of the EPās emotionally charged tracks which range in style from the electro-acoustic loverās ballad āView of the Sea,ā to the nostalgic teenage New Romantic anthem āThis Is who I Am,ā to the dark and brooding closer āSleep,ā which tells a deeply honest and emotional tale of love lost.
. . . . . (HAPPY?- DIRTY 8VA Remix can be downloaded for FREE at Cause and Effectās Official Website.)
āThereās a bit of everything we love in there,ā says Rowe. āWeāve never easily fit into a specific genre and that gives us the freedom to always blur the lines while being true to our roots. We can put a song like āHAPPY?ā right next to a song like āView of the Seaā and it still feels cohesive. It still sounds like C+E.ā
Cause & Effect was originally formed in Sacramento, California in 1988 by Robert Rowe and Sean Rowley. Their debut album, Another Minute, stormed onto the music scene in the early 1990ās scoring two top ten dance-pop singles and a Billboard top 20 singles hit with āYou Think You Know Her.ā After the tragic loss of friend, writing partner and co-founding member Sean Rowley in late 1992, singer Rowe took a step back to re-evaluate the bandās direction and the hopes he had for the future.
āPerforming the tribute to Sean at the KROQ Acoustic Christmas Show in LA was a turning point,ā explains Rowe, āThe overwhelming support from the fans and audience made me realize that giving up just wasnāt an option.ā
Determined to pick up the pieces and move forward, Rowe called upon Keith Milo, an Orange County-based electronic musician and friend to finish the remaining leg of the tour with himself and drummer Rich Shepherd (the Adored).
Although that initial tour was plagued with equipment malfunctions, thefts and travel mishaps, it was to become the start of a new beginning for C+E. Upon returning home, Rowe and Milo quickly went to work writing new material and redefining the sound of Cause and Effect.
āComing in to Cause and Effect after Seanās death was a scary thing to do,ā says Milo, āthere was so much uncertainty. Sean was a genius with melody, he was irreplaceable. I think there was solace in the fact that we became a very different band at that point and we all felt that we were doing the right thing by continuing on.ā
Six months later, the three found themselves in London recording the bandās critically acclaimed sophomore album āTripā with producer Martyn Phillips (best known for his work with Beloved, Erasure, and Jesus Jones).
A seamless integration of Roweās evocative vocals and economical guitar, Miloās melodic soundscapes and Shepherdās inventive percussion, āTripā was an āaffirmation of life and hope.ā The aptly named album documents the bandās journey towards self-discovery that they made in the London flat they shared, in the studio, and in underground dance clubs they frequented between recording sessions. In addition to receiving overwhelming critical praise, the album spawned the thundering cross-over club hit, āItās Over Now,ā which respectively climbed to the #7 spot on Billboardās modern rock charts and was C+Eās fourth release to make it onto the Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart.
Despite the success of the āTripā album, Cause and Effectās label Zoo Entertainment was in severe financial turmoil as a result of growing too quickly. After parent company BMG MUSIC pulled funding and distribution, the indie-run label soon folded. Rather than look for another major label contract, the band built their first Web site, formed the label, Liquefaction Records, and decided to embrace the digital DIY world brought about by the explosion of the Internet.
A year later saw the release of āINNERMOST STATION," the bandās third album. Nine extraordinary, introspective tracks including the epic single āWorld is Ours,ā which instantly became a favorite amongst many of their adoring fans and college radio programmers alike. Soon after the recording of āINNERMOST STATIONā was completed, drummer Richard Shepherd amicably left the band to pursue personal interests.
Meeting up at Miloās LA studio for āTHE SUNRISE EPā sessions marked the second major musical turning point for C+E. Sonically inspired by the laid back loungy grooves of the underground, āTHE SUNRISE EPāsā lead single āInto the Lightā went on to become the bandās fifth single to chart in the Billboard Club charts reaching the #20 spot in Summer 2004. The EP also featured the acoustic-driven āStay,ā which has become a fan favorite. C+E toured throughout 2004 in support of āTHE SUNRISE EPā playing in 23 cities across the US and South America.
2010, todayās Cause and Effect are brimming with a renewed vigor and a surging confidence. In addition to the newly released āARTIFICIAL CONSTRUCT PART ONE,ā the duo is hard at work on the follow-up releases, āARTIFICIAL CONSTRUCT PART TWOā is slated for release 26 July, 2011; and āARTIFICIAL CONSTRUCT PART THREEā is to be released at a later date, with shows beginning soon after. The first track from AC2, Happiness Is Alien from was released on July 8th, 2011.
Cause and Effect is: ROB ROWE and KEITH MILO
DISCOGRAPHY: )
ā¢ Cause & Effect - CD Album (1990; Nastymix Records / Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ What Do You See - CD Single (1990, Re-Release 1992; Nastymix Records / Exile Records / Sedona Recording Company / Zoo Entertainment / BMG Music / Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ You Think You Know Her - CD Single (1990, Re-Release 1991; Nastymix Records / Exile Records / Sedona Recording Company / Zoo Entertainment / BMG Music / Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Another Minute - Album (1991; Sedona Recording Company / Zoo Entertainment / BMG Music / Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Another Minute (Single) - CD Single (1992; Sedona Recording Company / Zoo Entertainment / BMG Music / Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ South Paw: Zoo's Left Wing '93 - Compilation [C+Eās āhollowā] (1993; Zoo Entertainment / BMG Music)
ā¢ It's Over Now - CD Single (1994; Zoo Entertainment / BMG Music / Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Alone - Label Promo Only (1994; Zoo Entertainment / BMG Music / Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Inside Out - Label Promo Only (1994; Zoo Entertainment / BMG Music / Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ TRIP - Album (1994; Zoo Entertainment / BMG Music / Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Innermost Station - Album (1997, Re-Release 1999; Liquefaction Records / Jarrett Records)
ā¢ World Is Ours - Digital Single (1999; Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ World Is Ours V2 - Digital Single (1999; Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ The Sunrise EP (2003; Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Into The Light Remixes - EP (2004; Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Cause & Effect - Album Digital (Re-Release 2010; Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Happy? (Dirty 8VA Mix) FREE Single - Digital Single (2010; Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Artificial Construct Part One - EP (April 2010; Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Artificial Construct Part Two - EP (July 2011; Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Artificial Construct Part Three - EP (tbd 2011; Liquefaction Records)
ā¢ Artificial Construct - Album (tbd 2011; Liquefaction Records)
Digital Albums are available for purchase at Cause and Effectās Official Website.
OFFICIAL WEBSITES:
http://www.causeandeffect.com
http://causeandeffect.bandcamp.com
http://www.facebook.com/CauseAndEffectMusic
http://www.twitter.com/_causeandeffect
http://www.youtube.com/causeandeffectmusic
http://www.myspace.com/causeandeffectmusic
http://www.reverbnation.com/causeandeffectmusic
http://soundcloud.com/causeandeffectmusic
http://www.last.fm/music/+noredirect/Cause+and+Effect
http://www.last.fm/music/Cause%2B%2526%2BEffect
Unholy Day
Cause & Effect Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You're screaming, they're going to crucify all of you
In daylight, see the whites of their eyes
Tomorrow, you'll be saying all your goodbyes
BRIDGE
Every day it's just the same
All they do is point the blame
Nothing left to do but pray
On this unholy day
On this unholy day
On this unholy day
On this unholy day
Lying, all their money goes straight to you
You're screaming, in the end comes back to you
In Heaven listen through your disguise
Tomorrow, you'll be repeating all of your lies
BRIDGE
CHORUS
On this unholy day (you're looking for a way in, you're gonna pay for it)
On this unholy day (you're looking for a way in, you're gonna pay for it)
On this unholy day (you're looking for a way in, you're gonna pay for it)
On this unholy day (you're looking for a way in, you're gonna pay for it)
Money knew the soul I seek
Unholy things I can't believe
BRIDGE
CHORUS
CHORUS
CHORUS
The lyrics of Cause & Effect's song Unholy Day convey the feeling of being trapped and persecuted, with the fear of impending doom and the weight of guilt. The first lines talk about how the singer feels singled out for blame and punishment, screaming in protest against the injustice of it all. The second verse shifts the focus to a sense of deceit, with the singer accused of lying and benefiting from others' loss, yet still trying to hide behind a mask. Both verses culminate in the same line about the inevitable prospect of facing the consequences the next day, with no hope for salvation.
The bridge provides a momentary respite, with the singer reflecting on the futility of their struggles against an unfair world and their dwindling faith. The sentiment of being abandoned and desperate is reinforced by the fact that the only recourse seems to be prayer. As the chorus kicks in, the urgency and dread reach their peak, with the ominous warning that seeking a way in will only lead to paying the price.
Overall, the lyrics present a bleak picture of the human condition, where the struggle for power and survival results in a fall from grace and a loss of integrity. The use of religious references and metaphors adds to the sense of moral decay and judgment, creating a haunting and evocative mood.
Line by Line Meaning
Brave one, you feel it's all out to you
You feel responsible for everything and must be brave to face it.
You're screaming, they're going to crucify all of you
You're afraid of being punished for something, and you're not alone in that fear.
In daylight, see the whites of their eyes
You can see the true intentions of people when there is nothing to hide behind.
Tomorrow, you'll be saying all your goodbyes
You might not survive the coming conflict.
Every day it's just the same
Life is monotonous and unchanging.
All they do is point the blame
People always try to blame others for their problems.
And all my faith is pushed away
You struggle to hold on to your beliefs amidst the chaos.
Nothing left to do but pray
Your only hope is divine intervention.
Lying, all their money goes straight to you
You are accused of taking money you didn't earn through dishonest means.
You're screaming, in the end comes back to you
The consequences of your actions will eventually catch up to you.
In Heaven listen through your disguise
You can't lie to God, who can see through any deception.
Tomorrow, you'll be repeating all of your lies
Your dishonesty will continue to cause problems in the future.
On this unholy day
The day is cursed and filled with darkness.
Money knew the soul I seek
You are searching for something that can't be bought or sold.
Unholy things I can't believe
You are witnessing things that go against your morals and beliefs.
you're looking for a way in, you're gonna pay for it
You are seeking a way to escape, but the consequences for your actions will be severe.
CHORUS
The repetition of the chorus emphasizes the difficult and desperate nature of the situation.
Contributed by Cameron C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.