Chokebore released their debut single Nobody/Throats and their first full-length Motionless later that year. Their changing tempos and moody outbursts were unlike many other Amrep bands at the time, but their more furious and quicker paced moments aligned themselves just enough. They toured with Guzzard and Today Is The Day as well as with other more well-known likeminded bands, including the Butthole Surfers, Samiam, Girls Against Boys and Nirvana.
They earned a strong following in Europe, in support of 1995's Anything Near Water and A Taste For Bitters, which were recorded and engineered in France. 1998s Black Black, was a portrait of the band's darker side; lonliness, depression, death and sadness recurring themes. This LP is widely accepted in the rock underground to be a true masterpiece. The album was released on AmRep's European Boomba Records, but wasn't released stateside for another year, finally finding a home on Unwound's Punk In My Vitamins label.
The band released It's a Miracle in 2002, which saw the band slightly less concerned with strict-cohesion of the aethetics and some songs were looser than on past releases (i.e. Ciao L.A. is perhaps the most straightforward 'rock' track the band has ever put to tape). The live album A Part From Life was released in 2003 and the band went on an indefinite hiatus in 2005. The singer/guitar player Troy recorded a solo album and it was released in early 2006.
Chokebore came together late 2009 after several years a part for a European tour early in 2010.
Prior members
Johnee Kop (1993 - 1995)
Mike Featherson (1997 - 1999)
Official Website: http://www.chokebore.net
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Weightless
Chokebore Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
"Weightless" by Chokebore is a cryptic and introspective song that delves into the complexities and contradictions of human emotions. The opening lines, "Since I stood you on your head and told you, you don't know the way I feel and you don't see the things I see," seem to set the tone for a conversation between two people who are struggling to understand each other's perspectives. The singer admits to feeling alone and misunderstood, while acknowledging their own deceptive tendencies. The lyrics then shift to a metaphorical description of the singer's emotional state - "shaking weightless like a sparrow bone" - suggesting a feeling of instability and vulnerability.
The chorus of the song is particularly intriguing, as it seems to convey a sense of despair and hopelessness. The lines "But water's a lie and I am a liar / Can you see this yet?" suggest a reflection on the ways in which we can deceive ourselves and others, and raise questions about the meaning of truth and authenticity. The following lines, "I was born and bred hard as stone / Smooth like kerosene aching and soaking wet," offer a glimpse into the singer's inner struggles and the conflicting emotions that they experience. The song concludes with an appeal to the listener to show some form of emotion or resistance - "a little screaming to keep me in line" - which hints at the singer's longing for connection and validation.
Line by Line Meaning
Since I stood you on your head and told you you don't know the way I feel and you don't see the things I see.
I made you realize that you don't understand me or my perspective, and you can't relate to what I'm feeling or experiencing.
Well, you've been walking home alone and shaking weightless like a sparrow bone.
You've been feeling lost and alone, isolated and fragile like a small, lightweight bird.
You know my mind is like water and I'm silver like eels and I am better left all alone.
My thoughts and emotions are fluid, unpredictable and elusive like water, and I'm slippery and hard to pin down like eels. It's best for everyone if I keep to myself.
But water's a lie and I am a liar can you see this yet?
Even though I try to appear calm and collected like water, it's all a facade. And I'm also deceiving myself and others with my false persona.
I was born and bred hard as stone smooth like kerosene aching and soaking wet.
I've always been tough and unyielding like a rock, but I also have a slick, dangerous side like flammable liquid. And I'm constantly racked with pain and emotional turmoil.
Gasoline night time, silver eyes promise you thousands of sour lies, grey like eels.
In the dark, I become even more unstable and hazardous, like gasoline. And I'll make false pledges with my shiny, deceitful eyes, like the untrustworthy nature of eels.
Since I stood you on your head and told you, you don't know the way I feel and you don't see the things I see.
I keep reminding you that you can't understand me fully and that we're not on the same wavelength.
Well I've been watching your eyes for some sign of betrayal, a certain courage I thought you might find, a little curl of your lips, a little shudder of a wing a little screaming to keep me in line.
I'm constantly suspicious of you and waiting for you to show signs of defiance or rebellion. I'm hoping to see some hint of your true nature or your willingness to rebel against me.
Contributed by Annabelle P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.