Circa Survive is an alternative rock band consisting of Saosins current voc… Read Full Bio ↴Circa Survive is an alternative rock band consisting of Saosins current vocalist Anthony Green and members of the now-defunct This Day Forward, including guitarists Brendan Ekstrom and Colin Frangicetto. Compared to the sound of Green's former group, the music of Circa Survive taps a different musical influence for Green, who cites Paul Simon, dredg, and Björk among later artists who have more influence on his vocal stylings in Circa Survive which are comparatively less aggressive, as well as his songwriting.

After going back to his hometown of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA in 2004 for a dental appointment, Anthony Green went back to the airport to return to California and his Saosin mates. However, he suddenly had an epiphany - that despite the fact that Saosin was close to breaking out, he knew he would be miserable if he returned. To him, Saosin was "a girl that you had great sex with, yet had little in common with," as Green himself affectionately said. He returned to Colin Frangicetto, a friend who he had "jammed" with during his stay, and they decided to begin recording and recruiting. Thus, Circa Survive was born.

Colin Frangicetto and Anthony Green, with full support from Equal Vision Records, then recruited Brendan Ekstrom. Ekstrom had been Frangicetto's bandmate in This Day Forward. Both Ekstrom and Frangicetto had toured with Taken during their This Day Forward days, and procured Nick Beard, previous bassist of Taken, as Circa Survive's next member. The band met Steve Clifford through Vadim Taver of the band Marigold; "[Steve] jammed with us for a week and from there it was on," says Frangicetto.

To date, Circa Survive has released two versions of the song "Handshakes at Sunrise" on two different 2004 sampler discs from Equal Vision Records, as well as a 2005 limited edition tour EP called The Inuit Sessions. A full length album Juturna was released April 19th, 2005.

Circa Survive now has many national tours under their belt, including a co-headlining tour that took place in summer 2005. Circa Survive has also opened for Mae and Dredg on each of their headlining runs. Circa Survive played The Bamboozle Festival in New Jersey in 2005, and then played every year until 2008. They also played a few dates on The Van's Warped Tour in 2005 and completed a European tour with Coheed and Cambria and Thrice in 2006. Circa Survive has also toured with Thursday, Rise Against, Billy Talent, My Chemical Romance, Saves the Day and Moneen.

Circa Survive's first major headlining tour occured during the summer of 2006, with The Receiving End of Sirens, YouInSeries, and Days Away on the first leg of this tour. These bands dropped off on July 23rd. On July 25th, Portugal. The Man, and Keating joined the tour.

On Letting Go is the band's second album. It was released on May 29, 2007 by Equal Vision Records, the album debuted at number 24 on the U.S. Billboard 200, selling about 24,000 copies in its first week. The band headlined the Alternative Press Tour in Spring 2007, with, Cute Is What We Aim For, Envy on the Coast, and As Tall As Lions, headlined the 2007 Warped Tour, and did a headlining tour with Ours, Fear Before the March of Flames, and Dear and the Headlights in the fall.

After supporting Thrice and Pelican for their Spring 2008 tour, Circa Survive returned home to Philadelphia to write for the follow up record to On Letting Go. The band announced in August of 2009, after over a year of writing, that they were beginning the recording process, and that they had signed with Atlantic Records. The band frequently spoke of the new material as a brand new direction and, as Colin said, "our growth is evident in every note and rhythm I hear."

On February 16, 2010 they announced their new album would be titled "Blue Sky Noise", and would be released on April 20, 2010. The album debuted at #11 on the Billboard 200, and #1 on the Alternative Albums Chart.

Circa Survive's second EP, Appendage, was released on November 30, 2010. It contains five tracks: "Sleep Underground" (Demo), "Stare Like You'll Stay", "Everyway", "Backmask" and "Lazarus".

Circa Survive is planning to record their fourth LP between mid-March and May 2012 in California with former Failure frontman Ken Andrews (Mae, Pete Yorn) as producer. It is tentatively scheduled for release in late summer or early fall 2012 on Atlantic Records, with a U.S. tour to coincide with its release.

On April 16, 2012, Circa Survive began recording their fourth record. On March 5, 2012, Absolute Punk stated it would be titled "Violent Waves". On June 25th, 2012, Circa launched the Violent Waves Pre-Order webpage, officially announcing the album's title and release date, August 28th, 2012, along with a new song titled "Suitcase". The band also confirmed that the CD would be self-released.

Always Getting What You Want
Circa Survive Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Borders that we say are policing you back to their arms.
Tension to take pills that'll make you feel higher inside.
Do you often look back on us, feeling confidently.
Would it make any difference if I wasn't late.
Or I'd been angry to show.
The sovereign statement's wrong.
It's a bi-law and a valiant one.
To honor hopeful thoughts.

It's the talent, not the promo-shots.

Story has shown you all felt alone.
Even if... if the sound it makes when it's tightening,
sweet winding up of a mandolin hurts your fingers.
And if you try to hold on but it's not quite working.
This reminds me of the sound you make when we disagree.
Story has shown we all felt alone.

Even if you're not alone anymore.
Still we grow.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Circa Survive's "Always Getting What You Want" hints about the consequences of trying to conform to societal norms and expectations that limit one's personal growth and happiness. The opening line "Borders that we say are policing you back to their arms" can be interpreted as a reference to the imaginary limitations we set for ourselves that make us feel inadequate or incapable of reaching our fullest potential. The next lines talk about how we seek quick fixes, like taking pills or drugs, to feel better temporarily but do not address the underlying issues.

The following lines "Do you often look back on us, feeling confidently" show how people might seek validation from others, even those who may not have their best interests at heart. The singer then ponders whether things could be different if they had acted differently or sooner. The line "The sovereign statement's wrong" can be interpreted as a critique of those who try to control or manipulate others to serve their interests. The last few lines of the song emphasize the importance of embracing one's unique strengths, talents, and hopeful thoughts, rather than following the crowd.

Overall, the lyrics of "Always Getting What You Want" suggest the importance of breaking free from mental confines and trusting oneself to pursue a more fulfilling life.

Line by Line Meaning

Borders that we say are policing you back to their arms.
The restrictions we impose on ourselves are holding us back from finding comfort.

Tension to take pills that'll make you feel higher inside.
The pressure to fit in and find happiness may lead to turning to drugs.

Do you often look back on us, feeling confidently.
Do you often remember our relationship with assurance and positivity?

Would it make any difference if I wasn't late.
If I had arrived on time, would it have changed the outcome of our situation?

Or I'd been angry to show.
If I had expressed anger outwardly, would it have improved the situation?

The sovereign statement's wrong.
The absolute statement is incorrect.

It's a bi-law and a valiant one.
The rule is important but not the only way of doing things.

To honor hopeful thoughts.
To give respect to optimistic ideas.

It's the talent, not the promo-shots.
One's skills and abilities are more important than promotions and marketing.

Story has shown you all felt alone.
Narratives have revealed that everyone has experienced feelings of isolation.

Even if... if the sound it makes when it's tightening,
Even when things get difficult or uncomfortable,

sweet winding up of a mandolin hurts your fingers.
it's important to push through the pain for the beauty of the end result.

And if you try to hold on but it's not quite working.
If you're struggling to hang on to something, but it's not working despite your efforts,

This reminds me of the sound you make when we disagree.
It's reminiscent of the tension and discord that exists between us when we don't see eye to eye.

Story has shown we all felt alone.
Again, past accounts have demonstrated that we've all felt loneliness at some point.

Even if you're not alone anymore.
Even if you're not experiencing loneliness at the moment,

Still we grow.
We continue to evolve and mature regardless of our past experiences.

Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS