Formed in 2001 a year after the break-up of The Swarm aka Knee Deep in the Dead (three members' previous band), the founding lineup was originally split between different parts of Quebec and Ontario, Canada, but (following Moumneh's sudden move home to Lebanon), shifted to Toronto and Hamilton. Known for their trademark nihilistic and dystopian lyrical themes, stark classic horror imagery and loud, abrasive live shows, the band have toured worldwide and released records on Boston's Deathwish Inc, Ontario's Goodfellow Records, Syracuse's Hex Records and Providence's Trash Art. Cursed's debut One made immediate impact in their scene and garnered wide cult support. It was followed up with Cursed Two, and the picture-disc EP Blackout at Sunrise in between, in the same year that also saw a release of a 180gr vinyl only gatefold reissue of 2003's "I" on the Providence RI label Trash Art. In 2007 they finished up their third LP, III: Architects of Troubled Sleep, which was released in 2008 through Goodfellow Records in North America, Howling Bull in Japan and in Europe through Dutch label Reflections. "III" was produced at Toronto's Hallamusic studio, mixed by long-time friend and collaborator Donny Cooper, and mastered by Alan Douches at WestWestSide (NJ), with cover art by Baroness' John Dyer Baizley. For its release, as opposed to the international touring they had come to spend a lot of time doing, the band played six weekends of strictly Southern Ontario DIY shows in as many houses, basements, record stores, bedrooms and Anarchist / DIY spaces as possible. The official Toronto release show was at a sold out Lee's Palace, with friends Fiftywatthead, Career Suicide and Living Darkness.
On May 22, 2008, singer Chris Colohan announced on the band's blog that the band had been robbed on the last morning of their European tour, losing their passports, all of their money and tour expenses in the night, from within a purportedly secure building in a German squat. The band had reportedly gone their separate ways and were finished. Colohan described the robbery from within their own community as a "bullet in the head" for the band. For certain members, the band's hectic final show at Bitterzoet in Amsterdam would be the last they would ever see each other.
M.Maxymuik subsequently joined the band Quest for Fire and was a touring drummer for Pink Mountaintops. D.Dunham continued to play in Crux of Aux, and more recently in the bands Skull and Limitoids. C.Colohan continues to tour and play in Burning Love and Mature Situations, and run the vinyl-only High Anxiety label. Colohan, as stated in an interview, has written several unreleased books, Other Peoples' Girlfriends (2002) and Nine Lives (2011). He does photography and music related graphic design for his own and friends' bands on the side of his musical endeavors, and he works on the production end of live music in Toronto as one of several jobs. R.Moumneh went on to open Hotel 2 Tango recording studio in Montreal's Mile End with partners from Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Constellation Records. He still works as a producer, engineer and co-owner of the studio, teaches production technique and is involved in various film and installation art projects, as well as his own ongoing performance art project "Jerusalem in My Heart".
Colohan released the band's final UK radio session (their last recording) as a 7" EP on High Anxiety. Deathwish Inc is currently in the process of reissuing Cursed I on LP. There has long been word of a comprehensive box set covering all 3 LPs, all 3 EPs plus the demo and unreleased songs, which was caught up in copyright ownership issues and has remained a mystery since. Also, there may yet be a Cursed DVD mainly of the footage of the final tour (and the disintegration and last moments of the band), as well as various interviews and live videos from 2001-2008.
Chris Colohan - Vocals
Christian McMaster - Guitar
Dan Dunham - Bass
Mike Maxymuik - Drums
• Cursed Demo Recording (Self-Released, 2002)
• One LP (Deathwish Inc., 2003)
• Hell Comes Home EP (Hex Records, 2004)
• Two LP (Goodfellow Records, 2005)
• Blackout at Sunrise EP (Goodfellow Records, 2007)
• III: Architects of Troubled Sleep LP (Goodfellow Records, 2008)
• The Last Session EP (High Anxiety, 2010)
Music Videos: Fatalist (2006)
http://yourfuckingfuneral.blogspot.ru/
R.I.P
Cursed Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I said I'd never be the kind so stuck in glory days they forget to let dead bury their own.
So what is this that's trying to slow me down?
Feels like the dead weight of all our broken promises
And every stillborn declaration carried too far too long.
I remember the songs the saved me.
And the words that came so easy.
And it never even crossed our minds the words could ever be wrong.
All that confidence wasted on the young.
We tapped that vein and bled it dry.
Now nothing fits (yeah but what ever did?)
We always thought that we had time.
To let the dead bury their own.
We always thought that we had time.
The lyrics to Cursed’s song “R.I.P” explore the themes of burning out, broken promises, and nostalgia for the past. The first stanza describes the singer’s resistance to becoming someone who is stuck in their past, only able to remember their glory days without moving forward. However, the singer feels weighed down by the broken promises and declarations they’ve made in the past, as if they are carrying the dead weight of their own failures with them. This creates a feeling of being slowed down and unable to move on from the past.
In the second stanza, the singer reflects on the music and words that inspired them in their youth. They remember the confidence they had in those days and the sense of purpose and direction that came with it. However, looking back, the singer realizes that they didn’t consider the possibility that those words could be wrong. The third stanza speaks to the way that youth can be wasted on misplaced confidence; the singer compares it to tapping a vein and bleeding it dry. They acknowledge that nothing seems to fit anymore, and that everything they thought they had time for has slipped away.
The chorus of the song is a repetition of the phrase “We always thought that we had time,” which ties together the theme of nostalgia and regret. The singer seems to be mourning for the opportunities that have passed them by, recognizing that they can’t go back and do things differently. In the final lines of the song, the singer emphasizes the need to “let the dead bury their own,” suggesting that it’s time to leave the past behind and move on.
Overall, the lyrics to “R.I.P” are a reflection on the consequences of living in the past and the importance of letting go of old dreams and failed promises. It’s a sobering reminder that time waits for no one, and that we must both live in the present and let go of the past in order to move forward.
Interesting Facts:
1) "R.I.P" is the opening track on Cursed's third and final album, "III: Architects of Troubled Sleep", which was released in 2008.
2) Cursed was a hardcore punk band from Canada, active from 2001 to 2008. They were known for their intense and chaotic live performances.
3) The lyrics to "R.I.P" were written by Cursed's vocalist, Chris Colohan.
4) The song was produced by Jon Drew, who has also worked with other Canadian bands such as Fucked Up and Tokyo Police Club.
5) In an interview with Exclaim! magazine, Chris Colohan described "R.I.P" as "a culmination of just feeling really disillusioned and destroyed about everything, and feeling like you're letting down everything that matters to you."
6) The album "III: Architects of Troubled Sleep" was met with critical acclaim upon its release, and is often considered one of Cursed's best works.
7) The band members of Cursed went on to form or join other bands after the group disbanded, such as Burning Love, KEN Mode, and Career Suicide.
8) One of the band's most notable live performances was at The Organ Project in Toronto in 2007, which raised money for organ donor awareness.
9) "R.I.P" has been covered by other bands, such as Finnish hardcore punk band Slave Hands, who released a cover of the song in 2018.
10) The chords for "R.I.P" are not readily available, as the song features complex guitar riffs and rhythms that are difficult to transcribe. However, guitarists have created their own versions of the song by ear and posted them online.
Line by Line Meaning
Crash course in burning out
Fast-paced destruction of oneself
I said I'd never be the kind so stuck in glory days they forget to let dead bury their own.
I promised to not cling onto past success and let go of old memories.
So what is this that's trying to slow me down?
What is holding me back from moving forward?
Feels like the dead weight of all our broken promises
The burden of our unfulfilled pledges is dragging me down.
And every stillborn declaration carried too far too long.
All the promises that were never executed and prolonged for too long.
I remember the songs the saved me.
I recall the melodies that brought me solace in the past.
And the words that came so easy.
The effortless phrases that used to come to me naturally.
And the pulpits that sprang up beneath our feet.
The platforms we used to preach from, which elevated us.
And it never even crossed our minds the words could ever be wrong.
We never doubted our words could be incorrect.
All that confidence wasted on the young.
We squandered our self-assurance in our youth.
We tapped that vein and bled it dry.
We exhausted all resources and ideas.
Now nothing fits (yeah but what ever did?)
Now nothing seems to work (but it never truly did).
We always thought that we had time.
We continually believed that there was endless time.
To let the dead bury their own.
To allow the past to be settled and forgotten.
We always thought that we had time.
We continually believed that there was endless time.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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