Dinosaur Pile-Up formed after Matt Bigland's old band Mother Vulpine split up back in 2007. Matt had been creating songs used for Dinosaur Pile-Up whilst he was in Mother Vulpine. Matt recorded a demo tape consisting of the songs "My Rock 'n' Roll", "Love Is a Boat and We're Sinking", "Melanin", "Let's Get Up", "What Howard Said" and "I Get My Direction" whilst he was still in Mother Vulpine. A short time later, after Mother Vulpine broke up, Matt recruited Tom Dunford on bass and Steve Wilson on drums to complete the line up.
Matt Bigland has said he thought of the name 'Dinosaur Pile-Up' after watching the 2005 film King Kong. Matt Bigland has said in an interview; "I watched the remake of King Kong. Which was pretty bad! It was ages ago, before this band, or even the idea of this band ever existed. Anyway, there was this part in it where this stampede of dinosaurs, the front one is shot in the leg or something, and it trips up, and then all these huge dinosaurs trip up, roll down this hill, and it just ends up in this massive pile up, and everything in between them survives. I thought it was ridiculous, and as a joke I said, I have to start a band called Dinosaur Pile-Up.
Dinosaur Pile-Up then released My Rock 'n' Roll EP in late 2008 and the Traynor 7" and The Most Powerful EP in the Universe in 2009. Also in 2009, they played on the BBC introducing stage at Leeds Festival and were invited on tour with alternative rock group Pixies on their European tour. Then in 2010, Tom Dunford and Steve Wilson left the band. Steve Wilson joined the band Japanese Voyeurs (whom Dinosaur Pile-Up would later tour with on the Rock Sound Exposure Tour alongside The Xcerts), and Tom Dornford-May joined the punk rock band Fake Death. This meant that Matt would have to bring in new members Harry Johns (formerly of Old Romantic Killer Band) on bass and backing vocals and Mike Sheils on drums. Matt Bigland then went into the studio to record Dinosaur Pile-Up's debut album Growing Pains.
The recording of Growing Pains took place between late 2009 and early 2010 in the space of about two and a half months. Growing Pains was recorded solely by Matt Bigland playing all the parts on the album in a home studio in Bridlington. After the release of Growing Pains in October 2010, Dinosaur Pile-Up began a full UK tour, also playing in the rock exposure tour and various dates across Mexico, as well as supporting slots with bands such as Feeder, Cage the Elephant, Turbowolf and Twin Atlantic. By August 2011, the band had finished their tour and are set to record their follow up album due to be released at the beginning of 2012. On December 1, they uploaded to their SoundCloud and Facebook accounts demos of two tracks, "In My Room" and "Thread", which are said to be featured on the up-coming album.
In November 2011, Matt Bigland posted on the Dinosaur Pile-Up website that Harry Johns had left the band to concentrate on his solo project and that two people known as Alessio and Scott were filling in on bass and second guitar. Also, On March 8, 2012, Japanese Voyeurs had announced their breakup and said on their Facebook that their bassist Johnny Seymour had joined Dinosaur Pile-Up. Matt Bigland has also said he's currently in the studio recording the second album and will be recording every instrument on the record as he did on Growing Pains.
Start Again
Dinosaur Pile-Up Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
nothing matters anyway, does it?
i don't know 'cause maybe i've been losing my mind
maybe i've been dreaming and i'm racing my time
maybe i'm a dead-end road, would i?
worse or better
stay together
on and on it's hard to start again
start again
i don't wanna
start again
start again
mysteries tearing
you are by the histories changing
always and for ever was a myth
i don't know 'cause maybe i've been losing my mind
maybe i've been dreaming and i'm racing my time
maybe i'm a dead-end road, would i?
worse or better
stay together
on and on it's hard to start again
start again
start again
i don't wanna
start again
start again
worthless gesture
priceless treasure
wait forever
i can't _ this
the better it gets and the worse it hurts
and, on and on it's hard to start again
start again
start again
hey
start again
start again
yeah, i don't wanna
start again
start again
yeah, i don't wanna
start again
start again
i don't wanna
The lyrics of Dinosaur Pile-Up's "Start Again" portray a sense of hopelessness and confusion that stem from the singer's past experiences. The line "memories turning into cemeteries in your head" describes the weight that negative memories can carry and how they can ultimately weigh a person down. The lyric "nothing matters anyway, does it?" indicates a feeling of nihilism and maybe even depression that results from this weight.
The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "start again" several times, emphasizing the difficulty of resetting one's life and making a fresh start. The lines "maybe i'm a dead-end road, would i? worse or better stay together" paint a picture of someone who may feel like they've reached a dead end, but they're not sure if they should stay in that place or move forward. The singer might also be questioning whether taking a different path will make their life better or worse.
The final line of the song, "I don't wanna start again" shows a reluctance to leave the past behind. This line suggests that even though the singer may feel lost, they are not quite ready to move on.
Line by Line Meaning
memories turning into cemeteries in your head
Your memories are turning into painful reminders of loss and death, which are consuming your thoughts.
nothing matters anyway, does it?
You feel like nothing in life really matters or has any significance.
i don't know 'cause maybe i've been losing my mind
You're unsure if your mental state is deteriorating, leading you to question your own judgment.
maybe i've been dreaming and i'm racing my time
You could be living in a dream state, feeling like you're running out of time to accomplish your goals.
maybe i'm a dead-end road, would i?
You're possibly stuck in a rut or headed down a path with no future, causing you to question your choices.
worse or better
stay together
You're not sure if things will improve or worsen, but you want to continue to push through and stick together.
on and on it's hard to start again
start again
start again
i don't wanna
start again
start again
It's difficult to move on and start over, as you've experienced setbacks and challenges, and you don't want to face them again.
mysteries tearing
you are by the histories changing
You're struggling to understand and come to terms with the changes in your life that have led to uncertainty and confusion.
always and for ever was a myth
The idea of things lasting forever is just a fantasy, and you're coming to grips with the reality that life is unpredictable and constantly changing.
worthless gesture
priceless treasure
Actions that seem insignificant may hold great value, while something valuable to you may not matter to others.
wait forever
i can't _ this
You feel like you're stuck in limbo and can't wait forever for things to change, but you're not sure how to move forward.
the better it gets and the worse it hurts
and, on and on it's hard to start again
start again
start again
hey
start again
start again
yeah, i don't wanna
start again
start again
yeah, i don't wanna
The more progress you make, the more it hurts when things go wrong, making it hard to start again. You don't want to relive the pain of failure and setbacks, and it's a struggle to push through and keep trying.
i don't wanna
You don't want to keep going through the cycle of disappointment and frustration, but you're not sure how to break free from it.
Writer(s): Harry Johns, Mike Sheils, Matthew Bigland
Contributed by Isaiah T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.