The band originated in the early 1990s as One Fell Swoop, but changed their name to Dispatch in 1996. Chad Urmston, Braddigan, and Pete (Francis) Heimbold, who were all attending Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont comprised the band's lineup throughout their entire career. Their music has drawn on several influences, such as acoustic folk-rock, reggae, and funk.
Dispatch gained much recognition outside of New England, without any help from a label, and stuck together long enough to release seven albums, three of which were live performances. During concerts, the band had been known to improvise upon their album releases, often resulting in a song ending in twice the length of the original. The group was also fond of switching instruments and vocal duties when playing live.
Upon the announcement of its break-up in 2002, the band scheduled one final concert. The free show was performed at the Hatch Shell in Boston on July 31, 2004. "The Last Dispatch," as it was referred, is said to be the largest concert in independent music history; roughly 110,000 fans from over 20 different countries attended the show. Parts of the performance were released as a CD/DVD two-disc set later that year, entitled All Points Bulletin, along with an earlier show in Somerville, Massachusetts.
All three of the band's members are currently still in the music industry. Urmston is now the frontman of State Radio, while Corrigan (now credited as Braddigan, a nickname by which he was known since his time with Dispatch) and Heimbold (now credited as Pete Francis, his middle name) are succesfully pursuing solo efforts.
After the song Elias, written by Urmston after his experience living and teaching in Zimbabwe, the "Elias Fund" was formed to send children from the ravaged country to college.
Dispatch came out with a movie entitled "Last Dispatch" in July 2005, which documents their final 12 days together as a band and tells the story of how they became "the band that redefined independent music history". The film was released and previewed in Boston. Chad, Brad, and Pete attended the showing and celebrated throughout the weekend with their fans.
On December 22, 2005, Corrigan helped to organize a benefit concert, known as the Relief Project, at Irving Plaza in New York, New York. Along with several other performers, Corrigan invited Heimbold and State Radio to play. The three reunited very briefly, playing the song Here We Go as an encore. Corrigan stated there that he plans further Relief Project concerts featuring all three and perhaps sometime in 2007, a major Dispatch reunion concert.
Entitled "Dispatch: Zimbabwe", Dispatch arranged for one show in Madison Square Garden, with all the money sent towards relief efforts in Zimbabwe. Originally billed as a one show deal on July 14, Dispatch was surprised how quickly this first show sold out and set two more shows for the 13 and 15. After all three shows sold out, Dispatch announced another smaller show on July 11th at Webster Hall in New York, where they made their comeback debut to great success.
Dispatch had a second set of reunion concerts beginning at Red Rocks amphitheater in Denver, Colorado on June 3, 4, and 5th, 2011. These performances launched a reunion tour around the US and the release of their Dispatch EP on May 17th.
In 2017, the band released the song, "Only The Wild Ones" from their album, America, Location 12.
Questioned Apocalypse
Dispatch Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
the bright light but she caught me from behind
and though I did not know and though I did not care
I could not tell that I was blind to think my world a bubble
and to think that my brother's was too
and that she had come
to shatter all that I knew
so I straightened up my back and I cry
[CHORUS]
take me now before I change my mind
take me now before I lose my mind
so I headed to the deep, deep forest
to catch my earnings
but my earnings were all up
my brother looks up at the sky and says
why have you poisoned my brother's cup
and I say don't you worry boy
cause the woman who came for me
will surely show you your bliss
for she holds the answers to all your fears she
questions the apocalypse
[CHORUS]
The lyrics of Dispatch's song "Questioned Apocalypse" are open to interpretation, but they seem to describe a moment of realization and surrender to fate. The singer goes to the drug store to "check [their] head against the bright light," which could be interpreted as a search for meaning or truth. However, before they can make any progress, they are "caught... from behind" by a woman who shatters their preconceptions about the world. This event causes the singer to acknowledge their blindness and the limitations of their worldview, which they believed was shared by their brother.
In response to this realization, the singer straightens up their back and cries, "do what you must do." This could be seen as an act of surrender to fate or a newfound resolve to face reality. The chorus repeats the phrase, "take me now before I change my mind," which could be interpreted in several ways. It could be a plea for the woman who "shattered" the singer's illusions to take them away before they change their mind about facing the truth, or it could be a call to action to seize the moment before it's too late.
The second verse revolves around the singer's attempt to find "earnings" in the forest, which seems to be a metaphor for searching for meaning or purpose. However, they find that their earnings are "all up," implying that their efforts are futile. The singer's brother then asks why the woman has "poisoned" the singer's cup, suggesting that the singer's newfound wisdom has come at a cost. The singer reassures their brother that the woman will show him "bliss" and has the answers to his fears, as she "questions the apocalypse." This could be interpreted as a call to embrace the unknown and face the end of the world with curiosity and openness.
Overall, "Questioned Apocalypse" seems to be a meditation on the limitations of our perceptions and the need to confront reality, even when it is painful or frightening. The song encourages listeners to embrace the unknown and to trust that there is meaning to be found in our struggles.
Line by Line Meaning
I went down to the drug store to check my head against
I went to the drug store to find some kind of mental relief.
the bright light but she caught me from behind
However, a woman surprised me from behind.
and though I did not know and though I did not care
I was initially unaware of her presence and didn't really pay attention to it.
I could not tell that I was blind to think my world a bubble
I failed to understand that my perception of the world was limited and narrow-minded.
and to think that my brother's was too
Moreover, I believed that my brother shared the same view.
and that she had come
But now, she arrived...
to shatter all that I knew
...to force me to face the uncomfortable truths I had been avoiding.
so I straightened up my back and I cry
I gathered up my courage and prepared myself for what was to come.
do what you must do
And I resigned myself to allowing things to unfold as they must.
take me now before I change my mind
Feeling overwhelmed, I begged to be taken away before it was too late.
take me now before I lose my mind
I feared that I might lose control and go insane if I stayed any longer.
so I headed to the deep, deep forest
Fleeing to a remote location in order to escape the chaos.
to catch my earnings
To retrieve whatever it was that I had been pursuing and had temporarily let go of.
but my earnings were all up
But when I got there, I realized that it was too late and my opportunity had passed me by.
my brother looks up at the sky and says
Later, my brother expressed his confusion and despair about the situation.
why have you poisoned my brother's cup
Wondering why I had been so terribly affected by what had occurred and why I appeared to be suffering as a result.
and I say don't you worry boy
In response, I try to reassure him and offer him some guidance.
cause the woman who came for me
I explain that the woman who had caused so much upheaval in our lives had also been an instrument in teaching us important lessons.
will surely show you your bliss
I encourage my brother to look at the bigger picture and find happiness despite the chaos and uncertainty.
for she holds the answers to all your fears she
In fact, the woman who had disrupted our world had been questioning us about our deepest fears, and through those questions, we could find the answers we had been searching for.
questions the apocalypse
She is forcing us to confront our own inner turmoil and fears about the end of the world or the end of the way things were. Only through questioning those fears can we be liberated from them.
take me now before I change my mind
Finally, the chorus repeats, as I continue to struggle to find a sense of stability and control amidst the chaos.
take me now before I lose my mind
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Bradley Joseph Corrigan, Chad Stokes Urmston, Peter Francis Heimbold
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Chigwe Sibanyama
I absolutely love this song 😍
STEllarwavEZ
A