BRAND NEW VIDEO FOR On A Whim… Read Full Bio ↴http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uu7IZ1R7DWk
BRAND NEW VIDEO FOR On A Whim
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FLYING MACHINES
Self-Titled Debut album
Release Date: September 8, 2009 William Ryan George - vocals, keyboards
John Wlaysewski - guitar, vocals
Evan Joyce - bass
Ken Weisbach - drums
“Flying Machines invite you to buckle in for an engine-revving plunge toward melodic euphoria. Enjoy the in-flight movie, wherein the young hero finds out that life is not the destination but the journey, and that the road to hell is paved with good intonations.”
– John Wlaysewki, guitarist, Flying Machines
Flying Machines are that rare breed: A fresh-sounding New York band whose smarts and cleverness don’t interfere with their capital ‘R’ rock. A lineup whose gifted singer-keyboardist is influenced by Ben Folds and Freddy Mercury, while the Zeppelin-loving, Fender-playing guitarist is unafraid to go to 11…and shred on solos. They’re anchored by a “hyper-creative” rhythm section who keep Flying Machines from soaring out of the stratosphere. On their self-titled debut for Meteor 17/EMI, Flying Machines’ timeless, classic-sounding modern rock is musically precocious, but never precious. As band co-founder John Wlaysewski notes, “We mesh my abrasive rock guitar and William’s beautiful singer-songwritery thing. He brings the beauty, I bring the rock. We’re not a garage band, and but we always try to keep a little of that mentality so we don’t pick things apart to the nth degree. Like all my guitars on the album were done in one take.” The result is a kinetic record that encompasses the theatrical, surreal and dramatic. From the first single, the irresistible, irrepressible pop gem “On A Whim” to the pure emotion of the carefully crafted “I Don’t Remember Why” to the soaring melody and guitar lines of “Hopelessly Alone,” Flying Machines are that rare rock band who are at once taut, dynamic and sublime.
Produced by Spencer Proffer and Steve Plunkett with production contributions on three songs by Mickey Petralia and mixed by Grammy Award-winner Tom Weir (No Doubt, Weezer, Tom Morello), Flying Machines’10 ultra-musical, intensely emotional songs, straight from the life of one William Ryan George. George grew up in Fresno, California, where he started singing in third grade, then acted and sang in dinner theatre before moving to NYC at 18, inspired by idol Billy Joel. As a writer, George notes, “I’ve had a lot of dark situations, and can talk about them afterwards in a therapeutic way for me, and hopefully it makes sense to someone else.” His father’s death is addressed in the edgy, insistent, reggae-tinged, “Talk About It,” while the jittery, dynamic “Gina, Don’t Call Me” is equally personal, if obfuscated. “Every song has to be autobiographical, or else it doesn’t feel right.”
Flying Machines have been together since 2006, though George, Wlaysewski and drummer Ken Weisbach met through a previous band. As the guitarist recalls, “When I heard William sing, I said, ‘that’s the band I want to be in.’ He sounds like Keane meets Freddie Mercury. He has a voice that can change lives. I’m honored to be working with him. We’re all spoiled: Ken takes an intellectual approach to music and loves Stewart Copeland and Neil Peart, while Evan Joyce (who drove from Boston and slept in Central Park before his audition for the band!) is a multi-instrumentalist who is incredibly creative. But Flying Machines is about the big picture; whatever you’re great at is what you do in this band.”
The quartet’s prodigious talent and unique approach did not go unnoticed for long. In addition to landing music on USA Networks’ Psych promos, and a lauded win in Converse’s “Get Out of The Garage” music contest, in 2008, Yahoo Music gave Flying Machines a “test flight” to gauge consumer reaction. “On a Whim” received 500,000 BDS spins in three months, becoming the #1 most-played song on Yahoo Music’s “Who’s Next” radio station for three weeks running.
But it’s not numbers and stats that concern Flying Machines. It’s the place where music meets mystery. Take Flying Machines’ album artwork. “As a kid, I picked out music at the store based on the album cover,” remembers Wlaysewski. “Our cover kinda looks like an old Cat Stevens album, or an early Genesis cover with a bit of Alice Through the Looking Glass. Music is mystery and imagination; it’s another language, yet everyone understands it--rhythm and melody are universal. So in the store, I was like, ‘which cover made me feel like there was something dangerous or mysterious behind it?’”Flying Machines' entire graphic tapestry was designed by artiste Hugh Syme, who has years of award-winning covers behind him for Rush, The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Geffen Records, and over 30 packages for Proffer’s productions through the years.
In keeping with the band's highly creative and cohesive approach, George’s songs are compelling and pop-y musically, but with more somber lyrical underpinnings. “Like ‘On A Whim,’ people think it’s happy, but has a dark overtone. It’s a co-dependent sort of thing.” The song was written on the streets of New York, literally, “in summer, sitting outside my friend’s hair salon, on a stoop, with a bass guitar on lap,” says George. “A girl I’d liked in high school had called and said she was moving to NY… and was thinking about Abbey Road and Paul McCartney or something jumpy like ELO. My piano had been stolen, so at Guitar Center, I sat down and wrote all the lyrics while the employees there hovered over me, trying to sell me stuff.”
While Flying Machines makes an instant impact, there’s much below the surface. Wlaysewski likens their debut CD to an iceberg, where much of its mass and beauty is underwater. “Ninety percent of what’s on this record is actually below the surface—so each listen reveals more.” Live, too, Flying Machines have grandiose goals, already in motion thanks to tons of gigging and touring. “Our mission to bring back a real live show. An experience, but without being a jam band.” Plus, they’re okay with complimentary comparisons to bands like Muse, Ben Folds, The Strokes and Queen. “Everything exists. We’re not the first band to put G-D-C together,” concludes Wlaysewski. “It’s who you are that makes the song, not the chords. We just have to get past the filters.” And they do—full of sonic textures, imagination and invention, Flying Machines is a debut that marks the start of something breathtakingly formidable.
Open Up
Flying Machines Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I can't believe you'd waste your time
Go, go back home you little simpleton
I can't believe you're in my life,
Go, go back home you silly little fool
I'm sure you'll find a way to live.
Cause you never were the kind to beg or plead
Open up to me, open up.
Open up to me, open up.
Go, go back home you silly little waste
Of everybody's heart in cage
I hate to have to be the one to tell you
You ain't getting your cash back
So go, go back home you cunning little thief
I ain't got time for you no more.
So go, go back home you stinkin' little trick
I'm sick of pulling teeth of yours.
Open up to me, open up.
Open up to me, open up.
Open up to me, open up.
Go, go back home you silly little waste
Of everybody's well spent time
No, I don't need to look out for you
I'm sure your simple life is suiting you just fine
So go, go back home you little self-righteous thing,
I'm sure you see I've gotten wise
So go, get the hell out of my town
I can't believe it took you all of this time for you to
Open up to me, open up.
(I need you just...)
Open up to me, open up.
(I need you to just...I can't wait anymore time)
Open up to me, open up.
(I need you to just...I can't wait anymore time)
Open up to me, open up.
(Come on babe)
Open up to me, open up.
(Come on baby)
Open up to me, open up.
(Come on baby)
The lyrics of Flying Machines' song "Open Up" tell the story of a relationship that has gone sour, with the singer urging their partner to "go back home" and leave them alone. The partner is referred to as a "silly little girl" and "simpleton," with the singer expressing disbelief that they ever got involved with this person in the first place. The partner is accused of being a beggar, a thief, and a trick, with the singer expressing anger and frustration at their behavior. Despite all of this, the singer still seems to want the partner to "open up" to them, perhaps hoping that the relationship can be salvaged.
One possible interpretation of this song is that it is about a toxic relationship in which one partner is emotionally abusive and manipulative towards the other. The repeated refrain of "open up to me" may be an attempt by the singer to get the victim to reveal their feelings and vulnerabilities, which the abusive partner can then use against them. The language used throughout the song is harsh and belittling, with the singer using derogatory terms to insult and demean their partner. Ultimately, the song suggests that the relationship is doomed, with the partner being advised to "go back home" and find happiness elsewhere.
Line by Line Meaning
Go, go back home you silly little girl
You are a foolish girl, go back to your home
I can't believe you'd waste your time
I can't believe you have wasted my time
Cause you never were the kind to beg or plead
As you have never begged or pleaded before, how dare you ask me to forget what you have done
Open up to me, open up.
Reveal your true self and your feelings to me
Of everybody's heart in cage
You have been keeping everybody's hearts in bondage
Go, go back home you cunning little thief
You are a sly thief, go back to your house
So go, go back home you stinkin' little trick
You are a dirty trick, go back to your home
No, I don't need to look out for you
I don't need to take care of you
I'm sure your simple life is suiting you just fine
I'm sure your plain and basic life is working for you
So go, get the hell out of my town
So, leave my town immediately
I can't believe it took you all of this time for you to
I can't believe you have taken all this time to finally
Come on baby
Please respond and show your true self to me
Contributed by Emily C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Apis4
Buzzing a building was the attraction... or in some cases, flying THROUGH a large Barn... as D Smith pointed out, hence the term Barnstorming. The crashing thing... well I suspect that was just something gun-ho daredevils who got their hands on surplus WWI planes cheap, came up with. It was an attraction, staged, definitely, but not by the same 'Devil May Care' flyers that did that other stuff, I would just about guarantee.
The guys who took others up to wing walk, or parachute, or did the 'Barnstorming'.... developed some very deep attachments to their planes quite often, had them painted with lary custom colours, sometimes added small art pieces here and there like some kind of aeronautical 'tattoos'... and gave them sentimental, or cool, names.
Many were also WWI fighter pilots themselves, and the planes they flew were not just of the type they flew in the war, but not uncommonly THET VERY PLANE they flew, or the last one, since life expectancy for planes was not much better than for pilots in WWI, so it was not uncommon to find that even if a pilot survived an accident, his plane did NOT, so one might find oneself having gone through two or three planes by the time one got out, through attrition, even if not through updating the arsenal with better machines... which also happened a lot.
When those men left the service, at least those at the end of the war, they oft found that their air force was literally selling of excess planes for pennies on he dollar, or shillings on the pound, or whatever the currency may be, and many made an offer on their ACTUAL planes.... and got to buy them.....sans weapons, hardpoints, and some military grade flight equipment.
Those dudes werent crashing them in to barns for yokels at some boonies fair.... but there were a LOT of planes... and it was MUCH easier to fly them, so I suspect a lot of other high risk fellas, guys doing board-track racing, or walls of death on motorbikes, or guys doing fire walks, or tightrope ones etc etc.... would have no qualms in it. I imagine some once saw one of the aforementioned Barnstormers going for a near miss and not missing.... and had light bulb moment, figuring that could work as the show itself, if they made a special house or barn, and flew the plane slow and low enough.
Robert Huffer
Even though a lot of their designs failed, you really have to admire and respect the creativity and bravery of these early aviation pioneers.
MrYport
ahh yes pioneers in aviation 8:55
Desert Wolf
And their sheer stupidity for not doing the math and testing models. Now that's genius!
Blue-Apple
@Desert Wolf Geez, you are very mean.
Smith Jones
The fact that some of the more spectacular crashes seem to have left the pilots to tell the tale is amazing in itself.
LCF FLC
today they all would have died, this people were different.
Robbie McKenzie
IKR
angel cartagena
@LCF FLC main reason these contractions didn’t work, steel balls are to heavy. Respect to all.
Malcolm N. Pearson
Staged crashes. Flying into buildings at shows was a big attraction.
🌸Feline Spine🌸
some of these inventions are pepega