Their music is a mix of hard rock styles. The band cites influences such as Rage Against The Machine, Foo Fighters, Incubus, The Smashing Pumpkins, and Nirvana.
Early on, vocalist Lacey Mosley began playing music with drummer James Culpepper. Later on guitarists Jared Hartmann and Sameer Bhattacharya were recruited. "Sameer and Jared are really experimental with melodies and pedals, and we all had different influences that were all blending together with the same passionate and hopeful heart, and that brought out this beautiful feeling. It was magical," said Mosley. When they were still playing as Listen, they played with bassists Josh C. and Jonathan B.. The bassist was replaced by Kirkpatrick Seals in 2002 after he left his previous band The Grove.
All five members of the band are of the Christian faith. This faith in Jesus influences their music, but lead singer Lacey Mosley doesn't necessarily believe that makes Flyleaf a strictly Christian band. "We all share the same faith. And so when we deal with the whole 'Christian band thing,' we kind of think about something P.O.D. says, like, 'If you're a Christian, it affects everything in your life. So if you're a plumber, does that make you a Christian plumber?'" Mosley said. "I don't know the answer. We're a band, it's part of who we are, so it comes out in our music, and it's the fuel for what we do. And finding Christ saved my life. So I'm not ashamed of it at all. And most of our album reflects that".
Flyleaf released a song "Cassie" that was about the shooting of Cassie Bernall and Rachel Scott. They were shot in the head after admiting they were Christian. This is just one example of how Flyleaf are touched by events and touch others through their music.
Flyleaf released their first full-length studio album, "Flyleaf", in October 2005. The album was re-released in United States in October 2007 along with their latest digital EP, "Much Like Falling", that was released onto the iTunes store. The re-released version of "Flyleaf" contains additional acoustic tracks.
On the 10th of November 2009, Flyleaf released their second album, called "Memento Mori". The album is a little less heavy than their debut album. Two songs that were released before the official release are "Beautiful Bride" and "Again".
Songfacts reports that their third album will be called "New Horizons". The title track premiered on 89X Radio on August 1, 2012, and will be released on iTunes on August 21, 2012.
On October the 22nd 2012, Lacey Sturm/Mosley declared that she was leaving Flyleaf and that the band was splitting up. This was only a week before their new album was due to be released (New Horizons - 30th October 2012).
On November 7, 2022, it was announced by Flyleaf that Sturm had returned to the band, with the band now calling themselves "Flyleaf with Lacey Sturm".
Official site: www.flyleafmusic.com
Swept Away
Flyleaf Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Out out out out out out out now now now now now
The evil fell from your pretty mouth
Wrapped in your classic voice
Angelic in your syntax, demonic in
Your motive your pretty eyes don't know
That the water flowing from this well isn't fresh
Confessing all that's broken and watch the healing come
Spread out your open hands
Admit you've held them shut
Turn all the way around
Be swept away by this.
Time for surrender
Spread out your open hands
And He will raise you up
Confessing all that's broken
And watch the healing come
Spread out your open hands
Admit you've held them shut
Be swept away by this
Your clothes are smooth and spotless
The air is putrid sewage downwind of
Your pressed church clothes
Your eyes are black and empty
Your deeds are just for showing how
Big and bright your fake smile glows
I see you moving and their getting scared
Their eyes are focusing on something else
Your staring at me and I stare at you
I rage against everything that you do.
See them surrender
Spread out your open hands
And he will raise you up
Confessing all that's broken
Look at the healing come
Spread out your open hands
Admit you've held them shut
Be swept away by this
I see you moving and their getting scared
Their eyes are focusing on something else
Your staring at me and I stare at you
I rage against everything that you do
Get this hell out out of my way
There's nothing more that you can say so
Get this hell out get this hell
Out out out of my way
Get this hell out get this hell
Out out out of my way
We spread our open hands
And he is rising up
Repairing all that broken
Look at the healing come
We spread our open hands
Forgiveness holds them up
We're swept away by this.
Out out out out out out
Now now now now now now
Out out out out out out
Now now now now now now
The lyrics of Flyleaf's song Swept Away describe a powerful message about the consequences of hypocrisy, the idea that our actions should match our words, that we should confess our faults and open our hands to receive healing. The song implies a sense of urgency urging people to purge themselves of evil and to let go of their pride in order to experience a transformative experience. The verses describe two main characters: the first is the hypocritical person who is putting up a faΓ§ade of righteousness while hiding their darkest intentions, using their βclassic voiceβ and βpretty eyesβ to camouflage their true nature. Meanwhile, the second character is the singer who begins to see through the hypocrisy of the other individual and feels the need to distance themselves from that personβs influence.
The chorus serves as a call to surrender, to confess your faults, and open your hands to receive healing, promising that only through complete surrender can we experience the transformative power of God's grace. The themes of confession and redemption resurface throughout the song, implying that no matter how far we stray from the path of righteousness, we can always find our way back by opening our hearts.
Line by Line Meaning
The evil fell from your pretty mouth
You speak of unpleasant things and cause harm with your words
Wrapped in your classic voice
You present yourself as traditional or conventional
Angelic in your syntax, demonic in
Your words sound beautiful but contain bad intentions
Your motive your pretty eyes don't know
You don't realize your own sinister intentions
That the water flowing from this well isn't fresh
You are not as good and pure as you make yourself out to be
Demolish all that sets you up against your rising up
Overcome obstacles and become a better person
Confessing all that's broken and watch the healing come
Admit your faults and experience growth and improvement
Spread out your open hands
Be open and accepting
Admit you've held them shut
Acknowledge and rectify your past mistakes and shortcomings
Turn all the way around
Make drastic changes to improve yourself
Be swept away by this
Experience transformative change for the better
Time for surrender
It's time to give up trying to control everything
And He will raise you up
A higher power will help you and give you strength
Your clothes are smooth and spotless
You present a facade of perfection and cleanliness
The air is putrid sewage downwind of
The environment around you is unpleasant
Your pressed church clothes
You are hypocritical and overly concerned with appearances
Your eyes are black and empty
You lack sincerity and genuine emotions
Your deeds are just for showing how Big and bright your fake smile glows
You only do good things to impress others and mask your true self
I see you moving and their getting scared
People see through your facade and are afraid of you
Their eyes are focusing on something else
Others are aware of your dishonesty and are no longer fooled by you
You're staring at me and I stare at you
I confront you and refuse to let you deceive me
I rage against everything that you do
I am angry at your deception and hypocrisy
See them surrender
Other people are giving up and succumbing to your negative influence
Forgiveness holds them up
Others are trying to be forgiving of your faults
We're swept away by this.
We are all affected by the negative energy you bring
Get this hell out out of my way
I want you to stop bringing negativity and bad energy into my life
There's nothing more that you can say so
You have already said everything that needed to be said
We spread our open hands
We are open and accepting
Repairing all that broken
We are working to fix and heal what has been damaged
Forgiveness holds them up
We believe in forgiveness and are trying to be forgiving
Lyrics Β© Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: SAMEER BHATTACHARYA, JAMES CULPEPPER, JARED HARTMANN, KIRKPATRICK SEALS, LACEY NICOLE STURM, MARK T. LEWIS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind