History
Formation and It's Our Time (2001–2006)
Rise or Die Trying, Explains It All (2006–2009)
The band's 2007 release Rise or Die Trying with I Surrender Records peaked at number 31 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart in its debut week. On the back of their increasing popularity, the band was signed to Decaydance Records in February 2008.
On July 21, 2009, Four Year Strong released an album of covers from the 1990s, titled Explains It All. The album features guest appearances from Keith Buckley of Every Time I Die, Travis McCoy of Gym Class Heroes, and JR and Buddy of Less Than Jake. The band explained their reasoning behind the album in a MySpace blog, saying "It’s what we grew up listening to. Everyone has those songs that instantly transport you back to when you were younger. Whether we were in our bedrooms playing air guitar, or riding in the car to little league practice, or it was just that song that was all over the radio during that awesome summer at the Cape. These songs have impacted us in some way and we want to share that feeling with you."
Enemy of the World (2010)
The band's 3rd full-length album, Enemy of the World, was released on March 9, 2010 on Universal Motown Records. The band released the album's first single, "It Must Really Suck to Be Four Year Strong Right Now", on December 21, 2009. The name of the song is a reference to the final sentence of a review in Alternative Press in which the magazine praised Set Your Goals' new album while remarking on the future of Four Year Strong and how their record would compare. The vinyl record was made available to pre-order on March 2, 2010. The album sold 12,400 copies in its first week, debuting at number 40 on the Billboard 200.
On April 3, 2011, it was announced that Josh Lyford would be leaving the band. Initially, it was implied that Lyford had chosen to leave in order to focus on his side project, Foxfires. However, it was later confirmed by both Lyford and Alan Day, that the band had elected to remove synthesizers from their sound leaving no room for Lyford to continue. The band has said they will continue as a four piece.
In Some Way, Shape or Form (2011–present)
On April 13, 2011, in an interview with Alternative Press, the band revealed that they had been in the middle of recording their fourth studio album with producer David Bendeth in New Jersey's House of Loud. The band is set to return to the studio, without Josh Lyford, to finish the album in June, after they finish touring with Rise Against. Vocalist Alan Day has also revealed that the new songs the band had written were very diverse, and that the new material is different than anything the band has ever written. While touring with Rise Against, they have been playing a newly recorded, yet unreleased song called "Falling on You".
On August 18, 2011, the band released "Stuck in the Middle", a new song from the upcoming album. The band announced that the new album will be titled In Some Way, Shape, or Form, and will be released on November 8, 2011. On September 8, 2011, the band released another song from the album, entitled "Falling on You." The first official single from the album, "Just Drive", is set for release on September 27, 2011
During the Fall 2011 AP Tour, the band played another new unreleased song which will be released on the upcoming album. The band dedicates it to fans who have been there "from the very beginning, and will be there till the very end." a video of the song has been leaked on YouTube. It is called "Fairweather Fan."
Touring
The band has done multiple national tours, sharing the stage with such bands as The Starting Line, Slip On It, Hellogoodbye, From First to Last, Every Time I Die, Meg & Dia, Hidden in Plain View, Alexisonfire, All Time Low, Mayday Parade, New Found Glory, Bayside and Steel Train. The band toured in February–April 2009 as part of the Taste of Chaos tour, alongside Thursday, Bring Me the Horizon, Pierce the Veil, and Cancer Bats. They undertook the Summer co-headline tour with Set Your Goals, and also Fireworks, The Swellers, Polar Bear Club, A Loss For Words, Drive A and Grave Maker from July to August 2009. Four Year Strong also performed on the Australian Soundwave festival in February and March 2010, alongside headliners Faith No More, Janes Addiction, Placebo; also playing alongside Alexisonfire, Set Your Goals, A Day To Remember, Paramore, It Dies Today, Gallows, Emarosa, A Wilhelm Scream, Anthrax, All Time Low, Escape The Fate, This Is Hell, Enter Shikari, Anti-Flag, Baroness, Comeback Kid, The Almost, Dance Gavin Dance, Architects, You Me At Six, Rolo Tomassi, Dichi Michi, Sunny Day Real Estate and many more. The band was in the lineup for Vans Warped Tour 2010 and played on the Altec Lansing stage along side Breathe Carolina, Hey Monday, and Set Your Goals.[7] They also played the first day on the Bamboozle festival. Late 2010, Four Year Strong headlined a tour with Comeback Kid, The Wonder Years, American Fangs, and Mountain Man. The tour was entitled "Tonight We Feel Alive!", and spanned the entire United States. In February 2011, Four Year Strong co-headlined the Kerrang! Relentless Tour 2011 with Good Charlotte with support from Framing Hanley and The Wonder Years, The tour began February 3rd in Dublin, Ireland. On the 15th February 2011 it was announced that they had been added to support Blink 182 on their UK tour alongside You Me At Six They will be joining Rise Against and Bad Religion on a US summer tour in 2011. They have also announced that they will come back to Australia later in the year to play Soundwave Revolution along with already announced bands The Damned Things, Story of The Year, Every Time I Die, Hellogoodbye, We Are The In Crowd and many others. They still have yet to announce an upcoming Detroit show. It is long overdue.
Musical style
The band's sound can be described as popcore a blend of pop punk, hardcore punk, and power pop. This genre is popularly referred to as "easycore" or "happycore". The band simply developed their sound off the idea of playing 'exactly what they want to hear' or music that they would listen to, but no one else was playing at the time.[8] The band has cited their influences as being Lifetime, Saves the Day, Gorilla Biscuits, Blink-182, and New Found Glory, to name a few. Though the band would primarily start out as a post-hardcore , the release of their demo in 2004 would mark a shift from post-hardcore to more synthesizer-heavy tracks, where the band would begin to embrace the styles of power pop and general hardcore punk. Prior to the release of and at times within Rise or Die Trying, the band also incorporates more facets of modern hardcore, such as double bass drums, breakdowns and screaming vocals. For their 3rd studio album, Enemy of the World, the band decided to expand upon their hardcore influences.
Influences
The band has many references to 1990's pop culture. They have been known to quote lines from '90s films in lyrics/song titles/ and in conversation. They were influenced by all the bands on their cover album Explains It All.
It's Cool
Four Year Strong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
its coolEveryday its all the sameThe games you play, the shifting blame, its such a shameEveryday its all that sameStuck in a daze, wasting awayLuckily it doesn't phase me anywayEveryday its all that sameI cant feel this way forever
but it still hurts like hell when I try to control my temperWe cant get through this togetherSo ill search like hell until I discover something better
The lyrics to Four Year Strong's song "It's Cool" express a sense of frustration, weariness, and a longing for escape. The singer is questioning why they are still in their current situation and wishes they could disappear from it. They feel exhausted and unable to stand on their own two feet, acknowledging that they are not as young as they pretend to be. The line "My ears still searching for the hum" suggests that they are searching for something meaningful or fulfilling in their life, something that gives them purpose. They long for someone to understand and relate to what they are going through.
The lyrics also touch on the repetitiveness of their daily life and the games and blame-shifting that they encounter. The singer feels stuck in a daze, wasting away and becoming apathetic, but they assure themselves that it doesn't affect them anymore. They acknowledge that they can't feel this way forever, but it still hurts when they try to control their temper. The lyrics convey a longing for a better situation and a willingness to search for it relentlessly, even if it means being alone in their journey.
Line by Line Meaning
What am I still doing here?
I question why I am still in this situation.
I wish that I could disappear
I desire to escape from my current circumstances.
I'm too damn tired to stand on my own two feet
I am exhausted and unable to support myself.
I'm not as young as I pretend to be
I am not as youthful as I portray myself.
My ears still searching for the hum
I am constantly seeking for a comforting sound.
The ring that rattles through my tongue
The constant noise that echoes within me.
Please tell me you can hear it too
I long for someone to understand my struggles.
A glimpse of what I'm going through
Just a brief understanding of my experiences.
But with all I have to complain about, it's cool
Despite my complaints, I try to maintain a sense of coolness or indifference.
Every day it's all the same
Each day feels monotonous and repetitive.
The games you play, the shifting blame, it's such a shame
The manipulative actions and refusal to take responsibility is disappointing.
Stuck in a daze, wasting away
Feeling trapped in a state of confusion and wasting time.
Luckily it doesn't phase me anyway
Fortunately, it doesn't affect or bother me.
I can't feel this way forever
I know that this current state of emotions won't last indefinitely.
But it still hurts like hell when I try to control my temper
However, it is still extremely painful when I attempt to restrain my anger.
We can't get through this together
We are unable to overcome this struggle as a team.
So I'll search like hell until I discover something better
Therefore, I will tirelessly seek for something more fulfilling or satisfying.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Joseph Weiss, Jackson Massucco, Daniel O'Connor, Alan Day
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
JohanJ2000
Man this Track is absolutely insane.
Also massive shout out to Pure Noise for having such an amazing roster of bands. Like for real this label simply brings out banger after banger.
Grant Thiel
This song's energy is OFF the friggin CHARTS
Chris C.
I’ve been aware of FYS for so god damn long but never got into them. This song has got my attention. The build up is insane.
Eric Bourassa
agreed
_
Most epic intro to a pop punk song Ive ever heard
guitarpirate100
@Ian Hatol theres a reason why they coined it so and not as pop punk. Its similar but not the same. Thats like saying Huey Luis is the same rock and roll as Van Halen.
Paul Owens
Foo fighters in your honour sounds bit like
Immolator772
this sounds more like hardcore but i agree.
Ian Hatol
@JJM tell that to the guys who coined the term -- New Found Glory
JJM
@Ian Hatol I disagree. It's not punk at all.