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.
Learn to Love the Lie
Four Year Strong Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
pretending were not meant to beI don't want to be the one to stayI don't want to be the one that got awayAnd if I'm being honest, you couldn't get rid of me anywayI don't want to be the one to stayWhat the hell? For heavens sakeI don't want to be the one that got awayIf Massachusetts had a loyaltyI hope it wouldn't choose you over meAnd if you're wondering what keeps me up at nightIts thinking that you might be right
You and me, we're really nothing but enemies
pretending that's exactly how its supposed to be
You can say what you want about me
The old me would not apologize
You can do what you want without meIf only I could keep us from collidingOver analyzing every move we makeWe think were just surviving but slowly we were dyinguntil the rattle somehow brings us back to lifeSo lets learn to love the lie
In Four Year Strong's song Learn to Love the Lie, the lyrics speak to the complex dynamic of a toxic relationship. The first verse sets the scene of a mundane day, but the chorus reveals that things are not so simple. The relationship between the two individuals is falling apart and they are stuck in their own captivity. They're both wishing for a way out, but instead of facing the truth and acknowledging the issues, they choose to "learn to love the lie" which is ultimately keeping them together.
The second verse continues with the idea that the two individuals are enemies, although they pretend that everything is fine. The singer confesses that they don't want to be the one to stay or the one that got away. The chorus repeats again, this time with the added line "If only I could keep us from colliding," which further emphasizes the dangerous and unstable nature of their relationship.
The final lines of the song, "Over analyzing every move we make, we think we're just surviving but slowly we were dying until the rattle somehow brings us back to life, so let's learn to love the lie," highlight the exhausting nature of trying to hold onto something that is not meant to be. It's a sad realization that both individuals are aware of, but they continue to cling onto their toxic relationship rather than facing the truth and moving on.
Line by Line Meaning
I wish it was just another day
I wish that today was like any other ordinary day
Another ordinary, nothing extraordinary,
Just a regular day with nothing unique or special happening
Just a boring Sunday morning
A dull and uneventful day, like a typical Sunday morning
When doing nothing's the only something we've got planned
We have no specific plans for the day, just lounging around
But not today
Today is different from the desired ordinary day.
Were falling apart and its showing that were
Our problems are becoming apparent, indicating that we
Basically just trapped in captivity
Are trapped in a situation that we cannot completely escape from
Wishing our way out
Desiring to get out of the predicament through hope, rather than action
Just Let me cross my fingers behind my back
I will deceive myself by falsely hoping for a better outcome
And I'll swear on anything you want me to after that
I'll commit to whatever you want me to do, even if it's dishonest.
I've heard that if I cross my heart then I'd have to die
If I make a promise with full intent and then break it, it will cause me harm or death.
If you don't want to say goodbye
If you don't want to end things between us
Then I guess you'll have to learn to love the lie
You will have to accept the deceitful reality we are living in.
You and me,. we're really nothing but enemies
Our relationship is filled with tension, as we are not on good terms with each other.
Pretending were not meant to be
We must pretend that we are not meant to be together, despite secretly knowing it.
I don't want to be the one to stay
I don't want to be the one to carry on with the relationship
I don't want to be the one that got away
I don't want to be the one that breaks the relationship.
And if I'm being honest, you couldn't get rid of me anyway
Regardless of your decision, I will stay with you.
If Massachusetts had a loyalty
If Massachusetts had an allegiance
I hope it wouldn't choose you over me
I hope Massachusetts doesn't choose you over me.
And if you're wondering what keeps me up at night
If you're curious about what causes my sleeplessness
Its thinking that you might be right
It's the realization that you might be correct about the issues in our relationship.
You and me, we're really nothing but enemies
Our relationship is based on hostility, with no genuine affection between us.
Pretending that's exactly how it's supposed to be
We have trained ourselves to believe that our enmity is expected or acceptable.
You can say what you want about me
You are free to say anything you want about me.
The old me would not apologize
In the past, I wouldn't have apologized for my actions
You can do what you want without me
You may choose to do whatever you want, even if it means leaving me out.
If only I could keep us from colliding
If only I could prevent our disagreements.
Over analyzing every move we make
We are constantly overthinking and analyzing every little thing we do
We think were just surviving but slowly we were dying
We believe our relationship is holding on, but in reality, it's failing
Until the rattle somehow brings us back to life
An abrupt reminder brings us back together and revives our relationship
So let's learn to love the lie
Let's accept the relationship as it is, even if it's based on falsehood.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Joseph Weiss, Jackson Massucco, Daniel O'Connor, Alan Day
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
mhdp account2
Lyrics:
I wish it was just another day
Another ordinary, not extraordinary
Just a boring Sunday morning
When doing nothing’s the only something we’ve got planned
But not today
We're falling apart and it's showing that we're
Basically just trapped in captivity
Wishing our way out
Just let me cross my fingers behind my back
And I’ll swear on anything you want me to after that
I’ve heard that if I cross my heart then I’d have to die
If you don’t want to say goodbye
Then I guess you’ll have to learn to love the lie
You and me, we’re really nothing but enemies
Pretending we're not meant to be
I don’t want to be the one to stay
I don’t want to be the one that got away
And if I’m being honest
You couldn’t get rid of me anyway
I don’t want to be the one to stay
What the hell, for heaven's sake
I don’t want to be the one that got away
If Massachusetts had a loyalty
I hope it wouldn’t choose you over me
And if you’re wondering what keeps me up at night
It's thinking that you might be right
Just let me cross my fingers behind my back
And I’ll swear on anything you want me to after that
I’ve heard that if I cross my heart then I’d have to die
If you don’t want to say goodbye
Then I guess you’ll have to learn to love the lie
You and me, we’re really nothing but enemies
Pretending that’s exactly how it's supposed to be
I don’t want to be the one to stay
I don’t want to be the one that got away
And if I’m being honest
You couldn’t get rid of me anyway
I don’t want to be the one to stay
What the hell, for heaven's sake
I don’t want to be the one that got away
You can say what you want about me
The old me would not apologize
You can do what you want without me
If only I could keep us from colliding
Overanalyzing
Every move we make we think we're just surviving
But slowly we were dying
Until the rattle somehow brings us back to life
So let's learn to love the lie
I don’t want to be the one to stay
I don’t want to be the one that got away
And if I’m being honest
You couldn’t get rid of me anyway
I don’t want to be the one to stay
What the hell, for heaven's sake
I don’t want to be the one that got away
(Just let me cross my fingers behind my back)
I don’t want to be the one that got away
(And I’ll swear on anything you want me to after that)
I don’t want to be the one that got away
(If I cross my heart then I’d have to die)
But I don't wanna say goodbye
But we have to laugh to learn to love the lie
Four Year Strong
“Learn To Love The Lie” was one of the first songs we wrote for Brain Pain. It's about being stuck in a mutually miserable relationship, but you’re both too much of a coward to leave. If you’re going to lie to yourself about being happy, you might as well learn to love it. Let's not kid ourselves...we’ve all been there. Hope you enjoy the video.
Cory Goben
This is wonderful, loving this album so far
William Grace
This is gold! Bet it hits 100k just as fast 🤘
Christopher Coan
Perfection.
Naive Daysダニエル
Dont know what you're talking about
WhoIsCorbin
I'm thankful that you guys are still making the dopest tunes, never stop being yourself guys!
ethan {optimistic cavs fan}
i love how the two vocalists trade off lines so often it’s so cool
littleredguitars2
FYS are one of the few bands keeping this genre interesting these days IMO. these new songs are great
Fiery Furnace
nicee too see you here dude! love your vids
Matthias Hövelmanns
Hey Jon 👋🏼