The underlying idea was to achieve three goals:
1. Produce an album featuring James LaBrie in ways that no one has heard him before;
2. Combine the elements of progressive rock, film scoring and very modern production;
3. Use the work of Richard Dawkins (one of today's most influential neo-Darwinist writers) as a concept that connects all the pieces on the album.
Its second album, called An Absence of Empathy, had the vocals of Sebastian Bach (ex-Skid Row). The basic concept behind An Absence of Empathy, was initiated by Shawn Gordon, president of ProgRock Records. Several years ago, he played keyboards for the band Zircadian; they had a partially written concept album under the name Prophet Savant, which led to the initial idea for An Absence of Empathy. In the original storyline, a man experiences different forms of violence because he becomes a kind of seer. They had written a song for an epic battle and two torture scenes.
In countless e-mails and meetings (one including Stephan Kernbach from Chain), Shawn and Henning Pauly developed this idea into the storyline and concept that is now the foundation of the new Frameshift album. They first dropped the mystical approach; then, by distancing the concept from being a story around a person, and instead focusing on what that person experiences, the story portrayed a more realistic situation. In this respect, like Unweaving the Rainbow, the album actually does not have a real storyline. Instead, it is a series of songs revolving around the same topic.
An Absence of Empathy: The Concept
"Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent"
This quote illustrates what this album is about. It is about violence -- human violence, to be precise. It is ever-present and, in varying degrees, ingrained in all of us. Just like wood grain, violence is inherent to our nature, but the question is, what factors determine who lets is show through and how does it show itself?
The same questions haunt the protagonist of An Absence of Empathy. He is a curious individual who wants to know why the media is filled with news about murder, rape and war -- and he is afraid that he might have the potential for violence himself. He starts to research the subject, but it isn't enough. It can't show him what motivates the person that acts violently or what plagues them, and it doesn't make him feel the pain of the victims. His desire to understand one of humanity's most basic traits leads to a series of vivid dreams - dreams that appear to be so real that he can't escape this dreamworld until it is all over. In them, he becomes the killer, he becomes the rapist, he becomes the soldier, he becomes the mother crying for her daughter who was raped.
The first song introduces the theme and illustrates how our main character is plagued by his questions about humanity's major flaw. He starts a journey into the minds of other people to experience violence firsthand. At the end of the album, he draws his own conclusions, and asks himself if there is nothing else to us besides hurting each other. The answer he finds is worthy of discovery.
An Absence of Empathy takes you into the psyche of several different people who are either experiencing or acting out violence. Each form of violence is dealt with in two songs, each one shedding light on a different point view of the scenario. For example, one song illustrates a torture scene from the point of view of the torturer; its counterpoint takes you into the same room, this time from the point of view of the tortured. Another pairing is about violence in schools. One song deals with a teacher using psychological violence towards his students (who then rebel), while the other song is about a school shooting.
River Out of Eden
Frameshift Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Without direction
The current holds the line
Abstract Instruction
The liquid of life, you and I
The banks are line with lies
It flows into a child
A great divide
Blueprints passed down the line
River out of Eden
Flow along through time
Carry all that goes into a child
River out of Eden
Your waters drift apart
You brought a new life, it came into this world
Channels forging their own way
Progress never cease
Information can create
An augmented beast
Elements they test the young
Who then will be released
After the trial of life
Blueprints passed down the line
River out of Eden
Flow along through time
Carry all that goes into a child
River out of Eden
Your waters drift apart
You brought a new life, it came into this world
River out of Eden
Filled with what we are
Keep on flowing far beyond this day
River out of Eden
Your waters drift apart
Maybe sometime new life will find its way
The lyrics of Frameshift's "River Out of Eden" describe the flow of life, as unstoppable and uncontainable as a river. The stream, which represents life, flows through time without direction, held in line by the current which represents fate or destiny. The banks of the river are littered with lies, signifying the false constructs and illusions which common people have about their future. Nonetheless, the river of life flows into a child - a great divide, supplying life and hope for the future.
The song paints a picture where life is passed down through families as an inheritance, much like a blueprint that guides the next generation. The river carries all that goes into a child and its waters are rich with human elements that eventually forge their way towards shaping the future. The trials that life brings to a young person are not enough to stop the blueprint passed down from generation to generation.
The song shows that the river is filled with what we are and that it keeps on flowing far beyond one's day. The waters never stop drifting apart, implying that new life will always find its way into the river, renewing the cycle of life. In essence, this song emphasizes the idea that we all inherit something from those who came before us, both the good and the bad.
Line by Line Meaning
A stream it flows through time
Life is like a stream that moves forward constantly through time
Without direction
Life has no set direction or purpose
The current holds the line
The constant movement of life holds everything together
Abstract Instruction
The instructions of life are not clear or concrete
The liquid of life, you and I
The essence of life is found within all of us
The banks are line with lies
Society and culture are influenced by falsehoods and deceit
The future is inside
The future of humanity lies within each individual person
It flows into a child
The future moves forward through the birth and growth of new generations
A great divide
There is a separation between the current generation and future generations
Blueprints passed down the line
Instructions and traditions are passed down from one generation to the next
Channels forging their own way
New generations are constantly creating their own paths and ways of living
Progress never cease
Humanity's progress and development never stops
Information can create
Knowledge and information can lead to the creation of new things
An augmented beast
Humanity has the potential to become something greater than it currently is
Elements they test the young
The world and its challenges test and shape the younger generation
Who then will be released
The younger generation will eventually take over and bring new changes to the world
After the trial of life
After experiencing the challenges of life
River out of Eden
Life is a river that flows forward
Flow along through time
Life moves forward constantly through time
Carry all that goes into a child
New generations carry the hopes and dreams of the previous generation
Your waters drift apart
Life moves forward and changes constantly, never staying stagnant
You brought a new life, it came into this world
New generations are born and enter the world, continuing the cycle of life
Filled with what we are
The river of life is made up of everything that makes us human
Keep on flowing far beyond this day
Life continues moving forward long after we're gone
Maybe sometime new life will find its way
New generations will continue to be born and enter the world, starting the cycle of life over again
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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