During its career, the band released five full length albums: "Blaze of Glory" (1982), "Real Nighttime" (1985), "The Big Shot Chronicles" (1986), "Lolita Nation" (1987) and "Two Steps from the Middle Ages" (1988). A sixth, "Supercalifragile" was issued in 2017.
The band's two major lineups were its 1982-1985 lineup of Miller, Nancy Becker (keyboards, vocals), Fred Juhos (bass) and Dave Gil (drums), and its 1985-1989 lineup of Miller, Donette Thayer (guitar, vocals), Shelley LaFreniere (keyboards, vocals), Guillaume Gassuan (bass) and Gil Ray (drums). Interstitial members included Michael Irwin (drums) and Suzi Ziegler (bass). A lineup consisting of Miller, Ray (who switched to keyboards), Becker's brother Jozef (drums) and The Three O'Clock leader Michael Querico (bass) existed from 1989 to 1990 and re-recorded three older Game Theory for the band's 1990 compilation "Tinker to Evers to Chance" before disabanding. Following the band's split, Miller and Jozef Becker formed The Loud Family in 1991.
After Miller's death in 2013, it was revealed that he had plan to reunite Game Theory to record a sixth album which he tentatively titled "Supercalifragile". In 2016, friends and family of Miller orchestrated a successful Kickstarter campaign to fund the recording of the album with most of Game Theory's former members. The album was released in August of 2017.
Nothing New
Game Theory Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Feeling hit up for a price I thought that I'd never have to pay
Wicker old-world store displays
Sure I'll take your warm hearth autumn line
But with what for any fair exchange?
Accounting says the terms can't seem to be arranged
And girl I know it's nothing new
And if you are so inclined to change your mind a thousand times then do
And I will wait for you
Second nature in my mind
Like a seven hundred dollar tab of unpaid traffic fines
And you can't walk the streets these days
Now I'm thinking we've all paid the price
But none too many get our way
And we give to get you till we give it all away
'Cause girl we know it's nothing new
To find someone in love with you
And if you are so inclined to change your mind a thousand times then do
And I will wait for you
Nothing new
The lyrics to Game Theory's song "Nothing New" speaks of feeling exhausted and drained by the ups and downs of love, describing it as a price that must be paid. The wicker old-world store displays symbolize the elaborate and often unnecessary things people do to show love to each other, but in the end, the price seems too high, and there seems to be no real fair exchange. The lines "And if you are so inclined to change your mind a thousand times then do, and I will wait for you" implies the singer's willingness to stick around despite the seemingly endless back and forth of love.
The second verse talks about how difficult it is to escape the consequences of life's actions, likening it to an unpaid traffic fine that keeps piling up. The singer acknowledges that everyone has paid a price for their mistakes, but only a few get what they want in the end. The final lines of the song, "And we give to get you till we give it all away, 'cause girl, we know it's nothing new," emphasize the never-ending cycle of love and the sacrifices that come with it.
Line by Line Meaning
I was on the outs today
Today, I felt rejected or excluded from a group or situation
Feeling hit up for a price I thought that I'd never have to pay
I feel like someone is asking me for something that I didn't think I would ever have to give, and it feels like a burden
Wicker old-world store displays
I see traditional, outdated store displays made out of wicker
Sure I'll take your warm hearth autumn line
I'll listen to what you have to say about your fall product line, even if it's not particularly interesting to me
But with what for any fair exchange?
What am I getting in return for listening to you talk about your product line?
Accounting says the terms can't seem to be arranged
Based on accounting principles, it doesn't seem like a mutually beneficial exchange can be arranged between us
And girl I know it's nothing new
I'm aware that the situation I'm in is not new or unique
To find someone in love with you
It's common to find someone who is in love with you
And if you are so inclined to change your mind a thousand times then do
If you want to change your mind about me or about something else, you are free to do so
And I will wait for you
I will be patient and wait for you, regardless of whether you change your mind or not
Second nature in my mind
It's become natural for me to think or act in a certain way
Like a seven hundred dollar tab of unpaid traffic fines
Like having a large amount of unpaid fines for breaking traffic laws
And you can't walk the streets these days
It's difficult to move around in public places because of various restrictions or dangers
Now I'm thinking we've all paid the price
I'm starting to realize that everyone has gone through difficulties or faced consequences for their actions, including me
But none too many get our way
However, not many people are able to achieve their goals or have things go their way
And we give to get you till we give it all away
We give our time or resources to others in order to get something in return, but sometimes we end up giving everything away without getting anything back
Girl we know it's nothing new
We are aware that this situation or feeling is not new or unique
To find someone in love with you
It's common to find someone who is in love with you
And if you are so inclined to change your mind a thousand times then do
If you want to change your mind about me or about something else, you are free to do so
And I will wait for you
I will be patient and wait for you, regardless of whether you change your mind or not
Nothing new
Overall, this situation is not particularly new or unique, and life goes on regardless of the specific circumstances.
Contributed by Leo G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.