The group recorded its first release for the label, Livonia, in Defever's home studio. The album features Oliver's shivery vocals along with tape loops, samples, and guitar blasts, for a noise-damaged, ethereal collection of songs about ghosts, reincarnation, and dreams. By 1992's Home Is in Your Head, the band's lineup and scope expanded. New singers Denise James, Karen Neal, Melissa Elliott, and guitarist Jymn Auge added depth and breadth to the band's original lineup. An epic 23 songs long, Home Is in Your Head ranges from folky ballads to electrifying guitar maelstroms and tape collages. That year also saw the release of The Dirt Eaters EP, named for Defever's other, more rock-oriented group, of which Elliot was also a member. In 1993, His Name Is Alive released two albums: King of Sweet, a limited-edition release that mixed tape effects, samples, demos, and unreleased songs, and Mouth by Mouth, which added more pop structure into the group's inherently experimental and dreamy sound, resulting in its most accessible and diverse album to that date. A new drummer, Trey Many, took over Lang's duties.
As Defever's reputation as an innovative producer spread, he lent his skills to bands like Grenadine, a side project of Tsunami's Jenny Toomey and Unrest's Mark Robinson, other 4AD acts like Liquorice (which featured Toomey, Dan Littleton from Ida, and His Name Is Alive's Many) and Tarnation, and other Detroit-area bands like Godzuki and Outrageous Cherry. Defever also worked on other projects, including the folky ESP Summer (with former Pale Saint Ian Masters) and the electronic Robot World and Control Panel, and founded the Time Stereo art collective with a childhood friend, artist/musician Davin Brainard. Some of Time Stereo's projects included films, coloring books, and cassette-only releases from bands like Princess Dragon Mom, the Crash, Godzuki, New Grape, and Noise Camp.
Defever's diverse interests influenced His Name Is Alive's next release, 1996's Stars on ESP. Very little of the group's original ethereal sound remained, augmented instead with touches of dub, folk, gospel, and early- to mid-'60s pop like the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds. At the time of the album's release, Defever claimed that he was so fascinated by the group's "Good Vibrations" that he listened to it for months at a time. The following year's Nice Day EP reached to garage rock and '60s R&B for its inspiration, and featured some of the gospel singers from Stars on ESP, including Lovetta Pippen, whose singing also gave His Name Is Alive's 1998 LP, Fort Lake, an earthy sensuality. Fort Lake also marked the first time the band worked with another producer, recording engineer Steve King. King, another Livonia native, had also worked with Funkadelic and Aretha Franklin, and his touch meshes nicely with the funk, soul, and classic rock allusions His Name Is Alive makes on the album. In preparation for recording Fort Lake -- named after a waterlogged Civil War fort in Michigan -- the group played monthly shows at the Gold Dollar, a tiny Detroit club. At this time, Pippen, bassist Chad Gilchrist, and additional drummer Scott Goldstein debuted as part of the new lineup.
In 1999, His Name Is Alive released a U.S. compilation of tracks from their first five albums called Always Stay Sweet; at the time, those albums were only available as British imports. Like the rest of the band's work, the compilation highlights their mercurial, unique nature. Someday My Blues Will Cover the Earth appeared two years later. Released in 2002, the darkly soulful Last Night ended up being the group's final album for 4AD, but His Name Is Alive found other outlets for their music, and were actually busier than ever. Time Stereo released several CDs, such as 2004's ten-disc Cloud Box set, Leaf Club, Brown Rice, and The Detroit River, as well as many MP3-only works, including the Summer Bird and Something_Nothing EPs and a remastered version of King of Sweet. UFO Catcher was released in 2005 on CD by the German label En/Of and on vinyl by Time Stereo, while Ypsilanti Records issued the full-length Summer Bird that spring. Late in 2005, His Name Is Alive released the Raindrops Rainbow EP via iTunes as a teaser for Detrola, their debut for Reincarnate, also the home of fellow former 4AD artist Lisa Germano and Sing-Sing, the project of former Lush member Emma Anderson.
As We Could Ever
His Name Is Alive Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sometimes I think
If only could we
And reasons exist
For reasons alone
Where the wild things were once
Is what you have
Then what you have to give
Is everything of what we share
Of all we need to live
Within one way
This way is mine
We spent a day beside
Came up out her eyes
It's turning inside
Coughed up a swallow
If what you share
Is what you have
Then what you have to share
Is anything as real as dreams
And still afraid to dare
A given is taken
Stay hidden inside
If what you give
Is what you have
Then what you have to give
Is everything of what we share
Of all we need to live
If what you share
Is what you have
Then what you have to share
Is anything as real as dreams
And still afraid to dare
The lyrics of the song "As We Could Ever" by His Name Is Alive are difficult to interpret due to their abstract nature. However, the song seems to be about the idea of sharing and giving, and the relationship between the two. The first verse suggests that the singer often thinks about what could be accomplished if people could only share more generously. The second verse introduces the concept of reasons and how they can exist alone, and the possibility of the singer being in a place where wild things used to be.
The chorus suggests that what you give is what you have, and what you have to give is everything that we share, which ultimately leads to everything we need to live. The next verse talks about the idea that there is only one way for everyone, but the singer spent a day next to someone, possibly a lover or a friend, and how something came up out of that person's eyes. The third verse continues this theme of sharing and giving, stating that anything as real as dreams can be shared and still be afraid to dare.
Overall, the song seems to be about the importance of sharing and giving, and how this leads to a better life for everyone. It could be interpreted as a call to action for people to be more generous with one another, to share their dreams and fears, and to embrace the vulnerability that comes with giving and sharing.
Line by Line Meaning
I think sometimes
Occasionally, I have thoughts
Sometimes I think
I have moments where I engage in introspection
If only could we
Longing for a potential outcome
And reasons exist
Logic exists
For reasons alone
Based on logic and its inherent worth
Where the wild things were once
A place where untamed things once lived
If what you give
The output from an input
Is what you have
The result of an action on oneself
Then what you have to give
The entirety of what we possess to offer
Is everything of what we share
Comprised of all that we collectively experience
Of all we need to live
Every requirement to survive
Within one way
Contained in a singular path
This way is mine
I have a particular route to follow
We spent a day beside
Together for an extended period of time
Came up out her eyes
Tears surfaced
It's turning inside
Internal turmoil is happening
Coughed up a swallow
A physical response to emotional distress
If what you share
The output from an input
Is what you have
The result of an action on oneself
Then what you have to share
The entirety of what we possess to offer
Is anything as real as dreams
A representation of real life events as experienced in a dream state
And still afraid to dare
Uncertain and hesitant to take risks
A given is taken
Something that was offered is now in possession of another
Stay hidden inside
Remaining secluded from view
If what you give
The output from an input
Is what you have
The result of an action on oneself
Then what you have to give
The entirety of what we possess to offer
Is everything of what we share
Comprised of all that we collectively experience
Of all we need to live
Every requirement to survive
If what you share
The output from an input
Is what you have
The result of an action on oneself
Then what you have to share
The entirety of what we possess to offer
Is anything as real as dreams
A representation of real life events as experienced in a dream state
And still afraid to dare
Uncertain and hesitant to take risks
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: WARREN DEFEVER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind