HWM recorded an album with their good friends and mentors Leatherface for the first volume of the BYO split series. They also recorded with Alkaline Trio for a split LP on Jade Tree shortly thereafter.
In 2001, Hot Water Music signed with Epitaph Records and released the record A Flight and A Crash, and went on to release two more records with Epitaph, Caution and The New What Next.
In addition to their full length albums and the two aforementioned split releases, Hot Water Music have also released 5 other EPs and split albums: Push for Coin (1995 - demo tape), Eating the Filler (1995- Toybox Records), Hot Water Music vs. Discount (New American Dreams) and Colors, Words, and Dreams (2002 - split with The Casket Lottery, Second Nature Recordings).
In 2005 the band took a hiatus as vocalist Chuck Ragan wanted to spend more time with his family. Soon after, the rest of the band formed The Draft, and released their debut record, In A Million Pieces, September 12, 2006 on Epitaph Records, along with various 7" vinyl records on No Idea. Ragan has opted for a solo-acoustic act with No Idea records, releasing a monthly vinyl to prelude a full studio album, as well as two live discs. As for Hot Water Music, No Idea is getting ready to release a b-sides disc later this year.
Members of Hot Water Music have been in various side projects, including Crows/artist], Rumbleseat and Blacktop Cadence
On October 22, 2007, music website Punknews.org reported that a reunion of the band is currently in the works.
The band kicked off their reunion tour with a "secret show" at Common Grounds in their hometown of Gainesville, Florida on January 18, 2008 to be followed by shows in Orlando, Florida, Sayerville, New Jersey and two sold out shows in Chicago, Illinois.
After that, they played at the Groezrock festival in Meerhout, Belgium in May 2008.
During 2009 Hot Water Music played a bunch of concerts in the U.S. plus a short German tour in November.
Since 2010, the band has continued to tour, write and record new music including 2012's album Exister and 2017's Light It Up. In November 2017 Chris Wollard announced that he was taking a break from the band to focus on his health. The band continued to play previously booked shows with The Flatliners' Chris Cresswell and Chris DeMakes of Less Than Jake filling in for Wollard at several dates.
As of their 2019 25th anniversary tour, Cresswell was still filling in for Wollard on guitar and vocals. Cresswell also played guitar and backing vocals on their 2019 Shake Up The Shadows EP.
I Was on a Mountain
Hot Water Music Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just minutes before I was on a mountain.
I screamed "I can see all."
The ground broke from the sound.
It was all built on nothing.
And the pretty lights down below
Begged me to just let go;
To let myself be condemned;
I opened up my aching hands.
I went down like an avalanche.
I took with me the things I found.
I used them to help slow me down,
And start again.
Chorus:
Caution: The solid ground that you
Are on will slide from under you.
The lyrics to Hot Water Music's song "I Was on a Mountain" depict a person on the edge of despair, hanging on by a little thread. Just moments before, the person had been on top of the world, feeling invincible as if they could see everything. However, in a swift moment, their world crumbled, and they found themselves falling to the ground. The ground broke from the sound, a reminder of how everything in life is so fragile and can be built on nothing.
As the person falls, they survey the pretty lights down below and are begged to let go and be condemned, to start again. But, instead of giving into the chaos, the person decides to take matters into their own hands. They open up their aching hands and fall like an avalanche, taking with them the things they found to help slow them down and truly start anew.
The chorus warns to be cautious, as the solid ground that you're on can and will slide from under you. The lyrics serve as a reminder that no matter how good things seem, life is always in a state of flux, and one must be prepared for when things fall apart.
Line by Line Meaning
I was hanging on by a little thread.
I was barely holding on to hope, barely surviving.
Just minutes before I was on a mountain.
I had moments of strength, moments of clarity where I felt on top of the world.
I screamed "I can see all."
I had a moment of clarity where everything made sense.
The ground broke from the sound.
That clarity shattered everything I knew to be true and what I had built my life upon.
It was all built on nothing.
The foundation of my life was flimsy and now it was gone.
And the pretty lights down below
Begged me to just let go;
To let myself be condemned;
To start again
The beautiful distractions and temptations of the world were calling me to give up, to accept a life of condemnation and start over.
I opened up my aching hands.
I let go of what I was holding onto and accepted the fall.
I went down like an avalanche.
I fell fast and hard, out of control.
I took with me the things I found.
I held onto the pieces of wisdom and truth that I discovered while on the mountain.
I used them to help slow me down,
And start again.
I used these pieces to help me land softer and regroup.
Caution: The solid ground that you
Are on will slide from under you.
Be aware that the things that we rely on to be true and solid can shift and change under our feet.
Lyrics © TERRORBIRD PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: CHARLES ALLEN RAGAN, CHRISTOPHER JAMES WOLLARD, GEORGE REBELLO, JASON WILLIAM BLACK
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
g funk
"cautionnnn, the solid ground that you are on will slide from under you." love the flow of that lyric, great use of polyrhythm.
r4ndOm14m
Bringing back the sweet old memories. Driving home at summer night, with my first car, cool breeze blowing in the window. Goosebumps.
Nasty Nate
I don't pick "favorites", or even listen to rock much anymore, but IMHO, this is the best CD ever written.
nature airliner
It's one of the best. Certainly. I say that as both a music college graduate and a music journalist. I find it super ironic that their views are only in the tens of thousands on YouTube.