Founded by Arnold and Donikian in 2000, Hypnogaja originated as an electronic studio project with early collaborator, keyboardist Sean "Dr." Brooks. As a live show began to develop, members and collaborators were added to the fold, including Grammy award nominated guitarist/producer Jean-Yves "Jeeve" Ducornet. Hypnogaja's sound evolved into new dimensions with the incorporation of rock influences into the group's initial electronic foundation. The band tours consistently and has performed shows to audiences throughout the U.S. and Canada, and has opened for bands such as Shinedown, Saliva, 311, Cold and many others.
Grammy nominated songwriter Wendy Waldman helmed production duties for Hypnogaja's live acoustic album, Acoustic Sunset: Live At The Longhouse. The band previously collaborated with Waldman on two songs - "Killing Time" and "Outside, Looking In" - from the album "Post-Hypnotic Stress Disorder". The latter song was featured as the end title of the NBC Movie "Carrie" a remake of the Brian DePalma film based on the classic Stephen King novel.
Hypnogaja's latest studio recording, Truth Decay, was released by Union State Records in June 2009. The fourteen-track, science fiction-tinged concept album includes the song "Welcome To The Future," featuring Richard Dodd of The Section Quartet on cello. The album was released to strong reviews, including a 9 out of 10 star rating from Outburn Magazine, which noted it as an "expertly crafted album." The LP's first single, "The March," spawned a music video directed by ASC Award-winning cinematographer Nelson Craggand and writer/producer Marius Markevicius
Various television shows, motion pictures and soundtracks have featured Hypnogaja’s music, including America’s Next Top Model, Carrie, Cold Creek Manor, Dirt , Las Vegas, One Life To Live, Roswell, Sex And The City, Tru Calling, Valentine and many others.
Author Frank Beddor featured Hypnogaja's Alice in Wonderland-themed song, "Looking Glass" (from the Below Sunset album) on the soundtrack for the audio book version of his 2006 NY Times Best Seller, The Looking Glass Wars. In 2007, the Warner Bros. Interactive game, FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage, used the band's song "They Don't Care" (another track from Below Sunset), which was also placed - that same year - as the theme song for the Versus network's Red, White, Black and Blue Summer promo trailer. In 2008, Hypnogaja frontman, ShyBoy, co-wrote and performed two songs ("The Time Has Come" and "Shall Never Surrender") featured in the Capcom video game, The Devil May Cry 4 (the latter track appearing as the game's end title and both songs appearing on the accompanying, official Sony Music soundtrack). In 2009, Tapulous featured the Hypnogaja song "Things Will Never Be The Same" (from the Truth Decay LP) in the iPhone and iPod touch game, Tap Tap Revenge 3.
Several technology companies have featured Hypnogaja's music in noteworthy articles and promotional materials, and have invited the band to participate in events. Apple computers posted an in-depth interview and story on the band's experience in using Macs in the realms of recording, touring and promotion. AOL Music's Noisecreep property featured an interview with Hypnogaja about the concept behind Truth Decay, and offered an exclusive, free download of the song, "Worship Me (I'm On TV)." Microsoft Windows featured free downloads of two songs from Truth Decay - "Rusty Moon" and "Cellar Door" - on promotions tied to its Windows 7 release, including a slot in the January 2010 Windows Media Guide.
Hypnogaja performed at the first annual 140tc (Twitter Conference), held in Los Angeles in September 2009. In consideration of the band's success in utilizing social networking to grow its fan base (Hypnogaja has reached over one million followers on the site), keyboardist Donikian was invited to serve as one of the speakers during the conference's music panel, which also included Chamillionaire, Curt Smith of Tears for Fears and several notable music industry executives. The band rounded out 2009 with a Best Alternative Artist win at the Hollywood Music in Media Awards, performing "Welcome To The Future" at the November awards ceremony. In November 2010, Arnold won the Hollywood Music in Media Award for Best Male Vocal for his performance of the Donna Summer classic hit, "On the Radio," (released in January 2010 by Union State Records as the bonus track on the Hypnogaja digital 45, Welcome to the Future / On the Radio).
Hypnogaja's current lineup of Arnold, Donikian, Barnardo (member since 2004), Farrar (member since 2008) and Parker (member since 2009) performed an official showcase at SXSW '10 in Austin, TX and the group continues to tour and perform webcasts consistently. In July 2010, the band appeared on the debut episode of the web series, Stripped Down Live with Curt Smith (of Tears for Fears). On February 15, 2011, Union State Records is scheduled to release a new Hypnogaja digital EP entitled Dark Star which will contain a remix of the song "Dark Star" (featuring Slimkid3 of The Pharcyde). Later in 2011, there are plans to release Arnold's debut solo album (under the name ShyBoy) as well as plans to start recording a new Hypnogaja studio album.
Scorned
Hypnogaja Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
As you move in to kill
Expect me to start running
But I am standing still
Conceiving,
Believing
That you own all you have
You still can't see
Here I stand
Completely ignored
I watch you willing
To see me scorned
The darkness uncovers
All of the pain and lies
The shining is coming
From all that you deny
Now that we
Have at me
I still refuse to pass
Debating the hating
You still can't see
I don't know why you feel this way
The pain you're breeding
You sneer and turn to walk away
While I am bleeding
Confused and naked
The curtain is torn
You stand there waiting
To see me scorned
You die when I close my eyes
I can't see when you're blinding me
It's gotta get much better than this
Fits much better with a blinding fist
Get sent back when I'm under attack
Smack right down, make you feel my frown
It doesn't matter if you let me be
It doesn't matter 'cause you still can't see me
The lyrics to Hypnogaja's song Scorned tell a story of being disregarded and overlooked, while the person who is causing pain and deceit is blinded by their own distractions. The first stanza mentions that the singer is aware of the danger that is approaching, but they refuse to flee from it. Instead, they choose to stand firm and face the situation head-on. The second stanza emphasizes the singer's assertion that the person responsible for the pain is delusional and possesses false beliefs about owning everything they have; the fashion distraction that blurs reality has not cleared their sight. In the chorus, the singer reveals that they feel ignored by the person inflicting the pain, as they watch on eagerly for them to be scorned.
The third and fourth stanzas reveal that the truth will eventually be exposed and that the pain and lies will be uncovered by the darkness. The shining light will come from everything the person denies, and the singer will continue to resist passing. The pain breeding in the person and the singer's own bleeding heart are mentioned, indicating that the person causing the pain is aware of the damage they are inflicting. In the fifth stanza, the singer is confused and exposed, but the person causing the pain is still waiting to see them suffer. The sixth and final stanza carries an air of defiance, stating that the person responsible for the pain will die whenever the singer shuts their eyes. Interestingly, the line "Fits much better with a blinding fist" suggests a destructive relationship where one person causes harm to the other, and it feels familiar and natural.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm watching you looking
I am observing you carefully
As you move in to kill
As you make a move to harm someone
Expect me to start running
You would hope that I would flee
But I am standing still
Yet I remain composed and steadfast
Conceiving,
Forming an idea in one's mind
Believing
To have faith in something
That you own all you have
To believe that everything you posses is your own
The fashion distraction
The obsession with current style trends that can distract from more important matters
You still can't see
Yet you refuse to acknowledge the reality of the situation
Here I stand
I'm still here and present
Completely ignored
Having my presence disregarded
I watch you willing
I see your willingness to do harm
To see me scorned
You want to witness me being ridiculed and belittled
The darkness uncovers
The truth becomes evident
All of the pain and lies
The painful reality and the deceit
The shining is coming
The light of obvious truth is approaching
From all that you deny
From all of the things you refuse to accept as true
Now that we
Now that we are at the point where
Have at me
You're targeting me
I still refuse to pass
I will not allow myself to be defeated
Debating the hating
Questioning the reasons for the animosity
You still can't see
You are still blinded to the truth
I don't know why you feel this way
I am uncertain as to why you have these hostile feelings
The pain you're breeding
The emotional harm you are causing is spreading
You sneer and turn to walk away
You express your contempt and leave
While I am bleeding
While I am suffering from your actions
Confused and naked
Feeling vulnerable and exposed
The curtain is torn
The truth is revealed
You stand there waiting
You wait for my downfall
To see me scorned
To see me ridiculed and humiliated
You die when I close my eyes
You only exist in my mind
I can't see when you're blinding me
I can't see the truth when you are hiding it
It's gotta get much better than this
The situation must improve
Fits much better with a blinding fist
Violence is not a solution
Get sent back when I'm under attack
Pushed back when I'm under pressure
Smack right down, make you feel my frown
To oppose you and make your efforts fruitless
It doesn't matter if you let me be
Whether or not you allow me to be does not matter
It doesn't matter 'cause you still can't see me
Your blindness to my reality prevents you from understanding me
Contributed by Caden K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.