I LIKE TRAINS have flourished within Leeds' fertile music scene since their inception in 2004 and have seen their intelligent, thought-provoking and quintessentially British world embraced by a growing following the world over. The NME descried them as 'brilliant, unique, wry... at odds with pop's present trends.' Uncut Magazine referred to them as ‘Bold and Impressive’, and the Guardian cast them as ‘Intelligent, very dark humorists… grand civic music, less to be listened to and more to be visited like a museum or war memorial, and all the more interesting because of it.’ The widescreen nature of their music has found them in demand for film and television soundtracks, their recent syncs include the ever popular CSi: Miami and trailers for Hollywood films The Wrestler, Amelia and Beautiful Boy.
Due for release on May 7th 2012, The Shallows explores our relationships with technology. Set to a dark motorik pulse and haunted by machines, production duties were handed to Richard Formby, celebrated for his work on the Mercury nominated ‘Two Dancers’ by Wild Beasts. ‘The Shallows’ deals with themes of information overload, charts a history of how our tools have shaped us, and asks how our recent reliance on digital technology to obtain information has changed the way we think and retain knowledge.
The band released their debut single 'Before The Curtains Close' on the Leeds label Dance to the Radio in 2005. The murder ballad soon sold all 500 copies and was followed by their second single 'A Rook House For Bobby' on Kids. The dramatic tale depicting the life of Bobby Fischer, the troubled chess grandmaster sold all 500 copies in its first week and earned them recognition on the radio and in the press in the UK. Their third single was released in 2006 on Fierce Panda and sold all 1000 copies in its first week. 'Terra Nova' was the story of Captain Scott's doomed 1912 Antarctic expedition set to a sensational orchestra of guitars as grand as the landscape it describes and has earned them regular plays on national radio and glowing reviews. The band's zero-budget animated homemade video re-enacting the last days of Scott and his team has become as popular as the song and received regular plays on MTV2 and even features in a exhibition at the Fram Antarctic museum in Oslo. The summer of 2006 saw the release of the mini-album PROGRESS, REFORM on Fierce Panda, which was a catalogue of their recordings to date and was full of the band's unique, beautiful sounds and rousing songs, brimming with exceptional characters and historical events. The songs covered Captain Scott, Hjalmar Johansson, a rejected candidate for the Norwegian Antarctic team; Bobby Fischer, the troubled chess Grandmaster and a reprise to Bobby's political status; Dr. Beeching, who closed many of the nation's railways, and other tales of damned or murderous events.
I LIKE TRAINS’ first full length record, Elegies to Lessons Learnt, came in October 2007, released on legendary independent Beggars Banquet. This took the band’s historical obsession to its logical conclusion, an ambitious record illustrating how history repeats itself and how the human race fails to learn from its mistakes. It was accompanied by a series of singles which showed that there is always more than one side to every story. Each b-side took up the same story from an alternative perspective.
Following the folding of the Beggars Banquet label, I LIKE TRAINS released an instrumental piece entitled The Christmas Tree Ship EP at the end of 2008 on yet another influential independent label Fantastic Plastic.
Released in October 2010 the album He Who Saw the Deep was the first release on the band’s own ILR label. Having successfully secured funding from a loyal fan base via the Pledge Music website, the record marked a new chapter for I LIKE TRAINS. There was a streamlining of their signature dark atmospheric sound. There was light and shade, hope and devastation. Where once, the band had looked to the past for its inspiration, ‘He Who Saw the Deep’ had its eyes firmly on the future. The album spawned three singles with beautifully shot sea themed videos produced by the Progress Film Company. These were brought together on This Skin Full of Bones CD/DVD release at the end of 2011. It also featured videos of the band performing stripped down alternate versions of tracks from ‘He Who Saw the Deep’ in the grand surroundings of Leeds’ Left Bank.
In 2012 they released their third album The Shallows.
A Divorce Before Marriage, a film about the band by Matt Hopkins and Ben Lankester, was released in 2016. An album with the same title accompanied the film.
Kompromat was released on 2020/08/21.
A ROOK HOUSE FOR BOBBY
I LIKE TRAINS Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
let them climb
they can chase me to the end of the earth
and if they find me, let them indite me
i just don't care anymore
they've pushed me too far, too far
all this talk of war but it's only a game
all i ever wanted to do is play chess with you
but if they find me, they will indite me
i just can't fight anymore
they've pushed me too far, too far
they've pushed me too far, too far
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
we'll build this rook house here...
The lyrics to I LIKE TRAINS' song A ROOK HOUSE FOR BOBBY are a reflection of the singer's frustration with the trivialization of important issues like war, and the overwhelming feeling of exasperation that comes with being misunderstood. The reference to "mountains out of molehills" is a metaphor for how the media and society as a whole can blow things out of proportion, creating anxiety and a sense of helplessness in people's lives. The singer then goes on to say that even if they are pursued to the end of the earth, they don't really care anymore because they are tired of being misunderstood and misinterpreted.
The lyrics continue with a parallel idea, where the singer expresses a desire to play chess instead of engaging in discussions about war. This emphasizes the idea that people are often sidetracked and preoccupied with trivial issues, instead of focusing on the bigger picture. The repeated refrain of "they've pushed me too far, too far" highlights the frustration and emotional turmoil experienced by the singer, who has simply had enough of being misunderstood and marginalized.
In the final lines of the song, the singer seemingly finds a glimmer of hope, as they suggest building a "rook house" for Bobby, which could represent a sanctuary or refuge for someone they care about. This could be interpreted as the singer's way of coping with the difficulties they face - by focusing on creating something positive and fruitful out of the chaos of life.
Line by Line Meaning
they've made mountains out of molehills
People have blown small issues out of proportion
let them climb
Let them continue to exaggerate
they can chase me to the end of the earth
They can pursue me relentlessly
and if they find me, let them indite me
If they discover me, let them accuse and prosecute me
i just don't care anymore
I have reached a breaking point and don't care about the consequences anymore
they've pushed me too far, too far
I have been provoked beyond my limit
all this talk of war but it's only a game
People are exaggerating the seriousness of the situation
all i ever wanted to do is play chess with you
All I ever wanted was a simple and peaceful game
but if they find me, they will indite me
Again, if they find me, they will accuse and prosecute me
i just can't fight anymore
I am exhausted and cannot keep resisting
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
We will find a safe and secure place for Bobby
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
We will ensure Bobby's safety and security
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
We will protect Bobby from harm
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
We will make sure Bobby is safe and secure
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
We will create a sanctuary for Bobby
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
We will provide shelter for Bobby
we'll build this rook house here for bobby
We will defend Bobby from harm
we'll build this rook house here...
We will make sure Bobby is safe
Contributed by Oliver T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Mauricio Schade
They've made mountains out of molehills
Let them climb
They can chase me to the end of the earth
And if they find me
Let them indicte me
I just don't care anymore
They've pushed me too far, too far
They've pushed me too far, too far
All this talk of a war
Well it's only a game
All I ever wanted to do
Is play chess with you
But if they find me
They will indicte me
I just cant hide anymore
they've pushed me too far, too far
they've pushed me too far, too far
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
Endrid Cold
Each time I return to this page, my heart breaks all over again. When iLikeTrains takes on a POV, you can rest assure that they will turn you inside out & demand that you THINK- You have no choice. When they chose to present us w/ Bobby Fischer, his detractors were forced to see him as the tragic hero/genius that he was- more tragic than most people can even comprehend. Most people don't know that Bobby always wanted a house shaped like a Rook- Hence, "A Rook House For Bobby" Thanks guys --
S Bailey
lol
Sanguinius
A beautiful tribute, a beautiful band. Thank you.
Mauricio Schade
They've made mountains out of molehills
Let them climb
They can chase me to the end of the earth
And if they find me
Let them indicte me
I just don't care anymore
They've pushed me too far, too far
They've pushed me too far, too far
All this talk of a war
Well it's only a game
All I ever wanted to do
Is play chess with you
But if they find me
They will indicte me
I just cant hide anymore
they've pushed me too far, too far
they've pushed me too far, too far
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
We'll build this rook house here for Bobby
Ashley Dean
Indeed it was, his last professional game, the winning one against Spasky in Belgrade in 1992. (if i remember rightly). The blobs that appear on the spinning ball represent his wins and losses in that tournament (i might of been taking the metaphore too far by that point)
Brian Wall
I have watched this video a thousand times - very well done. Chess Master Brian Wall
Endrid Cold
Even after 4 yrs, this is one of my favorite tributes to Bobby Fischer. It has even more power now that Bobby is gone. Too me, the fall of Bobby Fischer is the most tragic episode in the history of Chess- more so than even that of Morphy. If only those around him could have taken him kicking & screaming to the proper drs, who knows what he could have achieved- lifetime ELO > 3000, no doubt. But to most of the world Bobby(who was jewish)will be remembered as an anti-semitic madman- So damned sad
dongopongo
my favorite song on the "progress reform" cd...
Lexi Tramel
And all I've ever wanted to do, is play chess with you.
Endrid Cold
Bobby was all too human. His brain chemistry was off and all of his so called friends could not, or would not intervene. Had they done so, all of the torment and misery that he suffered everyday of his life could have been easily avoided. The world would have known an altogether different genius. Who knows what he could have achieved had they taken him, kicking and screaming, to a qualified MD. Quite possibly, the world would have seen a champion w/a lifetime ELO rating of 3000+ Sad, so, so sad