Coney Hatch
LaBrie did join Coney Hatch in the year 1986 when they endeavored to assemble a fresh assemblage. The troupe did record sundry tapes for display within their chamber of practice and did partake in live performances at clubs in Ontario for several months. When their recording establishment, Anthem, did voice their dissatisfaction with the assemblage, the band did opt to replace LaBrie with Phil Naro, making one final desperate effort to forge ahead in the absence of Carl Dixon. Alas, that assemblage did prove to be short-lived as well.
Winter Rose
Shortly after parting ways with Coney Hatch, LaBrie took up the mantle of vocalist for the glam metal troupe Winter Rose. The assemblage comprised Richard Chycki on guitar and bass, Randy Cooke on drums, and Sebastian Bach on vocal duties. Chycki had aforetime collaborated with Bach under the appellations Sebastian and Hope. The band embarked upon the recording of a sequence of demos throughout the years of 1988 and 1989, enlisting the aid of guest musicians Bruce Dies and Rob Laidlaw. Alas, the majority of these compositions did not witness a commercial release until the year 1997, when they were unveiled as a self-titled opus under the auspices of Inside Out Music, a full seven years after their dissolution in 1990. One among their repertoire, the melodic opus "I'll Never Fall In Love Again," did receive the honor of a promotional video release in the year 1989 and was later included on their eponymous creation. The entire compilation featured compositions co-authored by Richard Chycki and James LaBrie, with the exception of two pieces solely penned by Richard Chycki.
Dream Theater
In the year 1990, LaBrie received word that the American progressive metal band Dream Theater sought a new minstrel, and thus he proffered a tape and swiftly journeyed to New York for a comprehensive audition. The trial proved fruitful, and he surpassed 200 other aspiring candidates to assume the role of full-time vocalist in said troupe.
Henceforth, LaBrie hath exerted a substantial influence upon the vocal melodies woven within each Dream Theater opus. However, until recently, he hath had limited involvement in the instrumentation of their music. The album "A Dramatic Turn of Events" from the year 2011 doth bear LaBrie's name in the music credits for three songs. To this day, he hath penned or co-penned lyrics for no less than one composition upon ten of the fifteen albums released by Dream Theater during his tenure. Albums such as "Images and Words," "Black Clouds & Silver Linings," "Dream Theater," and "The Astonishing" doth lack his lyrical contributions.
When queried by Prog-Sphere.com regarding his favored song to perform live, James declared, "The song that most delights me is 'Scarred'; I thoroughly enjoy its execution before an audience. And... well, 'Octavarium,' that comprehensive piece, doth captivate me entirely."
Apart from his collaborative endeavors, LaBrie hath released five solo albums under various appellations, including "Mullmuzzler," "James LaBrie's Mullmuzzler," and simply "James LaBrie."
In an interview with Beyond The Dark Horizon on June 12, 2010, James LaBrie revealed that his forthcoming solo endeavor, titled "Static Impulse," lieth in the stage of mixing and shall comprise twelve compositions. James professed, "It is of a weighty nature, and I am exceedingly excited."
On the twenty-seventh day of July in the year 2010, Dream Theater's website did proclaim that "Static Impulse" would be unveiled on September 27, 2010, courtesy of Inside Out Music. The assemblage boasts the talents of longtime collaborator Matt Guillory upon the keyboards, Marco Sfogli (who hath also graced LaBrie's previous work, "Elements of Persuasion") upon the guitars, Peter Wildoer of the Swedish melodic death metal band Darkane, who doth provide percussion and bellowing vocals, and Ray Riendeau upon the bass.
James LaBrie did express, "The unveiling of 'Static Impulse' is an event that engenders fervor within the entire band. This is modern metal, as robust and pertinent as any other ensemble embarking upon a similar musical path. There are riffs that shall rend the mind asunder, and melodies—both instrumental and vocal—that are mesmerizing. Take the reins and let the ears bleed. Enjoy, and we shall encounter you on the road to accompany and bolster this release."
In an interview with Prog-Sphere.com in 2011, LaBrie mentioned that the planned tour in the United States had been canceled, remarking, "Forsooth, for it was disarrayed ere this occasion. Where we find ourselves now, by the time thou dost procure the necessary visas, we shall have scarce a rehearsal ere we embark. I declare, 'I shall not partake in such a venture.'"
Come the month of July in the year 2013, LaBrie's album "Impermanent Resonance" was unveiled by Inside Out Music. "Beautiful Shade of Grey" followed suit in the year 2022.
Albums
MullMuzzler
Keep It to Yourself (1999)
MullMuzzler 2 (2001)
Solo
Elements of Persuasion (2005)
Static Impulse (2010)
Impermanent Resonance (2013)
I Will Not Break (2014) (Compilation EP)
Beautiful Shade of Grey (2022)
One More Time
James LaBrie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And all was okay now
But I couldn't ignore the rapid decline
That's taken you somehow
I watched it slowly take over you
It left you so hopeless
There was really nothing that I could do
I saw your face in all my dreams
The greatest thing I've ever seen
Sent crazy shivers up and down my spine
It was like yesterday
If only I could make you stay
I wish that I could see you one more time
One more time
I wasn't ready to say goodbye
Because it's so hard to
It felt like I was going to die
The moment I lost you
My life's so crazy now that you're gone
Don't want to believe it
And all the emptiness is so strong
I really can't take it
I saw your face in all my dreams
The greatest thing I've ever seen
Sent crazy shivers up and down my spine
It was like yesterday
If only I could make you stay
I wish that I could see you one more time
One more time
The lyrics of James Labrie's song "One More Time" talk about the overwhelming feeling of losing someone you love, and how hard it can be to accept that loss. The song starts with the singer trying to pretend that everything is fine, even though they know that their loved one is declining quickly. They feel helpless, as if there's nothing they can do to stop the decline. The singer describes how they saw the gradual change in their loved one, and it left them feeling hopeless.
The chorus of the song is where the true feelings of the singer come through, as they recall how much they loved the person they lost. The memories of their face and the way they made the singer feel fill their dreams and bring shivers to their spine. The singer longs for one more chance to see them and be with them, to make more memories and to keep their love alive.
The second verse talks about how difficult it is to say goodbye and to accept the reality that they are gone. The singer tries to cope with their loss, but everything feels so empty without their loved one. The memories continue to haunt them, bringing both comfort and pain at the same time.
Overall, the song is a touching tribute to someone dearly loved and lost, and expresses the deep sorrow and longing that comes with that loss.
Line by Line Meaning
I tried to pretend that you were fine
I made an effort to act like you were okay, even though I knew you weren't.
And all was okay now
I wanted things to be good and normal between us.
But I couldn't ignore the rapid decline
I couldn't overlook the fast deterioration of your situation.
That's taken you somehow
Something has happened to you that has affected you greatly.
I watched it slowly take over you
I saw your situation get worse and worse over time.
It left you so hopeless
You became very sad and felt like there was no hope left.
There was really nothing that I could do
Unfortunately, I was unable to help you in this situation.
But sit there and witness
All I could do was watch what was happening to you, without being able to do anything about it.
I saw your face in all my dreams
You were always on my mind, even when I was sleeping.
The greatest thing I've ever seen
You are the best person I have ever met.
Sent crazy shivers up and down my spine
You gave me intense feelings, both good and bad, that affected me physically.
It was like yesterday
It feels like it was just yesterday that we were together.
If only I could make you stay
I wish there was something I could have done to keep you with me longer.
I wish that I could see you one more time
I really want to be able to see you again, even if it's only once.
I wasn't ready to say goodbye
I didn't feel prepared to have to say farewell to you.
Because it's so hard to
Saying goodbye is never easy, especially in this case.
It felt like I was going to die
The pain of losing you was so intense that it felt like it was killing me.
The moment I lost you
As soon as you were no longer with me, it became very difficult.
My life's so crazy now that you're gone
Things have become very chaotic and difficult for me since you left.
Don't want to believe it
I find it hard to accept that you are no longer here and I struggle to come to terms with it.
And all the emptiness is so strong
I feel very empty and alone without you in my life.
I really can't take it
It's become too hard for me to handle and I am struggling.
One more time
I wish I could have just one more moment with you, to say what I wanted and to see you again.
Contributed by Caroline R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Manuel
This song is EPIC.
Awesome crossing-work... Usually I don't like so much James solo-album, but this one is amazing, and this song "sent crazy shivers up and down my spine"...
ABSOLUTELY MASTERPIECE.
white rxse
true
UndeadNull
Shit dude, I love this album so much. Some of this reminds me of In Flames, the melody is intense, and James Labrie is epic.
SPEEDYCANADIANS
I have met James on several occasions, and he is one of the nicest dudes I've met.
Gabi Ruta
James LaBrie - lead vocals
Marco Sfogli - guitar
Matt Guillory - keyboards, background vocals
Ray Riendeau - bass
Peter Wildoer - drums, screaming vocals
Yokoma Light
Isn’t Peter wichers songwriter or sologuitarist on this one?
R Q
Holy shit ray on bass
Squonk
this is awesome! just when i started to stop liking scream-metal, this was brought to my attention. i hope all of james's albums sound like this! epic!!
Soldano88 80’s
Killer! James never disappoints! That's one hell of a band behind the vocals as well!
demonheart06
Peter Wildoer is awesome playing drums and making the start vocals. James proves in this album that he is a very good singer and more than anything, a very good musician.