With Schwarzenbach on guitar and vocals, Bauermeister on bass, and Pfahler on drums, the band gained recognition in the late eighties and early nineties for their melodic yet driven sound built on the foundation for Schwarzenbach's poignant, bleeding-heart lyrics and signature rasp.
The band's first full-length release Unfun was put out by Shredder in 1990. On this, the band stuck close to the sound coming out of their contemporaries in the nascent pop punk scene in their sound, with the exception of Bauermeister's prominent bass lines and Schwarzenbach's lyrics, at times walking the line of the melodramatic.
Unfun was followed by Bivouac on Tupelo/Communion in 1992. Bivouac proved thicker and darker - both thematically and melodically - yet served to elevate the band above a crowd of previously similar acts. This more ambitious release also artfully used pieces of found-audio, in what was becoming one of the band's signatures, weaving it in and out of the ten minute title track, "Bivouac."
Their third release, 24 Hour Revenge Therapy, produced by the ubiquitous Steve Albini, unveiled a sparse pop-punk with more carefully crafted lyrics. This album also holds what has become arguably their best known song, "Boxcar."
Jawbreaker had seemed poised for critical and commercial success by the time of their fourth, and last album, Dear You. Despite a vigorous marketing push, Jawbreaker's album sales were anemic in the wake of a post-Green Day market, and was one of the causes leading to the end of the band's career in 1996.
The group recently reacquired the rights to Dear You and have successfully put the long out-of-print album back into circulation on Pfahler's label, Blackball Records.
The band's cult status as the definitive nineties proto-pop-punk band has grown since its breakup, and songs like "Kiss the Bottle" and "Jet Black" are referenced as influences by bands such as Sparta, Lucero, and Rocky Votolato. In 2003, a Jawbreaker tribute album, Bad Scene, Everyone's Fault was released on Dying Wish Records, and featured covers by 18 bands including Fall Out Boy, Nerf Herder, Sparta, and Face To Face.
Singer Blake Schwarzenbach went on to form the New York City-based band Jets to Brazil, who have also since broken up, and is now an adjunct English professor at Hunter College (CUNY). In the fall of 2008, he debuted his new band, Thorns of Life, formed with Aaron Cometbus of Crimpshrine and Pinhead Gunpowder on drums and ex-Gr'ups bassist Daniela Sea.
Drummer Adam Pfahler is currently drumming in San Francisco-based Whysall Lane, whose LP was released in 2006 on his own Blackball Records.
Bassist Chris Bauermeister has been playing in post-hardcore band Horace Pinker and pop-punk band Shorebirds, which was formed with Matt Canino, formerly of Latterman; Shorebirds split in the summer of 2008.
In 2021, Blake Schwarzenbach teamed up with Joyce Manor on a release.
In spite of the similar name, the band Jawbreaker Reunion is unrelated.
Sister
Jawbreaker Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A little face inside a ring.
Plane came in late.
Run up the ramp into my arms.
You're only thirteen.
Wide-eyed and nervous just like me.
Don't grow too fast.
There's a lot of little things to see.
To see.
It makes me crazy to see you twice as big this time.
I'm so happy just to catch you on your climb.
Sister of mine.
You live too far away now.
Seems such a shame to only know your name.
Clear blue of eye.
Smile hides a precious underbite.
Angel in disguise.
I've got you in my thoughts each night.
Does it make me crazy to worry about your bare walls?
Seem so vacant.
Are you sleeping there at all?
She thinks it's stupid that we get paid to jump around.
I hope I never touch the ground.
It's what I live for.
Sister of mine.
You live too far away now.
Seems such a shame to only know your name.
Sister of mine.
I'll meet you past halfway now.
Throw me a line.
Attach a cup and whisper hey.
The song Sister by Jawbreaker is an emotional and heartfelt tribute to a sister who lives far away. The song opens with the singer seeing his sister, who is only thirteen years old, arriving late on a plane. He welcomes her with open arms, happy to see her and reconnect. The singer reminisces about his own youth and warns her not to grow up too fast as there is so much to see and appreciate in life. He is saddened by the fact that she lives so far away that he only knows her by name, and he hopes that their relationship will continue to flourish despite the distance.
The singer describes his sister as having clear blue eyes and a smile that hides a precious underbite. He cares deeply about her well-being and worries about the state of her room, wondering if it is too empty and if she is sleeping there at all. He also reveals that his sister thinks it's ridiculous that he gets paid to jump around. Despite their differences, the singer values his relationship with his sister and cannot wait to reconnect with her.
Overall, Jawbreaker's Sister is a beautiful and sentimental ode to a sibling. It’s a reminder that distance may separate us from those we love, but love and human connection remain constant.
Line by Line Meaning
Seated by the wing.
The singer is on a plane seated by the wing.
A little face inside a ring.
The singer sees a young child's face in the airplane window.
Plane came in late.
The plane arrived behind schedule.
Run up the ramp into my arms.
The artist is excited to see and embrace someone.
My arms.
The artist is embracing someone.
You're only thirteen.
The person being embraced is a young teenager.
Wide-eyed and nervous just like me.
Both the singer and the young teenager are anxious or scared.
Don't grow too fast.
The artist wants the young teenager to enjoy their youth and not rush into adulthood.
There's a lot of little things to see.
The world has many small and interesting details to discover.
To see.
The artist encourages the young teenager to keep exploring the world.
It makes me crazy to see you twice as big this time.
Seeing how much the young teenager has grown is overwhelming for the singer.
I'm so happy just to catch you on your climb.
The artist is happy to witness the young teenager's growth and progress.
Sister of mine.
The person being embraced is the singer's sister.
You live too far away now.
The sister lives far and the singer doesn't see her often.
Seems such a shame to only know your name.
The singer wishes to have closer and more meaningful relationship with their sister.
Clear blue of eye.
The young teenager has bright and clear blue eyes.
Smile hides a precious underbite.
The young teenager's smile is endearing despite having an underbite.
Angel in disguise.
The singer sees their sister as a kind, innocent and beautiful person.
I've got you in my thoughts each night.
The singer thinks and cares about their sister a lot.
Does it make me crazy to worry about your bare walls?
The artist is concerned about the sister's living condition and well-being.
Seem so vacant.
The sister's living space seems empty or lacking.
Are you sleeping there at all?
The artist worries if the sister has a comfortable and safe place to sleep.
She thinks it's stupid that we get paid to jump around.
The sister thinks the singer's music career is foolish or trivial.
I hope I never touch the ground.
The artist loves their music career and doesn't want it to end.
Sister of mine.
The person being addressed is the singer's sister.
I'll meet you past halfway now.
The singer is willing to make an effort to have a closer relationship with their sister.
Throw me a line.
The singer asks their sister to reach out and help them create a closer relationship.
Attach a cup and whisper hey.
The artist and sister can communicate and develop intimacy over the phone or through messages.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: KATE MARIE NASH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind