Jesse Sykes (née Solomon) is a Seattle-based singer/songwriter. Her backing… Read Full Bio ↴Jesse Sykes (née Solomon) is a Seattle-based singer/songwriter. Her backing band is The Sweet Hereafter, which features Phil Wandscher (late of Whiskeytown) on guitar.

Previously, Sykes was a member of the band, Hominy, along with her former husband Jim Sykes, who played guitar. The band released a self-titled album in 1998 on the Ivy label. Other members of The Sweet Hereafter include Anne Marie Ruljancich (also of the Walkabouts), Bill Herzog (also drummer of Joel RL Phelps + the Downer Trio and a former member of Neko Case's touring band) on bass, Kevin Warner on drums (for the first two albums) and currently Eric Eagle on drums. In 2006 Jesse contributed vocals to the song "The Sinking Belle (Blue Sheep)" from the Sunn O)))/Boris collaboration album Altar. Bill Herzog, Phil Wandscher also contributed to Altar.

aftermath
Jesse Sykes Lyrics

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Walk us through
All the remnants of the aftermath
The stakes where high I knew
But i could not stop

Two aimless arrows fell
And I motioned you
Said this was nothing that

Two friends wouldn't do

Captured in the afternoon

It's better not to give yourself away
Give yourself away, away too soon

So, sing us your praises
It is without regret

Some say there's too much love
We just haven't found ours yet

Overall Meaning

The song Aftermath by Jesse Sykes is a beautifully haunting ballad about the aftermath of a relationship and the pain that remains once it's ended. The opening lines suggest that the singer is looking back on the remains of what once was, reflecting on the high stakes of the relationship and the inability to stop the inevitable end. The image of two aimless arrows falling suggests that both parties were lost and directionless, unable to steer the relationship towards a positive outcome. Despite this, the singer motioned her/his partner forward, indicating the desire to continue on even though the relationship was rocky.

The lines "Captured in the afternoon, it's better not to give yourself away, give yourself away, away too soon" suggest that perhaps the relationship was built on superficial or fleeting feelings and that both parties should have held back from diving headfirst into their emotions before they fully understood what they were getting into. The final lines "Some say there's too much love, we just haven't found ours yet" indicates that the singer is not ready to give up on love entirely; rather, they believe that there is still hope to find a love that is deeper and more fulfilling than the one that ended. The song ultimately speaks to the universal experience of heartbreak and the hope for a brighter future.

Line by Line Meaning

Walk us through
Guide us through the aftermath

All the remnants of the aftermath
All the remaining evidence of what happened

The stakes where high I knew
I understood the high stakes

But i could not stop
But I couldn't prevent it

Two aimless arrows fell
Two events occurred without clear direction

And I motioned you
And I signaled to you

Said this was nothing that
I declared that this was nothing that

Two friends wouldn't do
Two friends shouldn't do

Captured in the afternoon
Preserved in the daylight hours

It's better not to give yourself away
It's wiser not to reveal everything about yourself

Give yourself away, away too soon
Revealing too much too early can be detrimental