The band is a musical project based around songs written and played by Ross Cowman (previously part of The Pasties) with various line-ups over the band's history. They use, at various times, the guitar, cello, harp, melodica, flute, glockenspiel, banjo, and of course, voices. Topics range from mental illness, gender standards, and male privilege, to the celebration of relationships and place.
Lineups:
A Long and Ugly Road
-Ross Cowman was previously part of The Pasties.
-Sara Lankutis sang and performed on the first album, A Long and Ugly Road.
The Winged Life
-Ross Cowman
-Onyx of Olympia, who sings and plays harp in The Winged Life, has performed and recorded solo and is a founding member of Olympia DIY supergroup Polka Dot Dot Dot.
-Christopher Schiel, who sings and plays cello in The Winged Life, has performed and recorded solo as SON.
-Bobby Joe Watson sings and plays banjo.
Battlegrounds
-Ross Cowman
-Danielle Chiero sings and plays flute.
-Micah Ellison, who sings and plays melodica in Batllegrounds, has performed and recorded in Seattle as Secret Plan.
Lions of Cascadia
-Ross Cowman
-Molly McDermott
-Sean Carson
-Danielle Chiero
Ross Cowman and Micah Ellison regularly perform in the band and are sometimes joined by Danielle Chiero.
Summer Nights
June Madrona Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We talked about centralia and the suburbs of seattle and how we lost our virginity
And all the lovers that we'd left behind
And then we left your house behind
With your brother sharing half of a clove cigarette.
On the walk between your house and mine a full moon hung halfway in the sky
We went to a cottage filled with straw and hobo spiders and made-out in the loft
You said it feld good to be touched
And i thought right now that's enough
We lay with our back against the roud, staring up into a star-filled sky
And i think how some stars still burn and some of them died long-ago, and then a car came by
And where do all these memories we have go when we die?
Like our childhoods packed away in boxes left behind.
Oh i love these summer nights.
The lyrics of June Madrona's song Summer Nights reflect the intense emotions that accompany the experience of young love. The singer recalls a night spent with the object of their affection, during which they bonded over shared experiences and exchanged intimate moments. The song opens with the memory of the moment when the singer realizes their crush on their partner, as they play guitar at the latter's house. The two of them go on to talk about significant events in their romantic lives, including losing their virginities and breaking up with previous lovers. They leave the house together, with the singer's partner's brother sharing a clove cigarette with them.
The second part of the song describes the physical intimacy between the two lovers. They walk towards a cottage, and once inside, they make out in the loft. They share their feelings of pleasurable touch, and the singer reflects that at that moment, nothing else matters. As they lay down outside and look up at the stars, the singer becomes philosophical, considering time and the passage of memories. The song ends with a statement of love for the summer nights that bring about such intense emotions.
Line by Line Meaning
I realized i had a crush on you as we went to your house to play guitar
I came to realize my liking for you as we headed towards your place for a jam session
We talked about centralia and the suburbs of seattle and how we lost our virginity
We discussed Centralia, the Seattle suburbs and how we lost our virginity
And all the lovers that we'd left behind
And all the people we had left behind as lovers
And then we left your house behind
And then we departed from your house
With your brother sharing half of a clove cigarette.
Your brother shared a clove cigarette with us before we left.
On the walk between your house and mine a full moon hung halfway in the sky
During the walk from your place to mine, the full moon was visible in the sky
We went to a cottage filled with straw and hobo spiders and made-out in the loft
We went to a cottage filled with straw and spiders, and made out in the loft
And when i said that it felt good to touch you
When I mentioned that touching you felt good
You said it feld good to be touched
You replied that it felt good being touched
And i thought right now that's enough
I thought that the moment was perfect as it was
We lay with our back against the roud, staring up into a star-filled sky
We lay on the road, gazing at the sky filled with stars
And i think how some stars still burn and some of them died long-ago, and then a car came by
I pondered upon how some stars still burn while others have long been extinguished, and then a car passed by.
And where do all these memories we have go when we die?
And it made me wonder where all these memories go when we pass away
Like our childhoods packed away in boxes left behind.
Similar to how our childhood memories are boxed and left behind
Oh i love these summer nights.
Oh, I cherish these summer nights.
Contributed by Ian L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.