All she needed were some stories to tell. But Pleasantville just didn't provide the proper inspiration. At 21 years old, Laura Dawn packed her bags and moved to New York City Believer is the soundtrack to her roller coaster life of the next few years. "I showed up in New York, straight from Iowa, with almost no money and not knowing a single soul. I started out living at the Lexington Avenue YMCA, and then graduated to a lower East Side squat on 13th St., where I was sleeping on a board on top of my suitcases. And within a couple of years, I'd become the singer in an all-girl art-punk band that ended up being a toast of the town for a while. We were going to all these decadent parties, drinking a lot, doing drugs for the first time. Hell, in Pleasantville, Iowa, the heaviest drug I'd ever seen was Budweiser! And now I'd gotten involved in this crazy scene. It was fun at first, but after a while, I really lost my way. I had to deal with some very intense personal trials--some serious heartbreak, a very close friend dying--and it just threw this life I was living into a new light. By the time that band broke up I felt so far away from the person I was when I came to New York in the first place, the one who wanted to be a real artist. So I just started writing, by myself, for the first time. I wrote so many songs, 50 or so. I had so many stories to tell from all those years of wrong turns and poverty and mayhem, trying to make it in New York City. And writing those songs saved me. I felt like I found myself again. I called my album Believer because I emerged with a faith that there had to be some purpose to my life, that there was some future ahead I couldn't possibly foresee that would explain everything."
Of course, her future was to take those amazing songs and bring them to the world. Laura began playing out with her powerful new material, and record labels immediately took notice. Within a few months of her first solo show, she'd landed a deal with Extasy Records International and began working on the album that was to become Believer—a collection of songs illustrating her early years in New York City. “I was very young, very independent and fearless, and very, very green,” Laura admits. "Let's just say I got into plenty of trouble, and sometimes didn't know how to get myself out it."
From the sexy punk edge of "Delicious," to the timeless, melancholy pop of "Useless in L.A., " to the innovative, gothic hard rock of the title track, Believer is an eclectic musical journey, brought together by Laura Dawn's consummate auteur songwriting and unique, infectious vocals. "People have told me I sound like a cross between Kim Deal and Dusty Springfield," says Laura, of a voice that goes from a breathy purr to a soulful wail. The album's sonic landscape is rich and varied, fusing rock guitar, bass and drum sounds with ethereal effects, drum loops, and textural instruments like electric cello and piano.
"I was inspired, in part, by Moby's Animal Rights," says Laura. "I wanted to make a pop album that was extreme, that could go from the most beautiful, sparse love song to the most solid, traditional pop songwriting, and then on to the most pounding punk rock. In a way, it's kind of a woman's version of emo-core. We worked very hard to keep it intimate and real, yet when it came time to blow your head off-well, I think some tracks rock very, very hard."
Laura enlisted producer Ted Niceley (Fugazi, Shudder to Think, Girls Against Boys), and a varied group of musicians, including legendary Replacements bassist Tommy Stinson, drummers Josh Freese (A Perfect Circle, The Vandals), Kevin March (Shudder to Think, Dambuilders), and guitarist Richard Fortus (Psychedelic Furs, BT, Love Spit Love), to work on the LP. Laura also had the chance to work with Yoshiki (Extasy Records CEO and President and former leader of the legendary Japanese rock group, X-Japan), who produced his favorite track "I Would," the album's lead single (written by Laura and Linus of Hollywood).
"In the best of all possible worlds," says Laura, "people will hear this album and realize that a woman can be sexy, smart, funny, vulnerable, foolish and bad-ass - sometimes, all at once. The song "Believer" kind of says it all for me, in a way. Being a believer, keeping the faith that there's purpose to your life, is certainly a double-edged sword. Faith is sexy, it's silly, it's moving and real and elusive. But it can be dangerous and destructive if it's not tempered with some experience and wisdom. I guess the main thing I learned from all my adventures is that sometimes it's important to just keep going on, whether you can find a reason to or not. No matter what life throws you, you gotta stay a believer, you know? We need more of them."
Love You Less
Laura Dawn Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Come on inside
It's late and i can't say no
For what it's worth
I tried to fight it
But in truth
I never want you to go
We do when we're alone
It's the closest thing
That i've felt to home
And afterwards
I'll feel so alone
But i still let you in
I couldn't hate you more
I couldn't hate you more
But i couldn't love you less
I couldn't hate you more
I couldn't hate you more
But i couldn't love you less
I must confess i'm yours
I'm yours
I met my match
I met someone
Like me
Who's actually free
But ohhhh-how
I'd love to shoot you down
Skin your hide
And wear you around
But somehow
I know my heart wouldn't pound
If you ever gave in
I couldn't hate you more
I couldn't hate you more
But i couldn't love you less
I couldn't hate you more
I couldn't hate you more
But i couldn't love you less
If like finds like in this sordid sea
Then it's a dirty little mirror i'm looking into
Do i love you or the mystery?
I want it bad, what i can't have
I want it bad
And ohhhh-the things
We do when we're alone
It's the closest thing
That i've felt to home
And afterwards
I'll feel so alone
But i still let you in
I let you in
I must confess i'm yours
I'm yours if you want me
I'm yours if you want me
I'm yours if you want me
The lyrics of Laura Dawn's Love You Less explore the emotional struggle of being in a toxic relationship with someone you cannot resist. The singer is torn between her desire for her lover and her hatred towards him. She knows that the relationship is unhealthy and might even be damaging her, but she cannot resist his charm and the familiarity of their connection.
The first few lines of the song show the singer giving in to her lover's advances, "Come on inside, it's late and I can't say no". She admits that she has tried to fight her urge to be with him but deep down, she wants him to stay. The lines, "But in truth, I never want you to go" convey the sense of loneliness and longing that the singer feels when her lover is not around.
The chorus, "I couldn't hate you more, but I couldn't love you less" captures the complexity of the singer's emotions. She hates the way her lover treats her, yet she cannot help but love him. The lines, "I must confess, I'm yours if you want me" shows the vulnerability of the singer and how she is willing to give in to her lover's demands, despite the pain he causes her.
Overall, Love You Less is a powerful song that explores the complicated emotions of a toxic relationship. It is a poignant reminder that sometimes we cannot control who we love, even if that person is not good for us.
Line by Line Meaning
Come on inside
Inviting someone into a space or personally inviting someone to get closer.
It's late and i can't say no
Being susceptible to temptation late at night regardless of other obligations.
For what it's worth
Reflecting on what is valuable and important in a situation.
I tried to fight it
Attempting to resist the emotions felt towards a person or situation.
But in truth
Acknowledging personal feelings and longings.
I never want you to go
Desiring someone's continued presence in one's life.
It's the closest thing
Finding a relatable experience that feels familiar and comforting.
That i've felt to home
Feeling at ease and comfortable with someone or something.
And afterwards
Recalling a time of intimacy with someone else.
I'll feel so alone
Feeling isolated and disconnected with one's own feelings after being emotional with someone else.
But i still let you in
Opening oneself up to vulnerability despite the emotional risk.
I couldn't hate you more
Expressing negative emotion towards someone.
But i couldn't love you less
Feeling deeply about someone despite other negative emotions.
I must confess i'm yours
Admitting to another person that they have captured one's heart.
I met my match
Finding someone who is similarly free-spirited and independent.
Like me
Highlighting a shared experience or characteristic.
Who's actually free
Finding someone who is truly independent and not tied down to anyone or anything.
But ohhhh-how
Feeling conflicting emotions about another person.
I'd love to shoot you down
Expressing a desire to reject or diminish the other person.
Skin your hide and wear you around
Feeling a need to overpower, own or consume the other person.
But somehow
Recognizing the conflicting emotions that exist alongside one's negative feelings.
I know my heart wouldn't pound
Realizing that if the other person gave in or left, the person would not feel as deeply.
If you ever gave in
Contemplating the idea of the other person surrendering to the person's desires or feelings.
If like finds like in this sordid sea
Reflecting on the chaos and complexity of personal relationships.
Then it's a dirty little mirror i'm looking into
Viewing the negative or chaotic aspects of the self through another person.
Do i love you or the mystery?
Conflicted about whether the attraction comes from an emotional connection or an enigmatic quality.
I want it bad, what i can't have
Desiring something that is unattainable or difficult to obtain.
And afterwards
Reflecting on the intimate moment shared with the other person.
I'll feel so alone
Feeling isolated with one's own emotions after relinquishing control to another person.
But i still let you in
Opening oneself up to vulnerability despite the risk of emotional distance.
I let you in
Acknowledging that the person has given part of themselves to the other person.
I'm yours if you want me
Offering oneself to the other person.
Contributed by Alex B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@MonkeyBoo
It’s got Frankie Valli. Forget about it....
@Joeasker
Sup
@hectorcillo5079
primera vez que veo que el que hace el coro lo ponen como que fue el que cantó la melodia
@jeanettemontoya4958
great singers September 21 - 2020
@CindyM372
Monkey boo I’m in my 70s not quite sure what your comment means🤭
@MonkeyBoo
@@CindyM372 Frankie was popular with mon guys back in the day. hence. "Forget about it". Al Paccino explains it great in "Donnie Brasco" movie
@bills.1951
The drummer drums and sings effortlessly! WOW!!!
@aprilcrisp1202
Gerry Polci. The dude is super talented.
@elisabethhofstra7844
Yes, true art!❤
@trainnerd3029
Like Phil Collins or is Phil Collins like him? 🤔