The band was formed in 1990 by Greg Mckenna and Kay Hanley, from ashes of their former band, Rebbecca Lula. After numerous member changes, the classic Letters to Cleo line-up was solidified. They included Hanley and Mckenna, Mike Eisenstein on guitar, Stacy Jones on drums and Scott Riebling on bass. After years of playing the Boston club circuit, including TT The Bears Place and The Rathskellar, Letters released their first full length record, Aurora Gory Alice on CherryDisc in 1993.
The album received extensive airplay around the region and after a much hyped show at South by Southwest in Austin, Letters to Cleo signed a major label record deal with Giant Records and Aurora Gory Alice was re-released worldwide.
They had their first big hit single with "Here & Now" and the song would later appear on the Melrose Place soundtrack, where it got most of its exposure. The song reached #2 on the Billboard Modern Rock Singles chart. Appearances on Conan O'Brien and Jon Stewart followed.
In 1995, Wholesale Meats and Fish was released and followed by extensive tours with Our Lady Peace, Sponge, Ned's Atomic Dustbin and others. The single "Awake" was released and achieved moderate rotation on alternative radio. The band also recorded a cover of The Cars song "The Dangerous Type" for the major motion picture, The Craft.
In 1997, Stacy Jones left the band to join Veruca Salt and was replaced by Tom Polce. That same year, LTC's third album "Go" was released. After a short tour, Polce left the band and was replaced by drummer Jason Sutter. In late 1997, Letters to Cleo parted ways with their record label Giant/Revolution.
1998 saw the release of some early demos and B-sides in the form of the "Sister" EP on Wicked Disc.
Letters to Cleo appeared in the film 10 Things I Hate about You in 1999 (one of the characters considers them a favorite band). They contributed three songs to the soundtrack for the film, including one original track, "Come On", a Cheap Trick cover ("I Want You to Want Me") and a Nick Lowe cover ("Cruel to Be Kind"). Whereas the covers appeared on the film's sountrack, "Come On" did not. It was released as an MP3 downloadable from the Band's website. During that same year, LTC opened for Cheap Trick at The Paradise club in Boston.
The band played its last show on May 4, 2000, a benefit for their friend and longtime local supporter, Mikey D. They announced their disbandment in the Boston Globe the following month. Most of the band members are now involved in solo careers. Most notable is Kay Hanley's career, which produced the album "Cherry Marmalade in 2002 and the EP The Babydoll EP in 2004. Hanley also provided the singing voice for the Josie character in the 2001 motion picture Josie and the Pussycats.
Former drummer Stacy Jones went on to form American Hi-Fi with fellow Boston musicians Drew Parsons, Jamie Arentzen and Brian Nolan.
Scott Riebling went into the production side of music and is now a highly sought after producer and engineer.
Co-founding member Greg McKenna is currently finishing work on his solo project, Murder Capitol of the World. The debut album is due in 2007.
From Under the Dust
Letters to Cleo Lyrics
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Fourteen scurrying feet getting as far away as feet can carry.
From under the dust I hear every one of you, from under the dust I can feel it all.
I know what you're thinking.
I know what you're saying.
It was another time.
I guess you were a friend of mine.
It was another time but not much to recall.
From under the dust I hear every one of you, from under the dust I can feel it all.
I know what you're thinking.
It isn't hard to tell at all.
I know what you're saying.
Your not whispering.
The opening line of Letters to Cleo's song From Under the Dust, "It gets loud down here", sets the tone for the rest of the lyrics. The song explores feelings of isolation and distance, indicating that the singer is physically removed from those around them. The second line, "Fourteen scurrying feet getting as far away as feet can carry", suggests that the singer is in a place where people are running away from something. It's possible that the setting is some kind of disaster or accident, and the singer is trapped or buried. Despite this, the singer can still hear and feel the people around them "from under the dust" - indicating that they are still alive and conscious.
The middle two lines, "It was another time. I guess you were a friend of mine", suggest that the singer is thinking back to a time when they were surrounded by the people they now hear and feel around them. However, the singer doesn't seem to have much to recall, indicating that something happened to separate them from their friends. The rest of the song repeats the key points - that the singer is still trapped ("From under the dust"), and that they know what the people around them are thinking and saying ("I know what you're thinking. I know what you're saying").
Overall, the lyrics to From Under the Dust suggest a sense of desperation and loneliness, as well as a strong connection to the people around the singer. It's not entirely clear what has happened to separate the singer from their friends, or whether they will be rescued, but the song suggests that the singer is still holding on to hope.
Line by Line Meaning
It gets loud down here.
The environment here is chaotic and noisy.
Fourteen scurrying feet getting as far away as feet can carry.
Fourteen people rapidly moving away from the place as far as their feet can take them.
From under the dust I hear every one of you, from under the dust I can feel it all.
Despite being buried under dust, the artist can still hear and feel the actions, emotions, and movements of the people above.
I know what you're thinking.
The artist can sense the thoughts of the people above.
I know what you're saying.
The artist can interpret the words spoken by the people above.
It was another time.
The event being referred to happened in the past.
I guess you were a friend of mine.
The artist assumes that one of the individuals above was their friend.
It was another time but not much to recall.
Although it happened in the past, the artist does not remember much about the event being referred to.
From under the dust I hear every one of you, from under the dust I can feel it all.
Despite being buried under dust, the artist can still hear and feel the actions, emotions, and movements of the people above.
I know what you're thinking.
The artist can sense the thoughts of the people above.
It isn't hard to tell at all.
What the people above are thinking is quite apparent to the artist.
Your not whispering.
The people above are not trying to hide their words or actions from the artist.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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