Ward was previously with the band Rodriguez, which included bassist Kyle Field (of Little Wings fame) and drummer Mike Funk. They recorded and released on cassette Box Plots and Cash Crops and then the album Swing Like a Metronome in 2000. Duet for Guitars #2 was released on Howe Gelb's Ow Om record label. Ward's 2001 album, End of Amnesia, was released by Future Farmer Records, and his subsequent albums have been released on Merge Records. A collection of live recordings, Live Music & the Voices of Strangers, was a self-released disc that was sold at his shows. His next album, Transfiguration of Vincent, was released in 2003, followed by Transistor Radio in 2005. A year later, Post War was released.
In 2006, he contributed a song to, and helped produce, the John Fahey tribute album, I Am the Resurrection. He also contributed the song "Transfiguration #1" from Transfiguration of Vincent to the Brushfire Records soundtrack for A Brokedown Melody, a Jack Johnson surfing film.
His album, Hold Time, was released in 2009. The album A Wasteland Companion followed in 2012. The album title alludes to T.S. Eliot's 1922 modernist poem, The Waste Land. In 2016, he released More Rain. On June 8, 2018, M. Ward released What a Wonderful Industry.
Side Projects
In 2008 M. Ward combined forces with Zooey Deschanel and became She & Him. They have released two albums so far, Volume One in 2008 and Volume Two in 2010. He is also one fourth of the folk supergroup, Monsters of Folk, alongside Jim James from My Morning Jacket, and Conor Oberst & Mike Mogis from Bright Eyes. Their self-titled release, Monsters of Folk, was released in 2009.
* Official website
Fuel for Fire
M. Ward Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I've travelled all kinds of places
The song is always the same
Got lonesome fuel for fire
Got forty-fives to play at night
Got books to spend with every weekend
The story's always the same
Fuel for fire, a bitter ending
Til a sweet, sweet death
Fuel for fire, the sour note inside
An orchestra wail
Fuel for fire, uncomfortable poses
Between famous last words
Fuel for fire, a missing person
In a small, small world
I dug beneath the wall of sound
I ended up back where I started
The song is always the same
Got lonesome fuel for fire
And so my heart is always on the line
I've travelled all kinds of places
The story's always the same
Got lonesome fuel for fire
The first verse of M. Ward's "Fuel for Fire" expresses the singer's vulnerability as he admits that his heart is always on the line. He has travelled all sorts of places and has experienced many things, but the only constant in his life is loneliness, represented here as "lonesome fuel for fire." The repetition of the line "the song is always the same" emphasizes the monotony of his life, suggesting that he feels stuck in an emotionally barren cycle. The second verse introduces some of the things that the singer is hoping will ease his loneliness: records to play at night and books to read on the weekends. However, even though he has these distractions, he notes that the "story's always the same."
The following verses further explore the theme of loneliness and suffering. The repeated phrase "fuel for fire" refers to this pain that the singer experiences, which drives him to continue creating music. The bitter ending and the sour note inside are metaphors for the sadness that haunts him, but he remarks that even though it's uncomfortable, it generates interesting emotions that lead to artistic expression. The missing person in a small world might be a nod to the idea that the pain of the singer's love is universal, but that realization doesn't make it any less isolating. In the final verse, the singer reflects that even after all his travelling, he finds himself back where he started, still feeling lonely and with nothing but his music to keep him company.
Line by Line Meaning
My heart is always on the line
My emotions are always vulnerable and exposed.
I've travelled all kinds of places
I have experienced different environments and situations.
The song is always the same
The pattern of my life is consistent and unchanging.
Got lonesome fuel for fire
I have a source of sadness that motivates and inspires me creatively.
Got forty-fives to play at night
I have a collection of music to listen to in the evenings.
Got books to spend with every weekend
I have literature to enjoy during my free time.
Fuel for fire, a bitter ending
My sadness provides inspiration for a negative conclusion.
Til a sweet, sweet death
The negativity will continue until an eventual end.
Fuel for fire, the sour note inside
My sadness is a constant negative presence within me.
An orchestra wail
The emotional turmoil is expressed through various creative outlets.
Fuel for fire, uncomfortable poses
My sadness and inspiration can lead to difficult and awkward situations.
Between famous last words
My tendency towards negative conclusions can sometimes be viewed as dramatic.
Fuel for fire, a missing person
My sadness can make me feel isolated in a world that seems small.
In a small, small world
The emotional turmoil is amplified in the limited space of my life.
I dug beneath the wall of sound
I searched deeply within myself for inspiration.
I ended up back where I started
Despite my search for inspiration, I found myself stuck in the same negative patterns.
The story's always the same
The cycle of negativity and inspiration is unchanging.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Matthew Stephen Ward
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind