The quartet recorded two albums together: Let's Cut the Crap & Hook Up Later On Tonight, released on Black Dog Records in 1998, and Kids in Philly, released on Steve Earle's now-defunct E-Squared Records in 2000. Both critically acclaimed CD's were recorded and produced by the band and recording engineer Paul Smith above an auto repair garage in south Philadelphia.
Metz and Vance left the band in 2000, and were replaced by Mick Bader on drums and Joe Hooven on bass. Augmented by Mike "Slo-Mo" Brenner on lap steel, this version of the group toured extensively to support Kids in Philly. Marah performed the song, "Point Breeze" from Kids in Philly on The Late Show with Conan O'Brien in 2000. Bader and Hooven left Marah in 2001 and were replaced by Jon Kois (drums) and Jamie Mahon (bass) of Philadelphia psychedelic rock band The Three For Tens.
The Bielankos, with Kois and Mahon, left for Wales in late 2001 to record their third CD, Float Away with the Friday Night Gods with former Oasis producer Owen Morris. It was released on Artemis Records in 2002.
In 2003, Marah returned to the auto garage and recorded their fourth record, 20,000 Streets Under the Sky. The CD was released on Yep Rock records in 2004. The band toured this album with John Wurster (of Indie Rock-stalwarts Superchunk) on drums, Mike Brenner on lap steel, and Kirk Henderson on bass and keyboards.
In 2005, the band entered The Magic Shop recording studio in New York City to record their fifth album with the help of Henderson and two new members, Adam Garbinski and Dave Peterson. The result, If You Didn't Laugh, You'd Cry (IYDLYC), was hailed by critics as a return to form for the band.
The release of IYDLYC was complemented by the recording and release of a Christmas album, A Christmas Kind of Town, on October 18, 2005. The band, solidified as a three-guitar quintet, embarked on a year-long tour of the US and Europe to support the two albums. Highlights of the tour included Serge Bielanko's intense renditions of "Dishwasher's Dream" off of IYDLYC, as well as occasional performances of "Reservation Girl," an original song that has never been officially released by the band.
Dave Bielanko, Serge Bielanko, and Adam Garbinski at ACL 2006.The band played at the Bonnaroo Music Festival on June 16, 2006, which was highlighted by a rousing introduction by St. Louis scenester/character Beatle Bob and a cover of The Who's "Baba O'Riley." Marah later played the Austin City Limits Music Festival on September 15th, 2006, featuring a spirited performance from the band with Dave and Serge Bielanko jumping over the crowd barriers into the audience. The audio of this performance was released on iTunes on November 7th, 2006.
On September 21, 2006, the band's website announced the release of a live DVD of the IYDLYC tour, entitled Sooner or Later in Spain. The DVD, which was originally recorded and released as a fan bootleg, was released on November 17th, 2006.
Marah, with Christine Smith now a full time member, entered Nashville's 16 Ton Recording Studios in August 2006 to record songs for a new record. In April 2007, the group recorded and mixed additional songs at Brooklyn, New York's Excello Recording. In June, Marah announced that the new record, Angels of Destruction, would be released on January 8, 2008 and previewed the album at a concert/listening party in Philadelphia on September 8th, 2007. Angels of Destruction was preceded by a 6-song 10" EP entitled Can't Take It With You which was released in October 2007. A Christmas EP called Counting the Days was released in November 2007.
The new album was released in early January 2008 to widespread acclaim. Almost immediately afterwards, however, plans for an extensive US tour were cancelled following the departure of Garbinski, Peterson, and Henderson. A statement from Dave Bielenko stated that the current line-up could not agree on tour plans, and that to acquiesce to rhythm section would have represented a "musical regression." Bassist Johnny Pisano and drummer Joe Gorelick were hired as replacements, and in late February the band embarked on a European tour to promote the album.
In August 2008, Dave Bielanko, Smith and Pisano started recording new material at 16 Ton Studios in Nashville. Bielanko has stated his intentions of recording "a lilting beautiful folky record of acoustic guitars, tack pianos, and the stand-up bass".
The Hustle
Marah Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm paying dearly for this flash of light I have become
I can't just hold my breath and stop a pulse I'm not controlling
So I hit the pavement as the hustle breaks into a run
We're in the hustle now and there's violence in its techno heart
Bleeding our brothers, lovers, others into faded scars
Good luck believin' now the gears are turning down beneath us
I heard a rumor that time
It's really just a lion that barks in your mind
For no reason
Dealin' the hustle now, it's jivey talk is so confusing
Can't turn the music down to silence out the rest of you
No time for real it's goin' to carve you up like bayonettes
Into a rollin' dawn of modernist art loneliness
This motion in the street
This watchin' my anger
There's hell enough to pay
For smilin'
I'm a leave the hustle one day when I can't do it no more good
Slip the brown bag from my bottle and fill it with my master's gold
Come clean with luck and God inside some Port Authority urinal
Claim me a country hill and a woman with which to grow old
The song "The Hustle" by Marah is a fast-paced, hard-hitting track that tackles the themes of rush, violence, and loneliness. The opening lines, "Burn off the morning smog with heat that's blazing from my rush / I'm paying dearly for this flash of light I have become" sets the tone for the rest of the song. The rush here refers to the fast pace of life in the city, where everyone is always in a hurry to achieve something, and it often leads to a sense of isolation and anxiety.
As the song progresses, the references to violence become more apparent, with lines like "Bleeding our brothers, lovers, others into faded scars" and "Can't turn the music down to silence out the rest of you / No time for real it's goin' to carve you up like bayonets." These references speak to the cut-throat nature of the hustle, where people are willing to do anything to get ahead, regardless of the consequences.
Despite the bleakness of the lyrics, there is a glimmer of hope in the final verse, with the lines "I'm a leave the hustle one day when I can't do it no more good / Slip the brown bag from my bottle and fill it with my master's gold / Come clean with luck and God inside some Port Authority urinal / Claim me a country hill and a woman with which to grow old." Here, the singer dreams of leaving the hustle behind and starting anew, in a place where he can be free from the pressures of the city.
Line by Line Meaning
Burn off the morning smog with heat that's blazing from my rush
I'm in a hurry and the adrenaline is pumping.
I'm paying dearly for this flash of light I have become
Being in the spotlight isn't necessarily a good thing.
I can't just hold my breath and stop a pulse I'm not controlling
I feel like I'm not in control of my own life.
So I hit the pavement as the hustle breaks into a run
I'm running hard to keep up with everything around me.
We're in the hustle now and there's violence in its techno heart
This fast-paced world is filled with aggression.
Bleeding our brothers, lovers, others into faded scars
People are getting hurt and it's leaving a lasting mark on them.
Good luck believin' now the gears are turning down beneath us
It's hard to trust anything when everything is moving so fast.
She'll use my blurry dawn to mine the gold underneath us
There's opportunity in the chaos of this world.
I heard a rumor that time
There's a saying that time behaves in a certain way.
It's really just a lion that barks in your mind
But that idea of time is just something we tell ourselves.
For no reason
There's no logical explanation for why we see time the way we do.
Dealin' the hustle now, it's jivey talk is so confusing
The language of this world is hard to understand.
Can't turn the music down to silence out the rest of you
I can't shut out the world around me.
No time for real it's goin' to carve you up like bayonets
This world will cut you down if you're not careful.
Into a rollin' dawn of modernist art loneliness
It's easy to feel alone and lost in this world.
This motion in the street
The energy and movement of this world
This watchin' my anger
Makes me feel like I'm just standing by, watching everything happen.
There's hell enough to pay
And there will be consequences.
For smilin'
Even for something as simple as being happy.
I'm a leave the hustle one day when I can't do it no more good
One day, I'll walk away from this lifestyle when it no longer serves me.
Slip the brown bag from my bottle and fill it with my master's gold
And I'll take what I've earned and move on.
Come clean with luck and God inside some Port Authority urinal
I'll find my redemption in unexpected places.
Claim me a country hill and a woman with which to grow old
And I'll settle down, finding peace and love in a simple life.
Contributed by Savannah D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.