Marcy Playground is an American alternative rock and post-grunge band. Name… Read Full Bio ↴Marcy Playground is an American alternative rock and post-grunge band. Named for the formative location in lead singer John Wozniak's childhood (the Marcy Open grade school in Minneapolis, Minnesota), Marcy Playground emerged in the late 90s. They had been influenced heavily by Kurt Cobain and his band Nirvana. The influence is quite clear on Marcy Playground's self-titled album, with songs like The Shadow of Seattle and Saint Joe On The School Bus. Wozniak's first effort, Zog BogBean - From the Marcy Playground, was self-produced, recorded in his bedroom studio with some help from his then-girlfriend Sherry Fraser and her brother Scott in the early nineties. A small run of CDs were self-released by Wozniak, and to this day they remain extremely difficult to find.

In 1996, after attending the Evergreen State College for two years, Wozniak moved east to New York, where Marcy Playground began to coalesce around the songs that would become the self-titled album. Bassist Dylan Keefe and drummer Dan Rieser filled out the band's sound, and complemented Wozniak's songwriting. The self-titled album was released in 1997, and Marcy Playground emerged into the mainstream with the success of the single "Sex and Candy." Marcy Playground is quiet and minimalist in tone. Wozniak's songs run in many different styles: some are modern folk music; many have undertones reminiscent of children's songs; the blurred sound of psychedelia makes appearances; and then there are the songs with a clear rock sound. The only band member who contributed to all of the album was Wozniak himself; several others filled in for Rieser and Keefe on some of the songs, notably Jared Kotler (bass and drums).

Marcy Playground's next outing was 1999's Shapeshifter, not as much of a success commercially as the self-titled album.

A minor controversy came to light when Paul Leary of the Butthole Surfers revealed on Marcy Playground's website forum that the cover art for Shapeshifter had originally been conceptualized and commissioned by Leary for his band's aborted After the Astronaut album. He admitted to being a fan of Marcy Playground, but accused the band of an apparent lack of imagination and originality. Leary's outrage was eased once he learned that Capitol Records, former home of the Butthole Surfers and then-current home of Marcy Playground, had pitched the artwork to Wozniak as original work from their own art department and that Marcy Playground had no knowledge of the work's origins. Upon learning the truth, Wozniak proclaimed that he was "honored" to have an album cover designed by Paul Leary. There were apparently no bad feelings between the bands once the controversy had been cleared up.

After Shapeshifter, drummer Dan Rieser left the band to pursue other interests. The position was eventually filled on his recommendation by Gonzalo Martinez De La Cotera, a friend whose previous band Lincoln had opened for Marcy Playground.

After a considerable hiatus and at least one failed attempt to record a follow-up to Shapeshifter, Marcy Playground's third album, MP3, was finally released in 2004 with even less commercial success than the two preceding albums.

Marcy Playground did little if any touring in support of MP3. Despite releasing many singles, the band never matched the success of their single "Sex and Candy".

As of July 12'th 2008, John Wozniak posted a blog on MySpace stating his unreleased solo effort is now officially going to be a Marcy Playground record and is going to be released within the next few months along with a separate "Rarities and B-Sides" album. They are still performing live although to their many fans dismay, venues are sporadic. Meanwhile, Keefe has held the job of WNYC radio program On the Media's technical director, a position he left in December 2007.

Brand New Day
Marcy Playground Lyrics

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The secret that you keep
Is trouble on your mind
Even when you sleep
It's trouble on your mind

When you need to get it out
Say it
Well, you know it's up to you

Yeah, and maybe you should cry (Cry)
Until you feel brand new

And when you get it out (Get it out)
You'll find
That you can't keep anything (Anything)
Inside
And there's a brand new day
There's a brand new day
It's true
A brand new day for you

The secret that you keep
Is burning in your mind
Even when you sleep
Burning in your mind

When you need to get it out
Say it
Well, you know it's up to you
Yeah, and maybe you should cry (Cry)
Cry loud and true

And when you get it out (Get it out)
You'll find
That you can't keep anything (Anything)
Inside
And there's a brand new day
There's a brand new day
There's a brand new day

It's true
Yeah, a brand new day is shinin' through

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Marcy Playground’s song “Brand New Day” encourage the listener to release their bottled-up emotions to ease their troubled mind. The lyrics suggest that harboring such a secret only makes it more challenging for the person, even in their sleep. The song encourages the person to speak out and cry until they feel renewed. In doing so, they will find relief from the burden of the secret that they have been carrying, and a brand new day will emerge for them. The day represents the person's renewed sense of self and a new chapter in their life without the weight of the secret they kept.

The song's overall message is that we should not keep our troubles bottled up inside of us; we must release and express ourselves to prevent the overwhelming burden of the secrets that we keep. We should acknowledge our emotions and understand that it's okay to cry and seek help when necessary. The lyrics are a reminder that there is always a new day, and with it comes hope for a better tomorrow.

Line by Line Meaning

The secret that you keep
You hold onto something that you don't want others to know

Is trouble on your mind
It's causing you pain, worry, or anxiety

Even when you sleep
It haunts your subconscious

It's trouble on your mind
It's consistently causing you distress

When you need to get it out
When the pain becomes too much to bear

Say it
Speak about it to someone you trust

Well, you know it's up to you
You are responsible for your own actions

Yeah, and maybe you should cry (Cry)
Allow yourself to feel and release the emotions that come with it

Until you feel brand new
Until you feel free from the weight of carrying it

And when you get it out (Get it out)
Once you've shared your secret

You'll find
You'll come to realize