Four vans destroyed and sold for scrap metal. Five guitar amps crackled, hissed, and went silent, exhaling a final puff of smoke. An irreplacable vintage keyboard face down at the bottom of a flight of stairs, 13 keys cracked and lifted, never to make a sound again.
A string of misfortune seemed to follow the five young men comprising Michigan's Mason Proper (named for an obscure phrase relating to Freemasonry) last year as they toured in support of their 2007 debut album, There is a Moth in Your Chest. Each time they packed up their belongings to head to another town, they would search their bags and equipment for arcane symbols, unexplained objects, anything that might prove to be evidence of the curse of unluckiness they seemed to be living under. "It was a ritual we took up half-jokingly," singer and primary songwriter Jonathan Visger said, "but the second part of the joke was always that if we ever found anything, it would certainly explain a lot."
The band powered on through the mishaps and continued to play as many of the shows as they could make it to, despite sending van after van to the junkyard. The early shows were energetic and bubbling with enthusiasm, but as the band encountered more and more trouble they became progressively wilder and more dangerously frenetic, coping by learning to take a sick delight in watching the chaos around them. They were in the grip of mental instability. During this time period, keyboardist Matt Thomson would often disappear for hours at a time without telling anyone where he was going. He even missed the beginning of several shows, including a well-documented incident at Denver, Colorado's Monolith Festival, where he disappeared into the mountains. Around this time a wild-eyed and bruised Jonathan was quoted as saying, "I'm disappointed if I don't shed a little blood by the end of a show," when asked about his wild and self-destructive performances.
The band's most fervent supporters are a group known as "The New Destroyers," named after an unreleased song the band retired from their live set after noticing that things would mysteriously break whenever they played it. Some of the New Destroyers cracked the coded messages woven into the artwork of Moth, and through it discovered the secret website the band had created, allowing anonymous communication with the band via the same code.
Shortly after they began using it, several unsettling coded messages came in threateningly alluding to private matters in the band's lives. Shaken by the amount of information the person seemed to have, Mason Proper temporarily shut down the site, but not before one last message came in; it decoded as: KEEP GOING CURSESTELLO.
Convinced that this was a reference to the Elvis Costello-like glasses Jonathan wore through this time period, bassist Zac Fineberg and guitarist Brian Konicek refused to do any further touring with what they now suspected was the cursed item. Jonathan refused to destroy them, saying they had sentimental value and that he would just lock them away instead, but drummer Garrett Jones, the most superstitious of them all, stole them in the night and burned them in Zac's fire pit.
After the allegedly cursed glasses were gone, the band decided to turn over a new leaf and look to the future, hopefully leaving their dark past behind them. They met with producer Chris Coady (TV on the Radio, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Blonde Redhead), and with him selected 10 songs from a pool of 30 they had to choose from, aiming to make a very cohesive album, with a tone that reflected the band's collective state of mind as accurately as possible. They rented a small, empty house for a month and recorded the album, and Jonathan met up with Chris again at Carriage House Studios to mix what would become Olly Oxen Free (on the same console the Pixies' "Doolittle" was mixed on).
While some of the songs on Olly Oxen Free do update the dense, electronically-enhanced rock sound the band wielded recklessly on it's debut (which are sure to please longtime fans), it is the times when the band veers off into entirely new territory that are the most intriguing. On "Point A to Point B," nearly all the band's trademark noisiness is gone, while Jonathan sings "In past lives I was wealthy, so probably unhappy. Oh, I'm so glad I died," over a bouncy beat, and a sparse bed of bass and guitar ambience, before opening up to a beautifully simple chorus of, "I swore to myself last time was the last time." The band chose to close the record with "Safe for the Time Being," a song that had surprised the band by becoming an instant live favorite in the months before. A post-apocalyptic slow burner that stays sparse with only a heartbeat kick drum, thin guitar, and the most dynamic vocal melody the band has ever penned, until it explodes at the end in a grand wall of fuzz.
Olly Oxen Free will be out September 23rd on New York's Dovecote Records.
written by Lewis Muzynski, band friend and historian.
Related links:
Mason Proper (official site)
Mason Proper on Myspace
Dovecote Records
Fog
Mason Proper Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Running low on hope, I can't get back
Made a hole in my head, then forgot why i did, you're all gone.
Made a run for a gate, but there's laws in this state, you're all gone.
I tried to warn you, but you were out of your head
I tried to hold you back.
I tried to warn you, but you were out of your head
I'll meet you in the fog again
and between you and i we can
make some sense of this
drank the dirt, ate the sand,
tried to get full on whatever i had on hand
I found a crystal ball, but I lost it.
I bought a tea leaf to find out where you are
but i drank it
only seer i could find
told me lies, told me you were just fine
burned her place to the ground
i'm regretting it now
that ain't ever right.
I tried to warn you, but you were out of your head
I tried to hold you back.
I tried to warn you, but you were out of your head
The lyrics to Mason Proper's song "Fog" can be interpreted in a few different ways, but the overall theme seems to be one of confusion, loss, and regret. The song begins with a reference to a horoscope that advises the singer to "pack your bags", indicating a need to make a change or escape from their current situation. At the same time, they seem to be feeling "low on hope" and disconnected from others - "you're all gone". This feeling of isolation is reinforced by the line "Made a run for a gate, but there's laws in this state"; it's unclear exactly what this means, but it suggests that the singer is trying to break free from some kind of constraint, only to find that there are always more rules to follow.
The second verse continues this theme of confusion and searching for answers. The singer has tried various methods of divination - a crystal ball and a tea leaf - to find out where someone (presumably a loved one) is, but they haven't been successful. The only "seer" they could find gave them false information, leading the singer to burn their place down in frustration. It's worth noting that throughout the song, the singer is addressing someone who was "out of [their] head", suggesting that this person may have been struggling with mental illness or addiction. The line "I tried to warn you, but you were out of your head" can be interpreted as a kind of lament for someone who wasn't able to hear or accept help, despite the singer's efforts.
The chorus of the song provides a bit of relief from the more anguished verses. The singer imagines meeting the other person "in the fog again", a mysterious and somewhat dreamlike image. Even though they haven't been able to find each other through more concrete means, the singer believes that "between you and I we can make some sense of this". This suggests a deep connection between the two, one that goes beyond rational explanation. The lines "drank the dirt, ate the sand, tried to get full on whatever I had on hand" may be a reference to desperation and the feeling of being willing to do anything to feel something, even if it's not healthy or sustainable.
Overall, "Fog" is a dense and evocative song that captures a sense of confusion and despair, but also hints at the possibility of connection and renewal.
Line by Line Meaning
My horoscope, said "pack your bags"
My astrological forecast suggested that leaving town was in my best interest.
Running low on hope, I can't get back
I have lost all faith and don't believe that I'll ever recover.
Made a hole in my head, then forgot why i did, you're all gone.
I created a wound in my own mind and can't remember why I did so, and all of you have left me.
Made a run for a gate, but there's laws in this state, you're all gone.
I attempted to escape somewhere through a gate, but the regulations in this region prohibited me, and you've all abandoned me.
I tried to warn you, but you were out of your head
I attempted to advise you, but you were beyond logical reasoning.
I'll meet you in the fog again
Let's meet in a world of confusion once more.
and between you and i we can make some sense of this
Together, we're capable of comprehending this bewildering situation.
drank the dirt, ate the sand, tried to get full on whatever i had on hand
I was so hungry and desperate that I consumed whatever meager substances I could find nearby.
I found a crystal ball, but I lost it.
I came into possession of an oracle device, but it slipped from my grasp.
I bought a tea leaf to find out where you are but i drank it
I purchased a mystical herb to learn your whereabouts, but I consumed it instead.
only seer i could find told me lies, told me you were just fine
The only fortune teller I was able to find deceived me about your well-being.
burned her place to the ground I'm regretting it now that ain't ever right.
I set fire to her establishment and now regret my actions; such behavior is never acceptable.
I tried to hold you back.
I put in effort to keep you from harm.
I tried to warn you, but you were out of your head.
I attempted to inform you, but you were not in a state to be reasonable.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BRIAN KONICEK, JONATHAN VISGER, MATTHEW THOMPSON, SAMUEL FINEBERG
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Angelica
My horoscope
Said pack your bags
Running low on hope
I can’t get back
Made a hole in my head,
Then forgot why I did
I’m all gone
Made a run for a gate
But there’s law in the state
I’m all gone
Gone, gone, gone
I tried to warn you
But you were outta your head
I tried to hold you back
I tried to warn you
But you were outta your head
I’ll meet you in the fog, again
And between you and I, we can
Make some sense of this
Ate the dirt, ate the sand, tried to get full on whatever I had on hand
I found a crystal ball, but I lost it
I bought a tea-leaf to find out where you are, but I drank it
Only sear I could find, told me lies, told me you were just fine
Burned her place to the ground, and I’m regretting that now
That ain’t never right,
right, right, right
I tried to warn you, but you were outta your head
I tried to hold you back
I tried to warn you, but you were outta your head...
I’ll meet you in the fog, again
And between you and I, we can
Make some sense of this
Ate the dirt, ate the sand, tried to get full on whatever I had on hand—
I’ll meet you in the fog, again
And between you and I, we can
Make some sense of this, again
I’ll meet you in the fog, again
And between you and I, we can
Make some sense of this
Make some sense of this
Make some sense of this
madeof owls
My horoscope, said "pack your bags"
Running low on hope, I can't get back
Made a hole in my head, then forgot why i did, you're all gone.
Made a run for a gate, but there's laws in this state, you're all gone.
I tried to warn you, but you were out of your head
I tried to hold you back.
I tried to warn you, but you were out of your head
I'll meet you in the fog again
and between you and i we can
make some sense of this
drank the dirt, ate the sand,
tried to get full on whatever i had on hand
I found a crystal ball, but I lost it.
I bought a tea leaf to find out where you are
but i drank it
only seer i could find
told me lies, told me you were just fine
burned her place to the ground
i'm regretting it now
that ain't ever right.
I tried to warn you, but you were out of your head
I tried to hold you back.
I tried to warn you, but you were out of your head
North House
this brings back so many memories of two winters ago... I love this band.
North House
This album is so nostalgic to me. It reminds me of my freshman year, ages ago...
DarkO
still goes strong till' today
Cammy McCluskey
i love this song it makes me slow dance to myself :)
North House
Just got this in the mail today. I am so so happy. Are they still around?
Rachel Sims
Was checking out osi and stumbled upon this, I fucking love it!
haloquent
technically yes, but jonathan visger mostly spends his time on his solo work, under the name Absofacto. It is also fucking awesome. you should listen to Synthesocietal, and Neutral Man
Spartacats
stil listening to this one 9 years later
Elliott Mejia
this band makes me want to be a hipster honestly, i only want to listen to underground music right now
Angelica
My horoscope
Said pack your bags
Running low on hope
I can’t get back
Made a hole in my head,
Then forgot why I did
I’m all gone
Made a run for a gate
But there’s law in the state
I’m all gone
Gone, gone, gone
I tried to warn you
But you were outta your head
I tried to hold you back
I tried to warn you
But you were outta your head
I’ll meet you in the fog, again
And between you and I, we can
Make some sense of this
Ate the dirt, ate the sand, tried to get full on whatever I had on hand
I found a crystal ball, but I lost it
I bought a tea-leaf to find out where you are, but I drank it
Only sear I could find, told me lies, told me you were just fine
Burned her place to the ground, and I’m regretting that now
That ain’t never right,
right, right, right
I tried to warn you, but you were outta your head
I tried to hold you back
I tried to warn you, but you were outta your head...
I’ll meet you in the fog, again
And between you and I, we can
Make some sense of this
Ate the dirt, ate the sand, tried to get full on whatever I had on hand—
I’ll meet you in the fog, again
And between you and I, we can
Make some sense of this, again
I’ll meet you in the fog, again
And between you and I, we can
Make some sense of this
Make some sense of this
Make some sense of this