The band formed in 1997, constisting of Andrew Jordan (vocals & guitar), Ryan "Judas" DePaolo (backing vocals & guitar), Ryan Kienle (bass) and Aaron Stern (drums).
They have released two albums: Stories and Alibis (2003) and Voices (2006), one EP named West for Wishing (2003) and one split EP with Motion City Soundtrack .
Matchbook Romance headlined the Epitaph Tour in early 2005, playing alongside their label mates Motion City Soundtrack, From First to Last, The Matches and Scatter the Ashes.
As of March 12, 2007, Matchbook Romance have parted ways and have gone on an indefinite hiatus.
As of March 12, 2009, Matchbook Romance have announced that they are reuniting and have 3 tour dates up with more dates and news to come.
Hollywood & Vine
Matchbook Romance Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Stitched just enough so the sky won't fall on top of us
It's Alright
The city was covered in gold
And made out of dreams
Everything we wanted was within our reach tonight
And we stood
Tip-toed, eyes-glued at the scene and the realization that
Everything was so clear, and plain to see
This where I belong you can't take me
I was fooling myself all along
I'm never coming back, I'm never coming back
I'm home
And we drove, what felt like forever
down this street and stopped at the edge of the earth
It looks beautiful from here
This is a place we dreamed of
A place made up in our heads, we thought we'd never see
But here I am
Eyes blinded by painted smiles
We lived a lifetime that night
The opening line of "Hollywood and Vine" speaks of the sky as patchwork – stitched firmly enough to ensure it won't drop on our heads. It functions as an interesting metaphor for the image of the sky as something fragile and delicate that could fall at any moment. When compared with the dreamlike world of Hollywood and Vine - a place where everything is made out of gold, the image portrayed of the city is one of a place that's seemingly perfect and untouchable. The singer acknowledges that everything they want is within their reach, which adds to their feelings of nostalgia and happiness. They have finally achieved their dreams, and are overwhelmed by the beauty of it all.
The chorus then speaks about the realization of where one belongs, and the rest of the song moves away from the enchanting imagery of the opening lines. The singer's contentment begins to wane, as they recognize they were fooling themselves all along. The line "I'm never coming back, I'm never coming back, I'm home" is a bit of a contradiction that suggests the singer realizes they can't come back to this place, which they considered home. The concluding lines describe a seemingly endless drive through hallucinatory lights and sights before reaching the place they dreamed of.
Overall, the song is an ode to Hollywood and Vine, but also speaks of the realization of one's dreams and the bittersweet nostalgia that can come with those personal victories.
Line by Line Meaning
The sky looks like patchwork
The sky appears to be made of different colored and textured patches.
Stitched just enough so the sky won't fall on top of us
The sky is patched together to the point where it won't collapse on them.
It's Alright
Despite the sky looking unstable, everything is okay.
The city was covered in gold
The city appears to be golden and glamorous.
And made out of dreams
It seems like the city was created entirely out of people's hopes and aspirations.
Everything we wanted was within our reach tonight
All of their desires seemed attainable in that moment.
And we stood
Tip-toed, eyes-glued at the scene and the realization that
They stood there with excitement and wonder, realizing that...
Everything was so clear, and plain to see
Everything was easy to understand and perceive.
This where I belong you can't take me
They feel like they belong in this moment and no one can take that from them.
I was fooling myself all along
They realize that they were deceiving themselves with their previous beliefs.
I'm never coming back, I'm never coming back
I'm home
They have found a new sense of home and never want to return to their previous state of mind.
And we drove, what felt like forever
They drove for what felt like an endless amount of time.
down this street and stopped at the edge of the earth
They drove to the end of the street, where it seemed to go on forever.
It looks beautiful from here
The view from where they stopped looks stunning.
This is a place we dreamed of
They had always dreamed of a place like this.
A place made up in our heads, we thought we'd never see
But here I am
They never thought they would actually experience a place like this, but now they are there.
Eyes blinded by painted smiles
They are momentarily dazzled by the beauty around them.
We lived a lifetime that night
They experienced an eventful and fulfilling night that felt like a lifetime.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
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