indie rock and garage rock band from Newcastle, UK. The band consisting of … Read Full Bio ↴indie rock and garage rock band from Newcastle, UK. The band consisting of Paul Smith (vocals), Duncan Lloyd (guitar), Archis Tiku (bass guitar), Tom English (drums) and Lukas Wooller (keyboards), the band has drawn comparisons to Northeastern counterparts The Futureheads, as well as Franz Ferdinand, Pulp and Bloc Party for their addictive musical style and direct, edgy rock-pop sound.
After releasing 300 copies of two of their songs, the band was discovered by, and eventually signed with, independent label Warp Records in 2004, releasing their critically-acclaimed debut album A Certain Trigger" in May 2005. Widely described as one of the best British albums of the year, the album helped the band develop a strong and diverse fanbase both in the UK and abroad, and also earned them a nomination for the coveted Mercury Music Prize. Three songs from the record, Apply Some Pressure (re-released), Graffiti and Going Missing, reached the Top 20 in the UK music charts in 2005. Maxïmo Park also contributed a song titled Wasteland to the War Child album Help: A Day in the Life, midway through that year. The final single from A Certain Trigger, I Want You To Stay, was released in the United Kingdom on February 20, 2006.

Maxïmo Park's second album, Our Earthly Pleasures was released on April 2, 2007. Singles included Our Velocity, Girls Who Play Guitars, Books From Boxes and Karaoke Plays. In August 2008 Paul Smith announced that the band had finished recording their third album and were looking for someone to produce it. It is expected for release in early 2009.

As a result of their rapidly increasing popularity both in the United Kingdom and overseas, 2005 also proved to be a highly exciting year for the band from a touring perspective, with a number of successful tours of Europe, as well as supporting The Bravery in the United States and performing a number of sellout shows in Japan and Australia. While performing across Europe at the Glastonbury and Lowlands music festivals and the Carling Weekend, their enormous success in the United Kingdom was confirmed through their place as support for Kaiser Chiefs on the NME Rock and Roll Riot Tour, and their appearance at the XFM Winter Wonderland shows in London in December of 2005. In a similar vein, the band headlined the NME Awards Tour in the UK, featuring Arctic Monkeys, Mystery Jets and We Are Scientists, and expanded their presence in Asia by performing in Thailand as part of the Rock 100 Festival in Bangkok.

The The National Health Songfacts reports that Maximo's Park fourth album relates to the state of society at large: "The nation is out of control," said Paul Smith, "and the record is about taking back control, and being a force for change in your own life. It can't speak for everybody but it has its eyes and ears all around us. Our songs are built on empathy. I would hope it's as vital a music as people would want to hear." The National Health will be released June 11, 2012.

The band also enjoys playing in their hometown, Newcastle. In early 2007, despite global success, they decided to play in three small venues and price tickets at only £5. These venues were The Head Of Steam, The Cumberland Arms and The Cluny. The band also headlined Freevolution 2007, a free outdoor music festival in Newcastle/Gateshead sponsored by Orange phones.

Karaoke Plays
Maxïmo Park Lyrics

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You write a list of things to do
To occupy the time that you could use
But, in my mind it's never final
And when you sleep, I try not to wake you as I leave

Oh, I waited up for you
But you didn't come back home
Oh, I waited up for you

Couldn't you come back home?

Someone gets run down
Karaoke plays somewhere in the background,
But there is no explanation
What makes a grown man cry?
Karaoke plays and someone gets run down

We never did want the dawn to break
Beside the crumpled sheets in which we lay
You know I've changed my ways forever
The North Sea crashes through your dreams as I leave

Oh, I waited up for you
But you didn't come back home

Oh, I waited up for you
Couldn't you come back home?

Someone gets run down
Karaoke plays somewhere in the background,
But there is no explanation
What makes a grown man cry?
Karaoke plays and someone gets run down

I came home--there were radio waves
I heard voices through the radio waves
I came home--you were nowhere to be found
The lights were on and the radio played
I came home--there were radio waves
A children's choir through the radio waves
Every night we've got so much to say
I want to hear all the things you did today

Someone gets run down
Karaoke plays somewhere in the background,
But there is no explanation

What makes a grown man cry?
Karaoke plays and someone gets run down

Overall Meaning

In "Karaoke Plays," Maximo Park tells a story of a relationship that begins well but ultimately falls apart. The singer's partner creates constant lists of things to do, distracting themselves from the fact that they are growing apart. Meanwhile, the singer waits up for their partner, but they never come back. There is a hint of danger in the song, with the mention of someone getting run down while karaoke plays in the background. There is a sense of fear and hopelessness as the singer tries to understand why a grown man would cry, but there is no explanation given.

The chorus repeats, with the singer lamenting that their partner did not come back home. The second verse reveals that their relationship began to change when the singer became restless and decided to leave. They acknowledge that they have changed their ways forever, and the North Sea crashes through their partner's dreams as they leave.

The final verse is a bit of a mystery, with the singer returning home to find the lights on and the radio playing. They hear children's voices on the radio waves and wish to hear about their partner's day. However, their partner is nowhere to be found, and the song ends with the ominous repetition of someone getting run down while karaoke plays.

Overall, "Karaoke Plays" is a haunting and poetic representation of a relationship that has deteriorated beyond repair. The song's imagery is rich and powerful, with the repeated mention of karaoke serving as a metaphor for the way people can mask their true feelings and ignore the problems in their relationships.

Line by Line Meaning

You write a list of things to do
You create a task list to occupy your time.

To occupy the time that you could use
To fill the time that you have available.

But, in my mind it's never final
But, in my mind the task list is never complete.

And when you sleep, I try not to wake you as I leave
And when you sleep I leave you without disturbing you.

Oh, I waited up for you
Oh, I stayed up late waiting for you.

But you didn't come back home
But you never came back home.

Couldn't you come back home?
Couldn't you have returned home?

Someone gets run down
Someone is hit by a vehicle.

Karaoke plays somewhere in the background,
Karaoke music is playing somewhere in the background.

But there is no explanation
But there is no reasoning why the accident occurred.

What makes a grown man cry?
What could be so upsetting that it could cause a grown man to cry?

Karaoke plays and someone gets run down
Karaoke music is playing as someone is hit by a vehicle.

We never did want the dawn to break
We never wanted the morning to arrive.

Beside the crumpled sheets in which we lay
Next to the crumpled bed sheets where we slept.

You know I've changed my ways forever
You know that I have permanently changed my behavior.

The North Sea crashes through your dreams as I leave
The sound of the North Sea is heard in your dreams as I depart.

I came home--there were radio waves
I returned home to radio waves playing in the background.

I heard voices through the radio waves
I heard voices coming through the radio waves.

I came home--you were nowhere to be found
I returned home, but you were not present.

The lights were on and the radio played
The lights were on and the radio was playing.

A children's choir through the radio waves
The sound of a children's choir is heard through the radio waves.

Every night we've got so much to say
Every night we have many things to discuss.

I want to hear all the things you did today
I want to hear everything about your day.

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ARCHIS TIKU, DUNCAN ROBERT LLOYD, LUKAS JAMES WOOLLER, PAUL ANTHONY SMITH, THOMAS ALEXANDER ENGLISH

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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