Mike Felumlee, a native of Crystal Lake, Illinois (a suburb of Chicago), is… Read Full Bio ↴Mike Felumlee, a native of Crystal Lake, Illinois (a suburb of Chicago), is chiefly known as the former drummer for the influential rock band The Smoking Popes. He is known to a lesser extent for his stint of several years as drummer in the band Alkaline Trio and for his solo music. Felumlee was the drummer on all of the Popes albums prior to the live album At Metro, released in 2006 in conjunction with a long-awaited reunion of the band. Reportedly, Felumlee discussed with Popes frontman Josh Caterer rejoining the band for its reunion but declined, due to personal relations between himself and the Popes having become a little tense. After the Smoking Popes split in 1999, Felumlee joined Alkaline Trio. He was the drummer on the album "From Here To Infirmary". Fulumlee left Alkaline Trio in 2001 reportedly due to personal friction with Matt Skiba. Felumlee is still involved in the music scene and has released recordings of some of his own music to lukewarm critical reception. He released "64 hours" in late 2001 and recorded a split CD with Alkaline Trio bassist Dan Andriano in 2002. As a drummer, Felumlee was also a founding member of the band Duvall (which over the years has had a rotating cast of members, including notably several other former Smoking Popes members) but his participation in that band was fairly short-lived; he was replaced by the bearded and vaguely Viking-like drummer Rob Kellenberger (previously of the bands Slapstick and Tuesday) not long into the band's existence. Felumlee founded and ran for several years the small, independent record label Double Zero Records, originally conceived as a vehicle to release some then-unreleased Smoking Popes material after the band was dropped from its major label, Capitol, in 1998. The label operated for several years before being closed down. Felumlee graduated in 1993 from Crystal Lake Central High School where he was known to be an indifferent student and -- a fact he took significant pride in -- to be one of the heaviest smokers of the entire student body. Currently, Felumlee is the drummer of the band Squirtgun. Physically a thin individual, Felumlee is often sick due to his non-nutritious diet coupled with excessive consumption of soda and cigarettes.

Felumlee, his wife, former Aria model Meagan Tesch, and his son, Jack, currently live in Algonquin, IL

Already Gone
Mike Felumlee Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Tonight came in with a lonely blue,
To the phone I'd say there's no chance reaching you now
So I sing a tune to an empty room
Close my eyes and I'm singing it to you.
We just found out about it then I'm already gone
Then you're already gone so long
You're already gone,
Hope my arms can learn how to hold on

Waking up to another day that's not worth waking up to
Why does it come as a surprise
I'd sleep right through this November blue till you come home
I'm doing nothing at all
We just found out about it then I'm already gone
Then you're already gone so long

You're already gone,
Hope my arms can learn how to hold on

Overall Meaning

The song "Already Gone" by Mike Felumlee paints a vivid picture of a heartbreak that leaves one feeling alone and desperate for connection. The opening lines of "Tonight came in with a lonely blue" create an instant mood of sadness and isolation. The singer of the song tries to reach out to their loved one, but there is no chance of reaching them, leaving them to pour out their feelings through the lyrics of the song. Even though the room is empty, the singer sings as if the loved one is there, hoping that their message will somehow reach them.

The chorus of the song, "We just found out about it then I'm already gone / Then you're already gone so long / You're already gone, / Hope my arms can learn how to hold on," speaks of a sudden and unexpected ending of a relationship. The singer is still reeling from the news and is struggling to come to terms with the fact that their loved one is already gone. They are desperate to hold on to what little they have left, even if it means grasping at a mirage of love and connection.

The final verse of the song, "Waking up to another day that's not worth waking up to / Why does it come as a surprise / I'd sleep right through this November blue till you come home / I'm doing nothing at all," speaks of the pain of waking up every day to a world without the person you love. The singer struggles to understand why this has happened and longs for the day when their loved one will return to fill the emptiness in their life. The somber tone of the song perfectly captures the melancholy of a broken heart.

Line by Line Meaning

Tonight came in with a lonely blue,
I feel lonely tonight.

To the phone I'd say there's no chance reaching you now
I'm trying to call you but I know you won't answer.

So I sing a tune to an empty room
I'm singing to myself since there's no one else around.

Close my eyes and I'm singing it to you.
I imagine that I'm singing to you even though you're not here.

We just found out about it then I'm already gone
As soon as we found out about our problems, I left.

Then you're already gone so long
You left a long time ago too.

You're already gone,
You've already moved on from this relationship.

Hope my arms can learn how to hold on
I hope to learn to hold onto love better in the future.

Waking up to another day that's not worth waking up to
I don't see a reason to get out of bed today.

Why does it come as a surprise
I'm surprised that things didn't work out the way I wanted them to.

I'd sleep right through this November blue till you come home
I wish I could sleep through this sad time until you're back by my side.