Murder by Death released its first studio album (Like the Exorcist, but More Breakdancing) in 2002, and has since released seven more studio albums. The band's current lineup consists of two founding members, Adam Turla and Sarah Balliet. Balliet plays cello for the band, an instrument that has been present consistently throughout the band's evolution. Murder by Death's 2012 album Bitter Drink, Bitter Moon reached #76 on the Billboard 200, making it the band's most successful release.
Murder by Death was formed in 2000 in Bloomington, Indiana, by guitarist Adam Turla, cellist Sarah Balliet, percussionist Alexander Schrodt, keyboardist Vincent Edwards, and bassist Matt Armstrong. One of the group's first shows was at the Channing-Murray Foundation's cafe The Red Herring in Urbana, Illinois, with former American Football drummer Steve Lamos' solo project DMS. After the show, the head of the TEAM AV record label with which Lamos was working offered to help Turla and his bandmates secure additional shows. Around the same time the band met Thursday vocalist, Geoff Rickly, when the two bands played on the same bill at a gig in their hometown of Bloomington. Rickly introduced the band, known at the time as Little Joe Gould, to his friend Alex Saavedra (owner of Eyeball Records), who also took an interest in the band. In 2001 the band self-released the eponymous Little Joe Gould EP and early the next year contributed the song "I'm Afraid of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" to the TEAM AV compilation Foreign Nationals. A short time later the group changed their name to Murder By Death, which they felt better represented their sound.
Murder by Death plays a range of music including instrumentals, rock and alt.country. The band uses cello (with an electric cello for live shows) to create a gothic sound with occasional Western references.
The band often arranges themes such as whiskey and the Devil into concept albums. For example, the band's second album, Who Will Survive, and What Will Be Left of Them?, describes a story in which the Devil wages war against a small village in Mexico.
Five Years
Murder by Death Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
So many mothers sighing
News had just come over
We had five years left to cry in
News guy wept and told us
Earth was really dying
Cried so much, his face was wet
I heard telephones, opera house
Favourite melodies
I saw boys, toys
Electric irons and TVs
My brain hurt like a warehouse
It had no room to spare
I had to cram so many things
To store everything in there
And all the fat-skinny people
And all the tall-short people
And all the nobody people
And all the somebody people
I never thought I'd need so many people
A girl my age went off her head
Hit some tiny children
If the black hadn't a-pulled her off
I think she would have killed them
A soldier with a broken arm
Fixed his stare to the wheels of a Cadillac
A cop knelt and kissed the feet of a priest
And a queer threw up at the sight of that
I think I saw you in an ice-cream parlour
Drinking milkshakes cold and long
Smiling and waving and looking so fine
Don't think you knew you were in this song
And it was cold and it rained
So I felt like an actor
And I thought of ma
And I wanted to get back there
Your face, your race
The way that you talk
I kiss you, you're beautiful
I want you to walk
We've got five years, stuck on my eyes
We've got five years, what a surprise
We've got five years, my brain hurts a lot
We've got five years, that's all we've got
The song, "Five Years" by Murder by Death, talks about a world that is coming to an end. The opening lines talk about the feeling of despair and hopelessness that had engulfed the people of the world. The news has just come in that the earth was dying, and they had only five years left to live.
The lyrics describe a world that is numb and desensitized. People are going about their daily lives, even though they know the end is coming. The singer of the song describes the chaos and confusion that surrounds him. His mind is bursting with thoughts, and he is struggling to make sense of everything.
As the song progresses, the lyrics delve deeper into the emotions of the people in this doomed world. The singer witnesses a girl going mad, a soldier with a broken arm, and a cop kissing the feet of a priest. These are all symbolic of the desperation and madness that has engulfed the world.
The last verse describes a personal longing for human connection in the face of impending doom; the desire to be with loved ones and the desire for intimacy. The powerful line "We've got five years, that's all we've got" serves as a reminder that life is fleeting and that humanity should cherish every moment.
Line by Line Meaning
Pushing through the market square
Walking through a crowded town square
So many mothers sighing
Lots of women looking sad
News had just come over
Just received some new information
We had five years left to cry in
Only five years left before everyone will be sad
News guy wept and told us
The news reporter had tears in his eyes when he delivered the message
Earth was really dying
The planet was in severe danger of disappearing
Cried so much, his face was wet
The news reporter was so emotional that he had tears running down his face
Then I knew he was not lying
After seeing the reporter's emotional reaction, the listener knew that the report was true
I heard telephones, opera house
I heard different sounds: phones ringing and music from the opera
Favourite melodies
The listener's favorite songs
I saw boys, toys
The listener saw children playing with their toys
Electric irons and TVs
The listener saw electronic household appliances like irons and TVs
My brain hurt like a warehouse
The listener's head was overloaded with thoughts and ideas
It had no room to spare
The listener's brain was too full to think of anything else
I had to cram so many things
The listener had to forcefully try to remember many things
To store everything in there
To remember everything
And all the fat-skinny people
People of different sizes
And all the tall-short people
People of different heights
And all the nobody people
People who are overlooked and forgotten
And all the somebody people
People who are important and well-known
I never thought I'd need so many people
The listener never realized how many people are necessary for life to go on
A girl my age went off her head
A young woman went crazy
Hit some tiny children
She physically attacked some small kids
If the black hadn't a-pulled her off
If someone hadn't intervened
I think she would have killed them
The listener believes that the woman would have seriously harmed or killed the children
A soldier with a broken arm
A military member who had a damaged arm
Fixed his stare to the wheels of a Cadillac
Looked intently at the wheels of a fancy car
A cop knelt and kissed the feet of a priest
A law enforcement officer showed respect to a religious leader
And a queer threw up at the sight of that
And a person with a non-traditional sexual identity felt ill seeing the display of affection
I think I saw you in an ice-cream parlour
The listener believes they saw someone they know in an ice cream shop
Drinking milkshakes cold and long
Enjoying sweet frozen drinks
Smiling and waving and looking so fine
Appearing happy and healthy
Don't think you knew you were in this song
The person being referred to didn't know they would be mentioned in this song
And it was cold and it rained
The weather was chilly and rainy
So I felt like an actor
The listener felt like they were in a movie
And I thought of ma
The listener thought of their mother
And I wanted to get back there
The listener wanted to return home
Your face, your race
Physical characteristics like skin color
The way that you talk
Distinct speaking style
I kiss you, you're beautiful
Affectionate comment directed to someone specific
I want you to walk
I want you to be present in my life
We've got five years, stuck on my eyes
Only five years left to live, and that thought is always in the listener's mind
We've got five years, what a surprise
The realization that there's only five years left is unexpected
We've got five years, my brain hurts a lot
Constantly thinking about the time left is causing mental strain
We've got five years, that's all we've got
There is no more time left beyond these five years
Contributed by Savannah H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Bimey
Can't believe I never found this before. What a treat!
Noober
Best cover heard so far, keep it up!
Jorge Guerrero
Awesome. Gracias.
Zichietto
Bravi! congratulations
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