Hiding Inside the Horrible Weather is the result of six months of heavy writing time, although some of the album’s tracks come from nearly a year before it was recorded. Following the band’s beloved debut, The Meaning in Makeup, which the group feels was slightly rushed, for this record My American Heart had time to really craft what they consider to be an album that represents how far they have come. “We actually took our time to write this record,” says Soliman. “It was a lot of fun creating this record and expressing ourselves and actually growing as musicians together. Just figuring out what we’re capable of. It was definitely a huge step up from the last record.”
Armed with new guitarist Matthew VanGasbeck, formerly of Downtown Singapore, who joined the writing process in November, My American Heart entered the studio on February 4th. After whittling down a long list of possible producers, the group chose James Paul Wisner, the producer behind bands like Underoath, The Academy Is and Dashboard Confessional, who Soliman calls the “perfect fit for this record.” In Wisner’s St. Cloud, FL Studio, just south of Orlando, the quintet dove headfirst into an encouraging, creative environment that helped them pen the next tracks to the record. “He helped us really explore ideas and he really listened to the songs,” Barrera notes of the experience. “He was huge part of the record.”
My American Heart has certainly not eschewed their engaging pop sensibilities, but even former disbelievers won’t be able to deny the range and strength of the songwriting on Hiding Inside the Horrible Weather or the memorability of the tracks, which the band hopes will be drawn to any listener who happens to hear them. As far as huge steps up go, this is a massive one, and the significance of that is not lost on My American Heart. “I just want people to really open their minds to this and give some consideration to how much we’ve grown since the last record,” Soliman says. “We really learned that we are better than what we thought we could be.”
Moving On
My American Heart Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The cold of the middle west
Has taken advantage of my days
And my mistakes are coming back
to haunt me for good
I say I don't mind cause
Every day's another phase
Than I could ever say
Why don't you stay right there where
I can see you
Moving on, moving on
Is what I know I do best
But it's so hard to do, hard to do
When you're out in the mid-west
Oh, I wish my heart was fine-tuned
And ready to go but
It's too soon to let that happen
It feels like my head is falling,
Falling off my neck
Because it's been spinning, days upon days
Lyrics
I just wish it went away
A million miles could mean so much more
Than I could ever say
Why don't you stay right there where
I can see you
Moving on, moving on
Is what I know I do best
But it's so hard to do, hard to do
When you're out in the mid-west
Why don't you just tell me
That I'm ready to leave you
but it's not what you want to do
It's not what you want to do
And my heart is a liar
Are there takers or givers?
To spare something less than a heartache
To spare something more than a mistake
Why don't you stay right there where
I can see you
Moving on, moving on
Is what I know I do best
But it's so hard to do, hard to do
When you're out in the mid-west
Why don't you just tell me
That I'm ready to leave you
but it's not what you want to do
It's not what you want to do
The lyrics of "Moving On" by My American Heart reflect the feelings of a person who is struggling to leave something behind and move forward. They feel haunted by their past mistakes and find it hard to let go and move on, especially when they are in a place that reminds them of those mistakes - the mid-west. The person acknowledges that they have to keep moving forward every day, and although a change in geographical distance can be significant, they still wish to say so much they can't articulate about how they truly feel. The song suggests that the person wants to move on, but they are unsure of the other person's true intentions. They are conflicted and wondering whether they should stay or leave.
The chorus shows the conflict that the person is facing. They want the other person to stay so that they can keep an eye on them, but they also know that moving on is what they do best. Moving on entails leaving someone or something behind, and it's challenging when you're in the mid-west. The verse "And my heart is a liar, are there takers or givers?" suggests that they are unsure of which road to take, and they want to spare themselves from more pain.
In summary, "Moving On" talks about the struggle to leave something behind and move on. It speaks to the conflict that arises when someone wants to move on, but they are unsure of whether they should leave the person or stay around them.
Line by Line Meaning
What can I say?
I don't know what to say, I feel lost
The cold of the middle west
The harsh conditions of the Midwest are affecting me
Has taken advantage of my days
It's exploiting my time and energy
And my mistakes are coming back to haunt me for good
My past errors are haunting me now and for the future
I say I don't mind cause
I claim that I'm fine, but in reality I'm struggling
Every day's another phase
Each day brings a new challenge
A million miles could mean so much more than I could ever say
A distance of a million miles could better express my feelings compared to my words
Why don't you stay right there where I can see you
I wish you were here with me so I could see you
Moving on, moving on, is what I know I do best
I'm used to leaving things behind and moving forward
But it's so hard to do, hard to do, when you're out in the mid-west
It's harder to move on when everything around me is difficult
Oh, I wish my heart was fine-tuned and ready to go but
I wish my emotions were in check and I was ready to move on, but I'm not
It's too soon to let that happen
I'm not yet ready to let go
It feels like my head is falling, falling off my neck
I feel like I'm losing my mind
Because it's been spinning, days upon days
Because I've been overthinking for days on end
I just wish it went away
I wish this feeling would disappear
Why don't you just tell me that I'm ready to leave you
I wish you would give me a reason to let go of you
But it's not what you want to do
But it seems that you don't want to let go either
And my heart is a liar
I can't trust my own heart
Are there takers or givers?
Are there those who only take or those who give as well?
To spare something less than a heartache
To prevent something that's more than just a heartbreak
To spare something more than a mistake
To save something that's more than just a mistake from happening
Contributed by Makayla C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.