They play indie rock music, with influences such as Cheap Trick, T Rex and Queen. They share management with They Might Be Giants, with whom they toured before signing to Capitol Records. They served as the house band to the public radio program This American Life on the show's fifth anniversary tour. Ira Glass, the show's host, wrote their first official bio, calling them "living catnip" and describing their songs as "part indie rock, part stadium rock, part straight up pop with the occasional whiff of The Pixies or The Cars or Elliott Smith."
In the United Kingdom, "Get Over It", from their self-titled debut album, appeared at No. 21 in the singles chart on March 16, 2003, and the band performed it on that week's edition of Top of the Pops. Also that week, the single's video was named video of the week by Q Magazine. The single was also featured in EA Sports video games Triple Play Baseball and Madden NFL 2003 in 2002.
The band contributed a cover of "This Will Be Our Year," the Zombies classic, as the lead track of Future Soundtrack for America, a political benefit album put out by Barsuk Records in the fall of 2004. Lead singer Damian Kulash also became somewhat politically active during that election cycle, writing a heavily downloaded how-to-guide entitled "How Your Band Can Fire Bush" for bands hoping to help unseat President George W. Bush, which garnered him an avalanche of hate mail.
The band's second record, "Oh No", was recorded in Malmö, Sweden and produced by Tore Johansson (The Cardigans, Franz Ferdinand) in the fall of 2004. Released in August 2005, it gained notoriety for its first single, the Clash-esque "A Million Ways." Its popularity was due in large part to its video, which proved to be a viral internet sensation in the fall of 2005. The ultra-low budget, one-take video featured the band in their back yard performing a dance choreographed by lead singer Kulash's sister, Trish Sie. Using a camera borrowed from a friend, the video was produced for under ten dollars and released without the knowledge or consent of their label, Capitol Records. By November 2005, the video had become the most downloaded music video ever with over 3 million downloads. It also spawned hundreds of tribute performances by amateur dancers around the world, a phenomenon that was encouraged by the group, which sponsored a dance contest, "OK Go Dances with You(Tube)", in which contestants were asked to upload videos of themselves doing the 'million ways dance' to YouTube, which would subsequently be judged, with the winning group of dancers to appear on stage with the band at a future OK Go performance.
The nontraditional video for "A Million Ways" is not without precedent for the band. Previous oddball video efforts featuring OK Go include their Ping Pong Instructional Video and the Federal Truth In Music Project.
Their next video featured the band dancing on treadmills to the single "Here It Goes Again" from the "Oh No" Album. This video was produced in a similar style to "A Million Ways", and also choreographed by singer/songwriter Damian Kulash's sister, Trish Sie. As with the previous music video for "A Million Ways", "Here It Goes Again" was also recorded as one continuous unedited take, although it required 7 days of rehearsal, and was the best (take 14) of 17 attempts. The amateur and yet brilliantly original 'treadmill video' sparked an even greater viral internet phenomenon than the AMW video, and was subsequently viewed on YouTube and elsewhere online well over 15 million times. On February 11, 2007, the "Here It Goes Again" music video earned the band members of OK Go and Trish Sie the Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video.
OK Go toured North America with Silversun Pickups and Snow Patrol in 2007.
Maybe This Time
OK Go Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Exactly where you are tonight
In the valley between intent and deed
You must have mastered this
The fragile art of a good excuse
The little things that get you too blue
That get you too blue
So listen, I'm not trying to prove anything at all here
But don't you think that maybe, this time, you were wrong?
You've spent your entire life
Quick-tounged, and always right
Hasn't being right just let you down?
Right just left you down
So listen, I'm not trying to say anything at all here
There isn't much left anyway that hasn't been said
But don't you think that possibly, this time, its different?
Don't you think that maybe, this time, you were wrong?
So listen, I'm not trying to say anything, at all here
There isn't much left anyway that hasn't been said
But don't you think that possibly, this time, its different?
Don't you think that maybe, this time, you were wrong?
The lyrics of OK Go's "Maybe This Time" tell a story of self-reflection and realization. The song addresses someone who has spent their whole life in their current situation, constantly making excuses to justify their actions and words. The phrase "in the valley between intent and deed" highlights the gap between what this person intends to do and what they actually do. They have become skilled at making excuses for their shortcomings and for feeling unhappy.
The chorus of the song gets to the heart of the matter, with the singer asking the person if they think "that maybe, this time, you were wrong?" This is a powerful question that forces the person to confront their own actions and decisions. The lyrics suggest that the person has been too focused on being right and proving themselves to others, which has ultimately left them feeling unsatisfied with their life.
The repetition of the phrase "there isn't much left anyway that hasn't been said" emphasizes the idea that everything that needs to be said has already been said. The person has likely been given advice and criticism from friends and family, but has refused to listen. The song ends with the same powerful question from the chorus, urging the person to consider that they may have been wrong in their actions.
Overall, "Maybe This Time" is a song about taking responsibility for one's own life and realizing that sometimes, it is necessary to admit when we are wrong in order to move forward.
Line by Line Meaning
Having spent your entire life
You have lived your entire life
Exactly where you are tonight
In the same place you are now
In the valley between intent and deed
Stuck between wanting to do something and actually doing it
You must have mastered this
You have become skilled at
The fragile art of a good excuse
Making up believable reasons for your actions or lack thereof
The little things that get you too blue
The small things that make you sad
That get you too blue
That bring you down emotionally
So listen, I'm not trying to prove anything at all here
I am not attempting to show or demonstrate anything
But don't you think that maybe, this time, you were wrong?
Could it be possible that you were mistaken this time?
You've spent your entire life
You have dedicated your whole life
Quick-tounged, and always right
Able to think and respond quickly and always correct
Hasn't being right just let you down?
Isn't being right all the time disappointing?
Right just left you down
Being correct has led to disappointment
So listen, I'm not trying to say anything at all here
I am not attempting to convey any message
There isn't much left anyway that hasn't been said
There is not much else to say that hasn't already been expressed
But don't you think that possibly, this time, its different?
Is it not possible that this time things are not the same?
Don't you think that maybe, this time, you were wrong?
Could it be that this time you were incorrect?
So listen, I'm not trying to say anything, at all here
I am not attempting to communicate any thoughts or ideas in this moment
There isn't much left anyway that hasn't been said
Everything that needed to be said has already been expressed
But don't you think that possibly, this time, its different?
Is it not possible that things have changed this time?
Don't you think that maybe, this time, you were wrong?
Could it be that you were mistaken this time around?
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: ANDREW DUNCAN, DAMIAN KULASH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind