OBEY THE BRAVE churns out anthems of empowerment born of adversity. It’s the songs that embolden the spirit and exorcise personal demons, whether in the pit or on a day’s commute. Songs like “Raise Your Voice,” “Full Circle,” and “Get Real” are quintessential metalcore bangers.
Mad Season, the band’s diverse and defiant third album, arrives after the most turbulent period of the group’s career. Yet as vocalist Alex Erian puts it with appropriately blunt eloquence: “We’re back stronger than ever.”
Since forming just a handful of years ago in their native Canada, OBEY THE BRAVE has toured the world alongside fellow modern metalcore genre standard bearers like The Amity Affliction, Whitechapel, Blessthefall, Chelsea Grin, Emmure, All Shall Perish, We Came As Romans, and Miss May I, forging meaningful relationships with each audience, show after show.
A series of hardships and obstacles followed the release of the group’s well-received sophomore album, Salvation (2014), which built upon the early promise Young Blood (2012). Both are albums full of raw crunch, sincere attitude, metallic bite, and unadulterated adrenaline. The group weathered two lineup changes, a string of bad luck with an overseas promoter, and a series of false starts in the studio before finally emerging with Mad Season, the band’s most focused, ambitious, and urgently visceral album thus far.
Songs like “Drama,” “The Distance,” and “Rest in Peace” (one of two Mad Season songs delivered entirely in the band’s native French) are packed with power derived as much from real life emotion as huge power chords.
Named for the tumultuous period of its creation, Mad Season is a truly collaborative effort musically and lyrically. Joining shortly into the touring cycle for Salvation, Terrence McAuley (guitar) and Cory Wilson (bass) gelled instantly with original members Erian, John Campbell (guitar), and Stevie Morotti (drums). McAuley also served as co-producer, alongside engineer and mixer Dean Hadjichristou, who has worked with Obey The Brave’s fellow Canadians Protest The Hero and labelmates Parkway Drive.
When it came time to record vocals, Erian reunited with longtime collaborator Antoine Lussier, whose Ion Dissonance bandmate, Kevin McCaughey, guests on “The Distance.” “RIP” features French Canadian rap group Loud Lary Ajust, capturing the party element the band often brings in the live setting.
“Drama” boasts a guest appearance from Steve Marois of Erian’s other band the semi-recently reformed deathcore pioneers Despised Icon.
“I grew up in the death metal scene but Obey The Brave has always been my outlet to explore other aspects of my musical roots and passions,” Erian explains. “Now that Despised Icon is back, I have that outlet for really heavy extreme music, so I can explore with Obey The Brave even more now.”
Mad Season demonstrates a true artistic evolution for the band. Part of that progression includes the introduction of singing vocals alongside the genre’s traditional screaming. This isn’t “emo” crooning, however; it’s much more akin to the raspy declarations of Rise Against and old-school punk.
“We stepped out of our comfort zone with this record,” Erian says. “We didn’t want to put out the same record three times in a row. I spent an entire year trying to perfect my singing. There’s still a lot of screaming on the album, but it was really important for me artistically to try something different and give it my all. It’s very exciting to try to reinvent yourself.”
A mission statement of sorts for OBEY THE BRAVE is right there in the title track: “We all want it / it’s our passion / we’re all lost in the right direction.”
“Sometimes when you’re facing these obstacles, you’re like, ‘why am I still here? Why am I doing this in the first place? Should I get back to the regular nine-to-five and try to get some security?’” Erian confesses. “But this is who I am. This is what I do. This is who we are. We just can’t help ourselves. That’s why ‘though we may feel ‘lost,’ we are lost in the right direction.”
Ultimately each and every step along the way for OBEY THE BRAVE has been worth it, because indeed, “that which does not kill us…” Or to quote another fitting well-known proverb: “nothing ventured, nothing gained.”
“In a weird twisted way I’m thankful for everything it took to get this record made because it all tested our commitment to the band and we’re still here, you know, we’re still swinging,” says Erian. “The bottom line is, we put so much of ourselves into Mad Season and the music speaks for itself.”
Burning Bridges
Obey the Brave Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
No turning back
I knew it all along
Deep down I felt something wrong
No more will I pretend
I'm on the edge
This is the end
I feel a storm coming
Don't lose hope
Take over
I feel a storm coming
Soon, it'll be over
You're blowing up my phone
Don't call, don't text
Leave me alone
No more will I pretend
I'm on the edge
This is the end
I'm starting to see the light of the day
The bridges I burn will light my way
You've had your chance, now go away
The bridges I burn will light my way
Get back on track
No turning back
I've had enough of this
The things I did, I can't dismiss
No more will I pretend
I'm on the edge
This is the end
I feel a storm coming
Dn't lose hope
Take over
I feel a storm coming
Soon, it'll be over
All over
Just give it a rest
The damage is done
I gave you my best
We've had our fun
Just give it a rest
This is the end
I'm starting to see the light of the day
The bridges I burn will light my way
You've had your chance, now go away
The bridges I burn will light my way
We've had our ups and downs
Stood my ground, can't boss my around
You did me wrong and so you paid
Yhe bridges I burn will light my way
Get back on track
No turning back
The lyrics of Obey the Brave's song "Burning Bridges" convey a message of self-empowerment and reflection on a past relationship. The singer is resolute in his decision to move on from a toxic relationship and start anew. He acknowledges that he knew all along that something wasn't right but continued to pretend that everything was okay. He's now reached his breaking point and sees the light of the day, ready to move on and leave the past behind. The storm that he feels coming is a metaphor for the change that's about to take place.
Line by Line Meaning
Get back on track
Focus on moving forward
No turning back
Do not look back and dwell on the past
I knew it all along
I had a feeling that something was not right
Deep down I felt something wrong
I had a gut feeling that things were not okay
No more will I pretend
I will stop pretending and be real
I'm on the edge
I am at my limit
This is the end
This is the finale
I feel a storm coming
I sense something difficult is about to happen
Don't lose hope
Stay positive and hold on to faith
Take over
Command the situation to avoid being overwhelmed
Soon, it'll be over
This hardship will eventually pass
You're blowing up my phone
You are excessively trying to contact me
Don't call, don't text
Stop reaching out to me
Leave me alone
I need time for myself
I'm starting to see the light of the day
I am beginning to see hope in my situation
The bridges I burn will light my way
By letting go of the past, I can create my new path forward
You've had your chance, now go away
You had your opportunity, please leave
I've had enough of this
I have reached a limit and cannot take anymore
The things I did, I can't dismiss
I acknowledge the past events and cannot ignore their impact
I feel a storm coming
I sense that a difficult situation is approaching
All over
The situation has concluded
Just give it a rest
Stop trying to engage and let the matter go
The damage is done
The harm has occurred and cannot be undone
I gave you my best
I put forth my greatest effort
We've had our fun
The situation was enjoyable at one point
We've had our ups and downs
We experienced both good and bad times
Stood my ground, can't boss me around
I have defended myself and will not be controlled
You did me wrong and so you paid
You hurt me and now have faced consequences
Contributed by Lauren P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@SouthParkMetalHead
The best song I've heard in a long while
@rafaelan5126
R.I.P OTB 😔
@sebastianschlosser1666
Saw them live and they were amazing
@aspire9360
No doubt! These guys put on a great show live. So much energy.
@iisakpilli8152
The breakdown this song starts with reminds me of the breakdown in To The Lions - Breathless.
@joerivde
EPIC SONG!
@ThatVideographerNick
April 12th NEEDS TO HURRY UP!
@metalrocks999
The bridges I burn will light my way
@TheMrOsmo
good for you
@soccerfan150
i gusta pretty well....