June 14, 2011 will be a bigger day.
On the former, they decided to put off the next year of college, giving themselves 365 days to make a career out of rock n' roll.
On the latter, Paradise Fears will release "Yours Truly," their debut full-length album, as one of the most potent and rapidly-growing young pop rock acts in the country.
In July 2010, just months after the majority of the band's high school graduation, they released Make Them Believe EP, produced by Jordan Schmidt (All Time Low, Sing it Loud). In just 8 months, the album has sold several thousand copies nation-wide, and the band's career has taken off. They've completed nation-wide tours with Quietdrive and Floral Terrace across 32 different states, and have shared the stage with acts like Stereo Skyline, The Audition, and You, Me, and Everyone We Know.
Coming from a town of 3,000 year round residents in a state noted for its lack of a music scene, nothing has come easy. But these six kids grew up fast. "It's been an entirely self taught process...with a very steep learning curve. We've had to teach ourselves how to promote, how to book shows, how to tour, how to record, everything…but it gives us a very unique approach, because in our area, what we're doing is so unprecedented that we haven't fallen victim the generic, cookie-cutter career path, and instead we've received a tremendous amount of support from our home town." explained lead singer Sam Miller.
Though they may be young, Paradise Fears has several things going for them:
First, an incredibly energetic and engaging live show that can win over even the most uninterested bystander, described by one Battle of the Bands judge as "N'Sync meets a UFC cage match." They were crowned champions of a 65-band, Midwest-wide Battle of the Bands in October, sponsored by Rawkzilla magazine, scoring them $14,000 in endorsements, equipment, and cash. Their performance, described by Paul Pederson (Prince, Steve Miller band), was "absolutely spectacular, one in a million, and completely breath-taking."
Second, an arsenal of infectiously catchy and musically developed rock-pop songs, some of which received airplay on top 40 radio stations throughout the Midwest. David Hooper of Music Business Radio described Make Them Believe as "catchy and remarkably polished, particularly given the age [of the members.]"
Third, an incredibly loyal internet following of all different ages. In just 8 months, their Facebook, Twitter, and social networking profiles have acquired tens of thousands of fans/ followers, and are still rapidly expanding by hundreds daily. "One of the best parts about our style of music has always been that it's not limited - it's the kind of music that someone can appreciate with their 12-year-old sister or their 70-year-old grandmother," said keyboard-player Michael Walker.
Finally, and most importantly, an insatiable drive for success. Paradise Fears is constantly touring or recording, and when they aren't, they're exploring new and creative ways of expanding their fan base. Most recently, the band split into three teams, racing around the country following large tours in a competition to meet the most potential listeners. 50,000 miles, 10,000 demos, and 5,000 CDs later, their "Amazing Race" has created both hundreds of fans and a Paradise Fears buzz in every major market in the United States.
The large-scale release of a full-length album will be a huge step forward in the band's career. Recording time for "Yours Truly" was split between Schmidt and Zack Odom and Kenneth Mount (Mayday Parade, Cartel). It will feature 11 new songs, tremendously evolved in music and lyrics. "It's a new found maturity for us...these songs are real. We wrote songs about people we love, songs about people we hate, songs that tell stories…it's an album full of songs we really love," described guitarist Cole Andre.
But why so independent? Says Miller, "That's the way we want to do it, and the dream we've always envisioned. We're financing it, we're writing it, we're releasing it, we're promoting it. It started out as just the six of us, and come good or come bad, we've still always got that. We're committed to being able to make it ourselves."
Get to You
Paradise Fears Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Too much love to ever think of running out
Summer air was intoxicating
Filled my lungs but I can't stop breathing
I had to take you home that night
Divide the space between our minds
And find a cure for a heart that's failing
I'm losing sleep but I can't stop dreaming (dreaming...)
I miss the time when I used to know just
Just how it feels to be in over my head
When I would do anything for your love
When we could be anything we wanted
What I'd give to touch your skin
And beg your heart to feel the way it felt back then
So let me in
Now I'm caving in,
Wearing thin,
Sick of always fading out
Got my hands in my pockets, baby
I try to hide it but inside I'm shaking
When you're gone my heart is too,
Masquerading memories of you
Can't pretend that your words don't phase me
Can't pretend that you don't amaze, me
I miss the time when I used to know just
Just how it feels to be in over my head
When I would do anything for your love
When we could be anything we wanted
What I'd give to touch your skin
And beg your heart to feel the way it felt back then
So let me in
And I'll stay perpetually in this state
When your voice is out of reach
And you've got me fighting the seas,
But there's just too much ocean between
I miss the time when I used to know just
Just how it feels to be in over my head
When I would do anything for your love
When we could be anything we wanted
What I'd give to touch your skin
And beg your heart to feel the way it felt back then
So let me, so let me, so let me in
I can't get to you
(So let me in)
I can't get to you
(So let me in)
I can't get to you
The lyrics to Paradise Fears's song "Get To You" express the deep longing and desire to rekindle a past love. The singer reminisces about a time when they were deeply in love and felt invincible. They had "too much love" and "so much time" that they never thought they could run out. The summer air was "intoxicating" and filled their lungs, but despite their attempts to move on, the singer still can't stop thinking about their former lover.
The lyrics also express the pain of separation and the struggle to let go. The singer is "caving in" and wearing thin, but tries to hide it by putting their hands in their pockets. When their lover is gone, their heart is too, filled with memories and unable to move on. The singer can't pretend that their lover's words don't affect them, and they can't pretend that they're not still amazed by them. They want to touch their skin again and beg their heart to feel the way it did before.
Overall, the lyrics to "Get To You" express a deep longing for a past love and a desire to rekindle those feelings again. The singer wants to be let in and feels like they can't move on until they are.
Line by Line Meaning
We had so much time,
There was an abundance of time that we shared.
Too much love to ever think of running out
We loved each other so much that we never thought our love would diminish
Summer air was intoxicating
The summer breeze brought a pleasant feeling.
Filled my lungs but I can't stop breathing
The air was so fresh that it was hard to stop breathing it in.
I had to take you home that night
I wanted to take you home that night.
Divide the space between our minds
We needed to bridge the gap between our thoughts.
And find a cure for a heart that's failing
We needed to find a way to fix our broken hearts.
I'm losing sleep but I can't stop dreaming (dreaming...)
I'm always thinking of you, even in my dreams.
I miss the time when I used to know just
I yearn for the time when I had a better understanding of,
Just how it feels to be in over my head
What it means to be completely in love and out of control
When I would do anything for your love
I would do anything to have your love again.
When we could be anything we wanted
When we thought we could have and do anything together
What I'd give to touch your skin
I miss the feeling of being close to you.
And beg your heart to feel the way it felt back then
I wish we could go back to the way we were and feel the love we had.
So let me in
Please allow me to come back into your life.
Now I'm caving in,
I'm losing control and giving in to my emotions.
Wearing thin,
My patience and strength are becoming less.
Sick of always fading out
Tired of losing connection and fading away.
Got my hands in my pockets, baby
I'm nervous and trying to hide my emotions.
I try to hide it but inside I'm shaking
I'm trying to appear calm, but I'm actually very anxious.
When you're gone my heart is too,
When you're not around, I feel lost and heartbroken.
Masquerading memories of you
Memories of you are disguising themselves and distracting me.
Can't pretend that your words don't phase me
Your words are affecting me deeply and I can't ignore them.
Can't pretend that you don't amaze me
I'm still impressed and amazed by you.
And I'll stay perpetually in this state
I'll keep feeling this way indefinitely.
When your voice is out of reach
When I can't hear your voice
And you've got me fighting the seas,
I'm struggling to reach you.
But there's just too much ocean between
There's too much distance and nothing can be done about it.
I can't get to you
I'm unable to reconnect with you.
Contributed by Zoe D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.