1. A Swedish alternative metal band including members of In
Flames. Now filed under Passenger (SWE).
2. A Brighton (UK) based alternative folk band.
3. A San José, Costa Rica hardcore/screamo band.
4. A Mesa, Arizona based acoustic rock band.
5. A rap artist from Texas.
6. An old alias of DJ Tiësto.
7. A Chicago-based instrumental rock band.
8. A psytrance project of MFG's Guy Zukrel.
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Passenger was formed in 1995 by Sten and Engelin. Both members wanted to do something that was not Thrash metal or Melodic death metal unlike the bands they played in. At its early stages the band was originally called "Cliff". Under the name Cliff they recorded two demos in Studio Fredman that were never released. After a break in the band and after Engelin was hired as a session guitarist for In Flames' Whoracle tour, Anders Fridén, the vocalist of In Flames showed interest in Passenger and joined the band.
In the year 2000 the band came back from its break and went on to record a demo. In 2001 the band recorded another demo in which early versions of the songs "Used", "In My Head", "Circus" and "Drowning City" were recorded. After a third demo the band finally recorded and released their debut album entitled Passenger. A video for "In Reverse" was also released.
Sten noted in February 2004 on their official website that they were in the process of recording their second album. However, since then, Fridén, lead vocalist of both Passenger and In Flames has been noted saying that he has very little time for the project, due to other commitments, and the group is currently on hold. In an interview with Fridén he stated that as soon as he gets a break from In Flames, he wants to get all the group together to record a second album for early 2010. This did however not happen as Anders continued touring with In Flames until October 2010 when they entered their studio to record their next album.
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The brainchild of 26-year-old Brighton born singer/songwriter Mike Rosenberg, Passenger is redefining the troubadour for the 21st century. Formerly a five-piece band, Passenger has now pared back to basics, quite literally bringing music to the streets on a series of lengthy busking journeys across Australia, America and the United Kingdom. A classic journeyman musician, cut from the same mould as Van Morrison, Neil Young and John Prine, Passenger has the unique ability to move from the humorous to heartbreaking with every song.
After a year spent crisscrossing the UK and US with his debut album Wicked Man’s Rest, Passenger’s markedly stripped down and soulful second album Wide Eyes Blind Love was brought to the public as it was created: on the road. Setting up on street corners across the UK and Australia, Passenger halted passers by in their hundreds; all connecting to the mellifluous tones and powerfully hewn lyrics emanating from this lone figure and his guitar. This is music as Passenger means it to be, unvarnished and honest, just pure talent and powerful tunes that tap straight into the heart of the crowd.
Struck by the dynamic freedom of the troubadour life, Passenger developed the grass roots method of Wide Eyes Blind Love into the germ of a new album. Impressively and entirely self funded through busking income, Passenger set about recording a series of collaborations with musical friends met along the way. Flight Of The Crow is the remarkable result of Passenger’s intrepid journey, with Australian artists Lior, Josh Pyke, Katie Noonan, Boy & Bear, Kate Miller Heidke, Philadelphia Grand Jury, Brian Campeau and Elana Stone, Matt Corby, Jess Chalker and Dead Letter Chorus all lending their voices to this serendipitous creative venture. Flight Of The Crow was recorded in Sydney’s famous BJB studios over February and March of 2010, and co-produced by Berkfinger (AKA Simon Berkleman from Philadelphia Grand Jury).
As a second album born of the road, Flight Of The Crow speaks to the compelling quality of Passenger’s music and the striking sincerity of his lyrics, both of which are matched by his dedication to this grass roots style of craftsmanship and collaboration. How utterly remarkable that a lone musician can travel the globe, and literally from the street, connect with some of Australia’s finest musical talents to produce a self-funded album. This is the stuff of legend, with Passenger clearly evoking the humble, hardworking creativity of the troubadours of old.
www.myspace.com/passengerofficial
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Passenger or PSNGR is an active hardcore/screamo band formed in San José, Costa Rica born in 2004. Their EP "Get OFF the Rails!" (tentative title) will be out in 20/01/09. Band members: Alejandro Pacheco (vocals & guitar), Grego Rojas (guitar), Andres Moraga (bass), Jose Vargas (drums). www.myspace.com/passenger
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Passenger the acoustic rock band was formed in late 2000. They have a large archive of both original music and cover songs. They released their first pressed album, entitled "Four Letter Word", in September 2004 on indie label Crop Circle Records.
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Passenger is an Austin, Texas based MC. Born in Massachusetts, he spent most of his younger days growing up in New York and Houston, Tx eventually moving to Austin, Tx in 1996 attending college to try his hand as a sound engineer. During these years, his musical versatility had him playing bass in an alternative rock band, singing in another side project, DJing house, jungle and hip hop music at various venues in Austin. Eventually he became a full time DJ for the reggae/ska/hiphop/punk band, Indofin, which he was a member for years touring the country. His love for hip hop provoked him to purchase an MPC and has been making beats and rhyming ever since. "The Brick In A Glass House", his debut album, contains production from Nozebleed, Lazerbeak (Doomtree), amongst others as well as his own and has guests from Austin's own Emcee, Justin Cook, Weezel, as well as a few others. Currently, you can find him playing shows around the Austin area and will begin to venturing out to other Texas cities. He is also working on putting together a live band to back him at shows and working on new material.
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Passenger is also an old alias of DJ Tiësto. Tiësto only produced 2 tracks under his old Passenger-alias: "Blackspin" and "F.A.H.", both appearing on a record released on Momentum Records in 1996.
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Passenger began winter of 2002 when guitarist dustin covert and bassist/vocalist david mata collaborated on the bands first full length "alive" an 8 song full length about a disoriented and dark but intriguing view of love and romance. the album explored dissonant melodies and agonizingly slow chord progressions with the use of mark sampson on drums and sam billen on piano. in 2003 passenger progressed to a four person line up with michael oberlin on drums and james demis on keyboards and sound and began to play various rock venues in chicago, illinois and used silent film to accompany their live performance. numerous line-up changes took effect during the next year and a half, but in 2005 the concrete line-up of Dustin Covert and David D'Antonio on guitars, David Mata on Bass and Samuel Vincent on drums was achieved. In winter of 2005 Passenger recorded "The Owls are Restless", a 2 hour and 40 minute concept record about an ancient war between owls and rabbits and was recorded and engineered by Steve Whitney in a warehouse in Aurora, Illinois. Shortly after the recording drummer Samuel Vincent tragically passed away. Without his talent and with the grief of losing a dear, dear friend the band decided it was impossible to continue performing the material or anything that involved Passenger. These unfortunate events occurred before "The Owls are Restless" was able to achieve any sort of record label attention, and when it finally did it was too late. The remaining musicians have continued creating in their band White Devil, named after the vintage moog synth/organ that Sam would play in collaboration with his drums in Passenger.
myspace.com/whitedevilchicago
Needle In The Dark
Passenger Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With wisdom comes age
With lessons come learning
And pleasure comes with pain
You can only have the sunshine after the rain
I took a walk
Left foot, right foot
Smiling, blinking
Breathe out, breathe in
Somehow linking
My soul to my mind and my heart to my mouth
Lost and the found and the north to the south
And the corners to the circle in my mind
We may find that the gate has been locked
When we come back down to what we really are
Retrace the footprints off the path that is lost
It's like trying to find a needle in the dark
My hands they are empty
But they are clean
I'm poor but I'm healthy
I'm halfway between
The gutter and the skyline
So I took a walk to the land's end
Thinking ‘bout an ex-girlfriend that I had
And the pages that I've turned
And it seems to me
That we all love the chase
But once we're caught we feel encased
Behind bars of love and trust
Uprooted by drunken lust
By people, people just like us
People, people just like us
You may find that the gate has been locked
When we come back down to what we really are
Retrace the footprints off the path that's been lost
It's like trying to find a needle in the dark
So I took a walk to the station
Lost in my imagination
Having private conversations with myself
And I'm just stumbling ‘round
And I wait for the sound
Of this crumbling town to come tumbling down
People say I'm just bummin' around
But I've had both my ears to the ground
The lyrics of Passenger's song Needle In The Dark are introspective, deep and philosophical. The song tackles the idea that with progress comes new problems and that with wisdom comes age. As we learn lesson after lesson, we also experience pain and pleasure. The lines "You can only have the sunshine after the rain" serve as an analogy for life's ups and downs, highlighting that every pain we experience leads to happiness at some point.
Throughout the song, the singer takes a walk and is lost in thought, ruminating on life's challenges and complexities. He links his soul to his mind and heart to his mouth, emphasizing that all aspects of himself are interconnected. He also touches on the idea that while love is a chase, once caught, it can feel like a confinement. The singer acknowledges his own transient state of being, being "halfway between the gutter and the skyline". He recognizes that he is neither rich nor poor, but ultimately content with his own existence.
The song concludes with the singer taking a walk to the station and engaging in private conversations with himself. He is waiting for the sound of the town crumbling down, a metaphor for the inevitability of change. Despite being seen by others as aimlessly wandering, he is aware and attuned to the world around him. The gate being locked and trying to find a needle in the dark also emphasize the idea of searching for meaning and purpose, but ultimately acknowledging that some things are beyond our control.
Line by Line Meaning
With progress comes problems
As we advance and make progress, we will inevitably encounter new and unforeseen difficulties and challenges.
With wisdom comes age
As we age and gain experience, we tend to acquire wisdom and knowledge through our life experiences.
With lessons come learning
Through the lessons we learn from our mistakes and failures, we gain knowledge and understanding about ourselves and the world around us.
And pleasure comes with pain
Sometimes the things that give us pleasure or happiness can also cause us pain, whether it is through loss or addiction or other negative consequences.
You can only have the sunshine after the rain
Just as we need rain for the growth of flowers and plants, sometimes we must endure difficult times before we can experience joy and happiness in our lives.
I took a walk
The singer is describing a physical action, of going for a walk, which led to deep reflection.
It got me thinking
The walk sparked the singer's imagination and led to them contemplating life's deeper questions and meanings.
Left foot, right foot
The physical act of walking is described here, implying the simplicity of the action and the ease of moving forward in life, one step at a time.
Smiling, blinking
The artist may be describing an appreciation of the natural beauty around them, or acknowledging the simplicity of life's small pleasures.
Breathe out, breathe in
The act of breathing is described, which can be interpreted as a way of reminding oneself to be present in the moment and to take everything in.
Somehow linking
The singer is trying to make a connection or find a relationship between all of the different aspects of their life or experiences.
My soul to my mind and my heart to my mouth
The artist is describing a connection between their innermost feelings (soul and heart) and their thoughts and expressions (mind and mouth).
Lost and the found and the north to the south
The singer is describing the different extremes or opposites within their life experiences and how they are all connected, just like the geographical poles of north and south on the earth.
And the corners to the circle in my mind
The singer is describing the different parts of their mind and how they are interconnected and trying to make sense of it all, just like the parts of a circle fitting together perfectly.
We may find that the gate has been locked
The singer is acknowledging the possibility of encountering obstacles or barriers that prevent them from moving forward or achieving their goals.
When we come back down to what we really are
The artist is describing a moment of self-reflection and returning to their true self, stripped of all illusions or pretenses.
Retrace the footprints off the path that is lost
To move forward, sometimes we must look to the past and retrace our steps, in order to find a new path or direction.
It's like trying to find a needle in the dark
The singer is describing the difficulty of trying to find something that is lost or hidden, which is a metaphor for the journey of self-discovery and the search for meaning and purpose in life.
My hands they are empty
The singer is describing a state of emptiness or lack, perhaps referring to a lack of material possessions or a deeper spiritual emptiness.
But they are clean
Despite the emptiness or lack, the artist is describing a sense of purity or innocence in their actions or intentions.
I'm poor but I'm healthy
The artist is acknowledging their lack of material wealth, but also noting the importance of physical health and well-being.
I'm halfway between the gutter and the skyline
The artist is describing a sense of being caught between extremes or different social classes, neither at the bottom nor at the top, but somewhere in between.
Thinking ‘bout an ex-girlfriend that I had
The singer is describing a moment of reflection on past relationships, which can be painful but also offer valuable life lessons.
And the pages that I've turned
The artist is acknowledging the past and how they have moved beyond it, but also noting the practical value of learning from one's past experiences.
And it seems to me
The singer is describing a moment of realization or insight that has come about through their reflections.
That we all love the chase
The singer is noting a human tendency to enjoy pursuing something or someone, especially in the early stages of a relationship.
But once we're caught we feel encased
The singer is describing the feeling of being trapped or stifled once one achieves what they were seeking. There can be a sense of loss or regret that comes with achieving one's goals.
Behind bars of love and trust
The artist is describing a sense of being trapped by one's own emotions, which can sometimes cloud one's judgment and lead to unhealthy or codependent relationships.
Uprooted by drunken lust
The artist is describing how intense emotions can sometimes lead to rash or unwise decisions, especially when alcohol or other substances are involved.
By people, people just like us
The singer is acknowledging the universality of human experience, and how we all struggle to find our way in life and make sense of our emotions and relationships.
So I took a walk to the station
The singer is describing another physical action, perhaps trying to escape from their thoughts or find a new perspective.
Lost in my imagination
The artist is describing a state of being completely absorbed in their own thoughts and fantasies, perhaps trying to escape from reality for a time.
Having private conversations with myself
The artist is describing a moment of introspection and reflection, perhaps trying to work through their own internal conflicts or dilemmas.
And I'm just stumbling ‘round
The artist is acknowledging their own lack of direction or purpose, and perhaps feeling a sense of being lost or adrift.
And I wait for the sound
The singer is describing a sense of anxious anticipation, perhaps waiting for some sign or signal that will give them direction or purpose.
Of this crumbling town to come tumbling down
The artist is describing a sense of disillusionment or frustration with their surroundings or environment, perhaps longing for a bigger change or transformation.
People say I'm just bummin' around
The singer is acknowledging the opinions of others, who may view their actions as aimless or pointless.
But I've had both my ears to the ground
The singer is describing a sense of being attuned to the world around them, and perhaps suggesting that they are listening for signals or insights that others may not hear.
Contributed by Matthew G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.