Pile was initially the solo project of Boston-based singer/guitarist Rick Maguire. He issued a pair of rough but engaging lo-fi albums (2007's Demonstration and 2009's Jerk Routine) that segued between experimental folk, jagged indie rock, and elements of post-rock. Transforming Pile into a collective, Maguire assembled the full-time lineup of guitarist Matt Becker, bassist Matt Connery, and drummer Kris Kuss in 2010 and released Magic Isn't Real, establishing the dark and noisy tones that would become one of the group's hallmarks. Following a 2011 EP titled Big Web, Pile signed with Exploding in Sound and made their label debut with 2012's widely touted Dripping. The 7" release Special Snowflakes/Mama's Lipstick preceded 2015's You're Better Than This as the band continued a daunting touring schedule, hitting North America and Europe. With each release, Pile's sound continued to evolve, adding piano, banjo, and strings on 2017's A Hairshirt of Purpose, which ran the gamut from slow, orchestrated tracks to massive noisy assaults. Jack White's Third Man label issued Pile's first live album, Live at Third Man Records, in late 2017. Between albums, the band collected singles and other miscellaneous tracks on the appropriately titled 2018 collection Odds and Ends before returning with seventh studio album Green and Gray in the spring of 2019. By this point Maguire had moved from Boston to Nashville and enlisted new member Chappy Hull (guitar) and Alex Molini (bass) to join him.
After releasing 2020's Second Other Tape, a set of experimental sketches, Maguire began revisiting Pile's earlier catalog and approaching it from a new angle. Recorded entirely on his own over the course of a three-day session, 2021's Songs Known Together, Alone, consisted of 16 reworked compositions that went as far back as 2007's Demonstration. It was followed later that year by the fully improvised In the Corners of a Sphere-Filled Room which, like its predecessor was self-released. 2023's All Fiction marked Pile's return to longtime label Exploding in Sound and was seen as a proper follow up to Green and Gray. Kuss, still living in Boston, rejoined the band for these sessions, which featured a more textured and complex sound.
Biography by Timothy Monger
There are other artists with the same name:
2.) Pile is a Japanese Singer and Seiyuu, Her real name is Hori Eriko (堀絵梨子) and she was born in 1988. She released a indies solo single in 2007 called "Your is All... " but didn't make a major solo debut until 2014 with the single "伝説のFLARE", which was used as the third ending song for the anime "Tenkai Knight".
3.) Tech house duo consisting of Markus Nikolai and Thomas Franzmann, founders of the Perlon label. Mainly active in the late 1990s, Pile produced a handful of tracks, first on the Epic label and finally on Perlon. Their unique style blended irregular, stripped-down house beats and distorted techno melodies with unorthodox vocal samples and characterized the early tech house sound. The group is no longer active, but Nikolai and Franzmann continue to work under different aliases.
Leaning On A Wheel
Pile Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And a shity plan, and all the things that are asumed you understand
Head down, and eyes peel and wouldnt call it drivin more like leaning on a wheel
Not happy not in love but lets have a baby to save the memories that we made up
Lets get in our own way, thinking out of and look through the wall i dont know of all, but most of ones stare down so blame traffic have a kid made every good be self interest
The lyrics to Pile's song "Leaning On A Wheel" are a complex commentary on the ways in which we sabotage our own happiness and relationships. The first line, "Getting in our own way and blaming traffic," suggests that we often create problems for ourselves and then look for external factors to blame. The song goes on to lament "a shitty plan" and "all the things that are assumed you understand," suggesting that sometimes we make assumptions about what other people want and need without really listening to them.
The chorus of the song is particularly powerful, with the line "not happy not in love but let's have a baby to save the memories that we made up." This speaks to the idea that we sometimes try to paper over our dissatisfaction with a relationship by creating a shared project (like having a child) that we think will bring us closer together. The song suggests that this is a mistake, and ultimately, every "good" we pursue is really just self-interest in disguise.
Overall, "Leaning On A Wheel" is a warning against taking our relationships for granted and assuming that our own desires are more important than those of the people we love.
Line by Line Meaning
Getting in our own way an blaming traffic
We are causing our own problems but blaming it on external factors like traffic.
And a shity plan, and all the things that are asumed you understand
Our plan is not good and we assume you understand it despite its flaws.
Head down, and eyes peel and wouldnt call it drivin more like leaning on a wheel
We are not really driving but just aimlessly leaning on the wheel with our heads down and eyes half-open.
Not happy not in love but lets have a baby to save the memories that we made up
We are not happy or in love, but want to have a baby to preserve the good memories we created.
Lets get in our own way, thinking out of and look through the wall i dont know of all, but most of ones stare down so blame traffic have a kid made every good be self interest
Let's continue to sabotage ourselves and look beyond the obvious obstacles. We don't know everything but most people choose to ignore reality and blame external factors like traffic. Having a child becomes an act of self-interest as we try to salvage what little good we have left.
Writer(s): Richard Maguire
Contributed by Liam T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Jesse
Getting in our own way
And blaming traffic
And a shitty plan
And other things that are assumed you understand
Head down
And eyes peeled
I wouldn't call it driving, more like leaning on a wheel
Not happy
And not in love
But let's have a baby to save the marriage that we made up
It's getting in our own way
Thinking I can look through walls that I run up on
Are mostly ones I've stared at
So play in traffic
Have a kid
May every good deed be in self interest
We're all giving ourselves head
Each in our own way
Pairing off with whatever
Will lighten up our days
Or you'd hope
But you know death can travel
And I'm sure it'll walk you home
You come in and leave alone
And I know death can travel
And I'm sure it'll walk us home
Jesse
Getting in our own way
And blaming traffic
And a shitty plan
And other things that are assumed you understand
Head down
And eyes peeled
I wouldn't call it driving, more like leaning on a wheel
Not happy
And not in love
But let's have a baby to save the marriage that we made up
It's getting in our own way
Thinking I can look through walls that I run up on
Are mostly ones I've stared at
So play in traffic
Have a kid
May every good deed be in self interest
We're all giving ourselves head
Each in our own way
Pairing off with whatever
Will lighten up our days
Or you'd hope
But you know death can travel
And I'm sure it'll walk you home
You come in and leave alone
And I know death can travel
And I'm sure it'll walk us home
Lose Lee-On-Saint-Etienne
just find it mad that pile isn't bigger, absolute legends
Lucas Pinto
@John Nolan i know like i don’t have any money so i can’t pay loan so i don’t have to worry about a place for living
Fluid Show
I feel like the boyz are honest and responsible enough that they would prevent the creation of more problems, and if they couldn't stop it they would change direction to prevent it, remaining publicly honest about the situation. If their sound changed and got poppy, that would hurt me but I would still be happy that they "made it" and could live well off their music.
John Nolan
Motley Boys It's kind of better that way...once bands get 'bigger' than money starts getting involved. Mo' money mo' problems meng 👌
lumburgapalooza
I don't know
edit: after a week this has really grown on me. I revisited their entire catalog and this feels like a natural progression for them. I could see how a lot of people would be turned off by the change but I'm really feeling it now. I haven't been this excited for an album in a long time. I hope I can make it to the release!
Fluid Show
This didn't feel like a big change for me. I got into Pile for their super personal songwriting fueling by their raw rock fury. Any loud and aggressive moments seemed like earned climaxes necessary to illustrate key points of their story, but I still savored the tender moments just as much if not more. Rick's folk influence and the band's ability to orchestrate it tug at my heartstrings harder and more earnestly than any other music I've heard.
I'm glad you came to liking this as much as I did. Hope you enjoyed the album, too.
Emily
i feel like i see u a lot round these parts of town
lumburgapalooza
Yeah "magic isn't real" is fantastic. I can't tell you how many times I've listened to that album. I emailed the band and they were nice enough to ship me a CD copy in a slip cover with album art. My work commute got a lot more awesome.
Caleb Urrea
This album is an amalgamation of all their previous album styles. This song is more blues inspired and lyrically clear like Magic Isn't Real. Texas has the same rough and abrasive riffs and vocals like You're Better Than This. Dogs sounds like Dripping more than anything else, not as instrumentally heavy as You're Better Than This but not as profound vocally as Magic Isn't Real... Personally Magic Isn't Real is my absolute favorite, but I also love their other material as well. I'm confident this album will give me moments like when I first listened to Octopus off of MIR while still providing great, hard instrumentation.