Peter Block and Caleb Sherman grew up just blocks apart on New York City’s upper east side, but never met each other until 2003 when their musical worlds collided. Finding they resonated as songwriting partners, together they created the quartet Porter Block.
Peter Block grew up in a musical house – his mother was a Chamber music graduate in piano – and his initial venture into music was contributing musical shorts for advertisements and films, eventually forming his first band, Tripasaurus vs Blockhead in 2003. More recently, he collaborated with ADM from the Lordz of Brooklyn, and Dean Wareham and Britta Phillips of LUNA. Caleb Sherman made his band’s first record with legendary producer Bernard Edwards. He then went on to lend his production talents to artists in Nashville to New York. (Her and Kings County, The New Black)
Two years since their debut album, "Suburban Sprawl", Peter Block and Caleb Sherman decided to make their follow-up in a completely different way, holing up in a studio with the band, tons of vintage analog gear and the goal of creating an album full of songs that sound great live. In other words, make an album the old-school way.
Knowing how important the recording environment is and aware of how much time they would be spending there, the duo built a live recording space in Brooklyn, The Carriage House, and filled it with retro gear they had collected over the years. Locking themselves in the studio for four months, the band emerged with about thirty songs that needed to be whittled down to ten.
A tour with The Samples gave Porter Block a chance to road test the new material. They returned to the studio to record the ten solid crowd-approved songs bringing in drummer Steve Holly (Paul McCartney, Ian Hunter) to add his distinct muscular drum sounds.
The resulting "Off Our Shoulders" is a rock record filled with catchy power-pop melodies, harmonies, driving guitars and a powerful back beat that one can imagine hearing both on the radio and blasting from a car’s stereo. The radio-ready songs were developed out of simple stories. "All of Who I Am" sounds like a love song to a girl, but turns out to be about a Martin Guitar. "Sun Goes Down" was inspired by the famous Howard Cossell line "down goes Frazier" and was written as a radio broadcast of a boxing match. "Happy Everything" came from a holiday card and its overly perky sentiment conjured a cynic’s perspective on the holiday season.
Porter Block was a 2007 New Music Weekly AC Best New Group of the year nominee. They also contributed to the popular, Guilt By Association compilation alongside Devendra Banhart, Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, Mike Watt, Jim O’Rourke, among others. The band toured the East Coast with Deep Blue Something this winter and will be heading out on tour again this summer.
Circles
Porter Block Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I, go in
Circles with you.
I, grow in
Circles with you.
Why old,
Circles are new.
Into the blue.
Everything, anytime,
Everywhere we are there.
Slowing down,
Speeding up
Making up things to share.
Hurry up,
Try to find
Use for the time we saved.
Then, in the end,
We we part
We begin.
It's true,
I, go in
Circles with you.
I, grow in
Circles with you.
Why old,
Circles are new.
Circles are through.
We step,
Into the blue.
Summertime, wintertime,
Season by seasoning.
Whirligig, constantly,
Tied to me by a string.
There we go.
There we are.
All at once happening.
Every thing's fine,
We are partnered in time.
Recently,
I took a look at you, an me.
I tried to think of how we came to be.
Together.
Everything, anytime,
Everywhere we are there.
Slowing down,
Speeding up
Making up things to share.
Hurry up,
Try to find
Use for the time we saved.
Summertime, wintertime,
Season by seasoning.
Into the blue.
Into the blue.
The song "Circles" by Porter Block is a reflection on the cyclic and ever-changing nature of a relationship. The lyrics describe the singer's realization that they are stuck in a repeating pattern with their partner, going through the same ups and downs over and over again. However, instead of getting frustrated, they embrace and celebrate the familiar cycle and feel grateful for the shared experiences. The imagery of "circles" refers to the cyclical nature of the relationship, which seems to constantly repeat itself.
The lyrics suggest that the relationship has taught the singer to appreciate the present moment and to make the most of the time they have together. They rush to find ways to spend their time, aware that it will soon be gone. Despite the potential sadness that comes with the looming end, the singer remains optimistic about the future, implying that even when the relationship ends, they will begin anew.
Overall, the song portrays a relationship that has stabilized into a familiar pattern, yet remains meaningful and worthwhile. The singers have learned to appreciate and enjoy each other's company, even as time moves ever forward.
Line by Line Meaning
It's true,
It is a fact,
I, go in
I keep going,
Circles with you.
In a repetitious cycle with you.
I, grow in
I flourish in
Circles with you.
A never-ending repetition with you.
Why old,
Although they may be ancient,
Circles are new.
The cycle is still fresh and new.
Circles are through.
The cycle is complete and finished
Into the blue.
Moving on to new things.
Everything, anytime,
All things, always,
Everywhere we are there.
Wherever we are, everything is there with us.
Slowing down,
Taking it easy,
Speeding up
Picking up the pace,
Making up things to share.
Creating things to discuss and bond over.
Hurry up,
Quickly,
Try to find
Attempting to locate
Use for the time we saved.
A reason to make the most of the time we have left.
Then, in the end,
Finally, at the conclusion,
We we part
We go our separate ways,
We begin.
But then we start anew.
Summertime, wintertime,
No matter the season,
Season by seasoning.
With each turn of the year.
Whirligig, constantly,
In a constant loop,
Tied to me by a string.
Connected to me by a force.
There we go.
Off we go,
There we are.
Here we are, present.
All at once happening.
Everything is occurring simultaneously.
Every thing's fine,
Everything is great,
We are partnered in time.
We are together in this journey through time.
Recently,
Lately,
I took a look at you, an me.
I examined us and our relationship.
I tried to think of how we came to be.
I attempted to piece together how we ended up in this situation.
Together.
As a unit, not separately.
Into the blue.
Onto the next thing, leaving the past behind.
Into the blue.
A repetition of moving on to new things.
Contributed by Liliana J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Jason Smalls
[Verse 1: Chris Lane]
Standing here, drink it in
Everything you been pouring
Like the way it goes down
And I like the taste on your tongue
I'm gonna let you hold me
Even if it's just for now
[Pre-Chorus: Chris Lane]
I know where it's gonna go
You're so predictable
[Chorus: Chris Lane]
You always love me in circles
You hurt me on purpose to come around again, come around again
You're so determined to break me
To say that you saved me
You come around again, come around again
[Post-Chorus: MacKenzie Porter]
I'm so mad about you
I can't live without you
I love you, I need you
Swear I'll never leave you
[Verse 2: MacKenzie Porter]
Lying here, next to you
I've never felt so perfect
Even if it's just for now
With paper hearts and kerosene
One word can spark a fire
You build it up and burn it down
[Pre-Chorus: MacKenzie Porter]
Love has its rituals
We're so predictable
[Chorus: Both]
You always love me in circles
You hurt me on purpose to come around again, come around again
You're so determined to break me
To say that you saved me
You come around again, come around again
[Post-Chorus: Both]
I'm so mad about you
I can't live without you
I love you, I need you
I swear I'll never leave you
I'm so mad about you
I can't live without you
I love you, I need you
I swear I'll never leave you
[Pre-Chorus: MacKenzie Porter]
Love has its rituals
We're so predictable
[Chorus: Both]
You always love me in circles
You hurt me on purpose to come around again, come around again
You're so determined to break me
To say that you saved me
You come around again, come around again
[Post-Chorus: Both]
I'm so mad about you
I can't live without you
I love you, I need you
I swear I'll never leave you
I'm so mad about you
I can't live without you
I love you, I need you
I swear I'll never leave you
Daisy Salinas
Wow Mackenzie is an amazing actress and singer! I binged watched her show Travelers and i love her in it. I did some research on her and found out she's a country artist! Much love for her.
johnny feathers
Yeah I’m on Travelers season 1 right now..awesome show..she is so talented.
Jason Smalls
[Verse 1: Chris Lane]
Standing here, drink it in
Everything you been pouring
Like the way it goes down
And I like the taste on your tongue
I'm gonna let you hold me
Even if it's just for now
[Pre-Chorus: Chris Lane]
I know where it's gonna go
You're so predictable
[Chorus: Chris Lane]
You always love me in circles
You hurt me on purpose to come around again, come around again
You're so determined to break me
To say that you saved me
You come around again, come around again
[Post-Chorus: MacKenzie Porter]
I'm so mad about you
I can't live without you
I love you, I need you
Swear I'll never leave you
[Verse 2: MacKenzie Porter]
Lying here, next to you
I've never felt so perfect
Even if it's just for now
With paper hearts and kerosene
One word can spark a fire
You build it up and burn it down
[Pre-Chorus: MacKenzie Porter]
Love has its rituals
We're so predictable
[Chorus: Both]
You always love me in circles
You hurt me on purpose to come around again, come around again
You're so determined to break me
To say that you saved me
You come around again, come around again
[Post-Chorus: Both]
I'm so mad about you
I can't live without you
I love you, I need you
I swear I'll never leave you
I'm so mad about you
I can't live without you
I love you, I need you
I swear I'll never leave you
[Pre-Chorus: MacKenzie Porter]
Love has its rituals
We're so predictable
[Chorus: Both]
You always love me in circles
You hurt me on purpose to come around again, come around again
You're so determined to break me
To say that you saved me
You come around again, come around again
[Post-Chorus: Both]
I'm so mad about you
I can't live without you
I love you, I need you
I swear I'll never leave you
I'm so mad about you
I can't live without you
I love you, I need you
I swear I'll never leave you
Jessamine
Love both of your voices 😍😍 #favouritesongever
Mulanga Sarah Mbayabu
I LOVE THIS SONG!💕
Robert Carmichael
Mackenzie Porter is amazing. What a great voice
Jamie Lee
This version is amazing!! 💗
Hollnes forever
This is my new favorite song. Very beautiful👍
Chris Lane
Thanks so much for supporting my music 🎼 I’m so grateful 🥰and I hope you never stop being fan, I would like to honor you by giving you my personal information if that’s okay by you....
Amber Mills
I really wish Mackenzie Porter would come out with another album. I love her voice