The Illinois-based combo's full length debut, "The Kicks of Passion" (released 31 July 2007), sees Powerspace unleashing its own inimitable sound, a brightly colored mash-up of pure power pop and electronica-inspired invention. Tracks such as "Powerspace Snap Bracelet" and "Right On, Right Now" literally snap and crackle with the just-out-of-their-teens quartet's uncontainable charm and energy.
The Powerspace team came together back in 2005 at Ohio's Miami University. Guitarist Tom Schleiter and bassist Daniel McMahon, both of whom played in bands in their native burbs of Chicago, had long discussed making music together. A year older, Schleiter spent his freshman term at Miami working with drummer Kevin Kane in a local band, an experience the guitarist describes as "unsatisfying." He spent the next summer focusing on writing songs for an as-yet-undetermined new band. When he told McMahon what he'd been up to, the bassist suggested the two form a new combo upon Dan's arrival at school in the fall.
Once they began collaborating, the three musicians embarked on a search for a lead singer. While they were excited about this new musical outlet, they admit to treating their initial quest with a grain of salt.
They worked briefly with an avant-garde poet and a girl singer who was plagued by shyness, not a particularly helpful quality in a frontperson. Their personnel problem was solved on a car trip home from Miami, when Schleiter's mom suggested that their high school friend and fellow Miami U. student Alec Cyganowski might want to give singing a shot.
With Cyganowski behind the mic, Powerspace was complete. The band started playing shows around Miami University and Cincinnati and by the summer, felt ready to do some recording. Rather than simply cutting a standard issue demo, they decided to enlist producer Mark McClusky (Hit the Lights, Ludo, Scenes From a Movie), who McMahon worked with in one of his previous bands. They laid down five songs in five days, resulting in the "Houston, We Have a Party" EP.
The EP quickly brought Powerspace to the attention of major label bigwigs and weasels, all of whom began waving contracts under the band's noses. In the end, Powerspace inked with the label that most reflected their own aesthetic views and artistic goals – Fueled By Ramen.
Rather than splitting their focus between the band and their studies, Powerspace chose to take an indefinite breather from Miami University. They played a number of local gigs, sharing stages with such bands as June, Quietdrive, and 2*Sweet. More significantly, they spent endless time in their practice space, concentrating on their chosen craft.
By December 2006, they were ready to record, again opting to work with McClusky. But first, the producer needed the band to give him a hand setting up his new digs in Lincoln Park, dubbed "Dorisland," after McClusky's beloved pooch.
Powerspace spent much of the winter in the studio, carefully crafting what would be dubbed – for reasons the band prefers to keep close to the vest – "The Kicks of Passion." Taking off from such diverse influences as INXS, The Darkness, The Wrens, and Squarepusher, the album is bracingly creative, displaying Powerspace's multi-layered pop stance, a glamtastic sonic approach kissed with electro textures and metallic virtuosity.
"The Kicks of Passion" is alive with ingenious vigor, with soaring tracks like "It Smells Like Electricity In Here" evincing the band's artistic ambition. The skyscraping melodies and overall exuberance are counterpointed by deeply personal lyricism, often touched with a melancholy and reflection that the band attributes to its time at Miami U.
With "The Kicks of Passion" ready to go, Powerspace is turning its attention to playing out. Having spent much of the last year honing their craft, the band is full-on fired up about at last hitting the road and getting down with the kids.
Drummer Kevin Kane announced the band's break up on February 17, 2010.
The Remaining Members minus Alec are in a new band Bad City
Prologue
Powerspace Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To be a storytelling failure
For all those years
Living was a challenge
That caught me so off-balance
And passed me by
Repeatedly, I stared my future in the face
Her silhouette confirming my worst predictions
She walks away
Hope is just four disconnected letters
Combined and put together
By a disconnected man who missed the point
My life was just a promise that I uttered, then I broke it
And admitted as we all went up in flames
So I made a resolution that I'd pay back planet earth
And I would send out this faded portrait
Maybe we would all live on
We'd soar on
So I strapped it to a rocket and I sent it into space
Praying someday you would find it
Maybe we would all live on
We'd soar on
In all my years existing
As a storytelling failure
For all those years
I waited for a miracle
On a planet based on push and pull
And nothing changed
And one day, someone spoke inside of me
"Young man, rise and make your mark"
So today I will be free
With no one there to see
With no one there to see
Hope is just four disconnected letters
Combined and put together
By a disconnected man who missed the point
My life was just a promise that I uttered, then I broke it
And admitted as we all went up in flames
(So I made a resolution...)
So I made a resolution that I'd pay back planet earth
And I would send out this faded portrait
Maybe we would all live on
We'd soar on
So I strapped it to a rocket and I sent it into space
Praying someday you would find it
Maybe we would all live on
We'd soar on
So I strapped it to a rocket and I sent it into space
Praying someday you would find it
Maybe we would all live on
We'd soar on
The lyrics to Powerspace's song Prologue: Adam Becket tell a story of a man who struggles with his identity and the challenges of living. He describes himself as a "storytelling failure" and laments his inability to fulfill the promise of his life. He recalls a moment when he stared his future in the face, only to have it walk away, confirming his worst predictions. Despite his struggles, he makes a resolution to pay back planet earth and sends out a faded portrait strapped to a rocket into space, hoping that someday someone will find it and his legacy will live on.
The lyrics touch on themes of self-discovery and perseverance, as well as the fragility and interconnectedness of human life on this planet. The references to space and a faded portrait suggest a longing for transcendence and a desire to be remembered beyond one's limited time on earth.
Line by Line Meaning
I found it difficult
It was challenging for me
To be a storytelling failure
To not succeed in storytelling
For all those years
For quite some time
Living was a challenge
Existing was tough
That caught me so off-balance
It surprised me and made me unsteady
And passed me by
And went without me
Repeatedly, I stared my future in the face
Over and over again, I confronted what was to come
She walked away
The future left and didn't come back
Her silhouette confirming my worst predictions
Seeing her disappear confirmed my fears
Hope is just four disconnected letters
Hope is just a word
Combined and put together
Joined and arranged
By a disconnected man who missed the point
By someone out of touch who didn't understand
My life was just a promise that I uttered, then I broke it
My life was just a pledge that I made, but didn't keep
And admitted as we all went up in flames
And acknowledged as everything fell apart
So I made a resolution that I'd pay back planet earth
I decided that I would make amends to the world
And I would send out this faded portrait
And I would send out this old picture
Maybe we would all live on
Maybe we would all survive
We'd soar on
We'd fly high
So I strapped it to a rocket and I sent it into space
So I put it on a rocket and launched it into the cosmos
Praying someday you would find it
Hoping that somebody would discover it someday
In all my years existing
In all the time I was here
I waited for a miracle
I hoped for something amazing to happen
On a planet based on push and pull
On a world that operates on opposing forces
And nothing changed
And things stayed the same
And one day, someone spoke inside of me
And one day, I had an internal conversation
"Young man, rise and make your mark"
"Get up and leave your mark"
So today I will be free
So today I will be liberated
With no one there to see
Without an audience
So I made a resolution that I'd pay back planet earth
I decided that I would make amends to the world
And I would send out this faded portrait
And I would send out this old picture
Maybe we would all live on
Maybe we would all survive
We'd soar on
We'd fly high
So I strapped it to a rocket and I sent it into space
So I put it on a rocket and launched it into the cosmos
Praying someday you would find it
Hoping that somebody would discover it someday
Maybe we would all live on
Maybe we would all survive
We'd soar on
We'd fly high
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind