They released an EP After Dark (2003), and two studio albums The City Sleeps in Flames (2005) and Scary Kids Scaring Kids (2007) with the late member and lead vocalist Tyson Stevens. The band disbanded following a farewell tour in 2010.
Vocalist Tyson Stevens was found dead from a suspected heroin overdose on the morning of October 20, 2014 at the age of 29. On September 29, 2019, Scary Kids Scaring Kids released a song titled "Loved Forever" to honour what would have been a wish of Stevens's 34th birthday. The song was written by rhythm guitarist Chad Crawford and produced by Hiram Hernandez.
On November 18, 2019, members Crawford, Afkary and Costa announced that Scary Kids Scaring Kids would be reuniting for one more time for the 15 year anniversary tour of The City Sleeps in Flames release alongside touring members featuring ex-Saosin and Dead American frontman Cove Reber on vocals, Don Vedda on lead guitar and Jordan Flower on bass.
The band released a new album, "Out For Light" May 27, 2022, featuring different lead vocalists on each track, including Lil Lotus, Mod Sun, Spencer Chamberlain of Underoath, among others.
The band – which originally was composed of Tyson Stevens on bass guitar and lead vocals (later to be strictly the vocalist/song writer), guitarists Chad Crawford, DJ Wilson (later to switch to bass) and Steve Kirby, Pouyan Afkary on keyboards, and drummer Peter Costa – recorded their self-financed debut EP, After Dark, while they were still in high school.
Their debut album, The City Sleeps in Flames, was released on Immortal Records in 2005.
A self-titled second album was released on 28th November 2007.
The City Sleeps in Flames
Scary Kids Scaring Kids Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Can we even last through the night?
We watch as the sky scrapers crumble
Under the burning blue sky,
That blinds our eyes!
This is our last chance,
To make things right
Tonight, tonight, tonight, tonight
Well try to find a place to sleep,
Its going on days, that we've been awake
A sadness that I've never seen
I said your name, and you, looked the other way
Because these are my last words
And this is my last breath
I'd give you everything
If there was something left
I have nothing left to prove
And I will live with my regrets
I'd give you everything
If there was something left!
The disconnecting count of days
Of fading away, the lives that we made
Tear drops will spill, from your blue eyes
Intentions were wrong, I apologize
The empire is falling
Like they planned on and we lost it all
The city sleeps in flames
Lost
Time
Everything's gonna be fine. right?
Everything's gonna be fine. right?
Everything's gonna be fine. right?
I can't find a way to live in this life!
The empire will fall like they planned on
Can we even last through the night
We watch as the sky scrapers crumble
Under the burning blue sky,
That blinds our eyes!
Because these are my last words
And this is my last breath
I'd give you everything
If there was something left
I have nothing left to prove
And I will live with my regrets
I'd give you everything
If there was something left
Because these are my last words
And this is my last breath
I'd give you everything
But I've got nothing left
The lyrics of the song “The City Sleeps in Flames” by Scary Kids Scaring Kids revolve around the destruction of an empire and how the characters in the song cope with it. The song opens with the suggestion that the fall of the empire was planned and expected, and the characters are questioning if they will make it through the night. The lyrics create an image of the buildings collapsing and the sky being choked by smoke and fire. The sense of helplessness in the face of the destruction is evident in the line “We watch as the skyscrapers crumble under the burning blue sky, that blinds our eyes!”
The song then shifts to a more personal level, with the main character expressing regret and sadness over the situation. The chorus, "This is our last chance, to make things right, a world lost forever tonight," highlights the weight of the situation and the sense of finality. The character continues to express feelings of hopelessness as they search for a place to sleep after being awake for days. They feel their entire world has been destroyed, and they cannot help but feel a deep sadness that is not experienced before.
The final verses focus on the sadness of not being able to give everything they have to someone they care about before it's too late. The final lines, “because these are my last words, and this is my last breath, I'd give you everything, but I've got nothing left,” express the feeling of helplessness over the situation.
Line by Line Meaning
The empire will fall like they planned on
The ones in power will take advantage of their position and bring the empire down as intended.
Can we even last through the night?
Is there enough resilience in us as humans to survive through the challenges we face?
We watch as the sky scrapers crumble
We stand in awe as the skyscrapers that once symbolized our prosperity and might, now cave in due to the chaos around us.
Under the burning blue sky, That blinds our eyes!
The unpleasant situation we are in is only further worsened by the bright blue sky above that reflects the magnitude of the destruction taking place.
This is our last chance, To make things right, A world lost forever, Tonight, tonight, tonight, tonight
We are running out of time to restore things to their original condition and undo the damage done to the world.
Well try to find a place to sleep, Its going on days, that we've been awake
We are so fatigued, and all we want to do is find a safe place to rest for a while.
A sadness that I've never seen, I said your name, and you, looked the other way
I am absolutely heartbroken and disappointed that you ignored me when I needed you the most.
Because these are my last words, And this is my last breath, I'd give you everything, If there was something left, I have nothing left to prove, And I will live with my regrets, I'd give you everything, If there was something left!
As I draw my final breaths, I want you to know that I would have given you everything, had there been anything left to give, but since there is nothing, I will live with my regrets forever.
The disconnecting count of days, Of fading away, the lives that we made
Time continues to slip away from us, and as it does, our once joyful lives are slowly fading away with it.
Tear drops will spill, from your blue eyes, Intentions were wrong, I apologize
I regret that I wronged you, and I can see the pain and hurt in your blue eyes as tears roll down your face.
The empire is falling, Like they planned on and we lost it all, The city sleeps in flames
The ones in control have successfully destroyed our society as planned, causing everything to go up in flames as the city falls asleep.
Lost, Time, Everything's gonna be fine. right?, Everything's gonna be fine. right?, Everything's gonna be fine. right?, I can't find a way to live in this life!
We have lost so much, including time, and the hope that everything will be okay is all we have left. However, I cannot find a reason to keep on living in this world anymore.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: POUYAN SEAN AFKARY, PETER ALLEN COSTA, CHAD LANE CRAWFORD, STEPHEN CHRISTOPHER KIRBY, TYSON CURTIS STEVENS, DAVID JOHN WILSON, BRIAN MCTERNAN
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