The original lineup consisted of vocalist Jason Cruz, guitarists Jake Kiley and Rob Ramos, bassist Jim Cherry and drummer Adam Austin. After releasing a self-titled 7" record, they became one of the first bands to be signed to Fat Wreck Chords, the record label owned and operated by Fat Mike of the band NOFX. Austin left the band in 1992 and was replaced by Brad Morrison who also left the band and was replaced on drums by Jordan Burns, formerly of fellow Simi Valley natives Ten Foot Pole. Their first album, Another Day in Paradise, was released in May of 1994. Suburban Teenage Wasteland Blues followed in 1996. In 1998 they released The Skinny Years...Before We Got Fat, a compilation album of their pre-Fat Wreck Chords material.
The band showed notable musical growth on their 1998 album Twisted by Design, which was both speedy and technical but also punk-based and with darker overtones. The album established a mixture of the fast, poppy sound the band had established with Suburban Teenage Wasteland Blues but mixed it with more atonality and more abstract song structures. Bassist Jim Cherry left the band in 1999 and went on to play in Pulley and Zero Down, but died of heart failure in 2002. He was replaced by Chris Aiken, whose musical background had a strong impact on the 2000 album The Element of Sonic Defiance, which continued in the fast, melodic punk tradition of the band while introducing more hard rock and metal elements.
In 2002 the band released their fourth full-length album An American Paradox, their first release to appear in the Billboard Top 200. The initial production run contained a bonus song entitled "Don't Look Back". A video was filmed for the song "Cemetery" and was included on several punk rock video compilations. In 2003 they recorded and released a live album as part of the Fat Wreck Chords Live in a Dive series. Exile in Oblivion, was released in 2004, with a video filmed for the song "Analog." Strung Out released their sixth full-length album, Blackhawks Over Los Angeles on June 12, 2007.
In March 2009, Strung Out released a compilation of B-sides, demos, and covers called "Prototypes and Painkillers" with material from all eras of the band's history. Many of these tracks have been on various punk compilations and/or were included in their "Live in a Dive" recording.
On September 29, 2009, Strung Out Released a their 7th studio album titled Agents of the Underground.
Razorblade
Strung Out Lyrics
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With your suitcase filled with razorblades and turpentine
Sad eyes of a scarlet glazed in promises made too divine to be real
A runaway too shiftless to know what is wrong don't make it right
And sometimes I wonder if I knew you could I change you
Or would you be the same to me right now
Your reason to live became a reason to die and now you're gone
I think about you in black in white faded news paint still life memory
Well I just wanna know you found some peace before you left this place
Well it's alright to be afraid of what your eyes can't hide
With both hands tied
Did you sink yourself
Did you cheat yourself
How did you stray so far to end up here
To know yourself is to destroy yourself
And what you are you could not hide
A clue is all I have to understand
Sound and bled instant fame in red
Now you're in the spotlight again
A different tale with a darker twist
But for sure you knew that you would always be the star
No lost innocence because there never was just you and the world
No fairy tale could ever end like this its just another bad luck tale
All used up and on the run from you
The lyrics to Strung Out's song Razorblade evoke a sense of regret and heartbreak as the singer reflects on a person they once knew who is now gone. The first verse sets the scene of a person who is alone and on the run with dangerous tools in their possession such as razorblades and turpentine. There's a sense of sadness and desperation as the person is described as having sad eyes glazed in promises too divine to be real. The chorus speaks to the singer's desire to help this person, to change them, but ultimately acknowledging that the person's reason to live became a reason to die and they're now gone. The nostalgia and sadness of the singer continues in the second verse where the person is described as having a broken body in a cheap perfume disguise. The singer just wants to know if the person found peace before they died. The final verse speaks to the idea of knowing oneself and how that can lead to self-destruction. The person described in the song seems to have been caught up in instant fame and, despite the darker twists to their tale, always wanted to be the star. There's a sense of condemnation for this type of behavior as the person is described as being used up and on the run.
Overall, the lyrics to Razorblade paint a picture of a person who was struggling and ultimately did not make it. The singer has a sense of longing and regret for not being able to do more to help this person.
Line by Line Meaning
Got a feeling you were alone and on the run
I sense that you were by yourself and fleeing from something
With your suitcase filled with razorblades and turpentine
You carried a bag with sharp metal blades and a poisonous liquid
Sad eyes of a scarlet glazed in promises made too divine to be real
Your eyes were red and hopeless, full of unachievable pledges
A runaway too shiftless to know what is wrong don't make it right
A person on the loose without purpose, unaware of their wrongdoing
And sometimes I wonder if I knew you could I change you
I ponder if I had met you earlier, could I alter your fate?
Or would you be the same to me right now
Would you still remain as you are, if I knew you better?
Your reason to live became a reason to die and now you're gone
Your motive for existing resulted in your passing
I think about you in black in white faded news paint still life memory
I recollect you in old newspaper photos as a colorless, lifeless memory
Of a broken body in a cheap perfume disguise
A damaged physique hidden behind low-cost fragrances
Well I just wanna know you found some peace before you left this place
I hope you discovered tranquility before departing
Well it's alright to be afraid of what your eyes can't hide
It's acceptable to fret over what your gaze conceals
With both hands tied
Without the freedom to move or act
Did you sink yourself
Did you cause your own downfall?
Did you cheat yourself
Did you deceive yourself?
How did you stray so far to end up here
How did you wander so far from your path to arrive in this predicament?
To know yourself is to destroy yourself
Understanding yourself may lead to self-destruction
And what you are you could not hide
You could not conceal your true nature
A clue is all I have to understand
I only possess a hint to comprehend what happened
Sound and bled instant fame in red
A sudden success, but with consequences
Now you're in the spotlight again
You are gaining attention once more
A different tale with a darker twist
A new story, but with a gloomier ending
But for sure you knew that you would always be the star
You were aware that you would always be in the spotlight
No lost innocence because there never was just you and the world
There was no loss of purity because there was never any with only you and the world
No fairy tale could ever end like this its just another bad luck tale
A happy ending could never occur, this is just another unfortunate story
All used up and on the run from you
Completely depleted, and fleeing from you
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing
Written by: CHRISTOPHER TRAVIS JR AIKEN, JACOB IRA KILEY, JASON ALEXANDER CRUZ, JORDAN LIEBERMAN, ROBERT J RAMOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind