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.
Reason To Believe
Strung Out Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I never had a cause that I could fight for
I never had too much of anything to call my own
A drunk mother and father of four
All my life I grew up watchin' others dreams come true
And how I waited for my day in the sun
Every day I worked harder
And I got further in debt
Your written off lost cause
Sold us down the river
Got no hope to offer us
Tore down without grief
What's a generation without a reason to believe
They tore down all my walls
And then they made all my hatred a crime
Debilitating us with all their complacency
Our thoughts become mundane
Our generation thinks the same
Our minds anesthetized by apathetic t.v.
No wars to fight
Steel bridges won't burn
The beliefs we uphold
Are lies we never learn
The only hope for the future
Leaves us reason to grieve
What's a generation without a reason to believe
"Reason To Believe" by Strung Out is a song which reflects on the struggles and disappointments faced by the singer throughout his life. The lyrics describe a difficult childhood, with a drunk mother and father of four, and the feeling of growing up without any aspirations or goals to strive for. The singer remarks on the futility of his hard work and the gradual realization that he would never achieve his dreams. He then moves on to discuss the state of society, criticizing the government and media for their complacency and lack of action, and expressing his disappointment in the generation's "anesthetized" and apathetic mindset. The song ends with a sense of desolation, with the singer wondering what kind of future is left for a generation without hope or reason to believe.
Line by Line Meaning
I never had a reason to believe in anything
Throughout their life, the singer has never had a compelling reason to believe in anything.
I never had a cause that I could fight for
The singer has never had a cause that they felt was worth fighting for.
I never had too much of anything to call my own
The singer has never had much in their life that they could call their own.
A drunk mother and father of four
The artist's parents were both heavy drinkers and they had four children in total.
All my life I grew up watchin' others dreams come true
Throughout their life, the artist has watched other people achieve their dreams while they haven't been able to achieve their own.
And how I waited for my day in the sun
Despite this, the singer has continued to hope that they'll one day achieve their own dreams.
Every day I worked harder
The singer has worked hard every day in the hopes of achieving their dreams.
And I got further in debt
Despite this hard work, the artist has only accrued more debt.
Till I realized that day was never gonna come
Eventually, the artist comes to the realization that they may never achieve their dreams despite their hard work.
Your written off lost cause
The artist is viewed as a lost cause by others.
Sold us down the river
Others have betrayed the singer and put them in a difficult situation.
Got no hope to offer us
Others around the artist aren't able to offer them any hope or guidance.
Tore down without grief
Others have torn the singer down without any remorse.
What's a generation without a reason to believe
The singer is questioning what a generation that has lost its hope and optimism has left to hold onto.
They tore down all my walls
Others have destroyed all of the walls that the singer had built up around themselves to protect them from harm.
And then they made all my hatred a crime
Even the artist's anger and negative feelings are being policed and punished by others.
Debilitating us with all their complacency
Others are causing harm to the artist by being complacent and uncaring about their struggles.
Our thoughts become mundane
The singer feels like their thoughts and ideas have become boring and repetitive.
Our generation thinks the same
The singer feels like their generation as a whole lacks originality and unique perspectives.
Our minds anesthetized by apathetic t.v.
The artist feels like the constant exposure to uncaring and apathetic media has dulled their own emotions and reactions.
No wars to fight
The generation doesn't have any great cause or fight to rally behind.
Steel bridges won't burn
There are no dramatic events or situations that could spark a revolution or significant change.
The beliefs we uphold
The beliefs that the generation has are flawed and misguided.
Are lies we never learn
Despite the falseness of these beliefs, the generation is unable to move past them and learn from their mistakes.
The only hope for the future
The singer sees only one potential source of hope for the future.
Leaves us reason to grieve
This single hope still leaves the singer and their generation with a reason to grieve for what they've lost and for what they're unable to achieve.
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CHRISTOPHER ANDREW CARRABBA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind