Forming in 1999 as Sw1tch, the band played shows around Ohio and released a demo entitled Fuckin' Demo. The songs "Anymore", "Wrongside", "Inside", "Darkening Days", "Last Chance", and "Skins", which appear in their demo versions on this CD, went on to appear on the Subject to Change album. This demo was later re-released on disc two of the "Ghosts in the Machine" album in 2006. Since a funk band already had rights to the name Switch, the band had to change their name to Sw1tched, and was later signed to Immortal/Virgin Records. After recording all of the bass for the Subject to Change album, bassist Shawn May left the band for unknown reasons, and was replaced by Chimaira drum tech Jason French. French did play bass on one song on the album, though, since the band re-recorded the song "Walk Away" before the album was released.
Switched rose to prominence playing at popular festivals such as Ozzfest in 2002 and on the Vans Warped Tour in 2001 and 2002. Their debut album titled, Subject to Change was released via Immortal/Virgin Records in 2002, and went on to sell over 100,000 records worldwide.
Sometime before the band began work on their second album, they fired bassist Jason French for unknown reasons. They then replaced him with former Stereomud/Stuck Mojo bassist Corey Lowery, who would eventually leave the band to join Dark New Day. They also parted ways with drummer Chad Szeliga sometime in this time period, and as a result, most of the drums on the "Ghosts in the Machine" album are programmed. During the recording phase for their second album, the band decided to go on an indefinite hiatus, mainly due to the band's poor relationship with Immortal Records. The hiatus more-or-less signaled that they had broken up, and members of the band went on to other projects.
Former bassist Shawn May, who had left the band in 2001 prior to the release of "Subject to Change", started a custom bass shop in Michigan. Drummer Chad Szeliga joined popular post-grunge group Breaking Benjamin in 2004, bassist Corey Lowery helped form alternative metal group Dark New Day, lead guitarist B.C. Kochmit joined then left hard rock group "Rikets" to form his own projects, called "Tinjen", "Shambella", and "My Alter-Ego Experiment", and is currently the lead guitar player in Dark New Day. Vocalist Ben Schigel found success as a producer working with bands such as Drowning Pool, Chimaira, Breaking Benjamin, Rikets, Bleed the Sky and Allele.
With help from their first manager, Thom Hazaert, now co-president of Californian indie label, Corporate Punishment Records, the group reformed (with a modified lineup) and released their second album titled, Ghosts in the Machine on January 10, 2006. The two-disc album contains rarities, b-sides and demos. The first disc includes eleven tracks that were intended for the band's second Immortal release, while the second disc includes four live songs plus several demos and the unreleased track "She Blinded Me with Science". The quality of the first disc can be described as "rough" as the tracks weren't yet mastered and still in the demo phase.
A repackaged version of Subject to Change was also released which features the b-side track "Spread", the Howard Benson produced alternate versions of "Walkaway" and "Inside" and the Rick Will mix of "Inside". Two videos for "Inside" are also included.
The name SW1TCH also currently belongs to a Cortland, NY artist (Peter Natale) who creates music for clubs.
Switched declared a second hiatus after Ghosts in the Machine but as of January 2010, according to Ben Schigel, there are no plans to continue with Sw1tched. Ben Schigel currently works as a producer at Spider Studios in Olmsted Falls, Ohio. He has produced bands such as Ringworm, Chimaira, Bleed The Sky and Solus Deus; just to name a few.
Bassist Corey Lowery and guitarist B.C. Kochmit have since formed hard rock supergroup Eye Empire with solo artist Dixie Duncan and former members of Submersed singer Donald Carpenter and drummer Garrett Whitlock.
Ben Schigel produces bands at his Spider Studio. He also plays drums for pop rock band SomeKindaWonderful.
Save Myself
Switched Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
These thoughts that can't be seen, reaching, deep into my veins, changing, all that i know, all that i know.
And tonight I wear these crown of thorns, for the last time I should ever.
Stay another night in lonely misery.
Save myself!
But I'll change, this part I hate inside of me.
Save myself!
Your faith, and your beliefs, just tricks, hiden up your sleeves, takes more, power to disolve, a system with a cause.
The fight to destroy, and all you can do to avoid, the finger pointing at yourself, yourself.
And tonight I wear these crown of thorns, for the last time I should ever.
Stay another night in lonely misery.
Save myself!
But I'll change, this part I hate inside of me.
Save myself!
So I run, far away, to escape.
So tell me, cause I don't understand, of whats to become of me.
Cause lately I've seen so many things, that make believe that its over.
Stay another night in lonely misery.
Save myself!
But I'll change, this part I hate inside of me.
Save myself!
Stay another night in lonely misery.
Save myself!
But I'll change, this part I hate inside of me.
Save myself!
I will save myself! (x4)
The song "Save Myself" by Switched delves into the battle with one's own insecurities and inner demons. The opening lines "Hide my insecurities, breeding, on this disease, slowly, fractionate my brain, I think I'm going insane" showcase the internal conflict that the singer is going through. The thoughts and emotions that are eating them up from the inside and making them feel like they are losing control over their own mind. The line "And tonight I wear these crown of thorns, for the last time I should ever" highlights that the singer has reached their breaking point and they can't continue living in their own misery.
The second verse addresses the external factors that are contributing to the singer's turmoil. The reference to "your faith and beliefs" implies a clash between the singer and another person's ideology. The line "The fight to destroy, and all you can do to avoid, the finger pointing at yourself" suggests that there is a blame-game going on, and the singer is tired of being held responsible for everything. However, the chorus remains consistent in its message that the singer wants to break free from their current state and "save themselves".
Line by Line Meaning
Hide my insecurities, breeding, on this disease, slowly, fractionate my brain, I think I'm going insane.
I'm struggling with hidden fears and anxieties that are slowly taking over my mind, causing me to feel like I'm losing my sanity.
These thoughts that can't be seen, reaching, deep into my veins, changing, all that i know, all that i know.
My internal struggles are hard to express, but they're becoming a part of me, changing the way I see and experience the world around me.
And tonight I wear these crown of thorns, for the last time I should ever. Stay another night in lonely misery. Save myself! But I'll change, this part I hate inside of me. Save myself!
I'm tired of feeling weighed down by my problems and want to find a way to change and escape them, even though it's scary and difficult.
Your faith, and your beliefs, just tricks, hiden up your sleeves, takes more, power to disolve, a system with a cause. The fight to destroy, and all you can do to avoid, the finger pointing at yourself, yourself.
I feel like people's beliefs and ideologies often just mask the underlying problems in our society, and that we need to fight to change things rather than just pretending everything is OK.
So I run, far away, to escape. So tell me, cause I don't understand, of whats to become of me. Cause lately I've seen so many things, that make believe that its over.
I want to escape from my problems and start fresh somewhere else, but I'm not sure what the future holds or whether I'll ever truly be able to escape my issues.
Stay another night in lonely misery. Save myself! But I'll change, this part I hate inside of me. Save myself!
I'm stuck in a cycle of unhappiness, but I'm determined to overcome my problems and become a better version of myself.
I will save myself! (x4)
I'm committed to taking control of my life and finding a way to overcome the challenges I'm facing, no matter how hard it may be.
Contributed by Declan G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.