In 1997, Taproot sent their demo to Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst. Impressed with their material, he offered to get them a recording contract through Interscope Records. However, after extended negotiations, Taproot looked elsewhere, where they finally landed a lucrative record deal with Atlantic Records. Durst heavily cursed the band on vocalist Stephen Richards' answering machine. He also put some blame on System of a Down, who assisted Taproot in securing the Atlantic deal. In retaliation, Durst also kicked System of a Down off the 1999 Family Values Tour, replacing them with Staind. Taproot later went on to independently release three albums: ...Something More Than Nothing (1998), Mentobe (1998) and Upon Us (1999).
The band released their debut album Gift on June 27, 2000. With the album's lead single "Again & Again" gaining heavy exposure through MTV2, the band's mainstream rise gained momentum. With the help of Ozzy Osbourne's son Jack, Taproot landed a spot on the second stage of the 2000 and 2001 Ozzfest tour.
After spending seven months in Los Angeles, the band released their second album Welcome on October 15, 2002. Considered to be a more melodic effort, the album debuted at #17 on the Billboard 200, selling over 51,000 copies in its first week of release. Much of this was due to the success of the album's first single, "Poem", which shot to #5 on the Mainstream Rock charts. The album's second single, "Mine", followed with more moderate success. Welcome is Taproot's most successful album to date, almost achieving gold status, with approximately 475,000 copies sold. After touring across the country on Disturbed's Music as a Weapon Tour, as well as a European tour, the band took a two-year break.
Returning from their break, the band released their third major album Blue-Sky Research on August 16, 2005. Billy Corgan (The Smashing Pumpkins frontman) assisted in songwriting on the album, which was produced by Toby Wright. It debuted at #33 on the Billboard 200, with approximately 28,000 first week sales. The Bands single "Calling" was used by the WWE 2005 pay-per-view "Unforgiven."
The band headlined a major tour with Evans Blue and From Satellite to promote its release. Prior to the headline tour, Taproot acted as direct support to Chevelle on their tour alongside 30 Seconds to Mars. They also participated in the Fall Brawl Tour, which featured Staind and P.O.D. as headliners, and is notable for taking the then-unknown Flyleaf along as the opening act for the three bands.
On May 23, 2006, it was reported that Taproot had parted ways with Atlantic Records, after disappointing sales of Blue-Sky Research. At the time, the album had sold 112,000 copies since its release. On June 13, 2006, drummer Jarrod Montague, via Taproot's MySpace blog, confirmed the news.
On March 5, 2007, the band confirmed that they were in the process of recording their new album with producer Tim Patalan. According to Philip Lipscomb's MySpace blog, their new album Our Long Road Home is complete and will be released sometime in early 2008. On March 2, 2008, the band released a song from Our Long Road Home entitled "You're Not Home Tonight" on their website. This song has been played on XM Satellite Radio, Squizz 48 Indicent Exposure with Grant Random Sirius Satellite Radio on Octane. A teaser trailer for Our Long Road Home was added to the Taproot Youtube page on April 28, 2008. At the end of the video, it was stated that the album would be released on August 5, 2008.
According to the Taproot website, the band has decided to forgo signing to a major label. Their new album Our Long Road Home will be released independently through their management firm Velvet Hammer Music in a 50/50 partnership with the band themselves. Distribution was handled with Sony-owned RED Distribution.
Our Long Road Home was released on September 16, 2008. The disc was distributed in a cardboard sleeve and released to all major outlets. Just over a week after the album's release, it was announced that long-time drummer Jarrod Montague would be leaving the band and replaced by Nick Fredell. The band released a statement regarding the change in lineup:
""After 10 years of touring, our drummer and good friend Jarrod will be sitting out this cycle and we will be replacing him with our long time friend Nick Fredell. We'll miss Jarrod's presence out on the road, but Nick has fit in perfectly and we're excited for all of our fans to meet him. Jarrod's still very much a part of our family, so you'll be seeing him in press and the "Wherever I Stand" video which is out now on Youtube..."
In Spring 2009, Taproot went on the road with Dear Enemy and Adakain for the Take It! tour. Later that year, they co-headlined a U.S. tour with Cold, in addition to releasing the following statement: "Taproot has a few upcoming shows in November and December and will start writing their new record in January/ February of 2010. We hope to get into the studio sometime in February and March. We will be looking at a release date sometime in the late spring possibly early summer of 2010!"
After a brief period without a record label, Taproot signed with Victory Records. On April 1, 2010, at midnight, the band released the lead single for their upcoming album. The song was "Fractured (Everything I Said Was True)". A video for the song followed the release soon after debuting on the band's Youtube channel on April 16. Soon after, the band released their 7th studio album Plead The Fifth.
Current Members:
Vocals, Guitar: Stephen Richards
Bass: Phil Lipscomb
Guitar: Dave Lizzio
Drums: Dave Coughlin
Past Members:
Drums: Jarrod Montague
Guitar: Mike DeWolf
Drums: Nick Fredell
http://www.taprootmusic.com
Calling
Taproot Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I lost my way
Your taste of stale flows through my veins
The cost of hate
Cause you'll never understand me
You want me to stay
You're see-see-see-calling but I can't hear you
You're subject to falling but I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
The race of slowing down the pain, I found a way
The pace of speaking so mundane, the sound of gain
But you'll never make me happy
So I've extinguished the flame
You're see-see-see-calling, but I can't hear you
I'm not listening anymore
You're subject to falling, but I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
And what you want me to say I'll never say
You're playing the game that I'll never play
So what do you want from me?
Now I've extinguished the flame
Your see-see-see-calling but I can't hear you
I'm not listening anymore
You're subject to falling but I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
You're see-see-see-calling but I can't hear you, I'm not listening anymore
You're f-f-f-falling, but I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
Taproot's song "Calling" seems to be about a person who has had a toxic and negative influence on the singer's life. The first verse mentions that the person's face is burned inside the singer's brain, which could indicate that they can't seem to forget them or their actions. The singer has lost their way and they feel like the taste of stale flows through their veins, which could signify that they feel stuck in a rut and that negativity has engulfed them. The cost of hate is mentioned, which could be interpreted as the toll that toxic relationships can take on a person's mental and emotional health. The person in question wants the singer to stay, but the singer seems to be pulling away from them.
In the chorus, the singer asserts their independence and their desire to break free from this negativity. They can't hear the person who is calling out to them, which could mean that they're trying to distance themselves from that person. Even though the person is subject to falling, the singer can't save them, and they don't see them anymore. It's possible that the person mentioned has fallen into a difficult or trying time, but the singer can't be there for them anymore because of the negativity they have brought into their life.
The second verse further illustrates the singer's decision to distance themselves from the person in question. They mention a sluggish pace and speaking mundane thoughts, which could represent the stagnancy that the relationship brought into the singer's life. Even though the person may want to make the singer happy, the flame of the relationship has been extinguished, and the singer has moved on.
The final chorus reiterates the singer's desire to break free and live their own life, without the toxicity of the person mentioned in the song. The repetition of "calling" and "falling" could represent the cyclical nature of the relationship, which the singer has chosen to step away from.
Line by Line Meaning
Your face is burned inside my brain
I can't forget about you and the memories we shared
I lost my way
Your absence made me lose my sense of direction
Your taste of stale flows through my veins
The bitterness of our past still affects me deeply
The cost of hate
Our animosity towards each other is causing us both to suffer
Cause you'll never understand me
We have fundamentally different perspectives and will never see eye to eye
You want me to stay
You still have feelings for me and want me to be a part of your life
You're see-see-see-calling but I can't hear you
You're trying to reach out to me, but I'm not willing to listen anymore
I'm not listening anymore
I've lost interest in trying to fix our broken relationship
You're subject to falling but I can't save you
You're in a vulnerable position, but I'm not willing to be the one to help you through it
I don't see you anymore
I've distanced myself from you and no longer have a clear vision of who you are
The race of slowing down the pain, I found a way
I've found a way to cope with the emotional pain caused by our relationship
The pace of speaking so mundane, the sound of gain
Our conversations have become repetitive and unproductive, focused solely on personal gain
But you'll never make me happy
Our relationship will never bring me true happiness
So I've extinguished the flame
I've decided to end our relationship for good and move on
And what you want me to say I'll never say
I won't compromise my values or beliefs just to make you happy
You're playing the game that I'll never play
I won't engage in the manipulative tactics you use to get what you want
So what do you want from me?
I'm not sure what you're expecting from me at this point
Your see-see-see-calling but I can't hear you
You're still trying to reach out to me, but I'm not willing to listen
You're f-f-f-falling, but I can't save you
You're reaching a critical point of vulnerability, but I'm not willing to be there for you
I don't see you anymore
I've completely distanced myself from you and no longer have a clear vision of who you are
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: TERRY FRANCIS, EDDIE RICHARDS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
PedrotXs CB
Lyrics
Your face, is burned inside my brain
(I lost my way)
Your taste, of skin flows through my veins
(The cost I pay)
'Cause you'll never understand me
You want me to stay
You're ca-ca-ca-calling
But I can't hear you
I'm not listening anymore
You're subject to falling
But I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
The race of slowing down the pace
(I found a way)
The pace of speaking so mundane
(The sound of gain)
But you'll never make me happy
So I've extinguished the flame
You're ca-ca-ca-calling
But I can't hear you
I'm not listening anymore
You're subject to falling
But I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
And what you want me to say
I'll never say
You're playing the game
That I'll never play
So what do you want from me
Now I've extinguished the flame
You're ca-ca-ca-calling
But I can't hear you
I'm not listening anymore
You're subject to falling
But I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
You're ca-ca-ca-calling
But I can't hear you
I'm not listening anymore
You're fa-fa-fa-falling
But I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
Renada Nicole
Taproot is so underrated. This guys were incredible. Still rocking out to them 20+ years later 🤘🏼🤘🏼🤘🏼
Jeremy Wertjes
Facts!!
Gary Corley
I agree
kloudkreeper
Some songs are simply timeless 👍
🕊️Tanahk Barrett
⚜️
Lil Mick 🐊 Dundee
This was my ringtone for like 7 years
Jeff Johnson
Mine also
PedrotXs CB
Lyrics
Your face, is burned inside my brain
(I lost my way)
Your taste, of skin flows through my veins
(The cost I pay)
'Cause you'll never understand me
You want me to stay
You're ca-ca-ca-calling
But I can't hear you
I'm not listening anymore
You're subject to falling
But I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
The race of slowing down the pace
(I found a way)
The pace of speaking so mundane
(The sound of gain)
But you'll never make me happy
So I've extinguished the flame
You're ca-ca-ca-calling
But I can't hear you
I'm not listening anymore
You're subject to falling
But I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
And what you want me to say
I'll never say
You're playing the game
That I'll never play
So what do you want from me
Now I've extinguished the flame
You're ca-ca-ca-calling
But I can't hear you
I'm not listening anymore
You're subject to falling
But I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
You're ca-ca-ca-calling
But I can't hear you
I'm not listening anymore
You're fa-fa-fa-falling
But I can't save you
I don't see you anymore
George Taylor
This song is simply timeless
Jacinto 14
this album was underrated...this guys did nu metal better than 90% of nu metal bands