The Bravery was an alternative rock band with electronic influences, formed… Read Full Bio ↴The Bravery was an alternative rock band with electronic influences, formed in New York City in 2003. Their musical style has been compared to The Strokes, New Order and The Killers, amongst others. They are best known for three songs - 2005's "An Honest Mistake", 2007's "Time Won't Let Me Go" and 2008's "Believe". The band consists of Sam Endicott (vocals, guitar), Michael Zakarin (guitar), John Conway (keyboard), Mike Hindert (bass) and Anthony Burulcich (drums).

Their HQ is on the corner of Mott and Broome, on the edge of New York's Chinatown. Push through the graffiti-ed door, clamber up the rotten stairs, past the sweatshops, and you'll find the place. It's where the Bravery have spent the past two years planning operations, obsessively working up their wire-y garage-electronics, and occasionally venturing out into the city to play the results.
Their first gig was in the Stinger Club in Brooklyn in 2003. Twelve months later, their name was plastered all over the Lower East Side to celebrate a sold-out residency at Arlene's Grocery on Stanton. In that time, the Bravery -- singer/guitarist Sam Endicott, guitarist Michael Zakarin, bassist Mike H, keyboardist John Conway, and drummer Anthony Burulcich -- had honed their sound to a dark garage-electro and made sure everyone knew what they were all about.

"We're called the Bravery because that's the mindset I was in when I was writing the songs," explains Sam now. "Everyone in my age group wants to know what they're going to do with their lives. They all think that they're worth nothing and they're heading nowhere. People are drowning in these thoughts and I just got sick of it. I didn't want to be like that."

"The name is also connected with living in New York in this really weird time. People are constantly waiting for something bad to happen. I wrote these songs and formed this band to make sure I didn't get overcome by that sense of fear. That's what this band is about--standing tall and not being afraid."

Sam has no time for excuses. He grew up in Maryland, in the D.C. suburbs, and was heavily influenced by the area's intense post-punk scene. He'd go and see bands like Fugazi and Jawbox and be impressed by their DiY ethic. He quickly adopted it as his own philosophy and it's something that feeds directly into the Bravery. They do everything --they make the records, the artwork, the videos. Everything. They know what they want and how they want to do it.

"I don't really like mainstream music at all," admits Sam. "When I listen to the radio or watch MTV, 99% of it is like listening to an air-conditioner or a hair dryer. Sometimes, though, something comes along that jolts you. When I was growing up, it was bands like Nirvana and Jane's Addiction. Those bands elevate culture. I don't think there's any point in aiming for anything less."

One thing that sometimes puzzles people about the Bravery is why they sound electronic when all the bands they like are punk guitar bands. Sam doesn't know why they sound like they do. He just wanted to do something different. Of course, the circumstances in which they recorded their album (most of which was constructed in a Sam's bedroom with Radio Shack mikes and an old iMac) and the fact that Sam's best friend John Conway is totally obsessed with analog keyboards obviously helped shape their sound.

The Bravery are now signed to Loog in the U.K. and Island Def Jam in America. Their first release arrived in November, 2004 in the form of a brilliant three-track EP. The Bravery have since had success with their self titled debut album, released in 2005, and a top ten hit in the UK with their single 'Honest Mistake'.

In late 2006, the band played a limited number of small shows on the US East Coast and in South America to showcase new material from their upcoming 2nd album. Endicott describes the new album as a departure from the synth-heavy sound of their debut. The Sun and the Moon is currently scheduled for release May. In February, the band uploaded a medley of three new songs onto their official page, with minute long clips of three new tracks due to be included on the forthcoming album. Since then, their newest album 'The Sun and The Moon' has been climbing the charts, with the first single 'Time Won't Let Me Go' receiving praise from critics. its test

After the release of The Sun and The Moon, The Bravery has taken a leave of absence for the members to pursue their own individual projects. An excerpt from The Bravery's official website:

"To answer your many queries, the band has not “broken up,” nothing so dramatic as that. We just aren’t doing anything together and don’t have any plans to for the foreseeable future. There’s been no “falling out,” no bad blood, we all just have different interests now and are involved in our own projects." -Sam Endicott 4-25-14

The Sun And The Moon
The Bravery Lyrics

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We are lies like the summertime
Like the spring we are such fools
Like fall we are the prophets
Like winter we are cruel

I don't know what's wrong with us
They just made us this way
There's a hole in you and me

That pulls us together

And I don't know where we belong
I think we grew under a bad sun
I know we're not like everyone
You and me we grew, under a bad sun

Every day you bring me pain
And we savor it like rain
We hold it on our tongues
Just like wine

Someday back when we were young
I guess something just went wrong
The two of us are hung
From the same twisted rope

And I don't know where we belong
I think we grew under a bad sun
I know we're not like everyone
You and me we grew under a bad sun

And I don't know where we belong
I think we grew under a bad sun
I know we're not like everyone
You and me we grew under a bad sun

You and me we grew under a bad sun

You and me we grew under a bad sun

Overall Meaning

The Bravery's song "The Sun and the Moon" explores the destructive yet irresistible nature of a doomed relationship. The lyrics are poetic, and they use the metaphor of the four seasons to describe the various aspects of this relationship. The song expresses a sense of inevitability regarding the two individuals involved, as if fate has conspired to bring them together, despite their differences and the pain they cause each other.

The lines "We are lies like the summertime, like the spring we are such fools, like fall we are the prophets, like winter we are cruel" are particularly poignant as they combine all four seasons in the same sentence to describe the flawed and complex nature of this relationship. The first two lines suggest that their love is not genuine, that they are pretending to be something they are not, while in the next two lines, the song characterizes them as both prophetic and cruel.

The chorus repeats the phrase "I don't know where we belong, I think we grew under a bad sun" four times, emphasizing the sense of uncertainty and inevitability of their relationship. The song conveys a sense of resignation, as if the two individuals involved are helpless to escape the hold that they have over each other.

Line by Line Meaning

We are lies like the summertime
We are false like the warmth that summer brings

Like the spring we are such fools
We are naïve and foolish like the season of renewal

Like fall we are the prophets
We predict and foretell like the season of change

Like winter we are cruel
We are harsh and unyielding like the season of death

I don't know what's wrong with us
I am unable to identify the root of our problem

They just made us this way
We were molded into who we are by external forces

There's a hole in you and me
We share a common emptiness within ourselves

That pulls us together
This emptiness brings us together and creates a bond

And I don't know where we belong
I am unsure of our place in the world

I think we grew under a bad sun
I believe our upbringing and environment were unfavorable to our growth

I know we're not like everyone
I am aware that we differ from others