Over its decade-long history, the band has undergone a large number of personnel changes. Multi-instrumentalist and main songwriter Anton Newcombe is the only member who has stayed with the Brian Jonestown Massacre since its beginning, when it was founded by Newcombe, tambourine player Joel Gion (who stayed with him the longest), and guitarist/bassist/vocalist Matt Hollywood. There are at least two dozen musicians who have been in the BJM at one point or another.
Ex-members include: guitarist Jeff Davies; Matt Hollywood, a founding member of Portland band The Out Crowd; Peter Hayes, founding member of San Francisco rock trio Black Rebel Motorcycle Club; Joel Gion, a founding member of San Francisco band, The Dilettantes; Rob Campanella, a Los Angeles producer and engineer who has worked with The Tyde, Beachwood Sparks, Dead Meadow, Mia Doi Todd, Frausdots, Scarling., and his band The Quarter After; Bobby Hecksher, founding member of Los Angeles band The Warlocks; solo recording artist Miranda Lee Richards; Matt Tow, founding member of the Australian band The Lovetones.
Current long-term members include Collin Hegna (bass), Frankie Teardrop (guitar,noise,etc), and Dan Allaire (percussion). Long-time guitarist Ricky Rene Maymi was recently replaced by Irina Yaikowsky for a short tour, who was in turn, replaced by Ricky Rene Maymi.
Much has been made of the fact that Newcombe is head strong and has just one vision in mind: his own. However, many of the musicians who quit his band have stayed in his orbit and continue working with him in some capacity. Newcombe was, at one point, a drummer in Hecksher's Warlocks. Campanella produces or engineers many of the records on Newcombe's record label, the Committee to Keep Music Evil and has also been on the last 2 highly successful European tours, playing keyboards and on occasion, guitar. Gion is forever showing back up shaking the tambourine at BJM shows. Even the Dandy Warhols appear to have buried the hatchet with Newcombe, as he joined them onstage at Lollapalooza in July of 2005.
In 2005 the band released the EP We Are the Radio, on Newcombe's record label The Committee to Keep Music Evil.
The band announced the release of a new studio album, tentatively titled My Bloody Underground, which was released in 2008. On September 3, 2007, the band released rough recordings from the album for download from their website. Music videos of the songs on the album have also been released, including a music video compilation DVD entitled 'Book of Days'. Songs from Brian Jonestown Massacre were specially adapted for use in the score to the critically acclaimed independent film, "Four Eyed Monsters."
That Girl Suicide
The Brian Jonestown Massacre Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And when I look I don't know what I'm seeing
She says relax
'Cause I want you to go slow
I close my eyes and
It all goes away though
And when I fly I am scraping the ceiling
Oh just relax said she you wants go slow
Open my eyes when it all goes away though
I can't explain all the ways that I'm feeling
I reach inside and I'm scraping my feelings
I say relax but I don't want to go slow
Open my eyes when it all goes away though
The Brian Jonestown Massacre's "That Girl Suicide" is a song that expresses confusion and uncertainty. The opening lines set this tone by stating, "I can't explain all the things that I'm seeing, and when I look, I don't know what I'm seeing." The singer is struggling to make sense of the world around him and is unable to fully grasp the reality of his situation. The girl in the song urges him to relax and go slow, but it is clear that he is struggling to keep his bearings.
As the song proceeds, the singer becomes increasingly disoriented. He is getting high and flying, and he describes himself as "scraping the ceiling." This language implies that he is completely detached from his surroundings and that his perception of reality is severely altered. The girl continues to urge him to relax and go slow, but he is unable to do so. He reaches inside himself, attempting to grasp his own feelings, but he is only "scraping" at them. In the end, he simply wants everything to "go away," and he opens his eyes only when it does.
The song can be interpreted as a meditation on the disorientation and confusion that can come with drug use. The singer's inability to grasp his surroundings or feel his own emotions suggests that he is lost in a haze of substances. At the same time, the girl's attempts to get him to "relax" and "go slow" may represent the notion that there is a way to do drugs "wrong" – that is, in a way that leads to greater disorientation rather than greater enlightenment.
Line by Line Meaning
I can't explain all the things that I'm seeing
I am witnessing so much that I cannot put into words.
And when I look I don't know what I'm seeing
Even when I try to make sense of it all, it's still confusing and unclear.
She says relax 'Cause I want you to go slow
She advises me to calm down and take my time.
I close my eyes and It all goes away though
When I shut my eyes, it all disappears.
I get so high I don't know what I'm feeling
I become so intoxicated that my emotions are clouded and indistinguishable.
And when I fly I am scraping the ceiling
Even when I'm soaring, I'm still struggling to break through to the next level.
Oh just relax said she you wants go slow
Again, she urges me to unwind and take things at a steady pace.
Open my eyes when it all goes away though
I only open my eyes once everything has dissipated.
I can't explain all the ways that I'm feeling
There's a wide array of emotions that I can't put into words.
I reach inside and I'm scraping my feelings
When I try to extract my emotions, it's like I'm digging into them and pulling them out.
I say relax but I don't want to go slow
Even though I advise myself to calm down, I really don't want to take things at a slower pace.
Open my eyes when it all goes away though
Once again, I only open my eyes after everything has cleared away.
Lyrics © WARP MUSIC LIMITED
Written by: Anton Newcombe
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ChrisDoingStuff
...a fresh sound...a tight band and not hurried...it flows beautifully...oh and the songs are f-ing great...
@Lyndanet
That guitar riff is phenomenal
@MrMickthemonster
You really feel it huh it's more than just hearing it
@davidmurauski9586
One of my favorite songs live
@c_Durka
Thank you for doing this. Constantly being played in my car.
@jamesw8132
Awesome live set - kept me going through the CV19 band drought.
@Love.AnitaBlue717
I so enjoyed, friends.
@brianandlindafairchild1237
It's nice to see a gift from God not being taken for granted. ❤Jan. 1 2024 time for bjm. Happy New Year,i hope.
@shaynal3040
💓
@robgibaud
Worst drummer they’ve had