Featuring former Boysetsfire vocalist, Nathan Gray and guitarist Josh Latsh… Read Full Bio ↴Featuring former Boysetsfire vocalist, Nathan Gray and guitarist Josh Latshaw.

So Nathan was in a band called BoySetsFire. They did ok, then they broke up. So the Casting Out started, first with some terrible name that (THANK GOD!) was already taken, played some shows, lost some members, got some members, changed their sound, (yeah I know…it “evolved”) It got louder. More raucous. More fun. More of that good stuff that keeps you coming back. Catchier than a plateful of syphalitic lepers. EW. They started touring in a crappy van that broke down. Of course they did. Who didn’t? Played to smatterings of people who began disinterested, but were slowly (so slowly!) run over by their dynamic stage show. But they are doing it the way you are supposed to. They are sleeping on floors. They are eating pasta. Playing freaking VFWs, Which is fine for all the retards out there with their first band who are just excited to get out of Arkansas, But Nathan is no spring chicken. He ain’t even a Winter Goose. He has been touring since he was 20 which was nearly two decades ago. When he started touring, gas was ninety cents a gallon. When he started touring, no-one had cell phones. We used this cracked out gadget called the “Straight Edge Dialer” which somehow imitated the sonic patterns of quarters dropping into the slot. We would gather around a pay-phone and use it to call home and try to get shows. When he started touring, there was no major-label debate because major-labels simply did not sign punk or hardcore bands. When he started touring the internet was a mere gleam in Al Gore’s nutsack. When he started touring, people bought cds. Yeah, I know... That long ago.
So the question was posed as it has been before and will certainly be again.
Why?
Why start over? Why not look back at the admittedly somewhat impressive body of work. (4 full lengths, countless tours, blah blah…) and just say fuck it and get a jobby job?
“Because it is the only thing I am good at”.
To be honest, that isn’t quite true. Nathan can also paint like a mother fucker. He is wonderful at touch up, and even with ideas about certain color schemes, But who the hell wants to paint for the rest of his life? Not me, And I guess not him. I have another idea about why Nathan is still doing it.
Because it is fun.
Because the Casting Out is fun. Lots of fun. Nathan, the grizzled lead singer, seems to have discovered a new tool in his writing tool-bag (?) –a sense of humor. The songs are performed with a knowing wink and jaunty tip of the hat. No cute (is what we aim for) word play. No long ass song titles. Just lyrics written from a good perspective and good punk-influenced pop music. Melodies that will make your heart sing. Starting a new band at 35……… Crazy bitch.

-joshua latshaw-

I Feel Fine
The Casting Out Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Here are the words we should have chosen
Some fell to Earth but some came close
In pretending to lose we learn to lie
Setting examples bidding time
Just to find

If we're only gonna die
Why do we need an alibi

Happy new years darling I
Feel fine

We can run so much faster
Play the game
Well enough never stopped us anyway
Yeah, it's easy to hide
So hard to try
From behind all these crimes
Just to find

If we're only gonna die
Why do we need an alibi
Happy new years darling I
Feel fine

I think I'll sell the movie rights
Cause someone out there's got to bite
Happy new years darling I
Feel fine

With this one last drink
I give in
With a toast to lost love
And absent friends

If we're only gonna die
Why do we need an alibi
Happy new years darling I
Feel fine

I think I'll sell the movie rights
Cause someone out there's got to bite
Happy new years darling I
Feel fine

If we're only gonna die
Why do we need an alibi
Happy new years darling I
Feel fine

Yeah, Happy new years darling I
Feel fine

Overall Meaning

The song "I Feel Fine" by The Casting Out is a contemplative and introspective song that explores the themes of mortality, deceit, and the human tendency to hide our true selves. The opening lines, "Here are the words we should have chosen / Some fell to Earth but some came close" suggest a sense of regret, disappointment and missed opportunities. The line "In pretending to lose we learn to lie / Setting examples bidding time / Just to find" speaks to the idea that sometimes, we need to go through hardships and failures to realize the truth about ourselves and the world around us.

The chorus "If we're only gonna die / Why do we need an alibi / Happy new years darling I / Feel fine" suggests a stoic and somewhat nihilistic outlook on life. The singer seems to be questioning the need for pretense and deceit, especially when all of us are bound to eventually face our mortality. The line "We can run so much faster / Play the game / Well enough never stopped us anyway" speaks to the idea that we often put on a façade to fit in and succeed in society, even though it may not align with our true selves.

The song's overall message seems to be that we should strive for authenticity and honesty, even if it means facing difficulty and adversity. The lines "With this one last drink / I give in / With a toast to lost love / And absent friends" suggest a sense of closure and acceptance. The song ends with the singer feeling fine, perhaps indicating that he has made peace with his past and present.

Line by Line Meaning

Here are the words we should have chosen
We should have chosen our words better

Some fell to Earth but some came close
Some things didn't work out but some were almost successful

In pretending to lose we learn to lie
When we pretend to lose, we start lying

Setting examples bidding time
We're setting examples and waiting patiently

Just to find
Only to discover

If we're only gonna die
Since we're all going to die eventually

Why do we need an alibi
Why do we need an excuse

Happy new years darling I
I'm happy on this New Year's

Feel fine
I feel great

We can run so much faster
We have the ability to run faster

Play the game
Let's play the game