Members of the Lawrence Arms have also played in The Broadways, Slapstick, Tricky Dick and Baxter.
The three musicians came together to form the Lawrence Arms in 1999. Although punk rock bands in their infancy generally start out by releasing EPs and 7" vinyl singles, the band members used their existing relationship with Asian Man Records to immediately begin recording a full-length album, a guided tour of chicago, which was released later that year. A second album, ghost stories, followed in 2000. Both albums focused heavily on the members' own stories of growing up and living in Chicago.
The band's next two releases were split EPs with other bands. The first, a split with Shady View Terrace, was released in 2000 and was their first release to be recorded by Matt Allison, who would continue to record and produce all of their subsequent releases. A second EP, Present Day Memories, was released in 2001 and was a split with The Chinkees.
The band's records and touring schedule had brought them to the attention of Fat Mike of NOFX, who signed them to his label Fat Wreck Chords in late 2001. Their first release on the label was a 7" vinyl single, part of the label's "Fat Club" series of 7" records. This was followed by the full-length album apathy and exhaustion, released in 2002. The album spawned the band's first music video, for the song porno and snuff films and they toured extensively with NOFX and other bands from the label.
Their next album was 2003's the greatest story ever told. Arguably their most ambitious album to date, it demonstrated the band members' continued growth as musicians and songwriters and included extensive footnotes to the lyrics detailing their many references to history, literature and pop culture. It also showed an evolution in the band's vocal style. Kelly had sung most of the vocals on their first album, while on subsequent releases he and McCaughan had split vocal duties almost equally from one song to the next, with Kelly's voice tending to sound more harsh and urgent while McCaughan's sounds more relaxed and melodic. With this release, however, the two began to move towards more of a duet style of singing which would feature prominently on their next album. Extensive touring following the album's release saw the band on the road for much of 2003 and 2004. They also contributed a song to the Fat Wreck Chords Rock Against Bush, Volume 2 compilation, leading up to the 2004 presidential election and became involved with the Punk Voter campaign.
In December of 2004 Kelly and Hennessy joined with fellow Chicago natives Dan Andriano of Alkaline Trio (who had played with Kelly in Slapstick) and Todd Mohney, formerly of Rise Against, to form The Falcon, and released an EP on Red Scare. Meanwhile, with interest in the Lawrence Arms increasing and their EPs out of print, Asian Man Records planned a CD release of the band's EP tracks. The resulting compilation album, Cocktails & Dreams, was released on Asian Man in June of 2005 and included their songs from both EPs along with nearly all of their compilation tracks, rare songs and b-sides.
The Lawrence Arms re-entered the studio in October and November of 2005 and recorded the album oh! calcutta!, which was released on Fat Wreck Chords in March of 2006. It had an overall faster and more urgent feel to it than their previous album, and demonstrated another step in the development of their singing as Kelly and McCaughan shared vocals in a duet style on nearly every song. They filmed a music video for the song the devil's takin' names.
The Lawrence Arms spent most of 2006 touring extensively alongside bands such as NOFX, Alkaline Trio, The Draft, Lagwagon, and A Wilhelm Scream. The full-length debut by the Falcon was released that fall on Red Scare. In December, the Lawrence Arms embarked on their first headlining tour of Australia, also playing supporting shows with Frenzal Rhomb.
In March of 2007, guitarist Chris McCaughan released the debut album from his acoustic side project Sundowner, entitled four one five two.
The band toured again in 2007, with their side projects The Falcon and Sundowner as openers along with the recently reunited American Steel.
The 2010s saw minimal studio activity by the band, but for one album. 2014's Metropole was received well, and marked the band's first full-length in eight years. The band took another extended break in between albums again, taking six years before releasing their seventh album Skeleton Coast in 2020.
Abracadaver
The Lawrence Arms Lyrics
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The Lawrence Arms's song Abracadaver depicts a situation of contemplation and introspection. The author initially declares their need for someone they loved, symbolized by the 'bright and burning blue' that stretches its arms above them. They admit to never speaking certain words, exemplified by the 'copper brown and orange red' that burns them. Then the author says that if they see them 'grinding,' it is a disguise, but if they see them 'grinning,' they shouldn't trust them. The ink stands for something beautiful that will come to life in due time, while the drink stands for the temporary solutions that create only more problems.
The second part of the song is about the red flags that nobody pays attention to because they only see what they want to see. The author talks about the clouds, trees and dust that are clouding judgments, while the 'magic dream haver' is using their mind to control reality. The columns mentioned are the metaphor for the things that keep a person sane, like support from loved ones. However, they are not enough in times of desperation, as seen by the white stripe of light the author uses to calm themselves down. The message of Abracadaver is to not ignore the problem, to be truthful to oneself and to look beyond the surface.
Line by Line Meaning
Bright and burning blue, stretch your arms out above me.
The singer is looking up at the sky, which he sees as a bright blue color. He's telling the sky to embrace him and hold him close.
I know that you still love me like you did.
The singer believes that the sky loves him in the way that it always has, even though they may not have seen each other for a long time.
Copper brown and orange red burn the words that I never said.
The singer sees the colors of the sky changing as the sun begins to set. These colors remind him of things he meant to say but never did.
I'm swallowing the pill.
The artist is taking responsibility for something and accepting the consequences, even if it's difficult to do so.
If you see me grinding it's a disguise.
The artist may be working hard or struggling, but he doesn't want others to know how he really feels so he puts up a facade.
If you see me grinning don't trust my lies.
The singer may be smiling or acting happy, but it's not genuine. He's warning others not to believe everything he says or does.
When the ink dries we'll have another masterpiece.
The singer is referring to writing or creating something, and after it's done and the ink has dried, it will be a great work of art.
When the drink dies we'll have another restless sleep.
If the artist drinks too much, he knows he'll have trouble sleeping at night.
The smell is so thick that I can taste it.
The artist is experiencing an overwhelming scent that is so strong he can almost taste it in his mouth.
It's stained so bad that we'll never erase it.
Something has happened that has left a permanent mark or impact, and it can't be undone or forgotten.
Try, try again and again it falls flat.
The singer keeps attempting to accomplish something but it keeps failing, no matter how many times he tries.
Falls rolling in and I can't find my hat.
The situation has taken a turn for the worse, and the artist feels like he's lost something important or valuable.
A magic dream haver, an abracadaver, use your mind over matter 'til there's nothing the matter at all.
The singer is urging someone to use their imagination and creativity to make their dreams come true, and overcome any obstacles in their way.
These columns are calmly calming me down.
The singer is finding comfort or peace in a certain environment or surroundings, represented by the columns.
The white stripe of light from the sky to the ground is the biggest most obvious red flag, and it's waving away in the wind.
Something that seems like a good thing (represented by the white stripe of light) is actually a warning sign or danger that is being overlooked or ignored.
And nobody sees the clouds or the trees, only the dust ... and the fire within.
The artist is saying that people are ignoring the beauty and wonder of the world around them, instead focusing only on the negative or destructive aspects (represented by the dust and fire within).
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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