The Slip formed when bassist Marc Friedman and brothers Andrew Barr and Brad Barr (Drums and Guitar/Vox, respectively) moved to Boston together after graduating from high school, where they had met and first began playing music as a group.
In 1996 the trio of recent Berklee dropouts put out their first studio album and began establishing a dedicated fan-base through relentless touring in and around the northeast. A late-nineties blend of extended roots pop compositions and experimental rhythmic approaches, the band developed and found their sound through an extremely supportive local scene of artists, musicians, and actors, coupled with a rigorous, and – soon – national, tour schedule. An eclectic new brand of exploratory roots psych-rock emerged; Van Morrison meets Keith Jarrett meets Talking Heads.
By 2001, the band’s tour schedule had brought them to sold-out headlining shows at NYC’s Bowery Ballroom, successful tours in Japan, and a record deal with Rykodisc.
While the band’s line-up remained consistent throughout the next few years on the road, their sound developed considerably and the instrumentation expanded radically. The Slip grew from young, earthy avant-gardes to strong, mature contemporary-rock composers, creating a new sonic landscape that drew equally from CAN, U2, and new interests like Built to Spill and Postal Service.
By 2003, the trio’s non-stop touring produced Alivelectric and Aliveacoustic, a companion live set that also represented the inaugural release of their own independent record label, 216 records.
Aliveacoustic presented a rustic and intimate, voyeuristic snapshot of the band unplugged, on a rainy night at the intimate Club Helsinki in the Berkshire Mountains. Equal parts Wilco, My Morning Jacket, and 12 Golden Country Hits – era Ween, the album contains a tender honesty that carries through from tent-revival stomps to humble and dusty lyrical psalms.
Alivelectric, on the other hand, is almost exclusively instrumental, with a deep resonance and a wide breadth of analog and digital effects. Culled from an equally wide array of performances throughout the U.S. during the fall of 2002 and the summer and spring of 2003, Alivelectric gave 216 a chance to showcase the band at its grander, more expansive and ethereal live moments. The album presents an articulated side of The Slip much closer to Do Make Say Think, Tortoise, electric Bill Frisell and Squarepusher albums than the dusty americana present on it’s companion release.
These two records represent the most coherent articulation of the bands’ distinct sides to date, and have sold a combined 14,000 copies so far. The band has sold a total of over 50,000 albums independently.
In the five years following their last studio release, the band has also spent more and more of their time off the road in their home studios, gradually honing a new and innovative approach to recording and distilling an overall songwriting vision. So pervasive a transformation has occurred that The Slip have even recently been accused - perhaps appropriately - of ‘changing everything short of their name’.
Coming out of this, their heaviest state of growth and development in years, the band entered Q-Division Studios in March 2005 and began six months of utterly focused work with co-producer Mathew Ellard. The result is their 4th studio album, Eisenhower which stands as the most cohesive and evocative work the band has put together thus far.
Showcasing the raw analog passion of Broken Social Scene, the accessible melodic songcraft of Mojave 3, and the lush soundscapes and wash-like textures of Mogwai, the album’s dynamics also range from Iron and Wine–style intimate vocal immediacy to the thunderous big-beat anthem-sincerity of the Flaming Lips, with enough room in between for haunting vocal melodies evocative of Antonio Carlos Jobim or Sigur Ros laid over with sparce, raw, Notwist-style live percussion. It is the band’s finest work to date
Already proving itself be a very good indication of a brilliant upcoming album, the first single that has been released - “Even Rats” – that has been released (on most digital services) has already been featured in the extremely successful Playstation2 game Guitar Hero and was also chosen to be one of only ten songs preloaded on the new SanDisk mp3 player - 4.5 million of which are set to ship in mid-march 2006.
The album also contains a revamped version of “Children of December,” the demo version of which was awarded the 2004 Heineken USA/ASCAP Foundation Grant for Best Pop/Rock Song in Boston.
The spring of 2005 also saw the band spin through the northeast, accompanied by Nathan Moore on vocals and guitar, as collective avant-folk band Surprise Me Mr. Davis; a modern alt-country super-group combining the raw and intimate vocals of a Tom Waits or a Nebraska-era Bruce Springsteen with the bluesy grit of the Black Keys, The Band or Two Gallants, all layered with the lush 3-and-4-part harmonies and dirty instrumentation of TV on the Radio. Selections from a late summer Montreal recording session formed a well-received EP entitled Only in Montreal.
2005 of course also saw The Slip playing a considerable amount of shows as themselves - throughout the U.S., Japan, Canada, and Mexico - and closed out with a memorable northeast New Year’s run supported by friends Apollo Sunshine.
Starting in late 2007, the trio took an unannounced hiatus from regular touring and have since only played occasional gigs as The Slip. They have not released any albums since 2006.
The future of The Slip seems to be on hold as the founding members, Andrew Barr and Brad Barr, have been focusing their work into The Barr Brothers.
If One of Us Should Fall
The Slip Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
the words of your
prediction with me
Even though they
harbour some grave
obscurity
They haunt me like some willows do.
And nothing has revealed itself to me
The half of the world that I can see
Is just a memory.
And I will be here
To respond so clear
to that word,
that sound,
that I have found
in me, in you,
in us....
As long as you can have the moon
let me have the dust.
Somebody comes along
you continue to rust.
Everyone will do you wrong
'til you learn how to trust,
along the way......
If one of us should fall, should fall
If one of us should fall, should fall....
I will always carry
the wounds of your
addiction with me
Even though they
harbour some grave
obscurity
They haunt me like some willows do.
But something has revealed itself to me
The half of the world that I can see
Is falling to its knees.
And I will be here
To respond so clear
to that word,
that sound,
that I have found
in me, in you,
in us......
As long as you can have the moon
let me have the sky.
Somebody comes along
you continue to cry.
I'll be the camera,
you, the discernible eye.
Together we can climb so high
so high, but.....
If one of us should fall, should fall
If one of us should fall, should fall
carry each other
The lyrics of The Slip's song "If One of Us Should Fall" are poetic and ambiguous, making it difficult to pinpoint a singular meaning. The song seems to revolve around the theme of carrying someone's burdens and being there for them, no matter what challenges may come their way. The verses touch on the idea of carrying the weight of somebody else's life experiences, whether they be predictions or addictions, and allowing them to haunt you like an unshakable memory.
The first verse mentions how the singer will carry someone's prediction with them, even though it harbors grave obscurity. This could be interpreted as carrying the weight of someone else's doubts or fears, and struggling to understand and overcome them. The second verse references carrying someone's addiction, which could represent shouldering the burden of someone's struggles and eventually realizing that the world is falling to its knees as a result.
The chorus repeats the line "If one of us should fall, should fall" and emphasizes the importance of carrying each other and being there for one another in times of need. The song suggests that trust, empathy, and understanding are essential components of any healthy relationship or friendship. In the end, the song portrays a sense of hope and resilience, as the singer acknowledges that as long as they have each other, they can climb as high as they want to.
Line by Line Meaning
I will always carry
The singer will never forget the words of the other person's prediction.
the words of your
The prediction belongs to the other person.
prediction with me
The singer will always remember the prediction.
Even though they
Despite the prediction's unclear nature.
harbour some grave
The prediction is serious and significant.
obscurity
The prediction is hard to understand.
They haunt me like some willows do.
The prediction has a lingering effect on the singer.
And nothing has revealed itself to me
The artist has not received any clarity or insight regarding the prediction.
The half of the world that I can see
The artist's perspective is limited.
Is just a memory.
The artist has only their past experiences to draw from.
And I will be here
The singer will be present and available.
To respond so clear
The artist will give a clear response.
to that word,
In response to the other person's words.
that sound,
In response to the other person's voice and tone.
that I have found
The singer has discovered something within themselves.
in me, in you,
This discovery applies to both the artist and the other person.
in us....
It has significance for the relationship between the artist and the other person.
As long as you can have the moon
The singer is willing to give up something highly valuable so the other person can have it.
let me have the dust.
The singer wishes to hold onto something small and insignificant.
Somebody comes along
When someone else enters the picture.
you continue to rust.
The other person will deteriorate and become less significant in the artist's eyes.
Everyone will do you wrong
Others will let the other person down.
'til you learn how to trust,
Until the other person learns how to trust again.
along the way......
In the meantime.
If one of us should fall, should fall
If either of them should fail or falter.
I will always carry
The singer will never forget.
the wounds of your
The other person's addiction has hurt them.
addiction with me
The artist will always remember the other person's struggle.
But something has revealed itself to me
The artist has gained some insight or clarity.
The half of the world that I can see
But the singer still has a limited view or understanding.
Is falling to its knees.
The singer's world is struggling, maybe even collapsing.
As long as you can have the moon
The artist is willing to sacrifice something valuable.
let me have the sky.
But they also wish to have something significant for themselves.
Somebody comes along
When someone else enters the picture.
you continue to cry.
The other person will continue to experience sadness or pain.
I'll be the camera,
The artist will document or observe.
you, the discernible eye.
The other person will bring clarity or understanding to the situation.
Together we can climb so high
The two of them can achieve great things together.
so high, but.....
But there are still obstacles to overcome.
If one of us should fall, should fall
If either of them should fail or falter.
If one of us should fall, should fall
If either of them should fail or falter.
carry each other
They will support each other through difficult times.
Contributed by Sadie A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.