Vasoli has lately been focusing on his side project, known as Person L. Tom has been recording with his new band, Cheap Seats, with Matt as their manager. Mike also has a side project, called The Traded Series. The origins of the group that would become The Starting Line go back to 1999, via an AOL instant message from Churchville, Pennsylvania guitarist Matt Watts to vocalist/bassist Kenny Vasoli. It asked if the then fourteen-year-old Vasoli, who was at that time in a band called Smash Adams, was interested in "Jamming and shit", as the message title read.
Only a few weeks later, Vasoli found himself rehearsing with his future bandmates Watts, guitarist Mike Golla and drummer Tom Gryskewicz. Soon, the band started touring under the name Sunday Drive, selling out home-made merchandise and a self-recorded demo cassette that the guys titled 'Four Songs'. Their first official release was a three-way split with The Jimmy Tuesday Band and The Commercials contributing three songs each, the work released on KickStart Audio in 2000.
Sunday Drive was soon approached by We the People Records and asked to produce a recording session (the infamous We the People Records Sessions). Set for a release in December 2000, the twelve songs were initially planned to become the band's debut full-length With Hopes of Starting Over on We the People Records, but they ended up serving only as demos for tracks on future releases, as the band signed with Drive-Thru Records in April 2001. On Drive-Thru, they soon released their debut EP With Hopes of Starting Over. Yet, as the name Sunday Drive was already taken by a Christian rock band, they went on as The Starting Line.
On July 16, 2002, almost exactly one year after the release of their EP, the full-length Say It Like You Mean It followed. The songs ranged from energetic and fast-paced to melancholy and calm, dealing with performing on stage ("Given the Chance"), feeling homesick ("Left Coast Envy") and getting even with Vasoli's ex-girlfriend Karina ("Up & Go", "Hello Houston", among others). The hit single "The Best of Me" and its two music videos, as well as the second single "Leaving", received heavy radio and TV airplay, securing The Starting Line a spot on the Warped Tour.
Due to their desire to put out new material, the band decided to release an all-unplugged EP, recorded in three sessions over the following year. The first three songs (recorded in The Prize Fight's Bob Jones' bedroom in August 2002), the second session (recorded in Vasoli's basement in March 2003) and the last track (recorded on the band's touring bus in April 2003) became The Make Yourself at Home EP, released on November 25, 2003. The CD and the DVD version issued simultaneously, featuring an acoustic set performed live at Skate & Surf 2003 in Asbury Park, New Jersey, would be their last releases put out solely on Drive-Thru Records, as The Starting Line was signed by Geffen Records soon afterwards.
Their major label debut, Based on a True Story, came out in May 2005. Lyrically, the band dissociated themselves from the post-relationship formula that was predominant on their previous records. On this album, a lot of the songs (e.g. "Inspired By the $", "Autography" and "The B-List") were explicitly inspired by the band's disdain for their record label Geffen and its executives. The album was far more successful than the band's 2002 effort and sold 42,000 copies within its first week, as opposed to its predecessor's 11,000. The release was followed by the semi-headlining Nintendo Fusion Tour with Fall Out Boy, kicking off in September 2005. A few dates into the tour, The Starting Line were — at their request — released from their record deal with Geffen, and became free agents. In early January 2006, their signing with Virgin Records was announced.
On March 5, 2008 the band announced in an e-mail and on Absolutepunk.net they would be going on a break in order for Ken and Brian to explore Person L, Matt and Tom to explore The Seventy Six, and Mike to spend time with his two daughters and explore The Traded Series. The band had been playing with the idea of coming back in 2011, but in a chat with absolutepunk.net, Kenny Vasoli said, ""it's looking good, may even be earlier. I hung with Matt and Tom the other day, we all are still in love with one another.
On November 10, 2009, The Starting Line released their first-ever live concert CD, film and documentary DVD titled "Somebody's Gonna Miss Us" via Image Entertainment on a 2-disc set. Through intimate and honest interviews with the band, friends and family fans will get a glimpse into the inner workings of the group and a career that spanned nearly a decade, five releases, and thousands of shows.
On December 29, 2009, The Starting Line had a reunion concert at the Theater of Living Arts. Starting Line guitarist Matt Watts stated on the website AbsolutePunk that "this doesn't mean that TSL are back together....It simply means that we're taking a break from our break, and wanted to play a fun show in Philadelphia and continue to focus on our lives outside of TSL"
The Starting Line added a second holiday show on December 30, 2009 in Philadelphia at the Trocadero Theater. This was added due to the fact that the first holiday show scheduled for December 29, 2009 sold out in a little over an hour and the band would like to give their local fans a better chance to see them. Towards the end of their set, Kenny Vasoli announced the band's reunion. However, the group has only toured intermittently since then.
Main Website: http://www.startinglinerock.com
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/thestartingline
Inspired By The
The Starting Line Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Closed window pane
I stare out all day
This room and the walls
We wait for the call
And slow like decay
This progress we made
Could You...
[Chorus:]
Get to the point
Get it across
To the poison
Atop of the ladder
I'm climbing up
I,I
Have my doubts
[Verse 2:]
This is a call
From my cage
Through the bars
Inspired by the dollar sign
That's dangling outside
[Pre Chorus:]
Someone....
[Chorus:]
Get to the point
Get it across
To the poison
Atop of the ladder
I'm climbing up
I,I
Have my doubts
My doubts
My doubts
My doubts!
[Bridge:]
Go on and get it right
Get it right
Just stay
Just stay the same way
Do it like
You did it before
Remain
Remain the same
[Chorus:]
Get to the point
Get it across
To the poison
That's atop of the ladder
I'm climbing up
I,I
Have my doubts
Get to the point
Get it across
To the poison
Atop of the ladder
I'm climbing up
I,I
Have my doubts
The Starting Line's song "Inspired By The" talks about feeling stuck in a place with no signs of progress. The singer sits by a closed window staring out all day while waiting for a call that doesn't seem to come. The room and walls feel suffocating and slow, just like the decay of their progress.
In the chorus, the singer wants someone to get to the point and make it clear what they need to do. They feel like they are climbing up the ladder towards success but have doubts if they can make it while battling their own struggles with the poison of insecurity and uncertainty.
The bridge is a plea to stay true to oneself and how they have done things before. The singer encourages themselves to remain the same and continue with what works for them. It is a reminder that not everything needs to be changed to make progress.
Overall, "Inspired By The" is a song about struggling with progress and battling one's own insecurities while trying to succeed. It is a call for someone to help them move forward while reminding themselves to stay authentic.
Line by Line Meaning
Closed window pane
The singer is trapped inside and unable to escape
I stare out all day
The singer is constantly longing to be free from their confinement
This room and the walls
The physical barriers that are preventing the singer from leaving
We wait for the call
The singer is waiting for an opportunity to escape
And slow like decay
Their situation is getting worse over time, and they feel themselves losing hope
This progress we made
Despite their efforts, they feel as though they are not making any progress
Could You...
The singer is pleading for help, hoping that someone will hear their cries and come to their aid
Get to the point
The singer wants someone to be clear and concise in their communication
Get it across
The singer wants the message to be understood clearly
To the poison
Referring to the toxic environment that is trapping the singer
Atop of the ladder
The singer is trying to climb higher and escape their confinement
I'm climbing up
The singer is making progress but they are unsure if they will succeed
I,I
The singer is emphasizing their doubts and uncertainty
This is a call
The singer is reaching out for help
From my cage
The singer feels trapped and constrained
Through the bars
The singer is trying to see beyond their confinement
Inspired by the dollar sign
The motivation to escape is driven by the desire for financial gain
That's dangling outside
The opportunity for financial gain is just out of reach
Someone...
The singer is again pleading for help from anyone who will listen
My doubts
The singer is struggling with uncertainty and is unsure if they will succeed
Go on and get it right
The singer is encouraging someone to take action in order to help them escape
Just stay
The singer wants things to remain the same and not get worse
Just stay the same way
The singer is afraid of change, and wants things to remain predictable and stable
Do it like
The singer is encouraging someone to take action in the same way that they did before
You did it before
Referring to a previous successful attempt to escape
Remain
The singer wants the situation to remain stable and not get worse
That's atop of the ladder
Referring again to the toxic environment that is trapping the singer
My doubts
The singer is struggling with uncertainty and is unsure if they will succeed
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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on Given the Chance
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