The band received some media criticism for Jeff Martin's Jim Morisson-like stage persona in some of its videos and their Led Zeppelin-esq riffs, although he seemed determined to be striving to create his own image and sound. His looks certainly do draw some comparison, however, to The Doors' late front man.
Their sound is hard to categorize as each album possessed different themes and influences. Splendor Solis (1993) was a more acoustic, blues-based record, while Edges of Twilight (1995) was much darker with strong Middle Eastern influences on several tracks. Transmission (1997) saw a dramatic change to a darker, more industrial-tinged sound, and it was distributed in the USA by Atlantic Records. The last three albums by the band featured various efforts to attract a wider commercial audience, with the single "Heaven Coming Down" reaching No.1 on the Canadian mainstream charts in 1999.
In 2000, Capitol Records finally released a retrospective compilation in the USA of their Canadian singles entitled Tangents after only releasing their first two albums south of the border.
The Tea Party released The Interzone Mantras in 2001, but it did not possess the singles of its predecessors.
In October 2005, a year after their final album Seven Circles was released, Jeff Martin left the band and embarked on a solo career, releasing an album in early 2006. Jeff Burrows (drummer) and Stuart Chatwood (bass/synthesiser) have also had post-Tea Party successes, the former in several projects and the latter in soundtrack composition. Burrows and Chatwood worked together on a new project called The Art Decay before Burrows joined Crash Karma in 2008.
On April 12th 2011, an official Facebook page was launched with a biography section that closed with "The band is scheduled to play a select number of dates in 2011. No other info was available at this time." The following day, the local radio station K106.3 announced the Sarnia Bayfest lineup including The Tea Party, which was later confirmed by drummer Jeff Burrows on his radio show on April 13th. Burrows further stated that a Canadian tour was also in the works.
The Tea Party performed at the Cisco Systems Bluesfest in Ottawa, Ontario on July 14th, 2011, and the band will be playing a Canadian tour commencing on November 15th, 2011 in Vancouver. The band's website and tour is called "THE TEA PARTY - No Politics... Just Rock and Roll". In September 2011, the band was reportedly approached to sell its website URL for over a million dollars by the extremely popular American political movement bearing the same name: www.teaparty.com.
aftermath
The Tea Party Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Lost in its wake
Time slips away too soon
Pleasures of fear
Drawing us near
Where could we go from here
Waste what we want
We beg and we're brought
And nothing is wrong with us
Life in these veins
Godless and stained
Glimpses of hope exist
Slanted advance
Threatened by chance
Time slips away too soon
[Chorus]
Waste what we want
We beg and we're brought
And nothing is wrong with us
The Tea Party's song Aftermath reflects a sense of desperation and loss in time as expressed in the first two lines "Desperate to take, Lost in its wake, Time slips away too soon". The somber mood then shifts to a sense of fear, depicted by the lyrics "Pleasures of fear, Drawing us near". The fear feels enticing, as if it is luring the listener to explore its depths. The lyrics "Where could we go from here?" suggest a feeling of uncertainty, leaving the listener to wonder what could happen next.
The chorus is the most repeated section of the song and is where the main message lies. The repetition of the phrase "Waste what we want, We beg and we're brought, And nothing is wrong with us" suggests that there is something wrong. The repetition creates an emphasis on the idea that the singer wants the audience to understand. The following line "Life in these veins, Godless and stained" suggests that the singer believes something is wrong with the way they are living their life. The final line of the chorus "Glimpses of hope exist" suggests that there is a glimmer of light in the darkness.
Overall, the song seems to be about the desire to live a fulfilling life but feeling trapped, uncertain, and afraid, and as the title suggests, examining the aftermath of what happens when we make choices that may be selfish or misguided.
Line by Line Meaning
Desperate to take
We are eager to acquire and achieve.
Lost in its wake
We feel overwhelmed and uncertain about what will happen next.
Time slips away too soon
We are aware that time is passing too fast, and we cannot hold onto it.
Pleasures of fear
We are attracted to things that make us frightened or anxious, finding pleasure in them.
Drawing us near
Our attraction or curiosity pulls us closer to the things that scare us or make us uncomfortable.
Where could we go from here
We are unsure of what choices to make or direction to take.
Waste what we want
We are willing to expend resources on things that may not be necessary but bring us pleasure.
We beg and we're brought
We often ask for things, and others provide them, even if they may not be best for us.
And nothing is wrong with us
We do not see our actions as problematic, and we do not feel a sense of guilt or regret.
Life in these veins
We are alive and active, but without any spiritual or moral foundation.
Godless and stained
We lack any sense of spirituality and carry our burden of guilt or shame.
Glimpses of hope exist
We perceive occasional possibilities for positive change, but they are fleeting and elusive.
Slanted advance
We are moving forward, but on a crooked, deceitful path.
Threatened by chance
We feel unsafe or at risk due to various factors outside our control.
Time slips away too soon
Once again, we are aware of how quickly time passes and how difficult it is to hold onto precious moments.
Waste what we want
As before, we are willing to expend resources on things that may not add value to our lives but bring us pleasure.
We beg and we're brought
Once more, we ask for things and accept them even if they may not be best for us.
And nothing is wrong with us
Our actions still do not cause us any sense of guilt or regret.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JEFF BURROWS, JEFFREY JOHN BURROWS, JEFFREY SCOTT MARTIN, STUART CHATWOOD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind