The band started up by playing a couple of gigs at the 13th Note in Glasgow, creating half hour-long pieces of music using guitars, bass, drums, theremin, tape loops from films and old folk/country songs, effects pedals, toy keyboards, thumb pianos, saws, computer games, and a lot of noise, in an attempt to try and discover a sound they could call their own and continue to develop. After these two shows, they rejected many gig offers, and became a more reclusive unit, spending any spare time they had in the studio focused on writing and sculpting away at new material.
In September 2005, they produced a 4-song demo with a 24-track desk, trying to get the best representation as possible, sent it over to Brighton-based Fat Cat Records. Alex Knight, co-founder of the label, went to Glasgow to watch the band perform their third gig and signed them on the spot. In November 2006, they made their first official release with The Twilight Sad, a US-only EP that helped bring attention to the band, as well as performances at CMJ '06 and SXSW '07 Festivals.
Their debut album, Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters, was recorded over a short period of three days and featured the first songs the band had ever created. It received good critical reception from the independent music media and turned the band into a reference point for the up-and-coming scottish indie scene at the time. Where the band’s recorded sound is layered with many melodies, their live sound is a more intense experience which replaces the intricacies of the recordings with a more visceral wall of sound, which is something the band intended to do all along.
In June 2008, they released the Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards It Did EP, which included off-the-cuff reworkings of songs from the debut album, alongside the title track and a cover of Daniel Johnston, an artist they've cited as one of their main influences. The idea came about after the band played at London's Union Chapel, a venue with noise restrictions that forced them to perform with a more basic line-up of a fan organ, glockenspiel and percussion. During this time, the band recruited Martin "Dok" Docherty (formerly of Aereogramme) to play keyboards and additional guitar during the live shows. At the end of 2008, they released Killed My Parents and Hit the Road, a compilation to help fund their tour with fellow scots Mogwai. It consisted of live recordings, acoustic tracks, previously unreleased material, new demos and covers, which included The Smiths, Joy Division and Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
Their second album, Forget The Night Ahead, was released in September 2009. For the recording process, the band disposed of their effect pedals and experimented with natural reverb using early krautrock techniques, like mic'ing up inside the studio walls and rooms on the other side of the building to get the drum sound. During this time, original bassist Craig Orzel left the band to pursue other projects. He was replaced in the live setting by Johnny Docherty of Take a Worm for a Walk Week. A year later the band released The Wrong Car EP that featured two b-sides from the 'Forget' sessions as well as remixes by fellow Scottish acts Mogwai and Errors.
The release of their third album No One Can Ever Know saw the band pursue a change in style, virtually eliminating delayed guitars and relying on vintage analog synthesizers instead. The album was recorded in February/March 2011 at The Pool studios in London and featured production assistance by Andrew Weatherall.
I'm Taking the Train Home
The Twilight Sad Lyrics
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And when there's no one there
But their legs are open
And I'm blind
So why can't you come around?
And why can't you watch the ground?
And you're always, you're always
Fishing for the truth
So why can't you come around?
And like a cheating dream
And when the door's left open
My words fall flat
I'm holding the other now
And don't let the lights turn down
And your green eyes turn to blue
And you're always, you're always
Fishing for the truth
And your green eyes turn to blue
And you're always, you're always
Fishing for the truth
And you're fishing for the truth
So why can't you come around?
And you're always, you're always
So why can't you come around?
And why can't you watch the ground?
I'm holding the other now
And you're always and you're always
Your green eyes turn to blue
Your green eyes turn to blue
And you're always, you're always
And you're always and you're always
Your green eyes turn to blue
Your green eyes turn to blue
And you're always and you're always
Your green eyes turn to blue
Your green eyes turn to blue
And you're always, you're always
And you're always and you're always
Your green eyes turn to blue
Your green eyes turn to blue
The Twilight Sad's song "I'm Taking the Train Home" is a melancholic portrayal of a relationship that has gone sour. The opening lines "Comments and memories attached, and when there's no one there but their legs are open, and I'm blind" suggest a painful reminiscence of past intimacy in which the singer feels like a spectator in the present tense. The singer is unable to move on from the past, as hinted by the lines "So why can't you come around? And why can't you watch the ground?" The singer is asking for the other person to acknowledge reality and confront the issues at hand.
The chorus "And your green eyes turn to blue, and you're always, you're always fishing for the truth" highlights the theme of the search for truth in a relationship. The singer feels like the other person is always searching for something more, something "truer" than what they currently have. This sentiment is reinforced by lines such as "And like a cheating dream, and when the door's left open, my words fall flat." The singer feels like they are unable to communicate with the other person, and their efforts are futile.
The repetition of "Your green eyes turn to blue" serves as a metaphor for the disillusionment of the relationship. The singer initially saw their partner's eyes as green, a symbol of growth and new beginnings. However, the partner's eyes have now turned to blue, a symbol of sadness and depression. The singer is left to ponder why things have turned out this way and is ultimately left asking, "So why can't you come around?"
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Mark Gerard Devine, James Graham, Andrew James MacFarlane, Craig Orzel
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Secret Guy
I can't tell you how much i love that song.
No_product
I can't express it either
amrkafrawy85
Wow! Know that's what I call under rated. Thanks for the post.
Leslie W
this song the shit my black brethren
redcommando1
Oh I much rather The Twilight Sad, but I rather my music gritty and deep.
Rich Underhill
@electricsouperman Aah I actually have heard of them, always been put of by their name, I'll have to check them out. Once again mate, cheers... Geordie love to ya.
Rich Underhill
@TheRoseanne58 Thank you so much for reminding me of why I joined YT... I get a major kick out of bringing new tunes to passionate people like yourself. Thanks, much love!
Rich Underhill
@electricsouperman Thanks for having the first comment mate, much love to you. I've never heard of WWPJ.