The Word Alive was founded in 2008 by Craig Mabbitt (lead vocals) with Zack Hansen (lead guitar) and Tony Pizzuti (rhythm guitar) who were former members of the bands Calling of Syrens and Clouds Take Shape. As a side-project of Mabbitt during his part in Escape the Fate, the remaining required members he recruited to start The Word Alive were chosen to be Nick Urlacher (bass), Dusty Riach (keyboard) and Tony Aguilera (drums). The group recorded songs with the intention of releasing them as a self-titled EP, despite that it never surfaced. Later on, the band forced Mabbitt to leave due to their dissatisfaction with Escape the Fate's schedules, which required Mabbitt to work as a full-time member.
The day after, Mabbitt posted a blog to his fans via his Myspace account explaining that leaving the band was not his decision and that "[The Word Alive] pretty much replaced me while I was on the road due to the fact that they wanted to tour and couldn't until I was available, I started that band with those guys and I'm very hurt at how they replaced me while I was touring...it's bullshit." On December 3, the band officially announced that Tyler "Telle" Smith, who was formerly one of the vocalists for In Fear and Faith and bassist for Greeley Estates, joined The Word Alive as their new frontman.
Feeling somewhat stagnant in their progression beforehand, the addition of Smith catapulted the band’s ambitions to the forefront. With this initiation, their goals and aspirations were much more a reality, and they set to work on what would become their record label debut, Empire.
During March 2009, the band were taken in with a contract by a new label, later on during the 26th of that month the group officially confirmed that the label they were then signed to was Fearless Records. Smith stated "We hope to just keep touring, touring, touring... we couldn't be happier or more appreciative to be on tour right now, I think despite having some of the worst luck in the early beginnings of being a touring band yet never missing a show, we always have a positive attitude and that will make us a stronger band." The band set out to create an EP to be released through the label wherein it was titled Empire and was recorded with producer Andrew Wade in Ocala, Florida. It was released on July 21, 2009 where it reached #15 on the Billboard Heatseeker chart.
During February the band reached an agreement to leave founding drummer, Tony Aguilera out of the group. Both parties (Aguilera and the rest of the band) shared their concerns and reasoning for the matter publicly. It was overall described that the band wanted to pursue a different percussionist of alternate talent than the founding member. Aguilera was replaced with Justin Salinas, whom previously was a part of the bands Scars of Tomorrow and Catherine as well as serving as a past live drummer for MyChildren MyBride.
In April 2010, The Word Alive entered the studio in Ocala, Florida with Andrew Wade to record their debut full-length album, Deceiver. By June, Deceiver was fully mastered and engineered. On June 23, 2010 the band premiered their first single from the album, “Epiphany” as streaming media online.The following day, Fearless Records released their 2010 Summer Sampler which also featured the track "Epiphany". A week later, the album's album art and track listing was released. Guitarist Zack Hansen explained upon this premiere that "We all felt like that was going to be the best choice considering how comfortable the recording process is with Andrew. The tracking was a lot of fun and everyone had a good time. We got the opportunity to stay in a house while we recorded and surprisingly we didn't party as much as I thought we would haha." Hansen later followed along explaining that his favorite track on the record is “The Hounds of Anubis”, which was written by him and Pizzuti and stated that he "wrote this song with an 'Egyptian feel' to it and I think we got our point across." Smith described that its lyrics describe the times of when The Word Alive overcame their hardships that they face with the help and support from their fans. "The Hounds of Anubis" was released as the album's second single on July 26, 2010. It premiered on the official Revolver website.
By November of 2011, the band made plans to return to the studio on February 7, 2012 with Joey Sturgis to begin recording their next album, with an expected recording session lasting from that time until mid-March. However by February (and before the date of entering the studio), the announcement of two members leaving occurred; keyboardist, Dusty Riach and drummer, Justin Salinas were simultaneously confirmed to no longer be a part of the band. Salinas stated his reason was because he grew tired of touring, although Riach's reason was preferred to be kept silent.
In regards to the band's second studio album, it was reported that 17 songs were recorded in its process. 13 of those will be on the standard edition of the album, while the another three will be included on the deluxe edition. The name of the album will be Life Cycles and both editions will be released the same day.On March 23rd of the year, the group issued a statement that 18-year old Arizona resident Luke Holland has joined as the new drummer, however, Holland was not included for the recording sessions of Life Cycles. The drumming for the record was done by a friend of the band named Matt Horn wherein Holland joined after these sessions were already completed.
On March 18, 2014, the band released a new single entitled "Play the Victim." Along with the song, they also announced their third full-length album Real. would be released on June 10. The album would be the first to feature Luke Holland on drums.
The band released their fourth album, Dark Matter, on March 18, 2016. The band also revealed the tracklist and a headlining North American tour with support from Fit for a King and Out Came the Wolves. The album's lead single, "Trapped", was released January 8.
In November 2016, Luke Holland announced he would be leaving the band at the end of 2016 after finishing their last tour of the year to pursue other musical endeavors. In February 2017, the band announced that Matt Horn would be taking Holland's place as drummer. Shortly after, a new single "Misery" was released.
On August 7, 2017, The Word Alive and Daniel Shapiro mutually announced they were parting ways due to a "new musical adventure" of Shapiro's. The next day, The Word Alive announced that they would be joining I Prevail on their Rage on the Stage Tour along with We Came as Romans & Escape the Fate.
Made This Way
The Word Alive Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I still found the strength, hidden deep within me
And I can't, can't ever lose my voice
I learned how to block, block out all of the noise
And I found my place
In the empty spaces where my demons lay
No I don't believe that we as humans were meant to be afraid
I own my mistakes, you made me this way
I wear these scars
I know my mistakes, you can't take that away
I wear these scars
I wear these scars
You can't take that away
Away
It's so strange that I ended up here
And I never thought I'd make it through these years
And I found my place
In the empty spaces where my demons lay
No I don't believe that we as humans were meant to be enslaved
I wear these scars
I own my mistakes, you made me this way
I wear these scars
I know my mistakes, you can't take that away
I wear these scars
I wear these scars
You can't take that away
Most of these scars will fade away
But nothing hides the fact that you were my mistake
My mistake
I wear these scars
I own my mistakes, you made me this way
I wear these scars
I know my mistakes, you can't take that away
I wear these scars
I wear these scars
You can't take that away
I don't believe that we're defined by our mistakes
(I wear these scars)
And I can see that you think you've had all you can take
(I wear these scars)
I won't believe that we're defined by our mistakes
(I wear these scars)
I hope you see that, you're better off this way
In "Made This Way" by The Word Alive, the lyrics express a sense of resilience and self-empowerment in the face of adversity. The song begins by acknowledging that despite being underestimated and facing challenges, the singer discovers an inner strength that allows them to overcome and persevere. They refuse to be silenced or swayed by the negativity around them, choosing instead to block out the noise and find their own place, even in the midst of their own demons. The lyrics suggest that humans are not meant to live in fear and should not be enslaved by their past or mistakes.
The chorus emphasizes the idea of wearing scars as a badge of honor and taking ownership of one's mistakes. The scars, both physical and emotional, symbolize the challenges and hardships that have shaped the singer into who they are. They refuse to let anyone take away their growth and resilience. The lyrics also acknowledge that some scars may fade over time, but they cannot hide the fact that certain people or situations were mistakes made in the past.
The bridge of the song challenges the notion that individuals are defined solely by their mistakes. The singer asserts that they don't believe in being defined by their shortcomings and that others may see themselves as having reached their limit. However, the singer reminds the listener that they are better off embracing their scars and growth, ultimately implying that they have become stronger and more resilient through their experiences.
Line by Line Meaning
Even when you thought you had me beat
Even in the face of adversity when you believed you had defeated me
I still found the strength, hidden deep within me
I discovered the resilience and determination that lay concealed within me
And I can't, can't ever lose my voice
I refuse to let my voice be silenced or taken away
I learned how to block, block out all of the noise
I acquired the ability to ignore and disregard all the distracting influences
And I found my place
I discovered where I belong
In the empty spaces where my demons lay
In those vacant areas where my inner struggles resided
No I don't believe that we as humans were meant to be afraid
I firmly reject the notion that fear is an inherent characteristic of being human
I wear these scars
I proudly bear the evidence of my past battles
I own my mistakes, you made me this way
I take full responsibility for my actions, but it was your influence that shaped me
I know my mistakes, you can't take that away
I am aware of my missteps, and you cannot erase that knowledge
You can't take that away
You are incapable of removing that from me
It's so strange that I ended up here
It is remarkable how I arrived in this current state
And I never thought I'd make it through these years
I never envisioned myself surviving and thriving throughout these years
No I don't believe that we as humans were meant to be enslaved
I firmly reject the notion that humans were intended to be subjected to oppression and captivity
Most of these scars will fade away
The majority of these wounds will eventually diminish
But nothing hides the fact that you were my mistake
However, it is undeniable that you were a significant error in my life
I don't believe that we're defined by our mistakes
I do not subscribe to the belief that our mistakes shape our identity
(I wear these scars)
(I proudly bear the evidence of my past battles)
And I can see that you think you've had all you can take
I can perceive that you believe you have reached your limit
(I wear these scars)
(I proudly bear the evidence of my past battles)
I won't believe that we're defined by our mistakes
I refuse to accept that our mistakes determine our essence
(I wear these scars)
(I proudly bear the evidence of my past battles)
I hope you see that, you're better off this way
I genuinely desire for you to realize that you are in a more advantageous position now
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Tony Pizzuti, Zack Hansen, Daniel Shapiro, Luke Holland, Tyler Smith
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Blood/Lines
The best music I've ever heard from TWA honestly \M/ anyone else agree?
Matt Novak
This is prob their best album as a whole imo
EpyonRoyal
+Blood/Lines agreed
Jonathan Ortiz
Let it grow on you! It's kick ass album.
Gus Maia
+Blood/Lines it's a nice song but I still prefer Play The Victim and Life Cycles
Andromeda is Coming
@***** well im not actually using a real term, i just made up pop-metal to mean a VERY accessible type of metal that i can easily see people liking that don't even like metal. early atreyu is definitely metalcore. but their album lead sails paper anchor definitely came off as pop-metal more than metalcore. my friend who hates metal actually liked lead sails paper anchor. thats an example i would use in my defense.
funko_steph
I love Telle's vocals. Made This Way is such a good track.
Minecrafttroller420 666
Absolutely agree. This was live such a killer song; loved every second of it.
EpyonRoyal
+FunGhoul18 ikr
Nick Luciano
This album is going to be so fucking good. I don't think anyone can understand how hyped I am for this album. Like, the cleans are amazing. The diversity is amazing (We've had djent-ish, hardcore, now metalcore) what a comeback for TWA. Only album ive ever pre-ordered besides Ice Nine Kills