Thirsty Merc have released one EP entitled First Work, and 3 studio albums; Thirsty Merc, Slideshows, and Mousetrap Heart. The band has sold over 200,000 albums, has toured extensively around Australia, and have received heavy airplay in Australia on an impressive number of songs. After breaking through onto the Australian music scene they were nominated for four ARIA Awards in 2005 and Rai was nominated for Song of the Year at the APRA Awards in 2008 for Thirsty Merc's top 2 airplay hit 20 Good Reasons. Their song In the Summertime was selected as the theme song for the Australian TV reality show Bondi Rescue and has been the theme song for seven consecutive seasons.
Three of the founding members of Thirsty Merc - Karl Robertson, Matthew Baker and Phil Stack - had played together in bands in Dubbo in regional NSW. In 2002 they teamed up with Sydney-sider Rai Thistlethwayte to form a band called "Thirsty"; soon after, they moved to Sydney and renamed themselves "Thirsty Merc". The band's name comes from a gas guzzling Mercedes Benz which belonged to lead singer Rai when the band was first rehearsing. The name also is a play on the phrase 'Thirsty Work:' The band members used to say that it was 'thirsty work' being in a rock band.
Thirsty Merc's first EP, First Work, was released on 8 September 2003 on the band's own label Don't Music label. The EP had been recorded independently during downtime at a studio that lead singer Rai worked during the days. The EP's only Single Wasting Time achieved radio airplay on Australian Radio stations Triple J and Nova but failed to chart. The self funded music video to the single became the 'ripe clip of the week' on Channel V. After extensive gigging around Sydney's pubs, reps from Warner Music approached the band after watching the band perform live at the Hopetoun Hotel in Surry Hills, and soon after at the Annandale Hotel.
Thirsty Merc's debut studio album was the self titled Thirsty Merc, released on 16 August 2004. The band again chose to work with Warner Music Australia. The album spent 48 weeks on the ARIA Albums Chart, peaking at #15, and launched the band in the Australian mainstream. The album reached #29 on New Zealand's RIANZ chart. The band worked with producer Lindsay Gravina on the album, who had been producing Australian bands over the past 15 years or so, notably The Living End and Magic Dirt. The band's debut was entirely recorded and mixed on 2 inch tape, and mixed by Gravina himself at his Melbourne studio, Birdland Studios.
Four singles were released from Thirsty Merc: Emancipate Myself, My Completeness, Someday, Someday, In the Summertime, and When the Weather Is Fine. All of the singles charted in Australia, with Someday, Someday reaching #19, while only In the Summertime charted in New Zealand, where it peaked higher than in Australia. In the Summertime was nominated for the 2005 ARIA Award for "Best Video", while Someday, Someday was nominated for "Single Of The Year", "Best Group", and "Best Pop Release". In interviews after the album's release, Thistlethwayte stated that the album was the band trying to "Just be yourself", and that the album was "just about being young and living in Australia".
Prior to the touring of Thirsty Merc's Debut album, guitarist Matt Baker left the band, and was replaced by Sean Carey, whom the band had met when they played a support slot to Carey's band at Kings Cross venue/club 'Club 77. Slideshows, was released on 21 April 2007 via Warner Music Australia. The album was the band's most successful release yet, peaking at #4 in Australia, although it was less successful in New Zealand, only reaching #38. The album's first three singles, 20 Good Reasons, The Hard Way, and Those Eyes, achieved chart success, with 20 Good Reasons reaching #4 in Australia and #17 in New Zealand. The album's fourth single, Homesick, was released digitally, peaking at #57 in Australia.
After the release of Slideshows, Thirsty Merc toured extensively around Australia, playing an album tour in theatres nationally and then regional tours, the biggest of which had 38 shows booked across seven weeks.
Prior to the recording of Mousetrap Heart, lead guitarist Sean left the band indefinitely and this was formally announced on 14 January 2010. Sean was replaced by Matt Smith, who also plays with afrobeat and reggae band The Strides.
On 18 June 2010, Thirsty Merc released their third album, entitled Mousetrap Heart which was recorded mostly in LA with producer Matt Wallace, and two tracks produced in Melbourne with longtime Thirsty Merc producer Lindsay Gravina. The band toured nationally in July 2010 to support the new album. The lead single is the title track, which reached top 15 airplay in Australia and charted Top 30 on the ARIA Singles Chart. The band's next single, All My Life, was featured in the promotional clips for the AFL grand final in 2010. The official music video for All My Life was shot in early October 2010 in Bangkok, Thailand, and follows a narrative of 'heroic love' set on a Thailand military base. The video features Russian model/actress Maria Mazikova, 50 Thai army troops, an Iroquois helicopter and a Chinook helicopter. The All My Life video was directed by Adrian Van de Velde, who also directed the bands ARIA nominated clip In The Summertime.
http://www.thirstymerc.com/
Emancipate Myself
Thirsty Merc Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
As if I'd sing that song to you,
you probably think you deserve it at the present time
But if only you knew how you treated me
when we were together then you might understand
Remember the time you made me wait for a month
but then the night you finished
you barred me from all your plans
and you went out with other people
Now I'll always give you the benefit of the doubt
and I think there's enough natural maturity floating around
for the tension and release time to even out
between two people like you and me
And I've been thinking and since we've broken up
I realised things were mostly in your favour
and a normal person wouldn't put up with this
but for some stupid reason I don't wanna move on
Now I'm stuck in a moment
It's bad for my health
But I'm gone
If I don't emancipate myself
Now I gotta say that all of this is coming down
on me like a tonne of bricks
at this present time, I don't have much cash
and I'm just trying to figure out the rest of my life
But I think a lot of people would agree that
all you need is a feeling of freedom
and when you're in emotional limbo
everything you think about and do is filtered through that
But I don't wanna make you unhappy or jealous in any way
because ultimately in life it's your own choice
who you surround yourself with
and I'm responsible for those things too
And I've treated people badly at times in relationships
and maybe what you're doing is some kind of payback
for all those past lives,
but that also doesn't change the fact that
Now I'm stuck in a moment
It's bad for my health
Now I'm gone
If I don't emancipate myself
There's no spirit to find me
And no wishing well
Well I'm gone
If I don't emancipate myself
Set me free
So whatcha gonna do now (you gonna keep me hanging on or something?)
You gonna keep me hanging on
You gonna keep me hanging on
You gonna keep me hanging on
You gonna keep me hanging on
You gonna keep me hanging on
'Cos I have a feeling it's all in my own mind
and if i have anything to do with it
knowing me I enjoy putting myself through this
kind of trauma to a degree
how 'bout you? Thought so
Maybe you shouldn't call me anymore
because I need some time to get to know myself again
and once again we say it's final
then I'm gonna miss you even more, even the most
But I don't want you to know that I'm missing you yeah
let's establish even more communication breakdown and wonder why
later on all the honesty and trust is gone between us
Now I'm stuck in a moment
It's bad for my health
Well I'm gone
If I don't emancipate myself
There's no spirit to find me
And no wishing well
Well I'm gone
If I don't emancipate myself
Gotta get out
(Chorus to fade)
The lyrics to Thirsty Merc's song "Emancipate Myself" address the feelings associated with a breakup and the desire for emotional freedom. The beginning of the song employs a sarcastic tone when the singer suggests the person they are addressing probably thinks they deserve a song written about them. However, the singer goes on to express the ways in which they were mistreated during the relationship and how the breakup has caused them to realize that things were mostly in their partner's favor.
The singer acknowledges their own responsibility for treating past partners poorly, but the focus of the song is on their need for independence and self-discovery. They express a desire to be free from emotional "limbo" and establish trust and honesty in future relationships. The song ends with a final plea for the singer to be set free from their emotional turmoil.
Overall, "Emancipate Myself" is a candid expression of the emotional complexity that often comes with the end of a relationship. It highlights the struggles to establish boundaries, move on, and ultimately find emotional freedom.
Line by Line Meaning
As if I'd sing that song to you,
It seems like I owe you an explanation, but I don't think you deserve it.
you probably think you deserve it at the present time
You may have a sense of entitlement right now.
But if only you knew how you treated me
If you knew how you treated me, maybe you would understand.
when we were together then you might understand
It's possible that you might understand how you hurt me if you reflected on our past relationship.
Remember the time you made me wait for a month
Recall when you made me wait for a whole month.
when you had exams which I was cool about
I didn't mind that you had exams to study for during that time.
but then the night you finished
However, the night you finished your exams,
you barred me from all your plans
you excluded me from all of your plans.
and you went out with other people
You went out with other people instead of spending time with me.
Now I'll always give you the benefit of the doubt
I will try to believe the best of you, even if you don't deserve it.
and I think there's enough natural maturity floating around
I believe that there is enough inherent maturity in us for a healthy, balanced relationship.
for the tension and release time to even out
I hope we can balance our time together and apart.
between two people like you and me
Especially between two people like you and me.
And I've been thinking and since we've broken up
I've been thinking a lot since we broke up.
I realised things were mostly in your favour
I realized that you had an unfair advantage in our relationship.
and a normal person wouldn't put up with this
Most people wouldn't tolerate this treatment.
but for some stupid reason I don't wanna move on
But for some reason, I don't want to move on from you.
Now I'm stuck in a moment
Right now, I feel like I'm stuck in place.
It's bad for my health
This is taking a toll on my well-being.
But I'm gone
I need to leave this situation behind.
If I don't emancipate myself
If I don't free myself from this situation.
Now I gotta say that all of this is coming down
I have to confess that everything is overwhelming me right now.
on me like a tonne of bricks
It feels like a huge weight on my shoulders.
at this present time, I don't have much cash
Currently, I'm not in a great financial situation.
and I'm just trying to figure out the rest of my life
I'm just trying to sort out the other aspects of my life too.
But I think a lot of people would agree that
I think many people would concur that
all you need is a feeling of freedom
All you really need is a sense of liberty.
and when you're in emotional limbo
When you're caught between emotional states.
everything you think about and do is filtered through that
Your mental state colors everything you do and think.
But I don't wanna make you unhappy or jealous in any way
I don't want to upset you in any regard.
because ultimately in life it's your own choice
Ultimately, you make your own choices in life.
who you surround yourself with
You decide who you want to associate with.
and I'm responsible for those things too
I'm accountable as well.
And I've treated people badly at times in relationships
I'll admit I haven't always been great in past relationships.
and maybe what you're doing is some kind of payback
Maybe what you're doing is a sort of payback for my past behavior.
for all those past lives,
For all the past relationships I messed up.
but that also doesn't change the fact that
But that doesn't mean that
Now I'm stuck in a moment
Right now I feel like I'm caught and can't move forward.
It's bad for my health
This is hurting my mental and emotional wellbeing.
Now I'm gone
Now I have to leave behind this situation.
If I don't emancipate myself
If I don't liberate myself from this toxic relationship.
There's no spirit to find me
I'm not feeling quite myself lately.
And no wishing well
I can't rely on a miracle to get me out of this.
Well I'm gone
I'm leaving this situation behind me.
If I don't emancipate myself
If I don't free myself from this bad relationship
Set me free
Please help me move on.
So whatcha gonna do now (you gonna keep me hanging on or something?)
I'm curious what your next move is going to be. Are you just going to keep me in this emotional limbo?
You gonna keep me hanging on
Are you going to perpetuate this uncertainty?
You gonna keep me hanging on
Are you going to dangle me along like this?
You gonna keep me hanging on
Are you going to keep me in suspense?
You gonna keep me hanging on
Are you going to prolong this emotional rollercoaster?
'Cos I have a feeling it's all in my own mind
I get the sense that most of this is my own doing.
and if i have anything to do with it
If I'm contributing to this mess.
knowing me I enjoy putting myself through this
I think I might be addicted to the drama and self-punishment.
kind of trauma to a degree
Like, I'm probably causing myself undue stress.
how 'bout you? Thought so
What do you think? I bet you feel the same way.
Maybe you shouldn't call me anymore
Maybe it's best for you not to contact me anymore.
because I need some time to get to know myself again
I need some time to focus on healing myself and rediscovering who I am.
and once again we say it's final
If we break up again and declare it final this time,
then I'm gonna miss you even more, even the most
I know I'm going to miss you a lot, to the point of longing for you.
But I don't want you to know that I'm missing you yeah
I won't let you know how much I miss you.
let's establish even more communication breakdown and wonder why
Let's keep failing to communicate and then complain about it later.
later on all the honesty and trust is gone between us
As a result, we'll lose our honesty and trust in one another.
Lyrics Š O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Xtremejess
If you ever get the chance to see them live DO IT!!! Best Live Act I've ever seen (twice thus far) in the last couple of years
@warrencramer4516
Agreed!! They've played a few times at my locals around Mornington and they just kick ass!!
@fionamudie1703
Amazing band. Used to follow them when I lived in Australia a long time ago. Quality!
@craigmatthew5295
Almost 12 years later and I'm just now hearing them? Gawd, these guys sound awesome.
@benjaminodonnell258
The song originally came out in 2004...
@waldohpepper5884
Same here! R.T is fabo, his solo work just as good.
@leichhardt1962
Great song. Very talented group. The music vid took all night to shoot - out in Parramatta if I remember...
@thesausage351
Damn man I remembering seeing Merc live when they toured for their first album, at the Toukley Beachcomber. Tiny little room packed tight, we were only a meter or so from the stage. It was awesome. Must be 15 years or more ago now.
@lauraz5951
Man, you guys were awesome. This song has such a stronger meaning now that im older. Love from The Gold Coast x
@blucat4
Another great song from this band that I just discovered tonight. This one sounds like the Foo Fighters. The guitarist is doing the Angus Young head bang. These are all good things. đ