In 2000, Thrice signed with Sub City Records and released two LP's. The first, Identity Crisis (2000), only received 1.5 stars in the AMG review and little buzz. The second, The Illusion of Safety (2002), was widely acclaimed and received attention from major record labels. Even though Thrice's music has always included metal influences, The Illusion of Safety contained a heavier metalcore sound. The album was recorded in Beltsville, Maryland and the track The Beltsville Crucible reflects this.
In 2003 Thrice signed up with Island Records and released The Artist in the Ambulance, which featured more metal oriented songs while keeping true to their hardcore influences. In 2005 a DVD outlining their entire career to date was released under the title If We Could Only See Us Now. It included a CD with live tracks from the Apple Store and various b-sides.
Thrice released their fourth full-length album, Vheissu, on October 18, 2005. The album was characterized by many critics as being experimentally different, using non-traditional Thrice elements in the process. From keyboard melodies ("For Miles") to Japanese music-box undertones ("Music Box") to chain gang chant choruses ("The Earth Will Shake"), Vheissu introduced a new sound to the band's post-hardcore roots. UK producer Steve Osborne, whose past credits include many Brit-pop hits, was sought by Thrice to gain a new perspective on the songwriting process, enabling the band to expand their musical influences and produce a different album. The album garnered widespread critical acclaim and peaked at #15 on the Billboard 200.
The band releasedRed Sky, an EP comprised of various b-sides as well as live recordings, shortly after Vheissu.
Thrice released the first and second volume of The Alchemy Index, a highly experimental project based on the four traditional elements (fire, water, earth, and air), on October 16th 2007. Over the summer Thrice parted ways with Island records and signed with Vagrant. The Alchemy Index Vols. I & II - Fire & Water was released on October 16, 2007, and sold 28,000 copies in its first week. The album consists of the first two volumes, Fire and Water, and features 12 songs, 6 on each disk. The third and fourth volumes, Air & Earth were released on April 15, 2008.
The "Fire" disc features the heavier post-hardcore sound traditional Thrice fans will quickly embrace, harking back to their pre-Vheissu albums. The "Water" disc, however, is comprised of ambient songs similar to those found in Vheissu, Thrice's previous album release. The "Air" disc brings a whole new element of electronic elements and delayed guitar riffs to Thrice's sound. In "Earth", much like Dustin Kensrue's solo album, "Please Come Home", Thrice introduces an indie-folk sound combining intricate piano and acoustic guitar.
Thrice's sixth studio album Beggars was released digitally through Vagrant Records in the UK on August 9, 2009 and in the US on August 11 with a physical release containing bonus material pencilled in for September 15. These dates deviate from the original proposed release date of October 13 because of a leak via Vagrant Records web player, which has meant the artwork for the album has also changed. The first single to be taken from the album is All the World Is Mad and was first made available through Guitar Hero: World Tour on July 23.
Dustin Kensrue has described the album as being "more visceral and more raw - both in the songwriting and in the overall sound. It moves with a different energy than any of our past records. It was born out of us playing together in a room, almost as a backlash to the giant headgame that was The Alchemy Index" and has been well received critically.
The seventh studio album Major/Minor came out on September 20, 2011 through Vagrant Records. Yellow Belly, Promises and a few other songs were made available for the listeners to stream online before the release date. The album received extremely positive reviews from many online websites. Alex Djaferis of Absolutepunk.net gave Major/Minor a rating of 95%. Tracks like Promises and Listen Through Me reflected a natural progression from the sound Thrice created in Beggars, which was widely appreciated by the early listeners.
Thrice decided to take a break from being a full time band on November 21, 2011. In late spring/early summer Thrice announced the 'Farewell' tour for the spring/summer of 2012 , which would be the bands final tour before going into an indefinite hiatus.
In early 2015 it was announced that the band intends to release new music and tour again. Announcements were done via the bands website http://www.thrice.net/ and social media outlets with an accompanying picture with "Thrice 2015" text.
Digital Sea
Thrice Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Adrift in an open sea
Caught up in regrets
And tangled in nets
Instead of your arms wrapped around me
And I wept, but my tears are anathema here
Just more water to fill my lungs
I hear someone scream
I am drowning in a digital sea
I am slipping beneath the sound
Here my voice goes to ones and zeros
I'm slipping beneath the sound
A song from somewhere below
Deadly and slow begins
Both sickly and sweet
Now picking up speed
Ushering in the world's end
And the ghost of Descartes screams again in the dark
"Oh how could I have been so wrong?"
But above the screams the sirens sing their song
I am drowning in a digital sea
I am slipping beneath the sound
Here my voices goes to ones and zeros
I'm slipping beneath the sound
Here my voice goes to ones and zeros
[Repeat till the end]
The lyrics to Thrice's song "Digital Sea" portray the feeling of being lost and isolated in a world that seems to be drowning in technology. The opening lines describe the singer's vulnerability and desperation as they are adrift in an open sea, both physically and emotionally. The regrets of the past and the absence of a loved one compound their sense of loneliness. The sadness and hopelessness are magnified as the singer realizes that their tears have become useless in the digital sea they are drowning in.
The chorus speaks to the overwhelming nature of technological noise and how it drowns out the human voice. The distinction between the organic human voice and the cold, impersonal digitization of it is stark. The idea that one's "voice goes to ones and zeros" creates an eerie feeling of dehumanization and loss of individuality. The repetition of the chorus emphasizes the idea that the singer's voice, and by extension their humanity, is slipping away into the digital sea.
The second verse introduces a sense of impending doom, as if the world is hurtling towards some technological apocalypse. The imagery of a song, both sweet and deadly, picking up speed and ushering in the end of the world is haunting. The reference to Descartes highlights the danger of relying solely on reason at the expense of intuition and emotion. The final line of the verse, with its sirens' song, is an allusion to the mythological creatures that lured sailors to their deaths with their beautiful voices.
Overall, "Digital Sea" is a poignant commentary on the perils of technology and its effects on humanity. Thrice does an excellent job of capturing the struggle to maintain a sense of self in a world that becomes more automated and digitized by the day.
Line by Line Meaning
I woke, cold and alone
I woke up to the feeling of loneliness and isolation.
Adrift in an open sea
I felt lost and directionless, like being in an endless and vast ocean.
Caught up in regrets
I am consumed by feelings of remorse and disappointment with myself.
And tangled in nets
I am trapped in a web of my own negative expectations and patterns of thought.
Instead of your arms wrapped around me
I long for comfort and support, but I don't have someone to provide that for me.
And I wept, but my tears are anathema here
I cried, but even my sadness seems out of place and worthless in this environment.
Just more water to fill my lungs
My sorrow feels suffocating and overwhelming, and it's only getting worse.
I hear someone scream
Someone else is expressing their fear and distress, which only adds to the chaos around me.
"God what is it we have done?"
The person's cry reflects a sense of guilt and responsibility for causing this disaster.
I am slipping beneath the sound
I feel myself sinking deeper into the chaos and confusion around me.
Here my voice goes to ones and zeros
My thoughts and emotions are becoming increasingly abstract and digital, losing their human essence.
A song from somewhere below
A haunting melody emerges from the depths of the digital world.
Deadly and slow begins
The song sounds ominous and unsettling, like a death march into the unknown.
Both sickly and sweet
The melody is both alluring and repulsive, like a poison that tastes like honey.
Now picking up speed
The song becomes more frenzied and intense, like an approaching storm.
Ushering in the world's end
The song seems to announce a global catastrophe or apocalypse.
And the ghost of Descartes screams again in the dark
The philosopher's spirit symbolizes the struggle between mind and body, between rationality and chaos.
Oh how could I have been so wrong?
The question reflects the philosopher's sense of regret and uncertainty about his own ideas.
But above the screams the sirens sing their song
The alluring sirens' call represents the lure of technology and the illusion of control over our fate.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DUSTIN MICHAEL KENSRUE, EDWARD CARRINGTON BRECKENRIDGE, JAMES RILEY BRECKENRIDGE, TEPPEI TERANISHI
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
bashi
I woke, cold and alone
Adrift in an open sea
Caught up in regrets
And tangled in nets
Instead of your arms wrapped around me
And I wept, but my tears are anathema here
Just more water to fill my lungs
I hear someone scream
"God what is it we have done?"
I am drowning in a digital sea
I am slipping beneath the sound
Here my voice goes to ones and zeros
I'm slipping beneath the sound
A song from somewhere below
Deadly and slow begins
Both sickly and sweet
Now picking up speed
Ushering in the world's end
And the ghost of Descartes screams again in the dark
"Oh how could I have been so wrong?"
But above the screams the sirens sing their song
I am drowning in a digital sea
I am slipping beneath the sound
Here my voices goes to ones and zeros
I'm slipping beneath the sound
Here my voice goes to ones and zeros
Brittany Bolt
Underrated band.
Cheese Steak
I wish they weren’t because they’re fucking amazing
Leslie Martin
Totally anytime someone asks me my favorite band and I say thrice they're like oh I've heard of them and don't say anything else. I'm always like what the hell
Beezy Beez
This is so good but you must hear “Whispering Wolf” by SLT 🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺
Eventide
Not underrated in the early 2000s. You just had to be around for it...
bashi
I woke, cold and alone
Adrift in an open sea
Caught up in regrets
And tangled in nets
Instead of your arms wrapped around me
And I wept, but my tears are anathema here
Just more water to fill my lungs
I hear someone scream
"God what is it we have done?"
I am drowning in a digital sea
I am slipping beneath the sound
Here my voice goes to ones and zeros
I'm slipping beneath the sound
A song from somewhere below
Deadly and slow begins
Both sickly and sweet
Now picking up speed
Ushering in the world's end
And the ghost of Descartes screams again in the dark
"Oh how could I have been so wrong?"
But above the screams the sirens sing their song
I am drowning in a digital sea
I am slipping beneath the sound
Here my voices goes to ones and zeros
I'm slipping beneath the sound
Here my voice goes to ones and zeros
Pav
Alchemy Index is easily in my top favorite albums of all time 💙 Thrice has gone in a lot of different creative directions since I first started listening to them, and every one has been interesting. I also loved how this collection created a beautiful segue from the themes explored in Vheissu. There's something very intriguing and Jules Verne about the whole thing that has had an influence on my poetry and novel ideas.
Beezy Beez
This is so good but you must hear “Whispering Wolf” by SLT 🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺
Ithaqua
This was my first metal album. This song has stuck with me for over a decade, it's so good.
Supahfly
Thrice is not a metal band lol. But they're good nevertheless