Thursday released their debut album, Waiting, in late 1999 with original guitarist Bill Henderson, who left the band in 2000 and was replaced by Steve Pedulla. The band gained popularity with the release of their second album, Full Collapse, in 2001, and released their third album and major label debut, War All the Time, in 2003, which reached number seven on the US Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Thursday released their fourth album, A City by the Light Divided, in 2006, and two further albums, Common Existence and No Devolución, before announcing an indefinite hiatus in 2011. In a January 2013 interview, Geoff Rickly confirmed that the band had actually disbanded. However, the band announced a reunion in 2016. Their reunion would conclude with a performance at Saint Vitus in Brooklyn, NY in March 2019.
The band has been considered influential to the post-hardcore music scene in the 2000s, and is credited as one of the key bands to popularize the darker emo sound and screaming vocals which came to prominence at the time.
Steps Ascending
Thursday Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The scent of matches hangs in the air
A lit on flickers out in a heart beat
We don't want to see this,
A flash of light that's letting go of an empty bullet case
By the time it hits the ground he's out of reach
(Let go, let go)
(Let go, let go)
Out reach
(Let go, let go)
out reach
(let go, let go)
Out reach
(Let go, let go)
(Out of reach)
The wolves are closing in
There's no room left to make amends
Do you remember when we'd fly that kite so high?
All the time we've wasted
(Wasted)
Spent fighting
(Fighting)
It's blood full of our regret
All the time we've wasted
(Wasted)
Spent fighting
(Fighting)
It's blood and it's running down the stairs
Freeze the frame
To the gun shot and the hole it makes
(A spinning bullet waits in the middle
There's no way to stop it
It will surely hit the mark)
You can try to understand but i'm giving up
Giving up
Giving up
They synapse fires, it's right on time, but i'm giving up
Giving up
(Giving up)
Giving up
Giving up
Giving up
This should always stay out of reach
(Let go, let go)
Out reach
(Let go, let go)
Out reach
(Let go, let go)
out reach
(let go, let go)
Out reach
(Let go let go)
The wolves are closing in
There's no room left to make amends
Do you remember when we'd fly that kite so high?
All the time we've wasted
(Wasted)
Spent fighting
(Fighting)
It's blood full of our regret
All the time we've wasted
(Wasted)
Spent fighting
(Fighting)
It's blood and it's running down the stairs
I ran down the stairs and into the garden
Put both my hands into the soil
In the spring you will bloom
Like her heart through the blouse in the back of the ambulance
As it turned and turned in the streets
(Out of reach, out of reach)
Just one more turn, won't you come back to me?
(Out of reach, out of reach)
As it turned on its red lights
(Out of reach, out of reach)
You were turning into red roses
Red roses
Red roses
Red roses
But I'm not giving up
The song "Steps Ascending" by Thursday is a poignant and evocative track that explores the theme of regret and the fleeting nature of life. The song opens with the image of someone ascending the steps to a loaded gun, with the scent of matches hanging in the air. The lyric suggests a sense of tension and danger, with the possibility of violence looming large. The next few lines depict a person flicking on a lighter, only for the flame to flicker out, resulting in an empty bullet case. The lyric seems to suggest that sometimes there are warning signs that something bad is about to happen, but people choose to ignore them.
The chorus of the song features the refrain "Outreach/Let go, let go," which seems to suggest a desire to let go of the past and move forward. This desire is reinforced by references to wasted time and regret, with the lyrics "All the time we've wasted (Wasted)/Spent fighting (Fighting)/It's blood and it's running down the stairs." The song's final verse introduces the image of someone putting their hands into the soil and planting a garden, offering a sense of hope and renewal in the face of regret and loss.
Line by Line Meaning
Steps ascend to a loaded gun
We are heading towards a situation where a gun is fully loaded and ready to fire.
The scent of matches hangs in the air
The smell of matches is perceptible in the surroundings.
A lit on flickers out in a heart beat
The flame of the lighter flickers out quickly and unexpectedly.
We don't want to see this,
We prefer to avoid the sight of the coming events.
A flash of light that's letting go of an empty bullet case
A bright light is emitted as the spent bullet ejects from the firearm.
By the time it hits the ground he's out of reach
Before the ejected bullet hits the ground, the person who fired it will be unreachable.
(Let go, let go)
An urgent plea to let go of the situation and prevent further harm.
The wolves are closing in
Danger is approaching rapidly.
There's no room left to make amends
It is too late to fix what has been broken.
Do you remember when we'd fly that kite so high?
Do you recall the pleasant moments we used to share?
All the time we've wasted
We have spent a lot of time on unproductive or harmful activities.
(Wasted)
An acknowledgement that time has been squandered.
Spent fighting
We have invested considerable effort in disagreements.
(Fighting)
A reminder that we have been engaged in a conflict.
It's blood full of our regret
Our remorse and sorrow are manifesting in our blood.
It's blood and it's running down the stairs
The blood is flowing down the stairs, symbolizing the aftermath of a violent altercation.
Freeze the frame
To pause the action and capture a moment.
To the gun shot and the hole it makes
A request to focus on the impact of the bullet rather than the shooter.
(A spinning bullet waits in the middle
Describing the bullet's trajectory as it is rotating and on its way to its target.
There's no way to stop it
There is nothing that can be done to prevent the bullet from striking its intended victim.
It will surely hit the mark)
There is no conceivable way that the bullet will miss its target.
You can try to understand but i'm giving up
Although an explanation is conceivable, the artist has no intention of providing one.
(Giving up)
Surrendering to the situation and letting it run its course.
They synapse fires, it's right on time, but i'm giving up
Even though the brain is functioning correctly, the artist feels hopeless.
(Giving up)
An admission that despite being functional, the singer feels powerless to bring about change.
This should always stay out of reach
Some things are better left untouched and unexplored.
(Let go, let go)
A plea to avoid further damage to oneself or others.
I ran down the stairs and into the garden
The artist is fleeing the scene of a violent encounter and seeks refuge in the garden.
Put both my hands into the soil
The artist is using the garden as a source of comfort and distraction from the turmoil of the outside world.
In the spring you will bloom
A hopeful sentiment that nature will recover and flourish despite being damaged in the past.
Like her heart through the blouse in the back of the ambulance
A reference to love and the fragility of life, symbolized by the heart beating rapidly and visibly through a blouse in a stressful moment.
As it turned and turned in the streets
As an ambulance wends its way through the maze of city streets.
(Out of reach, out of reach)
Acknowledging that some things are beyond our grasp or control.
Just one more turn, won't you come back to me?
A plea to reverse course and return to a state of harmony and happiness.
As it turned on its red lights
The flashing red lights of an ambulance or police car indicate an emergency in progress.
You were turning into red roses
Using the imagery of red roses to symbolize beauty and hope.
(But I'm not giving up)
A declaration that despite the many difficulties, surrender is not an option.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind