Tilly and the Wall are an indie rock group which formed in Omaha, Nebraska,… Read Full Bio ↴Tilly and the Wall are an indie rock group which formed in Omaha, Nebraska, United States in 2001. The band consists of Derek Pressnall (vocals, guitar), his wife Jamie Pressnall (tap dancer), Neely Jenkins (vocals, bass), Kianna Alarid (vocals, recorder, bass) and Nick White (keyboards). The band has gained notoriety for having a tap dancer provide percussion instead of a drummer (although drums and drum machines are occasionally used on some of their recordings, and Pressnall is usually complemented by Alarid and Jenkins stomping on the floor). To date they have recorded four albums: Wild Like Children, Bottoms of Barrels, o and Heavy Mood. Their name originated from a children's book called Tillie and the Wall, written by Leo Lionni.

Tilly and the Wall sprang out of Omaha in 2001 - a Midwestern band of like-minded friends with pockets full of melodies, and a lot of pockets. The serendipitous result of five Omaha residents with a penchant for the same classic '60s pop, boy/girl harmonies and Americana folk records, Tilly and the Wall celebrates the petulant, determined, feisty nature of youth. They rejoice in tales of dreams followed, mistakes made, and hearts broken.

Tilly and the Wall released their debut album, Wild Like Children, in June 2004 on Conor Oberst's label, Team Love. Neely and Jamie were once in a band with Conor before he became known worldwide as Bright Eyes. Derek and Nick moved to Omaha from Atlanta, Georgia. Upon meeting, it was as if long-lost friends had found each other: without a doubt, the Tillys were born. Once the songs were written, Conor agreed to helm the production duties, and hence, Wild Like Children was unleashed on the world. As one of the first albums released on Team Love, Tilly and the Wall set a precedent for the label's identity: original, smart, exciting and, above all, easy to sing along to. The record consisted of 11 perfectly formed songs bursting with enthusiastic hyperactivity, while emanating a bitter sweet melancholy of long lost summers and misguided first loves. In front of a backdrop of sunshine, rain and snow, Tilly and the Wall sang songs about loving and kissing, dancing and drinking, staying and leaving, driving and talking, sleeping and dreaming, all set to the tap-tap-tapping of Jamie's toes. The press from sea to shining sea fell in love instantly.

And so, the Tillys went to meet their adoring fans, playing shows throughout America with the likes of Bright Eyes, Rilo Kiley, The Go! Team, Pedro the Lion, Of Montreal and more. When not on the road, the band began working on the follow-up to Wild Like Children, simply titled Bottoms of Barrels. Recorded over three weeks in October and November 2005, the album was recorded by AJ Mogis, brother and mixed by studio co-hort to Bright Eyes' Mike Mogis. Bottoms of Barrels sees the Tillys taking their signature sound to the next level. The choruses are more rousing, the tapping more intense, the instrumentation fuller, each sound painting broad brush strokes across your speakers. Longtime friend Nate Walcott contributes a bit of trumpet, while other friends have added drums, accordion and cello. A couple of tracks even feature the vocal styling of University of Nebraska's own choir Trip the Light Fantastic, bolstering Neely and Kianna's dulcet harmonies. Bottoms of Barrels fully demonstrated the importance of Tilly’s “we” perspective – with a gang full of voices, the band made strong declarations about love, freedom and their own place in the world. The album took the band on travels they had only dreamt about, resulting in extensive tours throughout Europe, Australia, Japan and even Iceland. They also played their first-ever sets at major music festivals, including the Reading/Leeds Festival, Coachella and Japan’s Summer Sonic. By the middle of 2007, they returned home to Omaha to begin work on their next long-playing record, having amassed legions of fans, as well as frequent flyer miles, across the entire globe.

Their 2008 record, which has no title but is represented by the shape o (the cut-out shape framing the handmade cover artwork for the record), was produced by acclaimed producer Mike Mogis through the harsh Nebraska winter of 2007. o sees Tilly and the Wall redefining their sound, taking bigger, bolder steps towards experimentation while maintaining the elements that have always made them who they are. o draws on everything from nature to magic, from sex to astrology, with a larger focus on percussion, rhythm, harmonies and kaleidoscopic melodies, yet ultimately still sounds like our five musical friends from Omaha.

Their album Heavy Mood was released in 2012. They broke up soon after that. Vocalist Kianna Alarid joined the Kansas City band Yes You Are. A retrospective album I Want to F*ck It Up (Tilly and the Wall 2002-2013) is planned for 2020 on the Team Love label.

Heartbeats
Tilly and the Wall Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Slow, keep it, slow down
Keep it so I won't stay up all night
Cold, keep it cold now
Keep me still, wrapped up quiet in light

When will the sea have the land?
When will the old sun have the sky?

One by one, days as heavy as glass
Cleave the past, flicker strangely like accidents
(push all the heartbeats down for love)
leaving circles around cracks
(push all the heartbeats down for love)
around steels and concretes
Oh, I've fallen apart
(fallen apart)
as lost as leaves, as far as stars
(as far as stars tear)
the cracks of silence terrify me
Wake up for me now

When will the sea have the land?
When will the gold sun have the sky?

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Tilly and the Wall's song "Heartbeats" convey a sense of yearning for stillness in a turbulent world. The singer pleads to "slow down," to "keep it cold now," in order to find peace and stillness. She longs for a world that is whole and complete, where the sea has the land and the old sun has the sky. The imagery of days as heavy as glass and flickering strangely like accidents conveys a sense of instability and unpredictability. The refrain "push all the heartbeats down for love" suggests that the singer is trying to suppress her own emotions in order to find stability.

The final lines of the song reveal the depth of the singer's anxiety: "the cracks of silence terrify me / Wake up for me now." She is afraid of the empty spaces between words and sounds, where her own thoughts and fears can take hold. Ultimately, the song is about a universal desire for stillness and stability in a chaotic world.

Line by Line Meaning

Slow, keep it, slow down
I want you to slow down so I can keep my emotions in check.

Keep it so I won't stay up all night
If you keep it slow, it will prevent me from overthinking all night.

Cold, keep it cold now
I need distance in order to remain level-headed.

Keep me still, wrapped up quiet in light
I want to be kept calm and content in the warmth of your presence.

When will the sea have the land?
When will the impossible be possible?

When will the old sun have the sky?
When will the world be right again?

One by one, days as heavy as glass
Days feel like a heavy burden that won't go away.

Cleave the past, flicker strangely like accidents
The past is a sharp, painful memory that keeps coming back.

(push all the heartbeats down for love)
Suppressing my feelings is what I have to do to be in this relationship.

Leaving circles around cracks around steels and concretes
Our relationship is built on a weak foundation that could easily break.

Oh, I've fallen apart
I have lost myself in this relationship.