Kasher has a very close relationship with Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes. They grew up in Nebraska together, went to the same Catholic high school, Creighton Prep. It is rumored that Tim taught Oberst to play guitar. In the Bright Eyes song, "Nothing Gets Crossed Out" Oberst sings, "yeah Tim I heard your album and it's better than good. When you get off tour I think we should hang and black out together." (referring to the album Black Out by The Good Life, released in 2002 on Saddle Creek Records.) Furthermore, Oberst later sang backup on the song "Staying Alive," from Cursive's 2003 effort The Ugly Organ.
Kasher temporarily disbanded Cursive after the departure of guitarist Steve Pedersen (who left to pursue a law degree at Duke University. He now leads the Saddle Creek band Criteria). He married and moved to Portland, Oregon. According to interviews, Kasher went through a bitter divorce in 2000, which led to the regrouping of Cursive, as well as providing the inspiration for The Good Life album Black Out, and Cursive's Domestica.
The Good Life was originally planned to be a solo project. Kasher wanted to experiment with different types of lyrics and melodies. He released Novena on a Nocturn on Better Looking Records. He then recruited Ryan Fox, Roger Lewis and Stephanie Drootin into the band and released Black Out, Lovers Need Lawyers EP and Album of the Year.
Kasher created a another record with Cursive which was released in August 2006, entitled Happy Hollow. In 2009, Cursive released their latest effort, 'Mama, I'm Swollen'. The Good Life, despite a near breakup in late 2005, returned to the studio to release the album, 'Help Wanted Nights' in September 2007.
Under his own name, Tim Kasher recorded a song called "Stranger Than Strangers" which was released on a compilation CD called "My Favorite Songwriters." He released the solo album 'The Game of Monogamy' in 2010, and a follow-up disc of songs from that session called 'Bigamy', in 2011.
An Answer for Everything
Tim Kasher Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Chuck your compass at the unknown
You should shoot out every star
All they've gotten you is lost
They burned out so long ago
Those twinkly little lights
We hung from the window sill
Our first studio
We barely could make the rent
So we held our world on a string
We had an answer for everything
You kept those dirty polaroids
In an atlas under your mattress
On the page for Illinois
They probably should have been destroyed
Yet you kept them, how very tragic
That road trip to Champaign
We stayed at your sister's place
On a pull-out bed
An engagement ring hidden in my dopp kit
We were young and dumb and free
We had an answer for everything
Everything, now here we are
Broken down as two prisoners
Constant questioning has left us embittered
In youth we held the keys
We had an answer for everything
The song "An Answer for Everything" by Tim Kasher is a melancholic reflection on growing older and realizing that the confidence and certainty of youth have faded away. The opening lines encouraging the listener to abandon their instruments of exploration - the telescope and compass - indicate a sense of disillusionment with the idea of searching for answers. The next lines about shooting out stars suggest that the singer has given up on finding meaning or direction in the cosmos. He sees little value in seeking answers to the big questions in life, as he has learned that they only lead to being lost.
The following verses delve into memories of young love, when the singer and his partner were struggling artists living in a small apartment. The mention of their makeshift studio and hanging lights indicates a sense of hope and creativity in the face of hardship. However, the final line of the verse, "We had an answer for everything," suggests that even then, the couple was overly confident in their ability to control their destiny and find success. This belief in their own answers to life's challenges was perhaps a coping mechanism for the uncertainty and insecurity of their situation. Yet, as they got older and faced greater challenges, their solutions no longer held up.
The final verse expresses a sense of regret and bitterness at the loss of that youthful confidence. The lines, "Broken down as two prisoners / Constant questioning has left us embittered," indicate a sense of being trapped in their own doubts and regrets. The final line, "We had an answer for everything," is now a statement of irony. It reveals that their youthful belief in their own solutions was short-sighted and naive. The song is a poignant reminder that growing older often means realizing that the answers we thought we had were not solutions at all.
Line by Line Meaning
You should fold up your telescope
You should stop looking for answers
Chuck your compass at the unknown
Stop trying to predict the unpredictable
You should shoot out every star
Stop holding onto false hope
All they've gotten you is lost
They have only led you astray
They burned out so long ago
They have been useless for a while now
Those twinkly little lights
The stars we used to gaze at
We hung from the window sill
We used to watch them from our apartment
Just above our bed
The stars were visible from our bed
Our first studio
Our first apartment
We barely could make the rent
We were struggling financially
So we held our world on a string
We relied on our love to get us through tough times
We had an answer for everything
We thought we could solve everything together
You kept those dirty polaroids
You kept those old pictures
In an atlas under your mattress
You hid them in a book under your bed
On the page for Illinois
In the part of the book that shows a map of Illinois
They probably should have been destroyed
Those pictures were inappropriate and should have been disposed of
Yet you kept them, how very tragic
You kept them despite the emotional pain they caused
That road trip to Champaign
Our trip to Champaign, Illinois
We stayed at your sister's place
We slept at your sister's house
On a pull-out bed
We slept on a couch that pulled out into a bed
An engagement ring hidden in my dopp kit
I had an engagement ring hidden in my toiletry bag
We were young and dumb and free
We were young and carefree
Everything, now here we are
After everything, this is where we are now
Broken down as two prisoners
Our relationship has fallen apart
Constant questioning has left us embittered
Our constant questioning of each other has made us bitter
In youth we held the keys
In our youth, we felt like we had control over everything
We had an answer for everything
We thought we had solutions for everything
Lyrics © ROUGH TRADE PUBLISHING
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Amanda ⭐️
gorgeous. the song and the video, both.
idontimagineyouandi
oh wow, i didn't even know this song had a video. definitely the best new solo song ever, tim. the first day i heard it, i watched that 'audiotree' live version 15 times in a row while crying harder than i've ever cried to a song. very relevant to my current relationship with a person i've only talked to for 9 years, that we also broke up (after waiting 3 years just to meet her in person) before i could even show her the engagement ring i picked out for her almost 7 years ago...
theexplosion
SUCH A GENIUS IN SONGWRITING!
Todd Michael Johnson
I'm super excited for this album....only a few more days!
take shelter
amazing!
Luna Vigil
I hate the fact that this video will likely be misinterpreted and discarded quickly once people have gotten bored with it, art like this deserves more than shallow enjoyment.
Daniel Cropp
Do you still feel this way?
Ryan Morrissey
Here before a million views
Daniel Cropp
Might be waiting a while.