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.
Splitting Up
Tim Kasher Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I can push off what I put off 'til today
I can sleep it all away
I just can't bear your sad face
You said you're leaving next week,
That I shouldn't be worried with phone calls and letters
You said it'd be okay, but you didn't see it my way
No no, you don't know
You don't know any better
Well maybe I never really cared for you
And all the shit we struggled through for you
Fairy tales do not come true
Your prince is a prostitute
Bad luck comes in threes and you were the third in line
It was easy to charm me
You suction-cupped my heart, but you squeezed it too hard
Because you don't know
No no, you don't know
You don't know any better
You don't know any better
You don't know any better, no
You don't know any better
Well maybe splitting up is not so bad
I tried as hard as I can imagine
But I can't imagine me and you,
I'm not good with hippies
Said you'd be back in a month
As they'd say, it's one hour trust
Well trust is the tooth fairy-
Give a broken part of you, hope your dreams will pull through
Because you don't know
No no, you don't know
You don't know
No no, you don't know
You don't know any better
You don't know any better
You don't know any better
Any better
The lyrics to Tim Kasher's "Splitting Up" are about a relationship that is on the verge of ending. The singer is contemplating staying in bed and avoiding the issues that need to be dealt with. He can't face his partner's sad face and the impending breakup. His partner has already made up their mind about leaving but is trying to reassure him that everything will be okay. However, the singer is resentful and believes that his partner doesn't know any better. He questions whether he ever cared for his partner and if it was all just a struggle. He expresses the sentiment that fairytales don't come true and the prince is a prostitute. The singer believes that splitting up may not be so bad and he's not good with hippies. The trust has been broken, and he likens it to the tooth fairy, where he gives up a broken part of himself and hopes for his dreams to come true. The lyrics evoke a sense of sadness and resignation towards the end of the relationship, with the singer recognizing that the split might be for the best.
Line by Line Meaning
Maybe I don't have to get up today,
Perhaps I can avoid doing anything productive today,
I can push off what I put off 'til today
I can delay doing the tasks that I have been ignoring until today,
I can sleep it all away
I can escape from reality and responsibility by sleeping,
I just can't bear your sad face
I cannot tolerate seeing the sadness in your face,
You said you're leaving next week,
You told me that you will be leaving next week,
That I shouldn't be worried with phone calls and letters
You assured me that I do not need to concern myself with phone calls and letters from you,
You said it'd be okay, but you didn't see it my way
You said everything will be fine, but you did not understand my feelings about the situation,
Because you don't know
You lack knowledge or understanding of the situation,
No no, you don't know
I am emphasizing that you do not know,
You don't know any better
You are lacking knowledge or understanding of what is best,
Well maybe I never really cared for you
Perhaps I never truly had feelings for you,
And all the shit we struggled through for you
All the difficulties we went through for you,
Fairy tales do not come true
Happy endings are not guaranteed in real life,
Your prince is a prostitute
Your supposed soulmate is not what you thought they were,
Bad luck comes in threes and you were the third in line
Unfortunate events come in sets of three and you were the third one,
It was easy to charm me
You were able to seduce me easily,
You suction-cupped my heart, but you squeezed it too hard
You captivated my heart, but you hurt me deeply,
Well maybe splitting up is not so bad
Perhaps breaking up is not the worst thing that can happen,
I tried as hard as I can imagine
I tried my best,
But I can't imagine me and you,
I cannot envision us being together,
I'm not good with hippies
I cannot connect well with people who embrace a bohemian lifestyle,
Said you'd be back in a month
You said you would return in a month,
As they'd say, it's one hour trust
As people say, trust only lasts for a short time,
Well trust is the tooth fairy-
Trust is not real, like the tooth fairy,
Give a broken part of you, hope your dreams will pull through
Give a damaged version of yourself, and hope your desires will become reality,
You don't know
You lack knowledge or understanding of the situation,
No no, you don't know
I am emphasizing that you do not know,
You don't know any better
You are lacking knowledge or understanding of what is best,
You don't know any better
You are lacking knowledge or understanding of what is best,
You don't know any better, no
You are lacking knowledge or understanding of what is best,
You don't know any better
You are lacking knowledge or understanding of what is best,
Any better
You lack the knowledge or understanding of what is better,
Contributed by Annabelle Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@Zaechariah
Beautiful.
@driedtoast12
So glad I found this guy. Great song writer.
@lauraj.crawford2256
This is so lovely Tim, very moving. And a good music video too! I hope I can make it to one of your shows again some day, you’ve brought me so much joy with your music over the last 20 years.
@TheKewtestEVER
LIFELONG THE GOOD LIFE FAN <3 LOVE U TIM KASHER <3 THANKS FOR ALL THESE YEARS OF GREAT INDIE MUSIC
@rythelastman
The harmonies between Megan and Tim are straight up 🔥🔥🔥🔥
@michaelwandell2533
This song reaches me.
@prestonporter2707
I love this song so much. Thanks for all your efforts always, Tim.
@hawaiian32
Makes me think of lost love, someone in particular
@szczesciejestkoloruczarneg749
wzajemnie
@jessejarrar
Very deeply relevant on almost every line to me. I love to analyze my favorite music and I love finding artists that can write such relatable lyrics. No filler