They originally formed as a short-term project to last only as long as that summer. With bassist Joshua Weinstein and guitarist Michael Schipper, they began to play local shows and gained a dedicated following. When fans presented a high demand for recorded material, the band decided to establish itself as a serious music group. Trophy Scars signed to Brooklyn record label The Death Scene Recording Company in 2005 and with Small Town Records (UK) in 2007.
Their first full-length, Darts to the Sea, was recorded in John Ferrara's basement using primitive sound engineering equipment. It was released in 2003 and reissued in 2006 with a bonus disc containing b-sides and demos from 2003-04. Their second release, Hospital Music for the Aesthetics of Language, gained the attention of critics in 2004. The EP was their first recording with Chris Badami and saw the band taking an unconventional, progressive approach to post-hardcore. Their next EP was Goodnight Alchemy, released in 2005 through The Death Scene. It was markedly much more dense and heavy than its predecessor. 2006 saw the release of their second full-length album, Alphabet. Alphabets.. Trophy Scars demonstrated a conglomeration of different musical genres and styles while still retaining their unique take on post-hardcore. Following the release, the group became a full-time touring band when Jones graduated from Fordham University.
In 2009 they were no longer contractually obligated to either label, so they released all forthcoming material independently. In mid-2007, Trophy Scars rented a beach house in Charleston, South Carolina to begin work on their follow-up full length to Alphabets. The band was heavily influenced by the warm climate, the city's nightlife, and psychedelia. Yet again, Trophy Scars readjusted their sound; this time to a blues-centric style. Jones titled the album Bad Luck as a reaction to the death of his best friend, Ben Brown. Ironically, when the writing was completed for Bad Luck, the band invested their savings into a European tour, but was canceled last minute by the headlining act. Unable to get a refund on their European travel expenses and with their recording contract with the Death Scene dissolved, the band could not afford to tour or raise money for the album. The band was forced to go on an indefinite hiatus with no foreseeable plans to release Bad Luck. Trophy Scars fans, however, banded together and started the "Bad Luck Foundation," which allowed internet users to donate money to the band. Within a month, Trophy Scars was financially stable and able to record their third full-length. Bad Luck was self-released on March 10, 2009, and in January 2010 it was named the 10th best album of 2009 by popular music critic website, Sputnik Music.
Trophy Scars released an EP Darkness, Oh Hell in October 2010; it is a further throwback to blues rock and psychedelic rock of the late 1960s while maintaining a sinister edge. It was included in Sputnik Music's Top 50 Albums of 2010. They released a follow-up companion EP titled Never Born, Never Dead in July 2011. The concept revolves around the several lives of two souls fixed in love through reincarnation and is much more uplifting musically and lyrically. Although a departure in sound from the previous two releases, Never Born, Never Dead was met with strong praise and elected the #1 best EP of the year by Sputnik users.
The band announced their fourth full-length album Holy Vacants to be released on April 21 in the EU and May 6 in North America through Monotreme Records. The album is a linear concept involving a romantic couple who have discovered The Fountain of Youth in the blood cells of angels. Jones states the album was heavily influenced by an intense personal relationship, his brief relocation to Los Angeles, and film director David Lynch.
Good Luck
Trophy Scars Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Laughing in the rain they were heading towards
And they were yelling about something
They were singing and clinging from the light
Tender men on attendance just like them
We'll forget about the rest
They were searching for sunlight
So why catch a fever from the inside?
Dig my hand into my pocket
Open up my wallet
Such a strange gesture to make in this town
Sure aint gold but it gets me around
Can I grab a twenty from the inside?
Can't you just smell it?
Now spend it wisely
He looks up at me then back at the ground.
I just wish he would f**kin'turn right around
Now, I have talked to myself late at night
Oh I tried to connect with the ghost who was
My best friend
My brother
My accomplice
Another writer my best man
And sometimes, I feel so forgiven at night
I just put down my shades but I open my ways for the battle that just leads me
I hear ben tell me
"brother your problems all started in the summer of '98
In Northern New Jersey later in the day
I was thinking about a distance and unaccepting fate
I was fourteen years old but what else can I say?
Even then I knew time was gonna catch me
Imagine going to a private school in the summer of '02
My first true love left me and I didn't know what to do
I moved into New York and I thought I found the truth
A plain glass full of patties and pills we shouldn't chew
Well I swore that the drugs were gonna kill me
I was wrong I was wrong I was ready for. Dont try to blame me
because she was wrong
Didn't know she was unaffected
Heard all I wanted throuh a needle
I knew that the drugs were gonna kill her
Fast forward to the fall of '05
I met the girl of my dreams and she helped me to survive
Then she left my life at a complicated time
And in March of '06 I attempted suicide
Well, I know that sudifant can't kill me
Well maybe what I'll do
Ya, I'll apologize
Sorry mom and dad I never meant to make you cry
Thanks to all my friends you're the reason I'm alive
Wonder how I'm living in this rip we call time.
Well, it will take more than bad luck just to kill me
Lins and things and birds and sounds
I've got ten years of words buried in the ground
They're being reassembled by the ghost of Benny Brown
He's adapting the screenplay even still now
And he better cast someone cool like Johnny Depp to play me
Child took my twenty and he looked me in the eyes
He said "Thanks for the gold" and continued walking by
I could see him proudly show his friends it made me want to cry
'Cuz all I could do was think of my own life lucky guy
Thank you all for everything
I miss you all
Good Night.
The lyrics to Trophy Scars’ “Good Luck” are metaphoric and paint a picture of children running towards something promising and bright, while a man, who has lived through the ups and downs of life, searches for the same thing: a sense of purpose and meaning. The children represent innocence and hope, while the man represents regret and disillusionment. The first verse shows the children running in the rain, happy and carefree, while the man searches his pockets for something to get him by. The second verse shows the man talking to himself, trying to connect with a ghost who used to give him hope, while also reflecting on his past mistakes and the people he's lost along the way. The lyrics to the song express a longing for something more than what life is currently offering, but also an appreciation for the simple things in life.
Line by Line Meaning
Children running down the street in uniforms
Kids, dressed alike, sprinting under the rain
Laughing in the rain they were heading towards
The children ran toward something, joyfully and under precipitation
And they were yelling about something
Shouting words, but message is unclear
They were singing and clinging from the light
Harmonizing to music and grabbing onto illumination
Tender men on attendance just like them
Grown men there like before
We'll forget about the rest
Ignoring everything else
They were searching for sunlight
On a quest for rays
They were searching for gold
On a quest for wealth
So why catch a fever from the inside?
Why succumb to internal illness?
Dig my hand into my pocket
Plunge my hand inside my clothing pouch
Open up my wallet
Unseal my bill holder
Such a strange gesture to make in this town
An atypical action to perform here
Sure aint gold but it gets me around
It's not valuable metal, but it provides transportation
Can I grab a twenty from the inside?
May I obtain twenty currency from inside?
Can't you just smell it?
You don't detect it?
Now spend it wisely
Use it judiciously
He looks up at me then back at the ground.
He glances up then down
I just wish he would f**kin'turn right around
I desire him to immediately change direction
Now, I have talked to myself late at night
I converse with myself during the night
Oh I tried to connect with the ghost who was
I attempted to align with the spirit who was
My best friend
My closest ally
My brother
My sibling
My accomplice
My teammate in wrongdoing
Another writer my best man
Different wordsmith, my best male companion
And sometimes, I feel so forgiven at night
Occasionally feeling pardoned during the night
I just put down my shades but I open my ways for the battle that just leads me
I remove my glasses but pave my route for the struggle ahead
I hear ben tell me
I perceive Ben speak to me
"brother your problems all started in the summer of '98
Sibling, your predicaments began in '98 summer
In Northern New Jersey later in the day
In New Jersey's north later in the day
I was thinking about a distance and unaccepting fate
Reflecting on separation and an unfavorable destiny
I was fourteen years old but what else can I say?
I was only fourteen, what more can I add?
Even then I knew time was gonna catch me
I already knew time would eventually apprehend me
Imagine going to a private school in the summer of '02
Picture attending a private institute in '02 summer
My first true love left me and I didn't know what to do
My initial authentic romantic interest abandoned me, and confusion ensued
I moved into New York and I thought I found the truth
I relocated to New York and believed I discovered the veracity
A plain glass full of patties and pills we shouldn't chew
A clear container brimming with meat and drugs we shouldn't use
Well I swore that the drugs were gonna kill me
I asserted that the drugs were going to terminate me
I was wrong I was wrong I was ready for. Dont try to blame me
I was incorrect, I was ready, don't hold me liable
because she was wrong
Since she was mistaken
Didn't know she was unaffected
Unaware that she was unaffected
Heard all I wanted throuh a needle
Discovered what I desired through a syringe
I knew that the drugs were gonna kill her
I knew that the drugs were going to end her life
Fast forward to the fall of '05
Leap ahead to '05 fall
I met the girl of my dreams and she helped me to survive
I encountered the female of my dreams, and she sustained me
Then she left my life at a complicated time
Subsequently, she vacated during an intricate period
And in March of '06 I attempted suicide
In March of '06, I endeavored suicide
Well, I know that sudifant can't kill me
I am aware that sudifant is ineffective to bring my end
Well maybe what I'll do
Possibly, I'll do this
Ya, I'll apologize
Yes, I'll express remorse
Sorry mom and dad I never meant to make you cry
Apologies, parents, I didn't intend to evoke tears
Thanks to all my friends you're the reason I'm alive
Appreciation, friends, you kept me living
Wonder how I'm living in this rip we call time.
Curious how I'm existing in this time fracture
Well, it will take more than bad luck just to kill me
It requires more than misfortune alone to end me
Lins and things and birds and sounds
Lines, objects, animals, and noises
I've got ten years of words buried in the ground
A decade of language hidden in the soil
They're being reassembled by the ghost of Benny Brown
The phantom of Benny Brown reassembling them
He's adapting the screenplay even still now
He modifies the script currently
And he better cast someone cool like Johnny Depp to play me
He should select a stylish actor, like Johnny Depp, to portray me
Child took my twenty and he looked me in the eyes
A kid picks up my money, and meets my gaze
He said "Thanks for the gold" and continued walking by
He expressed gratitude and kept travelling
I could see him proudly show his friends it made me want to cry
It saddened me witnessing him flaunt it to his comrades
'Cuz all I could do was think of my own life lucky guy
Because the only thing I pondered was how fortunate he is, compared to me
Thank you all for everything
Thanks to everyone for everything
I miss you all
I long for everyone
Good Night.
Good night.
Contributed by Lincoln S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.