Matt and Keith together played all the instruments appearing on that album, with its name taken from 'The Hobbit' by J.R.R. Tolkien, though they both mostly played acoustic guitar. Both also contributed to writing all the songs and both sang for 'There and Back Again'. The duo toured for several years after this, mostly appearing with similar bands such as Jackopierce. By 1995, they were ready to record again. The resulting album, titled 'Running on Ice', again had Matt and Keith playing acoustic guitar and singing, but it also featured the addition of other guest musicians to play other instruments. Guests included members of Jackopierce band as well as Carter Beauford (of the Dave Matthews Band) on drums.
More touring followed, and soon Matt and Keith were joined by Ed Toth on drums. In 1997, a live album, Live Stages, was released. This featured Matt, Keith, and Ed, as well as Ryan Fisher on bass. Live Stages signaled a departure from the original acoustic guitar-based music, and featured heavy emphasis on electric guitar. Also, by this time, the band was explicit in their intent to find a major record label; band members have said that it was no accident that the first track of Live Stages opens with the sounds of a large cheering audience. Their wishes came true, and the band was signed to RCA Records.
Ryan had never intended to join the band permanently, so the three other members held auditions for a permanent bass player. Their first audition was Sean Hurley, and everyone liked him immediately. There were many more auditions, but they eventually came back to Sean, and he officially joined Vertical Horizon.
The band's major label debut, "Everything You Want", was released in 1999. The title track, released as the second single from the album, skyrocketed up the charts and ended up as one of the most played tracks on radio in 2000. One of the stand out tracks "You're A God" got on several compilation CD's and featured in the Box Office smash Bruce Almighty
The follow up to "Everything You Want", titled "Go", was delayed several times until finally being released in 2003. "I'm Still Here", the first single from Go, was released with little fanfare and faded quickly. VH ended their relationship with RCA in 2004 and re-signed with Hybrid Recordings. "Go" was re-released with an additional track in 2005. A second single, "Forever", was released prior to the re-release and received moderate airplay but did not match the earlier success of Everything You Want.
In 2005, drummer Ed Toth got what he considered the dream gig of a lifetime when he was invited to join the Doobie Brothers following the death of drummer Keith Knudsen. While Toth had hoped to juggle both bands, he quickly realized it would not be possible and announced his departure from Vertical Horizon in July 2005.
In 2007, realizing as Matt says, “there was more to do” and “thinking the timing was just right to start working on a new album,” the band began writing and recording, Burning The Days. The album is slated for release on September 22, 2009 with the first single, “Save Me From Myself” recently sent to radio. The single has been extremely well-received and is currently climbing the Hot AC charts with strong airplay in McAllen, Modesto, Monterey-Salinas, El Paso, and New Orleans.
Independent of label constraints, Burning The Days was produced by Scannell and recorded at his studio over the course of the past 2 years. For the band, it was a complete return to their beginnings of working at their own pace and “nurturing those moments of inspiration.” According to Matt, the album is “sonically as good as anything we have ever done. I take great pride in this album and feel that our renewed sense of creativity will resonate with our fans.” The album also features virtuoso drummer Neil Peart of Rush on “Save Me From Myself,” “Even Now” and “Welcome To The Bottom” as well as Richard Marx playing piano on “Here” and producing two of Matt’s lead vocal tracks.
“I’m actually in a pretty positive place right now,” says Scannell. “Of course I still have that underlying fear of everything falling apart and crumbling to the floor, but it is not the first thing on my mind, like it’s been at times in the past.” And so one of the main themes of Burning The Days is about finding balance in a journey from hardship to peacefulness – knowing that the up must follow the down, and vice versa. “It’s about being okay with things going well, and also finding strength to get through the tough times.”
The first single, “Save Me From Myself,” is about “the danger of getting so lost in your own struggles and personal demons that you can’t help the people you love, and you won’t let the people you love help you. You’re too far away in your own head to do anything but spin off in self-criticism and doubt. There’s a lot of anger and frustration in that song.” Conversely, “The Lucky One” is one of the album’s most upbeat tracks, a fact that took the song’s author a bit of time to get used to. “I’m usually wary of songs that have really upbeat messages, but this song resonated for me because I tend to be the last one to believe when things are really going well. Songs where everything is perfect and everyone’s in love make me suspicious, but this song has enough of a gray area to feel real for me.”
Other highlights on the album are “Afterglow,” “All Is Said And Done” and “The Middle Ground.”
To support the album’s September 22nd release, the band plans on doing targeted performance dates throughout the summer with a nationwide tour in the fall.
Offical web site: http://www.verticalhorizon.com
Call it Even
Vertical Horizon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But I'd no idea
What you were hiding
So now I'm holding the bag and it's heavy
And the conversation stopped
So much for friendly
At making small talk when I should
But you have one advantage over me
At times like this I am lost at sea
[Chorus]
Why can't I see it for what it really is
And know it like I know my name
And if it's all the same I don't like this game
So let's pack it up
And call it even
Well I'm not the type to speak
Just to hear my voice
And I'm sure you'd hear me out
If you had the choice
But your words keep coming out
Never ending
And I wonder if I'd have to shout
The message I'm sending
And if I told you I was dying of thirst
And the sky was falling just to make it worse
Would you just smile and continue on
As if your mouth had a race to run
[Chorus]
Well I'm glad we had this talk
I feel better
And if I've something else to say
I'll write a letter
And if I told you you were not very good
At hearing others when you really should
Would you just smile and push me away
You can't be bothered there's still words to say
[Chorus]
Let's just call it even, even, even
The lyrics of "Call it Even" by Vertical Horizon explore the challenges of communication in relationships. The singer tries to get through to a person they are in conflict with, but their attempts at conversation are met with resistance. The first verse describes how the singer tries to reach out to the other person but feels like they are not being heard. The weight of their unspoken words is metaphorically represented as a heavy burden that they are carrying. The second verse features the singer expressing frustration about the other person's inability to listen. They feel like their own voice is being drowned out by the other person's never-ending words. The final verse suggests that the conversation is going nowhere, and the singer resigns themselves to the fact that they will have to find a different way to get their point across.
The chorus of "Call it Even" reflects the singer's desire to have more straightforward communication. Their frustration is palpable as they ask why understanding the situation can't be as simple as knowing their own name. They express a willingness to end the relationship if that's what it takes to resolve the conflict. The repeated phrase "let's call it even" conveys a sense of being exhausted by the back-and-forth of the argument.
Overall, the song's lyrics find the singer trying to communicate with a person they care about deeply but are struggling to have a constructive conversation with. The frustration they feel is conveyed through the metaphor of a heavy burden that they are carrying, the idea that they are lost at sea, and the sense of resignation that comes through in the final verse.
Line by Line Meaning
I saw an open door and I looked inside it
I noticed an opportunity and explored it
But I'd no idea
But I wasn't aware
What you were hiding
What you were keeping from me
So now I'm holding the bag and it's heavy
So now I'm carrying the burden and it's difficult
And the conversation stopped
And the discussion came to an end
So much for friendly
It's not so friendly anymore
And if I told you I was not very good
And if I admitted I wasn't skilled
At making small talk when I should
At making casual conversation when appropriate
But you have one advantage over me
But you have a superiority over me
At times like this I am lost at sea
I feel completely out of my depth in situations like this
Why can't I see it for what it really is
Why can't I perceive the situation objectively
And know it like I know my name
And understand it completely
And if it's all the same I don't like this game
And if it's all equal, I don't enjoy this situation
So let's pack it up
So let's end this situation
And call it even
And consider it a fair exchange
Well I'm not the type to speak
Well, I'm not one to talk excessively
Just to hear my voice
Just to hear myself talk
And I'm sure you'd hear me out
And I'm confident you would listen to me
If you had the choice
If you had the chance
But your words keep coming out
But you keep talking incessantly
Never ending
Continuously without pause
And I wonder if I'd have to shout
And I wonder if I'd have to raise my voice
The message I'm sending
To convey the message I'm trying to communicate
And if I told you I was dying of thirst
And if I informed you that I was extremely thirsty
And the sky was falling just to make it worse
And everything was going wrong to compound the issue
Would you just smile and continue on
Would you simply smile and ignore me
As if your mouth had a race to run
As if you were in a hurry to talk excessively
Well I'm glad we had this talk
I'm pleased we had the opportunity to discuss this
I feel better
I feel more at ease
And if I've something else to say
And if I have anything else to express
I'll write a letter
I'll convey my message in written form
And if I told you you were not very good
And if I mentioned that you weren't very skilled
At hearing others when you really should
At actively listening when it's necessary
Would you just smile and push me away
Would you simply ignore me and dismiss my comment
You can't be bothered there's still words to say
You aren't interested and want to keep talking regardless
Let's just call it even, even, even
Let's consider this an equal exchange and move on from this situation
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: MATT SCANNELL, MATTHEW B. SCANNELL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind