VHS's three core members have played music together for most of their lives. James Bohannon and Conor Cook went to middle school together in New York City, while James went to high school with Nils Vanderlip where they started their first band.
In 2015 VHS formed, based initially around home recordings which the band posted on Soundcloud. VHS began performing around NYC's lower east side rock clubs, eventually selling out several shows at the Mercury Lounge that year. In 2015, they released their debut EP whose lead single "Lean" rose to #8 on the Spotify Viral charts. In 2016, VHS released Stereo Hype, which included the indie hit “Waiting on the Summer." VHS performed at major festivals that year including Lollapalooza and ACL. The band continued to release singles and tour leading up to the release of their debut LP Retrofuturism in November 2018. VHS's songs have also been featured in Shameless, Sunday Night Football, Love, You, and dozens of other TV shows.
The Longest Drive
Vhs Collection Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And we've gone mad
We are alone, lone, lone
Not wishing you were coming back
And we run
When things get bad
We're diving deeper into nothing
Now we're sinking fast
One more show
I can't fake it
I can't make it
Too young to be getting old
No, no I can't take it
I can't make it
I have lost control
Had my fun
I've stayed on track
I bought a brand new home
Just so I could paint it black
We are done
We're futures past
We never said we would serve anyoneOr that we'd ever come back
One more show
I can't fake it
I can't make it
Too young to be getting old
No, no I can't take it
I can't make it
I have lost control
I've gone too far
The longest road
From my head is to my heart
I'm in too deep
And I've gone mad
The longest drive that I'm ever gonna have
I hear what you say
To me this time
I hear what you say
To me this time
Slippin away, away, away from me tonight
Slippin away, away, away from me tonight
One more show
I can't fake it
I can't make it
Too young to be getting old
No, no I can't take it
I can't make it
I have lost control
I've gone too far
The longest road
From my head is to my heart
I'm in too deep
And I've gone mad
The longest drive that I'm ever gonna have
One, one, one
One, one, one
More show
One, one, one
More show
The lyrics to VHS Collection's song "The Longest Drive" speak about the tumultuous journey of youth, the uncertainty and recklessness that comes with it, and the eventual realization that it may lead to losing control.
The opening lines "we are young, and we've gone mad" sets the tone for the song. The singers proclaim that they are alone, without wishing for anyone to come back, and that they run away when things get tough. They are diving deeper into nothing and sinking fast. They talk about how they cannot make it, how they have lost control, and that they are too young to be getting old. They have gone too far, and the longest road is the one from their head to their heart.
In the chorus, they repeat the phrase "One more show," indicating perhaps a final performance or a last hurrah, where they can no longer fake or make anything out of their lives, having lost control completely. The song ends on a somewhat hopeful note, with the singers hearing what someone is saying to them, and yet feeling like they are slipping away.
Overall, "The Longest Drive" is a song that expresses the angst, turmoil, and eventual reckoning that comes with youth, and how it can lead to a loss of control and a realization of one's own limitations.
Line by Line Meaning
We are young
We are not old, we're at the start of our lives.
And we've gone mad
We're feeling unruly and wild.
We are alone, lone, lone
We've chosen to lead solitary lives.
Not wishing you were coming back
We're not looking for someone to come back into our lives.
And we run
When things get tough, we choose to flee.
When things get bad
We tend to avoid unpleasant situations.
We're diving deeper into nothing
We're headed towards something that's empty and meaningless.
Now we're sinking fast
We're going downhill rapidly.
One more show
We have one more performance left.
I can't fake it
We can't pretend anymore.
I can't make it
We can't continue on this path anymore.
Too young to be getting old
We feel like we're too young to be losing our youth.
No, no I can't take it
We can't handle this anymore.
I have lost control
We feel like we're not the ones in control of our lives anymore.
Had my fun
We already had our share of fun.
I've stayed on track
We've always tried to stay on the right path.
I bought a brand new home
We invested in something new and exciting.
Just so I could paint it black
We wanted to add our own unique touch to it.
We are done
We've finished and moved on.
We're futures past
We live in the present but know the future isn't promising.
We never said we would serve anyone
We never promised or committed to serve anyone, we're free.
Or that we'd ever come back
We have no intention of returning.
I've gone too far
We've gone farther than we intended to.
The longest road
The path we're on is long and challenging.
From my head is to my heart
Our emotions are becoming too hard to control.
I'm in too deep
We're inside of something we can't get out of.
And I've gone mad
We feel like we're slowly losing our mind.
The longest drive that I'm ever gonna have
The journey ahead is going to be long and hard.
I hear what you say
We're finally listening.
To me this time
We're taking your words seriously now.
Slippin away, away, away from me tonight
We're beginning to lose everything.
One, one, one
We only have one more thing to do.
More show
We have one more opportunity to show what we're capable of.
Contributed by Chase G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@nicholasjones5995
The album is phenomenal. The fact that this only has 24k views just proves how much of the record industry is built on promotion. This band is not getting the recognition they deserve.
@LozzyMorgan
Literally wtf
@hwanggummy5018
Have this on repeat every time I take the subway
@abbeynagi8771
Hows every song a banger!
@veryawful861
Hella underrated
@codytyler10
Thank You Shameless for turning me onto this band.
@randomania6946
So underrated
@GuileTheGoat
I love underrated music! When I let people listen to it they'll be like "How come I've never heard of this before?!" and then you start to feel like a real hero for bringing such rare treasure of music to other their ears <3
@freshhh_prince
Miguel Sarne same
@BUILDINGFUTUREX
GOD! just 17k views? what happend with the world?