The End is Here by Five Iron Frenzy.
A little bit of background. FIF is an immensely popular Christian ska band. They recently decided to call it quits, and went on one last tour. The album for the tour was called The End Is Near. It was later packaged with a recording of their last concert in their home town of Denver, and the whole thing is called The End Is Here.
To begin with: I will review all or most of the songs on the End Is Near album, and finish with a review of the End Is Here concert recording. But I'll not do it all at once because long blogposts are annoying.
So. The first song is:
1. Cannonball
Wind passes right through my skin as I fall down, this furious speed will only destroy me.
Crippling and devastating momentum, approaching maximum velocity.
And this is how it's going to be, the point of it all.
'Cause this is what was meant for me, recklessly I fall.
Hulking, smashing, I come crashing, nothing like when I was small.
I am unstoppable, I am the cannonball.
That feeble coward that you knew, has undergone an overhaul.
I am unstoppable, I am the cannonball.
Thirty-two feet per second I increase, as the exponents will multiply.
I'll never stop to look back behind me, cutting through the bright blue sky.
And this is how it's meant to be, untethered I will soar.
I'll barrel towards the earth below, it's what I was made for.
And everyone will say it's just an accident, like some mishap or a tragedy.
I think that failure has a purpose, and I don't believe it's chance if I fall.
And I know that if I ever do fall, He will catch me.
And if He ever lets me fall down, for the good of those who believe Him,
He will make me into a cannonball.
Unblemished, and faultless. A burning luminescence.
Unequaled precision, beyond your scope of vision.
Cannonball.
Music: Dennis, Leanor and Reese
Words: Reese
A good song musically, though not one of their all-time best. The song deals with the inevitability of failure, and the knowledge that God uses even our falls. It is an acceptance of this knowledge and a willingness to sacrifice self if something can be made of that sacrifice. It's a theme that runs through the whole album: a sadness of sorts at what could be perceived as failure, but the knowledge that this "failure" is really an act of God, working out His plan.
I'm not going to review song 2 on the album, "At Least I'm Not Like All Those Other Old Guys." It's a funny song, and entertaining, but there's not too much to say about it.
3. So Far, So Bad
We thought we'd write a song about all of the problems inherent in the industry,
it was going to be an exposé written in unblemished symmetry.
We were going to have our glorious exit, an admonition and an encore,
we were going to make a point to the whole world, but no one wants to hear it anymore.
Don't worry what this song would say, you'll never hear it anyway.
They won't play this song on the radio, so far, so bad, that's how it goes.
They'll pull our records from the shelves, so far, so bad, that's how it goes.
The rhyme scheme to this song was mostly flawless, it might have made good poetry.
It could have bridged the gap between the classes, and overthrown the bourgeoisie.
It made a couple points about the future, and how the past was kind of uncool,
and if you ever tried to play it backwards, it told the kids to stay in school.
I thought I'd write an epiphany, how something good is changing me, but I guess we dodged some passing fad, it looks like it's so far, so bad. This song is rad. You could ask your dad. He won't be mad. This song is stupid.
Music: Dennis and Reese Words: Reese
This is one of my favorite songs on the album. It's musically interesting, and defies any attempt to restrict it to a certain genre. It's also humorous, because FIF never gets played on Christian radio stations! I have yet to hear one of their songs play on any Christian station. I'm not sure why; maybe the market for ska isn't considered big enough. Who knows?
4. New Years Eve
It's New Years Eve and I'm full of empty promises, I half pretend to keep this time, just like last year.
The band is loud and I'm wandering the shadows, wishing I was never here. I persevere.
A crowded room, these whitewashed tombs,
they raise their glasses high, they kiss the past goodbye.
This New Years Eve, I'm waiting for tomorrow. My heart is on my sleeve, and yes I still believe,
this New Years Eve, will turn out better than before,
I'm holding on, still holding out, until they close the door... on me.
It's New Years Eve and I feel my insecurities, are haunting me like ghosts, this sinking quicksand.
And then with thunderous praise and lofty adoration, a second passes by, yet nothing changes.
I hate my skin, this grave I'm standing in. Another change of years, and I wish I wasn't here.
A year goes by and I'm staring at my watch again,
and I dig deep this time, for something greater than I've ever been, life to ancient wineskins.
And I was blind but now I see.
This New Years Eve, something must change me inside,
I'm crooked and misguided, and tired of being tired.
This New Years Eve, I'm waiting for tomorrow.
My heart is on my sleeve, and yes I still believe, in You.
Music: Dennis and Reese Words: Reese
I didn't like this song much the first time I heard it. I didn't dislike it, I just didn't care. But after listening to it several times, it's become a very meaningful song to me. Let me take a few lines, just to illustrate:
"It's New Years Eve and I'm full of empty promises, I half pretend to keep this time, just like last year.
The band is loud and I'm wandering the shadows, wishing I was never here. I persevere.
A crowded room, these whitewashed tombs,
they raise their glasses high, they kiss the past goodbye. "
Naturally, it's better with the music. But even the lyrics alone are powerful. Who hasn't felt this way at some point, watching everyone pretending to start over, and knowing that we'll all still carry our baggage with us? Do we hang on to the past as a lesson, a treasure, or do we ditch it in hopes that we can become better? And is the choice up to us?
"It's New Years Eve and I feel my insecurities, are haunting me like ghosts, this sinking quicksand.
And then with thunderous praise and lofty adoration, a second passes by, yet nothing changes. "
And then with thunderous praise and lofty adoration, a second passes by, yet nothing changes. "
There's always a bit of a letdown when the new year hits, and nothing feels any different (depending, of course, on how much champagne you've been drinking!). In a way, every second begins a new year, and in the same way, there really are no new years, only new moments that we can use to change in small ways, hoping to become better eventually.
" I hate my skin, this grave I'm standing in. Another change of years, and I wish I wasn't here.
A year goes by and I'm staring at my watch again,
and I dig deep this time, for something greater than I've ever been, life to ancient wineskins.
And I was blind but now I see. "
A year goes by and I'm staring at my watch again,
and I dig deep this time, for something greater than I've ever been, life to ancient wineskins.
And I was blind but now I see. "
I love that line: "I hate my skin, this grave I'm standing in." This flesh is corruptible, and it is a grave. That is not to say that it is evil, for it will be redeemed and resurrected, but right now it is very much like a grave.
It's hard to change. It's unpleasant, and difficult, and confusing. But without change, there is no life.
