Monday, November 7, 2011

Tour Blog: Day Three

Sunday,a day of rest. We have no show tonight,so we head to a hockey game,and then a very homely lasagna dinner. And,of course,the Walking Dead. We share food,laughs,and the feeling of family extending beyond blood to brothers and sisters brought together by friendliness. A clean house in a peaceful neighborhood,filled with hockey players,good people,and four rocker dudes with tattoos,who are treated no different than anyone else,with hospitality.

Early the next morning,ok,afternoon,we wake up and prepare for our next stop. We recharge our batteries, and take in a few performances on the tele to get the juices flowing again. It's all still in me,and I'm ready to let it out tonight.

We will depart this quiet,unsuspecting neighborhood soon,and everything will be as it was. I cannot say the same for the place we're heading to tonight. We will leave a little imprint of ourselves wherever we go,however small,and the seeds will be planted. That's part of the fun that goes into a tour,knowing that you're growing something. And with determination,it will pan out for better or worse eventually.

You just don't know. This could be the first of many,or the last. But,either way we're making something happen that upsets the natural order,or routines laid out for many, by introducing a new element to a place that has begun to settle. We upset the mold,and bring something new into the fold. We are travelers for now,and the road accepts what we graciously have to offer,new music and cheer for those willing to listen.



Sunday, November 6, 2011

Tour Blog: Day Two

Back into the van. The show last night was a mission accomplished. For us, it's not about how many come through the door to see, but making the few that witness believe. This is the best thing I've ever been apart of, and it is good.

After the show we stay at a good friends. We're all night people, so eating breakfast at 1am, then drinking, breathing music until 5am is the natural course.

Everyone in the room has a guitar in their hands, and no communication is needed other than the smiles and nods, and notes shared by all. Every so often we come up for air, head out to the porch and sit around an old metal table that takes you back to childhood memories with grandparents. We time travel, while some smoke, and I'm just taking in the crisp fall air and time shared with some of the coolest people on the planet.

Now we're driving to the next destination along the road, Tom Waits is invading my ears, and seeping into my thoughts. I think tonight is going to be powerful. We are slowly spreading through the system of scenes throughout the Midwest. For better or worse, we are coming around.

I've always felt strangely at home on the road. I've always had a different currency, counting myself rich with good friends, and music and art. Being in the van, and bringing everything we truly value with us is more rewarding than slaving at a 9 to 5, and paying off that new whatever it is you think you need to have. It's not everyone's calling though, but for everyone in this van right now, it is.

I'd be lying if I said we have it rough, or we're starving artists, or something like that. The truth is, we all have big smiles on our faces, and people feed off that, and then they turn around and feed us. As long as the music keeps gas in our tanks, we're going strong.

To download The Tank whole album (320 kbps MP3), right click & choose (save as): http://bit.ly/twisthetank2011

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Tour Blog: Day One

Spirits are high as we enter the van and hit the road. Dark pastels are all across the sky as the sun sets, and the only lights remaining will soon be headlights, and the soft glow of my phone as I write this. Ah, the new age.

I imagine from way up above, we are just a tiny lit vessel, traveling through the veins and arteries that connect our world. As we travel through the heart of the Midwest, we are pumped to electrify the venues and places that the road spills us on.

The White Stripes are banging out of the speakers in the van, setting the mood for what will surely be a soul filled adventure. We are fully charged, and ready to bare it all for total strangers, who will hopefully make the connection to our music and spirits, and be left with a sense of our longing to be something real.

This is what we do, and we're cramming it all in a van, and bringing it to you. Time to put my phone down, and release some of this energy I've stored up. Probably in the form of many bad jokes, some great notes, and a whole lot of love.

To download The Tank whole album (320 kbps MP3), right click & choose (save as): http://bit.ly/twisthetank2011

Upcoming Shows:

Nov 7, 2011 - Kansas City, MO (US) @ Czar Bar - w/The Slowdown & Phonologotronic & The Author and the Illustrator

Nov 8, 2011 - Burlington, IA (US) @ The Washington

Nov 9, 2011 - Keokuk, IA (US) @ Tipenecker's Tap - w/Nalani Proctor

Nov 10, 2011 - Chicago, IL (US) @ Stage Bar - w/NIGHTCAP & The Freakish Reasons & Up From The Wormwood

Nov 12, 2011 - Minneapolis, MN (US) @ Portland Lakehouse - w/the Trends & Pandora's Box Cutter & Ogre Smash Death Boom & Animal Gray

Nov 13, 2011 - Minneapolis, MN (US) @ 7th St. Entry - w/Johnnyrook & the Deadphones & Crooks and Shanks

Nov 23, 2011 - Ottumwa, IA (US) @ Kuhly's Bar & Grill - w/A Well Dressed Man & 12 Days Silent

Nov 26, 2011 - Keokuk, IA (US) @ CARS Pit Stop - w/North to the Future & Wrestling With Wolves

Dec 3, 2011 - Ottumwa, IA (US) @ The Outer Limits - w/The Mighty Accelerator & Pat Lanips & Burnout

See you out there!

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

"Poltergeist" - Track 11 off The Tank by The War I Survived

To download this free track (320 kbps MP3), right click & choose (save as): http://bit.ly/11_Poltergeist

We built these houses
On the bones of forgotten tribes

Sucked right in
By the pull of your rotten lies

Lost inside a labyrinth
Of your mind

I try to walk towards the light
I try

Have you seen the movie Poltergeist? The words follow the movie. I wanted to create something simple that told a story, and use that story to relate to the common human state of being.

We are built up from an early age on stories of our ancestors. We are then broken like horses, and rode into oblivion. Getting trampled by the ideas of cowboys, roped into living 9-5, and dying to get out.

I just want to live. I want to live simply. I simply want to live. Every time I sing this song, I feel a connection to everyone in the room. I think deep down, we all just want to live simply. There is a basic driving force in our heads. A little kid telling us "walk towards the light", and the big bad world keeps sucking us back in.



Download the last 10 weeks songs (320 kbps MP3), right click & choose (save as):
01 We Burn http://bit.ly/01_We_Burn
02 Aesthetics http://bit.ly/02_Aesthetics
03 Phoenix http://bit.ly/03_Phoenix
04 Silent Cries http://bit.ly/04_Silent_Cries
05 Low http://bit.ly/05_Low
06 Jade http://bit.ly/06_Jade
07 To Arms http://bit.ly/07_To_Arms
08 The Tank http://bit.ly/08_The_Tank
09 Take Down the Tyrant http://bit.ly/09_Take_Down_the_Tyrant
10 Patterns http://bit.ly/10_Patterns

WE DID IT!!!!! We made it through all 11 weeks and now the whole album is released. To keep up to date with concert dates and what's going on with TWIS, please join our mailing list. Thank you so much for your continued support!

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

"Patterns" - Track 10 off The Tank by The War I Survived

To download this free track (320 kbps MP3), right click & choose (save as): http://bit.ly/10_Patterns

I see your face and I see patterns
I hope your right and it won't matter
Our lives are defined by disaster
There is no happily ever after

We fight and we die
We laugh and we cry
We have and we deny
We love and we survive

There are no tickets to paradise
You take your chances here, roll the dye
It makes no difference to run and hide
We see right through your disguise

We fight and we die
We laugh and we cry
We have and we deny
We love and we survive

The closer we get to the end, we get more and more stuck in our ways. Some believe that it doesn't matter, that our lives are just an accident of the cosmos. I believe everything happens for a reason and this life is a test. Not everything is meant to be sunshine and happy.

We reap what we sow. I believe this to be one of the simplest universal truths. The pattern that balances the equation of life. And there is no cheating the system.

There is no free ride in this world, you have to endure this race all the way untill the end. Whatever truths you store in your heart, will be revealed in the end. So, store up plenty of love, and hope that it spills out into the world, evening out the odds, and making this race more bearable.

We have a saying as a band. We like to say "love you, love the band!” We do this because we've all been through many bands over the years, and been part of the patterns of destruction, but we endured and it leads us to this. Harmony and elation come out of each beat and chord when we play, every note pumped through our hearts to our fingers, to your eardrums. We love what we do, and that helps us survive.



Download the last 9 weeks songs (320 kbps MP3), right click & choose (save as):
01 We Burn http://bit.ly/01_We_Burn
02 Aesthetics http://bit.ly/02_Aesthetics
03 Phoenix http://bit.ly/03_Phoenix
04 Silent Cries http://bit.ly/04_Silent_Cries
05 Low http://bit.ly/05_Low
06 Jade http://bit.ly/06_Jade
07 To Arms http://bit.ly/07_To_Arms
08 The Tank http://bit.ly/08_The_Tank
09 Take Down the Tyrant http://bit.ly/09_Take_Down_the_Tyrant

Remember, each Tuesday for the next 2 weeks we'll be releasing another track, blog, & music video until October 25th. Check back each week or join our mailing list to get these tracks in your inbox. Thank you so much for your continued support!

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

"Take Down the Tyrant" - Track 9 off The Tank by The War I Survived

To download this free track (320 kbps MP3), right click & choose (save as): http://bit.ly/09_Take_Down_the_Tyrant

Take down the tyrant
Don't let him live
When things get violent
We won't forgive

Within these walls we shiver
Behind doors of confusion
When these walls all shatter
We lie down and cower

Take down the tyrant
Don't let him win
When things get violent
We can't forget

Within these walls we shiver
Behind doors of confusion
When these walls all shatter
We lie down and cower

We watch terror rise
We are terrified
We all turn and hide
We must turn and fight

When the war ends
We will be friends again

War and unrest, turmoil and strife. There is a wind sweeping the world right now, and it carries the faint call of change. As more of us recognize the call, the greater demand becomes to end all tyranny. As they strike out to supress rebellions, the more people gather to the cause.

For years we've hidden in our domesticated huts, protected from the big bad world spoon fed to us through our television sets. We scoff at anyone going against the grain, as we were trained to do at a very young age. We can't let this continue, we can't forget that history is filled with tyrannical leaders, who were toppled by the people they opressed.

As the stench of fear swells, we turn away from the fight. We watch the TV as if it's a different world happening outside of our plane of existence. Tyranny is all around, and we lay idle behind closed doors, untill those walls are broken down. What started as a faint wind is now a full force of nature to be reckoned with.

It's all happening, the cycle continues. Like any storm, destruction will ensue, but like after any big storm, we will rebuild. We will survive, and help each other for one reason... Love.



Download the last 8 weeks songs (320 kbps MP3), right click & choose (save as):
01 We Burn http://bit.ly/01_We_Burn
02 Aesthetics http://bit.ly/02_Aesthetics
03 Phoenix http://bit.ly/03_Phoenix
04 Silent Cries http://bit.ly/04_Silent_Cries
05 Low http://bit.ly/05_Low
06 Jade http://bit.ly/06_Jade
07 To Arms http://bit.ly/07_To_Arms
08 The Tank http://bit.ly/08_The_Tank

Remember, each Tuesday for the next 3 weeks we'll be releasing another track, blog, & music video until October 25th. Check back each week or join our mailing list to get these tracks in your inbox. Thank you so much for your continued support!

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

"The Tank" - Track 8 off The Tank by The War I Survived

To download this free track (320 kbps MP3), right click & choose (save as): http://bit.ly/08_The_Tank

High above the clouds in the sky
There is still sun
There is still light

Heal me up
Before we wipe
Heal me with
Your sun, your light

This place brings back memories
Before I saw the light
The night I fell to my enemies
Now I return to fight

As the world gets darker and darker, the older you get, it's easy to become bitter and angry. Your view of the world becomes more and more clouded. It's easy to forget that there is still good things in this world, and there is still hope for all the lost souls.

I feel like I'm running on empty sometimes, and I need refilled in order to make it any further. Sometimes we need a big dose of something to refuel our power cells. Sometimes we need light, hope, and inspiration, whatever you want to call it. We need something.

And we need it now.

I'm drawn back to a time when things seemed better. Life was simple. When you're young, you have it all figured out, or so you would believe. And now that I'm older, I'm trying to pinpoint why, and when, and where my story switched from day to night. Before I died, felled by my enemies hand, my own inner torment.

Then I remember there was no instant, no moment of defeat, where my soul was captured. This battle is still going on, and I need to wake up. And like that, I'm back in it. Ready to smile again, ready to take on heaps of trouble, with a light heart and joyful soul.

I can extend myself beyond my means, taking damage the whole way, because something is healing me up. My faith reminds me that on the darkest days of my life, though I can't see it, the sun is still shining. Remembering this, my spirit is renewed, and I am ready for more. I am smiling, ready for another round.

One more thing on a personal note. I hope you all are getting why I'm doing this. In my studio, there is an old painted two by four. It's missing chunks, bitten off by time and decay, and roughly painted army green. Four words are written across it in black letters, "Dispel negativity through creativity.", and these are a reminder of why I write music. It's how I keep my soul clean.



Download the last 7 weeks songs (320 kbps MP3), right click & choose (save as):
01 We Burn http://bit.ly/01_We_Burn
02 Aesthetics http://bit.ly/02_Aesthetics
03 Phoenix http://bit.ly/03_Phoenix
04 Silent Cries http://bit.ly/04_Silent_Cries
05 Low http://bit.ly/05_Low
06 Jade http://bit.ly/06_Jade
07 To Arms http://bit.ly/07_To_Arms

Remember, each Tuesday for the next 4 weeks we'll be releasing another track, blog, & music video until October 25th. Check back each week or join our mailing list to get these tracks in your inbox. Thank you so much for your continued support!

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