Thursday, November 17, 2005
Your Daily Five Iron Frenzy
"Crowds recoil, demand our survival;
Fists in the air, mouths caked with saliva.
But you are the one, the spark that was spawned
Who picks up the pieces and passes it on."
-See the Flames Begin to Crawl, from The End is Near
The End is Near was FIF's last studio album, recorded after they'd decided to break up at the end of the year after doing one last tour (entitled the "Winners Never Quit Tour"). A lot of the songs on this album deal with that situation, including this one, which talks about the end of the band and charges the fans to carry on its spirit. There are a lot of ways you could define the spirit of FIF, but they would probably be happy with a description which included words like "faithful," "goofy," and "non-conformist." You could very easily describe them as being both extremely reverent and wildly irreverant so long as you knew what you meant. The fans very much wanted the band to stay together, but FIF's heart just wasn't in it any more. Instead of wanting to be led by the band, the song challenges them to take what they value in the band and apply it to the world.
At the same time, the image comes to my head of the crowd calling for Pilate to have Jesus crucified. People like me called for the God of the universe to be humiliated and murdered and they called for a group they saw as being faithful and relevant to continue to lead them. Is this a sign that we've misplaced our priorities or a sign that we've finally started to get a clue?
I don't know. I ask a lot more questions than I provide answers. I'm tempted to think that it's a good sign. At the same time, perhaps the band breaking up was a good decision, as it took the fans, who seem to be seeking after God's will, and commissioned them to no longer be followers but to be leaders.
"Crowds recoil, demand our survival;
Fists in the air, mouths caked with saliva.
But you are the one, the spark that was spawned
Who picks up the pieces and passes it on."
-See the Flames Begin to Crawl, from The End is Near
The End is Near was FIF's last studio album, recorded after they'd decided to break up at the end of the year after doing one last tour (entitled the "Winners Never Quit Tour"). A lot of the songs on this album deal with that situation, including this one, which talks about the end of the band and charges the fans to carry on its spirit. There are a lot of ways you could define the spirit of FIF, but they would probably be happy with a description which included words like "faithful," "goofy," and "non-conformist." You could very easily describe them as being both extremely reverent and wildly irreverant so long as you knew what you meant. The fans very much wanted the band to stay together, but FIF's heart just wasn't in it any more. Instead of wanting to be led by the band, the song challenges them to take what they value in the band and apply it to the world.
At the same time, the image comes to my head of the crowd calling for Pilate to have Jesus crucified. People like me called for the God of the universe to be humiliated and murdered and they called for a group they saw as being faithful and relevant to continue to lead them. Is this a sign that we've misplaced our priorities or a sign that we've finally started to get a clue?
I don't know. I ask a lot more questions than I provide answers. I'm tempted to think that it's a good sign. At the same time, perhaps the band breaking up was a good decision, as it took the fans, who seem to be seeking after God's will, and commissioned them to no longer be followers but to be leaders.
