Break

Album: Treehouse (2016)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "I wasn't a very good boyfriend."

    That's what I See Stars lead singer Devin Oliver said in his Songfacts interview. "Break" is a rare heartbreak song for him, since he didn't experience much of it until 2014 when he split from his girlfriend of six years. Said Oliver: "I felt very heartbroken at the time, but it was really great, because I think that I was able to turn something tragic and heartbreaking into something beautiful, and I was able to find something beautiful in that."
  • This is a track from I See Stars' fifth album, Treehouse. The band has an electro-hardcore sound that is heavy on the hardcore in this one. "The song has such an aggressive vibe," Devin Oliver told us. "When you listen to it, you don't really think about this 'heartbreak song.' It's so epic and aggressive that you lose yourself to the music and kind of ride the lyrics."
  • The video was done by Brandon Bolmer, who is also a musician who records under that name Maskarade.

    Working with Cinema 4D and Final Cut Pro X, he spent 10 days working on the clip. Bolmer told us about the meaning behind it:

    "In general, the video's concept addresses the challenges and struggles we each face - those challenges could have to do with love, relationships, or personal struggles. I wanted to leave that open for interpretation by the viewer.

    The floating orb that is seen throughout the video represents these struggles. When faced with adversity, we often feel in those moments that we've hit a wall, we feel as though there may be no way out. We are mentally jolted, we break down, we are at a loss for words. But we keep pushing forward, we keep fighting... and sooner or later we are able to look back at those difficult moments and see that we've gained great knowledge and understanding from them.

    At the end the video, the person is shown observing the orb that has led them to a forest. The orb opens, a tree emerges, and for the first time they are able to see the true nature and value that it holds. The tree represents the new knowledge and perspective this person has gained, and as the tree floats up into the sky, it collides with the sun and ignites the entire sky. The message here is the idea of being able to take something dark, something troublesome, and turn it into a positive, turn it into something that breathes new life into you, something that keeps you pushing forward."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Don Felder

Don FelderSongwriter Interviews

Don breaks down "Hotel California" and other songs he wrote as a member of the Eagles. Now we know where the "warm smell of colitas" came from.

Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty

Rob Thomas of Matchbox TwentySongwriter Interviews

Rob Thomas on his Social Distance Sessions, co-starring with a camel, and his friendship with Carlos Santana.

Meshell Ndegeocello

Meshell NdegeocelloSongwriter Interviews

Meshell Ndegeocello talks about recording "Wild Night" with John Mellencamp, and explains why she shied away from the spotlight.

Sub Pop Founder Bruce Pavitt On How To Create A Music Scene

Sub Pop Founder Bruce Pavitt On How To Create A Music SceneSong Writing

With $50 and a glue stick, Bruce Pavitt created Sub Pop, a fanzine-turned-label that gave the world Nirvana and grunge. He explains how motivated individuals can shift culture.

Eric Burdon

Eric BurdonSongwriter Interviews

The renown rock singer talks about "The House of the Rising Sun" and "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood."

Jim McCarty of The Yardbirds

Jim McCarty of The YardbirdsSongwriter Interviews

The Yardbirds drummer explains how they created their sound and talks about working with their famous guitarists.