City and Colour (Official Thread)

[Soot and Stars]

I love this guy and I'm not exaggerating!

His c.d. Bring Me Your Love has had the most spins from me for any c.d. this decade and his song Happiness By The Kilowatt off of the live c.d. has the second most plays on my I-tunes. Singer Dallas Green is a singer for screamo band

Alexisonfire



in which his beautiful tone against the thrashy hardcore metal made them unique in the genre. Here are some Alexisonfire tunes!

Alexisonfire-This Could Be Anywhere In The World


The following are two Alexisonfire tracks that would become reconstructed by Dallas Green under the City and Colour moniker!

Alexisonfire-Boiled Frogs


Alexisonfire-Happiness By The Kilowatt

 

[Soot and Stars]

Re: The Official "City and Colour" Thread

When I had found Dallas Green

it was when he was first starting his solo work under the moniker City and Colour. The name simply comes from his first name being a city and the last being a color. The music that Dallas would do under this moniker was simple as well but also huge at the same time. The beautiful vocals that were drowned out in noise would have a chance to shine and he would make music that would touch and get inside an audience far more than his hardcore metal ever did. I've never heard a voice as pure as his, with the exception of perhaps Anberlin! There are no cracks or flaws in it at all but it still doesn't feel polished because he sings with a rawness that matches his tattooed visage!

His first c.d.


was introduced to me through two amazing gems! With an amazing aggressive strumming of Comin' Home and it's bluesy guitar I was entranced. The songbird vocals were like nothing else I'd heard before!

Comin' Home


Better Sound Quality:
Grooveshark - Listen to Free Music Online - Internet Radio - Free MP3 Streaming

The other gem was Hello, I'm In Delaware which I liked for similar reasons. Dallas showed more of a falsetto in this song and nailed it gorgeously. The perfect song for just laying back or a nice quiet drive!

Hello, I'm In Delaware


Better Sound Quality:
Grooveshark - Listen to Free Music Online - Internet Radio - Free MP3 Streaming

Other highlights off of Sometimes were:

In The Water, I Am Beautiful


Casey's Song

 

[Soot and Stars]

Re: The Official "City and Colour" Thread



The second c.d.

Bring me Your Love


would be in my top ten no problem for the decade! I've already reviewed it on here so what better way to introduce it then to take my original words:


Do you want to know how much I listen to "Bring Me Your Love"? NO YOU DON'T! Let's just say that it's dominated without a question the last two years of my musical life. It was honestly a slow build to my addiction but it crept in like the best of albums do. I swear most of my favorites do that. it's a sneaky thing! The production on this album was definitely different than the first. The music on this album was purposely made to sound under produced and have a minimalist tone. It really works perfectly. This album is so simple lyrically, vocally and musically. The arrangements are still enrapturing and the melodies are as addicting. As Chris Carraba has mastered in Dashboard Confessional, simple lyrics can spark the deepest emotions. The only difference here is Dallas does it without be frantic and rushed. He does it effortlessly and let's you ride the wave that he's on as this album even in it's darkest corners is as inviting as a warm fire!

Here is the full review for the c.d. and the c.d. linked in full as well:

"Official" Bring Me Your Love Review

While the whole c.d. itself is the highlight here are just some standout tracks! No comments needed by me! They speak for themselves!:

The Death of Me



Do I have nothing good left to say
Do I need whiskey to start fueling my complaints
People love to drink their troubles away
sometimes I feel that I'd be better off that way

'Cause maybe then I could sleep at night
I wouldn't lie awake until the morning light
This is something that I'll never control
My nerves will be the death of me, I know

So here's to living life miserable
And here's to all the lonely stories that I've told
Maybe drinking wine will validate my sorrow
Every man needs a muse and mine could be the bottle

Maybe then I could sleep at night
I wouldn't lie awake until the morning light
This is something that I'll never control
My nerves will be the death of me, i know

Finally I could hope for a better day
No longer holding on to all the things that cloud my mind
Maybe then the weight of the world wouldn't seem so heavy
But then again, I'll probably always feel this way

At least i know I'll never sleep at night
I'll always lie awake until the morning light
This is something that I'll never control
My nerves will be the death of me, I know

Body In A Box



There's a funeral procession on the highway,
Traffic screeches to a halt.
There's people searching for a better way,
To live their lives.
Johnny lived a good life, you'll hear them say
As tears of sadness soak the ground.
The reaper crept in, took his breath away,
In the middle of the night.

[Chorus:]
We celebrate the lives of the dead,
It's like a man's best party, only happens when he dies.
We gather 'round to pay our respects,
While their souls are still searching for the light,
Searching for the light.

So please don't come to me on my dying day,
Just let me go in peace.
With all the things that I forgot to say,
Racing through my mind.
And don't you bury me six feet under ground,
Just burn my body in a box.
And let my ashes blow with the wind,
Out into the night sky.

[Chorus]

What Makes A Man
(my favorite off the album)



I can hear my train comin'
It's a lonesome and distant cry
I can hear my train comin'
Now I'm runnin' for my life
What makes a man walk away from his mind?
I think I know
I think I might know

I can feel the wind blowin'
It's sending shivers down my spine
I can feel the wind blowin'
It shakes the trees and the power lines
What makes a man spend his whole life in disguise?
I think I know
I think I might know

I think I might know
I think I might know, oh oh

I can see the sun settin'
It's casting shadows on the sea
I can see the sun, it's setting
It's getting colder, starting to freeze
What makes a man want to break a heart with ease?
I think I know
I think I might know

I think I might know
I think I might know, oh oh

Well I can hear my train comin'
Looks like time is not on my side
Well I can hear my train comin'
I'm still runnin' for my life
What makes a man pray, when he's about to die?
I think I know
I think I might know

I think I might know
I think I might know, oh oh, oh oh

I think I might know
I think I might know, woah oh

 

[Soot and Stars]

Re: The Official "City and Colour" Thread

The Girl



I wish I could do better by you,
Cos that's what you deserve.
You sacrifice so much of your life,
In order for this to work.

While I'm off chasing my own dreams,
Sailing around the world,
Please know that I'm yours to keep,
My beautiful girl.

And when you cry a piece of my heart dies,
Knowing that I may have been the cause,
If you were to leave, fulfill someone elses dreams,
I think I might totally be lost.

But you don't ask for no diamond rings,
No delicate string of pearls,
That's why I wrote this song to sing,
My beautiful girl

Waiting....



A coma might feel better than this,
Attempting to discover, where to begin,
You're weighed down you're full of something,
Of sickness and desertion,
You're weighed down you're full of something,
You're underneath it all.

So say goodbye to love,
And hold your head up high,
There's no need to rush,
We're all just waiting, waiting to die.

Hoping a better place is all I need,
With moments of innocence and mystery,
Oh, it's the little things you miss,
Like waking up all alone,
Oh, it's the little things you miss,
When you're underneath it all.

So say goodbye to love,
And hold your head up high,
There's no need to rush,
We're all just waiting, waiting to die.

All your friends seem like enemies,
When you're broken down and empty,
Oh oh.
All your friends seem like enemies,
When you're broken down and empty,
Oh oh.

So say goodbye to love,
And hold your head up high,
There's no need to rush,
We're all just waiting, waiting to die.

Against The Grain



You need not to climb mountaintops,
You need not to cross the sea,
You need not to find a cure for everything that makes you weak.
You need not to reach for the stars when life becomes so dark,
And when the wind does blow against the grain,
You must follow your heart,
You must follow your heart.

When all your friends have come and gone,
And the sun no longer shines,
And the happiness for which you long is washed away like an ocean's tide,
When all the hard times outweigh the good,
And all your words are misunderstood,
When the day seems lost from the start
You must follow your heart,
You must follow your heart.

If you feel you've paid the price,
And your wounds should cease to heal
And everything you love in life spins like a winding wheel.
If you should wake to find you're abandoned,
And the road you've traveled leads to a dead-end
When death creeps in to play it's part,
You must follow your heart,
You must follow your heart.

 

[Soot and Stars]

Re: The Official "City and Colour" Thread

Great Live Material on stage and Studio Sessions!

Off of

Live

Happiness By The Kilowatt
(So Hauntingly Beautiful It Gives Me Chills!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)


So this is continuous happiness
You know, I always
Imagined it something more

With the right paint,
The right shades,
The right frames,
This could really work
What a great day to spend indoors

So wake, wake up,
Just wake, wake up

So where has all the day gone?
And why are my lungs aching when I breathe?
Is there something wrong with the heat?
Why am I so cold?
My heart feels sick
And it hurts when I speak

So wake, wake up,
Just wake, wake up

Was this what we hoped for?

Was this what we hoped for?

The Myspace Transmissions

What Makes A Man?


Body In A Box


The Girl


Against The Grain


As Much As I Ever Could


Love Don't Live Here Anymore
(awesome cover)

 

[METALPRIEST]

Re: The Official "City and Colour" Thread

Finally getting to this thread!!

Cool stuff!! Kinda wild past or history I should say with this Dallas cat!! I like the City and Colour material much better. From the screamo end I do like This Could Be Anywhere In The World and Happiness By The Kilowatt is great on both ends.

Other songs that stood out to me were

Girl and Against the Grain...but it all sounds good. Gonna let it sink in.

Too many bands!! So little time and $$$

 

[Soot and Stars]

Re: The Official "City and Colour" Thread

Finally getting to this thread!!

Cool stuff!! Kinda wild past or history I should say with this Dallas cat!! I like the City and Colour material much better. From the screamo end I do like This Could Be Anywhere In The World and Happiness By The Kilowatt is great on both ends.

Other songs that stood out to me were

Girl and Against the Grain...but it all sounds good. Gonna let it sink in.

Too many bands!! So little time and $$$

Hey man, I know the feeling. Yeah, the heavier stuff is just there for perspective but I just recently purchased the whole Alexisonfire catalog to see if anything else sticks with me. Personally, City and Colour didn't become an obsession with me until I listened to the second c.d. Bring Me Your Love a handful of times. I bought it amongst a handful of other c.d.s because I thought his debut was pretty good. I listened to it once, thought it was decent and then didn't pick it up until months later. Then I listened to it a couple more times and each time it kept clicking more and more until I was seriously addicted. I mean over and over taking in every note addicted! So it's a slow burner that has way more layers than it seems. Oh, and once I got to Happiness By The Kilowatt on his live c.d. I was over the top about this guy! He may be in close running with Damien Rice as my folk Billy Corgan!

 

[Soot and Stars]

Re: The Official "City and Colour" Thread

I'm loving the Boiled Frogs song right now as I bought the Alexisonfire catalog! That version is in the OP but I haven't posted the City and Colour version yet which I should because it's another great translation of his song!

City and Colour-Boiled Frogs


Old man sits at his desk
One year from retirement,
And he's up for review

Not quite sure what to do
Each passing year
The workload grows

I'm always wishing, I'm always wishing too late
For things to come my way
It always ends up the same

I must be missing, I must be missing the point
Your signal fades away and all I'm left with is noise

So wait up, I'm not sleeping alone again tonight
There's so much to dream about, there must be more to my life

Poor little tin man still swinging his axe,
Even though, even though, his joints are clogged with rust


My youth is slipping, my youth is slipping away
Safe in monotony, day after day

My youth is slipping, my youth is slipping away
Cold wind blows off the lake, and I know for sure that it's too late

So wait up, I'm not sleeping alone again tonight
There's so much to dream about, there must be more to my life

So wait up I'm not sleeping alone again tonight
Between the light and shallow waves is where I'm going to die

So won't you wait up for me
Wait up for me
Wait up for me
Wait up for me

 

[LG]

Re: The Official "City and Colour" Thread

You have done a great job on this thread Sooty. And your passion for "City & Colour" shines through, I might even check out an album one of these days.

 

[METALPRIEST]

Re: The Official "City and Colour" Thread

You have done a great job on this thread Sooty. And your passion for "City & Colour" shines through, I might even check out an album one of these days.

Me too