Hey all, Craig here. I thought it might be pretty cool to do a series of "Behind the Music" glimpses at each of our songs. As the first installment, I bring you:


The Morning After (Whiskey)

I think "Whiskey" was really the first song we worked on after I joined the band. The guys had been together for a few months before I jumped aboard and had a few completed songs already under their belts. Whiskey was the current work in progress at the time. It started out with a kind of Lizard King meets Vegas lounge act vibe, and eventually evolved into what was laid down on the recording. The chord progressions were pretty well established when the guys introduced me to the song, but nothing was really fleshed out sound wise. We were all into the song from the beginning, but I remember things really coming together when Chris found that fantastic syncopated drum part on the chorus. I lined up my bass part with the kick drum and the song just took off dynamically. Personally, it was a defining moment in my rebirth as a musician after a long layoff from writing/playing music. (I still think that part may be the only reason these guys let me stay in the band.) As for the rest of the story behind the music, Jeremy wrote the lyrics and I give you his own words:

"I was sick for 4 days and jonesing to play some music. I went into my home studio and sat down with the acoustic guitar and started playing the chords that would become the verse in The Morning After (Whiskey). I sang in a gravely sick voice the line, "This little gasoline and match fire burns low for now but waits behind these lonely reckless eyes to turn passion into pain." My sick voice sounded like someone singing with a hangover and I began thinking about my time as a bar tender in New York, and the crazy personalities I experienced all on their own version of John Lennon's Lost weekend. It was a year's worth of hollow days, trying to solve inane problems and attempting to get through life while chasing the bottom of a liquor bottle. I gave my character in "The Morning After" the ability to look at himself from a detached vantage point so he could see his behavior but have zero ability to change it. Throughout, he just hopes for that one day when he can wake up and rejoin "life" or find his own "Morning After." The song is essentially about that moment when I wake up and suddenly have clarity after a prolonged bout with confusion, leaving me to wonder why thing got so confusing in the first place. And nothing gets me more confused than drinking Whiskey (Bushmills Irish White Label to be exact)."


LYRICS:

We spin round and round to fall asleep
we got whiskey in our veins
don't come close we might explode
we've been combustible for days
This little gasoline and match fire
burns low for now but waits
behind these lonely reckless eyes to turn this passion into pain

No one here has promised me what life would be beneath this skin
And I've held on to hope forever until it made me crazy as hell

Every night across the bar I'm waiting to be heard
You said hey this life is every day and that's exactly why it hurts
And I've been making up these sundry poems of our world
while I've been lost before and hanging on your very last word

Now No one here has promised you what life could be beneath this skin
And I will help you hold on to this hope forever or until we're both crazy as hell

Your good days are so much better that mine
cause I'll be wasted here for the rest of my life
Until the morning after when we get it right
Until the Morning After

When we swing back and forth the punches fly breaking through the air
And I've been hit before so lets talk in place we could less about anyone
Until we find out whats making us insane
And I will crawl back through this darkness to share your lonely name

And no one here has promised me that I could breathe beneath this sin
I've held onto your hope forever until it made me crazy as hell

Your good days are so much better that mine
And I'll be wasted here for the rest of my life
Until the morning after when we get it right
Until the Morning After

I've been waiting for that girl next door to come knocking on mine
And I've had faith in every angel that came walking past the window but I was holding on too long
to every possibility that each new eye opening brings and I've been waiting for my own

Your good days are so much better that mine
And I'll be wasted here for the rest of my life
Until the morning after when we get it right
Until the Morning After

T Minus 3..2...1... and we have lift off.

For those that were there at the near sellout debut of Almost Astronauts, it was a special moment. For those that missed it, well there was only one chance to see us first, but there will be another chance to see us second. Just make sure to get tickets early. The Club was filled to the rafters and the band was set appropriately enough against a backdrop of stars. The crew took the stage and wasted little time bringing to life the faceless tunes that had haunted this myspace page for the past year. Eyes widened, heads bobbed and the communal realization that all were witnessing the beginning of something special permeated the atmosphere. Fighting through pre-flight jitters, the lads tightened up and rocketed through a 50 minute set punctuated with dynamic intensity that left all wanting more. When the final chord was struck in the song New Mexico and the dust had settled, it was universally felt to be a great launch. Afterwards we moved the entire party across the street to the Iguana bar to toast a night of fun had by all. 

Thank you all for making our debut such a success and we look forward to many more awesome flights in the near future. For now it's off to the studio to record some new material. Please look for us on itunes over the holidays.

Peace and Prosperity,  AA

Howdy AA fans, friends, colleagues and acquaintances with potential. It's extremely cool that so many of you have listened to our music and joined the Astronauts family. Our mission has at times seemed somewhat vague due to the relative infancy of our project, however patience is most often rewarded and hopefully you will all enjoy our latest effort, "The Morning After". I guess an introduction is in order, as this the first time I have spoken up. I'm Jeremy, lead singer and guitarist for Almost Astronauts. I look forward to meeting many of you at our exciting new music's live debut (or launch in AA speak) this fall. From inception, AA has been committed to producing a refined and complete thought/sound/performance before we bring it to all of you. Our music comes from a very personal and sincere place with themes that hopefully everyone can relate too. But as my grandfather once said , don't get caught taking yourself too seriously. So I try and interject a feeling of energy and bawdy madness in all that I write. Of course Dave tries to keep me grounded but that's why this works. About me, well I just moved to Pittsburgh after living in NYC where I played in a national indie pop act and wrote music for film and television. While still writing for TV here in the burgh, I got the itch to be in a band again and met Dave and Chris... and Almost Astronauts was born. Craig joined us on bass shortly thereafter. He happens to be my best friend since 5th grade . I'm extremely excited to create many more songs with these guys and I hope you all find them as rad and refreshing as I do.

Peace and Prosperity - Jeremy

 We've spent the last couple of months working on an EP, so expect more from AA very soon.