"Only the lonesome love us/Only the careless can handle us/Only the lonesome love us/ What's wrong with us that we're so unamused?"
- Everytime I Die, "I Been Gone A Long Time"
Lyrical voices are formed in different ways. Some lyricists see their way into fame via grief, envy, depression or joy. Everytime I Die's Keith Buckley has found his niche, and it's Buffalo.
"On tour, everyone always asks us why Buffalo music is so angry. Maybe it's something in the water, but it's probably the awful, awful weather. It's just what comes out," Buckley said.
The tour is named "The Fiction We Live," after headliner From Autumn To Ashes' new CD, but when national hardcore powerhouse - and Buffalo natives - Everytime I Die comes home to the Continental Monday evening, it will be a homecoming worth observing.
"I'm more nervous than anything. It's such a 'scene' thing for kids to bag on a band once they've left town and made music that's different from their older work," says Buckley in reference to bands like their close friends 18 Visions, who have stunted their popularity growth as a result of progressing to a slightly less-harsh metal sound.
"Even worse than that, our friends have had a lot of adjusting to do. We'll leave for a while and then come home for four days before we leave again. How do you make time in four days for everyone you care about? They get pretty mad at us," Buckley said, musing.
The sacrifices they make are worth it for music lovers. While most thought it would be impossible to top their chaotic and remarkably successful "Last Night In Town," their new record, "Hot Damn!", features some of the best unruly hardcore guitar-work in music today. Buckley's frenetic lyrics and vocal delivery make for a perfect soundtrack to a schizophrenic dance party. Still, Buckley wonders at Buffalo's feelings for the band.
"We've read a lot of sh**ty Buffalo newspapers writing sh**ty Buffalo newspaper things," he said. "I've always had issues with Buffalo as a city, but never with the kids. I just hope they're still on our side."
If these sentiments are echoed within the band, they are in for a surprise. Walking five feet inside a show in Buffalo, or anywhere else in the country for that matter, guarantees a sighting of an ETID hat or t-shirt. "Hot Damn" was one of the top sellers at local record stores during its first few weeks of release.
"When in Rome we shall do as the Romans/When in Hell we do shots at the bar/Last call, kill it/We don't think in terms of mornings afters/And we don't utter a single word of the night befores/In the meantime we're just thoughtless incessant buzzing aparatus." - Everytime I Die, "Ebolarama."
Thank God for Buffalo weather.
