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A Cinematic Goodbye

by Written Years

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1.
Elephant 03:43
I wish I could find life inside the fire I wish I could sing, though my voice has died There's fallen angels in this tiny room They hold a dying light to you And say, "It's alright, it's alright, it's alright Everyone will leave unknown Yea, it's alright, it's alright, it's alright To just be here and laugh 'til we're gone Just to laugh until it's all gone, the rest is easy" Now every time you walk alone, I won't know you're alright (There's terrible things in my...) Lover, please release and do the things that you want to me (There's terrible things in my mind Somewhere in my mind) I fell asleep still waiting out the storm Whatever makes us feel not so alone I don't want to fear the future's gone In another day that I've been lost I guess it's alright, it's alright, it's alright To just be here Now every time you walk alone, I won't know you're alright (There's terrible things in my...) Lover, please release and do the things that you want to me (There's terrible things in my mind Somewhere in my mind) Now every time you walk alone, I won't know you're alright (We're passing out in the fire) Lover, please release and let the current take you from me (We're passing out in the fire now We're here and it's now)
2.
After dark in a crowded apartment My head's caving in with silence I am here, are you with me? We slowly wilt with the crackle and stream Of a muddy aging feeling Are you still breathing with me? I'm still tearing apart but I can't find you Screaming inside 'til I come to I'm not lost in you now I'm not lost in you now Now we're on the corner, our lungs on fire My mind's buzzing with the streetlights I am here, are you with me? Somewhere in all of this noise, I'll find something that's real And somewhere in all of this noise, I'll take anything real I'm still tearing apart but I can't find you Screaming inside 'til I come to I'm not lost in you now I'm not lost in you now With my heart on the wire, I've lost my head Inside of your arms, I'm still searching For the back of the crowd For the back of the crowd Somewhere in all of this noise, I'll find something that's real And somewhere in all of this noise, I'll take anything real I'm still tearing apart but I can't find you Screaming inside 'til I come to I'm not lost in you now I'm not lost in you now With my heart on the wire, I've lost my head Inside of your arms, I'm beelining For the back of the crowd And I'm not lost in you now
3.
Turn the lights down now, I am all worked up Try to shake it out, play the part And there’s a kind, kind of quiet now There’s a kind, kind of quiet now ‘Til we are cut in thirds on a restaurant stage Where the ribbon girls spin and I Am caving down, a kind of quiet now There’s a kind, kind of I am here, wide awake, help me into the car I don’t want you to dance all alone in the dark Even if it is all just a sick superficial feeling (Superficial feeling, feeling) I am lit, half asleep, throwing darts at the mirror I am shaking right now like I shouldn’t be here Even if it appears as a sick superficial feeling (Superficial feeling, feeling) I’ll wait a breath then take something to calm down Bury my mistakes, spill it all And there’s a kind, kind of quiet now There’s a kind, kind of quiet now So kiss me darling, I’ve been asleep too long I can stand up right, clear my head And it’s all a kind of quiet now There’s a kind, kind of I am here, wide awake, help me into the car I don’t want you to dance all alone in the dark Even if it is all just a sick superficial feeling (Superficial feeling, feeling) I am lit, half asleep, throwing darts at the mirror I am shaking right now like I shouldn’t be here Even if it appears as a sick superficial feeling (Superficial feeling, feeling) I know it’s in our blood, this city will break our hearts, love I know it’s in our blood, hit the lights and get it all out I know it’s in our blood, this city will break our hearts, love I know it’s in our blood I am here, wide awake, help me into the car I don’t want you to dance as you’re falling apart Even if it is all just a sick superficial feeling (Superficial feeling, feeling) Shake it out, just shake it out, just shake it out now Shake it out, just shake it out, just shake it out now Shake it out, just shake it out, just shake it out now Shake it out, just shake it out, just shake it out now
4.
Well I'm drowning in a car, talking at a morning sky And I've done 27 wrongs just to make a single right All signals are at sea, I've thrown my angels in the breeze Found a place somewhere inside of me Where we laughed about our friends from a dead power line And just watched them slip away, slowly decorate their lives In little coloured bows that light up the lonely days So they don't realize they're all the same Tune those into snow and pretend it's the sea While the TV talks to me until I can fall asleep And something in my dreams starts to turn black and white Has me looking for another time I don't wanna be a silver man down in the road I don't wanna be a silver man down in the road anymore I'll fold an origami rose, send it to a former love And we'll try to waste the day and just hope that that's enough We'll live in dovey eyes, wait to fly into glass Waste another day and let it all pass Bring me home from the red cabaret Reduce our joys and pains to foret At dawn, we'll throw a parade For the cast of 'cheers' and never wander back I don't wanna be a silver man down in the road I don't wanna be a silver man down in the road I don't wanna be a silver man down in the road I don't wanna be a silver man down in the road Bring me home from the red cabaret Colour everything back in grey I'm here, I've been some place far away Some place far away Bring me home from the red cabaret Colour everything back in grey I'm here, I've been some place far away Some place far away
5.
Awful Love 03:37
Our bodies draw 40 Shapes that say I am lost Walking backwards toward the dark We collide And our missing dreams Fall around us in ecstasy Like a dead star that fades in peace I keep it all in my head 'til it comes awake in bed We'll dress in white Try to act like we're still alright Try to stand on this thinning wire And let this take us far enough We'll run from the things you don't want anymore Forget them when we collapse through my door With your lips on fire, pulling me down And our heart beat too loud So we'll lose ourselves in awful love 'Til no one else can be enough Just let this take us 'til we know it's not enough We know it's not enough
6.
Actress 03:57
I'll be your secret Sleeping on the edge of your bed Collapsing through your roof in dead silence There's something in the dark of our movements It's all dark now for us, my light We'll run through their weddings Tearing the drapes off the tables Then shatter all the glass in tiny parts Like creatures hiding in our details It's all dark now, my light There's a movement in your eyes Don't you tell me otherwise I feel like you do Now my head is in the sand I know we only fantasize I know we can be cruel Is this really who we are? Is this really who we are? (I don't know) but I'll still play along 'Til there's just a memory Of a figurine spinning in violence An actress dancing within a TV set Re-enacting the life that she misses I guess it can be worthwhile There's a movement in your eyes Don't you tell me otherwise I feel like you do Now my head is in the sand I know we only fantasize I know we can be cruel Is this really who we are? Is this really who we are? (I don't know) but I'll still play along When you walk alone, I won't know you're alright When you walk alone, I won't know you're alright When you walk alone, I won't know you're alright When you walk alone Love, I don't know who we are Love, I don't know who we are (I'll still dance) but I can't play along
7.
Not Alone 03:41
The room is blue and I'm staring at the screen You're passing out on your phone but I know I'll never sleep I've got a feeling we're not alone I've got a feeling we're not alone Wish I could dance but I'm far too drunk to stand You're clinging to his hand and I am clinging to my glass I've got a feeling we're not alone I've got a feeling we're not alone In the noise of the city All I hear is your breathing Don't you talk, don't you talk, don't you talk don't you talk I've got a feeling we're not alone Caught your eye when you glittered in the dark The way you light your nicotine just makes me fall apart I've got a feeling we're not alone I've got a feeling we're not alone So let me down, never wanted you this bad My stomach tightens up as I watch you make him laugh I've got a feeling we're not alone I've got a feeling we're not alone In the noise of the city All I hear is your breathing Don't you talk, don't you talk, don't you talk don't you talk I've got a feeling we're not alone (The room is blue, I'm staring at the...) In the noise of the city All I hear is your breathing Don't you talk, don't you talk, don't you talk don't you talk I've got a feeling we're not alone In the noise of the city All I hear is your breathing Don't you talk, don't you talk, don't you talk don't you talk I've got a feeling we're not alone (Don't you talk, don't you talk, don't you talk don't you talk) I've got a feeling we're not alone We're not alone
8.
Intermission 01:49
9.
Tiny bells won't ring for me They only ring for you in sleep Try to let me unfold now Been hearing only folded sounds Like underwater currents drawn Pulling under mangled stars Their movements make mine seem so slow Like I'm watching from city slopes Where cars turn back then blur again Just like all of our closest friends Once day I'll leave like mine had left A cinematic goodbye at best So I float for weeks with you stuck in mind Then each beacon sinks through and we collide And debris falls in the ocean below us So if I go, will you follow? I make say sure not to say it loud Especially when he's around I still fall asleep in love sometimes Then wake up like my head's on fire Then I open doors and close them loud Just to hear that hollow sound Spilling through the floors again Like static from our TV sets Then sit inside that sickening noise Until I hear our daughter's voice Where tiny bells will end with us Then drown out in our awful love (Awful love) So I float for weeks with you stuck in mind Then each beacon sinks through and we collide And debris falls in the ocean below us So if I go, will you follow Or stay stuck here in this place?
10.
Here 05:25
I don't wanna feel like I've lost the plot My head's in a mask and my hands in knots Trying to sell my shit as art There's voices next store bathing in self esteem Like chameleon girls dancing in my dreams And me, I've given nothing to be free Now I'm trying to find some place I can go I headed back East, acid in my throat Give it one day, I'll be unknown But I still fall asleep with the lights on And I'm still living down the things I've done wrong But you know that the worst has been kept in spades Well, we are here, windows locked, we're not leaving this place So show us something and give us a way that we can be afraid I wish I could recall waking up today The faces are here but they're not the same She's still coming down like acid rain So I wash out my eyes with fluorescent light Then fall back asleep with a stranger's wife Light a firework and let it go While I'm driving back home coughing out the window And there's nothing I've done that seems real But at least I still feel So if I feel ashamed Can you come here and waste my day? We'll forget what we fear and who we thought we would be I can be now okay with just being here

about

Almost exactly 7 years ago, I moved into a little all-white-but-still-grungy Burnaby basement with one of my best friends Kane and started writing & demoing the songs that would be become our first (self-titled) album. The songs started out solely as a way for me to get things off of my chest, to help digest both the isolation and wonder I felt being in a new and much bigger city than I had grown up in. We were still green as hell (and I think that little album is a reflection of that) but we were lucky enough to have some people believe in us early on. Our producer Ryan Worsley helped make us sound larger and more grandiose than the 3 piece that we were (our good friend Kodie Krogh being that third). I can’t thank that record enough for what it did for me - if I didn’t have that outlet and if I didn’t put all those frustrations and anxieties on paper, I can guarantee that I would not be the same person that I am today.

We were also fortunate enough that someone by the name of Brian Dyck witnessed our very very first show and was eager enough to fight for a spot in the project. It turns out that that couldn’t have been a better thing because Brian came to be someone who really helped take the project’s sound and live show to where it ended up last year. So many hours and late nights him and I spent pouring over a bright grey Ableton screen trying to dial in the perfect synth sounds for this record. Together (this time, our good friend Alex Richardson included), we worked for years on a release that we really believed in, despite some of my own voice loss issues and still learning the ropes. Alex also really stepped forward as a writing partner for me and helped me take my melodies to a place where I hadn’t been able to on my own.

The result was a record that we re-did a couple times over but ended up saying everything we felt like we really needed to say, lyrically and as musicians. We didn’t try to make a pop album, it’s dark at times but was its own catharsis for me. I talk so much about the frustrations I had with the type of lifestyle I was living and the shitty places I felt like I was relying on for emotional support. I wrote about how helpless it can feel to lose your voice - something I depended on so much as a form of expression.

I’m sure the amount of times we went back up to bat with this thing is a running joke in the Echoplant studio, it definitely is among ourselves. The reality is that those guys put a lot of time and hard work into it. Not only Ryan but also Matt DiPomponio, his assistant engineer, was an absolute source of energy and enthusiasm for us. He never complained once, despite the demanding schedule, and always had a way of making things feel effortless and fun, despite the immense stress that we were actually putting ourselves under.

Until now, I was admittedly scared of putting this 2nd record out. Maybe on some level because it means finally calling it “finished” after so long but also because we’ve continued to grow so much since then. It’s a tough part of my life to reflect on and I admit a lot in it to where such transparency and vulnerability can feel a bit unsettling for me.

But with this comes something positive. It means that it makes sense to finally put this record out that so many people worked so hard on. it’s a batch of songs about desperation, about a longing I had to change myself and reclaim parts of myself that I had lost. If there’s one feeling I think we always managed to capture well, I think that’s the one of nostalgia and these 10 songs are full of that. It felt appropriate to call it “A Cinematic Goodbye” as a send-off to the project as a whole. To boot, we all pretty much live in different cities now.

The 10th track was one of the last written and was where I felt I finally found some acceptance. The ending to this story never had to be a resolution, but it just needed to be a coming-to-terms with what I was fighting. That not-so-little 5 1/2 minute piece of music really summed up for us everything we wanted to do at the time. It doesn’t conform to any real expectations and really just says everything we felt we needed to. The bass line in there is honestly one of my favourite things ever and the drums go through like 10 different beats but I love every one of them. I remember the last vocal session we had, it was at about midnight the night before and I hadn’t finished these lyrics yet. I had a near panic attack and took a few-hour walk only to come back and hit Save on the final lyrics by 4:30am. Slightly delirious the morning after, Matt and I finished the vocal tracks and finally sat back after such a long week. I think I called my brother right after in some sort of exhausted victory lap.

Anyway, I’m sorry this whole thing has been so long but I wanted to give this record and project its proper due. There’s one other person that I would really like to thank here and that’s an incredibly thoughtful and motivational manager by the name of Jeff Ojeda. Jeff had only been on board in the final year but had brought such a level of care and expertise for the project that we never could have asked for. He also did such an amazing job of linking us up with more people that have helped us further our vision, including JVP who blew us away with his mix of Superficial Feeling. I guess I’m just kidding though because there really are so many other people that I should thank - people that helped us out with some beautiful additions on the record and during our live shows (Laura Genschorek, Benji Klassen, Siobhan Lauzon, AJ Buckley, Elliott McKerr, Julia Huggins, Michael Cumblidge, Kelsey Huggan, Emma Song-Carrillo, Sheena Truong, Mitch Walford, Jamie Smail, Ryan Morey, Ryan Eno, Matt Thomas, Cam Nicklaus, Richard Mitchell, Tyson Sulley) or lent us their advice & skills (Sebastian Galina, Murray Ash, Kevin Lim).

So for those following the story, hopefully this doesn’t end up being a total “goodbye” from us. Anyone who’s ever attended a show, bought a copy of our record, bought a tee shirt or just believed in us in any way: thank you so so much, we cannot express how much that stuff meant to us and really kept us working hard. We love you.

LOVE //
Wade, Kane, Brian & Alex
Written Years

credits

released October 9, 2020

Wade Ouellet - Vocals, Words, Guitar, Keys
Kane Enders - Drums, Percussion
Brian Dyck - Bass, Keys
Alex Richardson - Guitar, Vocals

Produced by Ryan Worsley & Written Years
Engineered by Ryan Worsley & Matt DiPomponio
Mixed by Ryan Worsley & Jason Van Poederooyen
Mastered by Huntley Miller
Artwork by Wade Ouellet & Brian Dyck

ADDITIONAL CREDITS //

Matt DiPomponio - Vocals (Tracks 1,4,5,6)
Ryan Eno - Drum Engineer (Tracks 2,10)
Laura Genschorek - Vocals (Tracks 2,3,4,6,7,9,10)
Zeb Hansell - Sampling (Track 4)
Kelsey Huggan - Vocals (Tracks 1,2,4,6)
Benji Klassen - Vocals (Track 7)
Kodie Krogh - Guitar (Tracks 5,9)
Richard Mitchell - Brass (Track 10)
Cam Nicklaus - Drum Tech (Tracks 2, 10)
Jamie Smail - Vocals (Tracks 5,10)
Emma Song-Carrillo - Vocals (Tracks 5,9)
Tyson Sulley - Brass (Track 10)
Matt Thomas - Synth Consultant (Tracks 1,2,5,6,9)
Sheena Truong - Vocals (Tracks 4,6)
Ryan Worsley - Vocals (Track 4), Guitar (Tracks 4,7)
Mitch Walford - Vocals (Track 9)

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Written Years Vancouver, British Columbia

We are band from Vancouver, BC. We like trying different things and making music with some feeling.

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