Reuben and the Dark - All Or Nothing (Official Audio)

___________________________________________________________

Arms of a Dream features Reuben and the Dark’s most transformative music to date. The album’s first single, “All or Nothing,” is an anthem that careens on the boundary of “confidence and complete desperation,” as Reuben describes it. Above a canyon of chiming guitars and rolling drums, Reuben’s voice exults in the triumph of risk over loss, and the salve of unconditional hope.

The album finds Reuben working outside his comfort zone, both musically and lyrically. With uncharacteristically literal and intimate storytelling, Reuben confronts the entanglement of love & family at the heart of “All or Nothing.” He sings: My mother found solace in hiding her pain / My father a shepherd, no sheep to his name / I learned to keep all my feelings inside / With a mother to face and a father to fight.

The new dynamic lays the groundwork for personal, seismic change. Melodies of atmospheric peaks burst from the cracks in his solitary poetry – And the heart is a cage if the heart doesn’t change – as Reuben portrays the shift of his own soul. He says:

“‘All or Nothing’ was locked in my head for a long time. When it was finally written, I was left with a feeling of freedom, of letting go. But I am careful not to corner it into a room that is too small. It is simple and universal. It isn’t a love song. It isn’t a protest song. It is an anthem of mine.”

Through the process of writing came the revelation of each song’s meaning, an experience that Reuben describes as “psychic, or transcendent.” Through his immersion in dreams, Reuben unlocked the cryptic symbolism of his narratives. In challenging his own creative systems, he was able to create imagery with photographic sharpness.

[tomhaynes]

How are these guys not ridiculously famous? I saw them play in St Catharines to an audience of 20 people. Insane. Best concert I've been to in a while.

[vender]

We're sick as the devil and tired as sin
We're closer to love than we ever have been
They told us that fear was a howling wind
And if there was ever a storm we are weathering it


And all things we saw
They were not our fault
We're never taught how to love
And never got to be young


And if love is a war
It isn't love anymore
And the heart is a cage
If the heart doesn't change


And it's all or nothing now
Or it's all for nothing
My mother found solace in hiding her pain
My father a shepherd no sheep to his name


I learned to keep all my feelings inside
With a mother to face and a father to fight
Oh but if love is a war
It isn't love anymore


And the heart is a cage
If the heart doesn't change
And it's all or nothing now
Or it's all for nothing now


And it's all or nothing now
Or it's all for nothing
Oh woah oh, oh woah oh oh oh
Oh woah oh, oh woah oh oh oh


And I thought I heard your voice
Heard it raise above the grain
Thought I heard your voice
Thought I heard your voice say


It's all or nothing now
Or it's all for nothing
Oh woah oh, oh woah oh oh oh
Oh woah oh, oh woah oh oh oh


Oh woah oh, oh woah oh oh oh
Oh woah oh, oh woah oh oh oh

[UsedWe]

just discovered you in the alternative apple music playlist, your stuff is awesome, can't wait for the whole album on May 4th!

[kylestather]

If love is war .it's not love anymore...how f'n true is that??

[src]

This is giving me serious Jezabels vibes and I love it. Helluva song