'Hanging By A Moment' with Lifehouse's 'No Name Face'; Album Explores the Broken Mind of an Always Searching Believer - Throwback Thursday

Lifehouse

Today's BreatheCast Throwback Thursday is Lifehouse's first album, No Name Face, which spawned smash single "Hanging By A Moment" and the popular church used song "Everything."

Lifehouse did not start out as a Christian band, but their singer Jason Wade was a believer and it heavily influenced the band's music. They are actually more known as a Christian band 14 years later after this album was produced.

Of course leading off this memorable album is "Hanging By A Moment." Not only was this song a mega hit, but it talks about falling in love with God. "Desperate for changing, starving for truth...I'm falling even more in love with you."

Track two is the catchy "Sick Cycle Carousel," which paints a metaphor of a man who continuously fails at life and no matter how he tries to break the pattern, he becomes stuck in an endless cycle. At the end it is realized only God can move him past it.

"Unknown" is a song about doubting and not having faith. He then comes back to realize that it is his faith that moves him forward. "Faith makes, everybody scared, but it's the unknown, the don't know, that keeps me hanging onto you." He is doing everything to get to God and that is because he believes.

What follows next is "Somebody Else's Song." The singer feels trapped in their head as they feel the thoughts are not theirs. "I want some of my own," Wade sings. These thoughts are not where he wants to be because those thoughts ultimately mean nothing to him.

Next is "Trying," which touches on not being the same as everyone else. We do not have to follow everyone else. We just need to follow God because people do not have everything figured out.

"Only One" is the guy and girl song of the CD with a twist. The guy falls for the girl, but she lets him down and deceives him. Jason remembers his real "Only One" Jesus who will never let him down. "You're the only who won't change faces."

"Simon" is a deep song that seems to be about bullying. It goes over the testing times people go through, and how we have to pick ourselves up. "Cause the weak will Seek the weaker til they've broken them," and "And don't believe the lies/ That they have told to you. Not one word was true."

The next song "Cling and Clatter," is about trying to avoid being constantly burned by someone. It encourages the listener to not settle for failure, but for truth. Too many voices will unsettle the mind.

 

Lifehouse
(Photo : Facebook: Lifehouse)

"Breathing" is about finding our way "back to sanity" and hanging on the words of Jesus. "Cause I am hanging on every word you're saying/ Even if you don't wanna speak tonight/ That's alright, alright with me/ Cause I want nothing more than to sit outside heaven's door/ And listen to you breathing/ It's where I wanna be."

"Quasimodo" paints an analogy of the character from the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Wade sings about losing "pain" and chains" as "everyone wants to feel ok." It is essentially the message of not forgetting who you are and letting the world change you.

"Somewhere In Between" is a song that falls between knowing what is real and just a dream. It is almost like a place of depression and being unsure of what will happen next. "Would you catch me if I fall out of what I fell in," is such a powerful question.

The album closes with the extremely powerful "Everything" which has become sort of a worship anthem for many churches and youth skits. The song is pleading to God for Him to give peace and calm the storms of life. It is begging God to to be everything. "And how can I stand here with you/ And not be moved by you?/ Would you tell me/ How could it be/ Any better than this?/ Cause you're all I want/ You're all I need/ You're everything, everything."

Overall No Name Face shows the journey of a young man who is wrestling with the thoughts in his head. He appears to be beaten down at times, but remains up beat in knowing his faith in God will help him overcome the problems of his life. He is searching and hoping, and that is all most of us can do.

14 years later this album's passion and raw emotion is still powerful. As a young band putting out their first album, No Name Face hits with a punch of honesty that has kept this band alive into 2014.