Great Weights overcomes self-destructive habits on “After The Drive-In”

Great Weights have such a necessary, important message that they don’t need to shout to get it across, but it sure is great when they do. The songs on the band’s self-titled EP, which will be released April 13 via Bunny Cat Records, are fueled by a deep anger at the state of the world and an unwavering urgency to change it.

The band’s interests, according to their Facebook page, include “destroying abuse apologists and reclaiming the music they took from us.” With tracks like “Morning Sickness” and “After The Drive-In,” that task becomes a reality. The latest single from the new EP, “After The Drive-In” brims over with pent-up frustration — somehow articulating perfectly what it feels like to communicate poorly and be troubled by muddled thoughts, as vocalist and guitarist Meri Haines scream/sings, “I’ve tried to say what I want to say to you / But nothing comes out right, ’cause nothing I think is true.”

Haines told Substream Magazine:

“The song is about making difficult choices that often make your life hell before it gets better. When I hit 27, I realized that the entire life I had led up until that point was literally making me sick. A lot of times it felt like I was heading in a direction I had no power over. We end the song with James screaming ‘This ain’t my God,’ over and over again to remind ourselves of our own agency. Even if it doesn’t feel like it, we can change our own patterns of self-sabotage. Even if we’ve had the same destructive habits for decades, we can still beat them. We CAN regain control over our brains, even when that feels impossible. It is saying no to self-destruction; it is us reclaiming what we have taken from our own lives. It is a reminder that it is never too late to change.”

Great Weights play a record release show on April 13 at The Mothership in West Philly with Tact, Ronnie Vega and Cage Flight — find more information here.