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Eyes Like Stars LP
ORIGIN STORY
This album is comprised of a selection of compositions written and recorded between approximately 2004 and 2016, with final recording and editing taking place in 2023. The songs are all similar in that they were recorded with various studio-band iterations, all featuring live drumming, bass, guitars, and synthesizer keyboards. Of the albums in the discography, this represents the one that is the most “live” in that the recording processes combined elements of live drums, bass, guitar, and keyboards, together with other studio-recorded elements, giving each song a humanistic and natural quality.
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ALBUM TITLE ORIGIN
The meaning of the album title references the love-song nature of the respective album tracks, with each exploring different metaphors for love, the hope of love, the loss of love. The album title in this way was meant to evoke this concept, and is in a way deeply personal, as the eyes are the proverbial window into the soul, and that feeling can be encapsulated in the simple three word phrase, eyes like stars.
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DEDICATIONS
I dedicate this album to my mom who always believed in my musical talent and helped me hone and develop my skills and inspire me to practice and study music theory and always believed in me. Also, to my dear family, my two boys, I hope they will grow up to listen to this lifetime of effort and care into the craft to establish my legacy in this discography. I hope these songs survive me, that they touch the world, that the whole of my work, my music, my technology companies, that they will be my great legacy and that they inspire other people to try and change the world, no matter the overwhelming odds and adversity, it just takes patience and dedication and sacrifice. Never give up on your dreams.
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Eyes Like Stars LP
Debut Full Length Album
1. Patterns of Light
2. Hurricane Machine
3. The Darkest Longest Night
4. Setting Sun
5. Ghosts
6. Fight or Flight
7. In the End
8. Invisible Shadows
9. Brand New Age
10. Against Your Skin
11. Lonely Hearts
01
In Patterns of Light
CREDITS:
James Anthony Wolff: Composer, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Matt "Matty" Fischer: Drums
Matt Simulk: Guitars
Aaron Garisto: Bass
Brittney Elizabeth: Keyboards
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LYRICS:
If stories can tell us of our fate, then maybe shadows and light can do the same, in patterns of light, filtered by, all the beautiful sights, that fill our eyes, with romance, woven in spells that bind, If symmetry can teach us to believe, that love is a place that burns at a million degrees, And light, reflections filtered by x-ray radio waves, sent from our hearts to our minds, with messages intended for our eyes, with romance woven in spells that bind us in the dark of night, In light reflections filtered by all the beautiful sights that fill our eyes, with romance, Shattered like a thousand broken mirrors, like morning light through a kaleidoscope, The horizon is burning in a quiet fire, loud like the thunder in explosions of color, Teach us to believe in patterns that will leave, symmetry in our new life, Romance woven in spells that bind, In patterns of light filtered by all the beautiful sights that fill our eyes, our eyes, with romance, woven in spells that bind us in the dark of night
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THE MEANING:
This song describes a love song between two stars, communicating by x-rays, burning their energies in a furious dance across the cosmos, twirling around a central galactic singularity. This double-motif underlies a simple love-song at its core, but was especially effective in conveying a multitude of descriptive emotive elements in describing the feeling of love, such as the binding of our hearts “in the dark of night”, and “burning at a million degrees”.
02
Hurricane Machine
CREDITS:
James Anthony Wolff: Composer, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Matt "Matty" King: Drums
Aaron Costa: Guitars
Nate Greenberg: Bass
Brittney Elizabeth: Keyboards
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LYRICS:
The future came in a story dream, carried by the waves of an open sea, Maybe that fate, maybe that’s our fate, against all the incredible odds, thrown off course by a man-made machine, empty bottles lost at sea, maybe we’re lost souls searching for heat, maybe we’re lost souls searching, two lost souls just searching for heat, carried by the waves of a hurricane, we are still searching, twisting and turning, in the cold cold cold sea, gotta find find find some heat, it’s just you and me, drifting towards our destiny,
Maybe we’re lost souls searching heat, two lost souls just searching for heat, in a hurricane machine we are still searching and twisting and turning, in the cold cold cold sea gotta, find find find some heat, it’s just you and me drifting towards our destiny, Two empty bottles lost a sea, maybe that’s our fate, our destiny, carried by the waves of hurricane we've been lost for days still searching, still searching, carried by the waves drifting to our fate,
Maybe we'll even meet some day in the peaceful center of a hurricane carried by the waves
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THE MEANING:
This was about the great struggle between the mortal concepts of determinism and control, about purpose, and about giving courage to accept what you cannot change, and change what you can. Searching for love in a chaotic world, tossed about by the waves of fate, an attempt to reach across an endless ocean.
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03
The Darkest Longest Night
CREDITS:
James Anthony Wolff: Composer, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Matt "Matty" King: Drums
Aaron Costa: Guitars
Nate Greenberg: Bass
Brittney Elizabeth: Keyboards
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LYRICS:
Give me a reason to believe again, one more reason to be close again, one more reason to try over again, and over and over and over again, and again
Break all the things you own, that tether you to this world, let go of control and listen as nature calls home, and gives you the courage to be on your own, gives you the courage to happy alone in this world, No one can control this world, no one can control this world, you can try you can try you can try, no one can control this world, no one can control this thing, that's happening, And when you open up inside, you will shine like the brightest light, in the darkest longest night, shine like a beacon in the sky, and when you are well enough the colors will return, they will my friend, No one can control this world, no one can control this world, you can try you can try you can try, no one can control this world, no one can control this thing, that's happening
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THE MEANING:
This was about never giving up, an anthem to hope. This was about the great struggle between the mortal concepts of determinism and control, about purpose, and about giving courage to accept what you cannot change, and change what you can. The song references other material, including Patterns of Light, referencing to the colors motif, and the meta-thematic parallels to stellar standard candle lifecycles, and the ability to make fantastical change in defiance of standard physics, through the lens of our place in the world.
04
Setting Sun
CREDITS:
James Anthony Wolff: Composer, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Matt "Matty" King: Drums
Aaron Costa: Guitars
Nate Greenberg: Bass
Brittney Elizabeth: Keyboards
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LYRICS:
You are the setting sun, and I am the fool, always chasing you, with a slick city attitude, holding on to dreams that never last, I traveled towards the west, to find myself again, And breath in all the mountain county air, we were made for this, to be way out here, Our young bodies are strong and they will survive, teenage angst, bottled up inside will one day explode when our souls collide, We’ll swim in the river by the railroad tracks, spend our summers looking forward and never looking back, we built this dream to last, we traveled towards the west, to find ourselves again, Our young bodies are strong and they will survive, teenage angst, bottled up inside will one day explode when our souls collide,
You are the setting sun, and I am the fool, always chasing after the dreams that come true, you are the setting sun, and I am the fool, always chasing after, someone just like you, you are the setting sun, and I am the moon, always chasing after, someone just like you.
THE MEANING:
The lyrics were meant to evoke a sense of longing by a heartstruck boy, for his love, a beautiful girl who shines like the sun. He realizes he is a fool to give his heart to such unrequited love, though does anyway, each day, observing the moon chasing the Earth in the same way. When I wrote this song, I wanted to write something memorable, honest, and it is in a sense a deep and grand love song, or song of longing.
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05
Ghosts
CREDITS:
James Anthony Wolff: Composer, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Matt "Matty" King: Drums
Aaron Costa: Guitars
Nate Greenberg: Bass
Brittney Elizabeth: Keyboards
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LYRICS:
No one can move like that, float through walls or hover so, what we are dealing with I think might be a ghost,
What happened here, so long ago, what kind of mystery, surrounds this ghost, what kind of tragedy befell this soul, befell this soul, will we ever know will we ever know, will we ever know, Lets clean this room, it might be attracted to the clutter on the floor, or the paintings on the wall or the tv playing late, Maybe it’s a conduit for them to call us on their phone, what kind of mystery surrounds this ghost, what kind of tragedy befell this soul, befell this soul, will we ever know will ever know, will we ever know will ever know, will we ever know will ever know, The pipes above my room are creaking, I’m hearing whispers the dead are speaking, the window shaking my books are floating the lights are flickering the walls are bleeding, I’m losing my mind, I’m losing my mind, I’m going crazy, I’m going crazy, there’s a ghost in here in my room, there’s a ghost in here, in my room, Maybe it shot itself, maybe it hanged itself, maybe it jumped off the top of my building, maybe it cut itself, maybe it choked itself, maybe it fell down a flight of stairs, I think it’s waiting, I think it’s waiting, I know it’s waiting, I know it’s waiting, It’s almost like something is there, was that a shadow just tell it was, I think I’m hearing, I think I’m hearing a ghost
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THE MEANING:
I found the lyrics to this song almost wrote themselves, as if guided by a ghostly hand, the words formed from the notes of the music as they shimmered in my head. The song has one of my favorite electronic bass lines that I would highlight during solo-show DJ sets. The song, early in its development.
06
Fight or Flight
CREDITS:
James Anthony Wolff: Composer, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Matt "Matty" King: Drums
Aaron Costa: Guitars
Nate Greenberg: Bass
Brittney Elizabeth: Keyboards
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LYRICS:
If you think you’re an animal, then show your fangs, Fly by night kind of wildlife, fight or flight instincts that are physical
That extend beyond the psychological, rituals that are unusual,
Designed by mutations that are spiritual, backup in a corner by circumstance,
I can’t tell if you’re an animal or human,
Cut the strings, from which you’re hanging,
From a geek into the lion
If you think you had a good reason, then it could not explain this extraordinary transformation
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THE MEANING:
This was about a transformation, from a introverted composer into a band-leader. Here, there was an inside joke amongst the band about the difference between a human and an animal, of which a human is undoubtedly a species of animal, and that the entirety of the topic was utterly appropriate as my last name was that of an animal, a wolf. However, instead of seeking to be so overly transparent, I had chosen the word “lion” instead of “wolf”, to describe the transformed introvert. The lyrics “fly by night” referenced our night-practice sessions and performances, and “rituals that are unusual” referenced the very concept of shows and performances and the odd nature of an assemblage of animals for the vocal performances to be presented by applause and hand-clapping. These subtle references were more for my own satisfaction, as undoubtedly listeners would derive their own meaning from the sequence of words.
07
In the End
CREDITS:
James Anthony Wolff: Composer, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Matt "Matty" King: Drums
Aaron Costa: Guitars
Nate Greenberg: Bass
Brittney Elizabeth: Keyboards
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LYRICS:
We will write our names into the future
When we make the path of the world clearer
And on the tombstones of our corporations
We will cut the cancer with our lasers
Our faith will be sublime
Invisible to the eye
And we will stand tall for what we believe in
Even if in the end it slowly winds up killing up
Our faith will be sublime invisible to the naked eye
And we will stand tall for what we believe in
Even if in the end it slowly winds up killing us
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THE MEANING:
This was about the great struggle between the mortal concepts of determinism and control, about purpose, and about giving courage to accept what you cannot change, and change what you can. The song references other material, including Patterns of Light, referencing to the colors motif, and the meta-thematic parallels to stellar standard candle lifecycles, and the ability to make fantastical change in defiance of standard physics, through the lens of our place in the world.
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08
Invisible Shadows
CREDITS:
James Anthony Wolff: Composer, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Matt "Matty" King: Drums
Aaron Costa: Guitars
​Nate Greenberg: Bass
Brittney Elizabeth: Keyboards
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LYRICS:
Sometimes I feel so invisible, I am my shadow, I walk a quiet lonely path, I am my shadow, I won't, I won't be sad, I won't, won't regret, You look so good in your dress, like an angel, I wonder who now watches over you, my sleepy angel, cause we're all this together, stuck on this little rock, forever, cause were all together, stuck on this little rock, forever, I’ll still be there,, watching over you, hidden in your shadow, invisible, I’ll still be there, watching over you,
hidden in your shadow, invisible, invisible
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THE MEANING:
This song was deeply personal, I tried to write a love song that people could relate to, the down-tempo nature of the track gave it a ballad-like feeling, it felt raw, honest, and real, Like my other love songs, a characteristic tinge of lonely longing which bleeds through the words.
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09
Brand New Age
CREDITS:
James Anthony Wolff: Composer, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Matt "Matty" King: Drums
Aaron Costa: Guitars
Nate Greenberg: Bass
Brittney Elizabeth: Keyboards
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LYRICS:
I see all the final details perfectly crystal clear in my magic eight ball
It shows a vision of golden new age, it's the most honest thing ever made
I can trust this, I can feel it, feels good, good about a brand new age, going through me in different ways
Reunited stars will seed the inner city paper, so that anything you feels like, Nothing at all can get us to walk fast enough, and I know it’s the thought, of another sign
Maybe it's day again maybe it's day again so we walk outside, out into the streets to our cars, all the the time thinking about who we are, really are, and exactly how far into to the sunset, I see all the fine details perfectly clear in my magic eight ball it shows a vision of a golden new age, it's the most honest thing ever made,
I feel good about this brand new age, that we are living in
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THE MEANING:
In this song I experimented with more avant-garde lyrical expositions, attempting to push the limits of metaphor and meaning. I attempted to describe the feeling of foreknowledge, the concept of understanding fate, of waking up to a new age. I engaged in numerous edits, with each edit attempting to convey more abstracted concepts, creating mysterious meanings. For example, “reunited stars will seed the inner city paper” was a call-out to an early article on the band in a local paper and its motivating effect on the band, now lost to time. In another example “maybe its day again” referred to the late-night band practices, ending in the mornings when the musicians would leave out into the daylight to go to work without sleep. The golden new age, as referenced here, for me personally, was the era in which the music was finished and released and the band gained stardom, as foretold by a magic eight ball. In this way, the composition was more than a symmetrical verse, but instead an asymmetrical and modified iambic pentameter occasioned by outlier stressed words conveying meanings embedded within the thematic motif of the composition.
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10
Against Your Skin
CREDITS:
James Anthony Wolff: Composer, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Matt "Matty" King: Drums
Aaron Costa: Guitars
​Nate Greenberg: Bass
Brittney Elizabeth: Keyboards
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LYRICS:
Feel the cool breeze of a summer’s night against our skin,
Take the time to do it right and be timeless,
Let’s take a trip and get away, maybe down to mexico
Take our time and do it right and make miracle,
Take it slow,
Listen to the sound of a humming fan, and take it easy,
Let go take it slow, and be timeless, Just watch us do this,
Dance to a beat that’s good and slow,
Good for loving, move those hands down the hips and flow,
That’s right you know
Listen to the sound of a humming fan and dream easy,
Let go take it slow, and be timeless, Just watch us do this,
Let’s take a trip and get away, maybe down to mexico
Take our time and do it right and make miracle,
Take it slow take it slow, take it slow, take it slow
Listen to the sound of a humming fan and dream easy,
Let go take it slow and be timeless, just watch us do this
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THE MEANING:
The lyrics were meant to evoke a sense of slow malaise, describing a hot summer’s night, hearing the sound of a humming fan. This was written, predictably, on a summer’s night when living with my first girlfriend. We had a studio apartment and no AC, and I still remember the bedroom door opened out to a small balcony. The heat was intense, and we both were wet with sweat. We joked about getting away to Mexico, ostensibly even hotter at the time, as a way to beat the heat. Those times felt timeless, I still remember her fondly, of that moment, in poverty, but we were happy, even without the AC.
11
Lonely Hearts
CREDITS:
James Anthony Wolff: Composer, Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Matt "Matty" King: Drums
Aaron Costa: Guitars
​Nate Greenberg: Bass
Brittney Elizabeth: Keyboards
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LYRICS:
You, and I, are two of a kind, lonely hearts
Try, and try, just never can, make up our minds,
Love, and life, we’re fucked, we’re fucked,
Blind and cut our dreams are fucked up,
Pulling us in our sleep, like running water, down a fast stream,
Blind and cut our dreams are fucked up,
Pulling us in our sleep, like running water, down a fast stream,
Like running water
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THE MEANING:
This was about unrequited love, finding someone so perfect, a soulmate, only never to work up the courage to introduce yourself. Then to find it was only a dream, over and over, each night, in a ceaseless loop. This is hidden in the loop patterns of the vocals. The running water analogy was stood for the concept of time, rushing by.
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