holley4734
Bloodshot Eyes: No Filters Needed
It’s the “bad stuff”, the “real stuff”, the stuff that fancy filters and photoshop can’t fix. It goes by the name grief, depression, anxiety, pain, suffering, bad news, bad days, bad months…call it what you will, but it doesn’t change the fact that no one is immune, and it doesn’t matter your age, race or gender. For me, a bad month turned into a bad year…I went from playing to crowds of 20,000 and selling out of merch every night to a just another guy in a band with a bankrupt record label going through a divorce. The quick ascent and rapid downward spiral sent my head spinning and almost out of control…almost. Once the self pity was over, I realized that there is always “worse pain than yours” and while this felt like “the end”, I realized it was only the beginning. For me it took months of “up all nights” and pouring myself into music and songwriting like never before…that was my drug of choice…music. My bloodshot eyes came from sleepless nights of work, focus, and determination not to become the typical rock and roll cliche…but hey, this was MY journey and MY recovery…every story is different, and every recovery unique.
Several months back the band and I were working on some music and one of the tracks had this huge ANTHEMIC feel…something BIG and BOLD…it was our attempt at creating something that made us feel the way we did the first time we heard “Back in Black” or “You Shook Me All Night Long”. I could tell it was a special song and I didn’t want to waste the opportunity to make something so alive just be another “party anthem”…I wanted it to feel like a party, but also have meaning. I took the opportunity to write a song about “getting through the “bad stuff” and finding recovery…I called the song “Bloodshot Eyes” after my experience with the sleepless nights, but I wanted it to be universal…we all have different journeys, challenges and struggles, and all deal with it differently…and it’s ok. Whether we choose to end our day with a cold beer after work, a smoke with a group of friends, or a nice cry all alone…HOW we get through is not the important thing. The important thing is that we GET THROUGH… Happiness is self served, and I’m on my second scoop.
-Troy Brown, Singer
Lovesick Radio
