The Physics of Immortality
Finally, Rock & Roll takes on philosophy.
Make it Offical. You were here.
The story of The Physics of Immortality
told for the first time by Micah Redding.
In 2006, we began the process of recording a new album. This album would be a step forward for us artistically and sonically, a continued fine-tuning of the sound we had begun to create with our first album, Wisdom From The Green Shag Carpet. Our second album would start as the last album had ended, with the strains of "Solid" still ruminating in the air.
The album would continue the tradition we had accidentally begun with Wisdom.
Years before, we had concocted the idea for a spoof of the "Chicken Soup for The Soul" and "Life's Little Instruction Book" type of books. Our book would be called "Wisdom From The Green Shag Carpet", and would feature advice our grandmother gave us as we sat at her feet on her plush living room rug. Although we collected quotes and anecdotes for this book, it never became anything other than a collection of webpages.
So when we recorded our first album, we affectionately (and with an offbeat sense of humor) titled it after our book. In keeping with the theme, we even included out-takes of the album on the 13th track.
Our second album would be more serious. We would tackle the issue of immortality from the side, examining it in all its aspects: chasing that which is greater than oneself, becoming lengendary, the search for transcendance, the pursuit of eternal life.
And we would take for its name the title of a scientific-philosophical tome that proposed uncomfortable theology. The book was The Physics of Immortality, by Frank J Tipler. Our choice of title was more of a play on concepts than words. We took the themes of this book, and re-worked them as metaphors towards our ends.
Songs that specifically worked on these themes were "Solid", and the manifesto "Unfaithful". The story is there all through, but these bracket that story with emphasis. And after the devasting ending of "Unfaithful", there is the piano-only track "Of The Sun", which points the way to the post-post-post reality of living on after the climax, after the end, in a world without end.
Track Listings
- Solid (3:39)
- Send Me a Line (3:09)
- Chauvet (3:50)
- Searching for Love (3:24)
- Fine (3:19)
- Wake (2:58)
- Clouds (2:42)
- Lofty Places (3:32)
- Reaching out a Hand (2:48)
- Coming Round (3:02)
- Anger (4:07)
- Unfaithful (7:04)
- Of The Sun (2:40)
Secret Facts about The Physics of Immortality
Secret Fact #1
Listen to Chauvet with the volume turned up really high. As Gabe was recording the vocals for this song, a couple of people walked in and started laughing. At the very beginning, you will hear this. This is actually something that happened live, and Gabe just decided to leave it on there.
Secret Fact #2
The way you can tell that you have an original-run of The Physics of Immortality is by reading the lyrics in the liner notes. There are two tracks 11s, and no track 10.
Alternate Endings, Versions, and Outtakes
Buy The Album
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