Today Emily Armstrong of Dead Sara tells us about "We Are What You Say" from their self-titled debut which will hit stores in August. Here is the story: 'We Are What You Say' was the fastest written song on the album. The skeleton of the song was written in about an hour. Lyrically, the chorus came to me first with, "you can't back down kid" followed by "we are what you say". I knew right then what the song was going to be about. I had been through a lot – including some lows with the band. At this time in our career we were getting a lot of "I think you should do this" or "if you want to succeed, this is what you have to do". After deciding not to sign with a label, I felt we had failed, but at the same time made the right choice - because we clearly didn't even know what we wanted.
Around this time, Siouxsie and I were not getting along too well, and it took a while for us to say, "WTF are we doing? This is not us. f*** what anyone has to say because in the end, it's going to be all up to us". The advice I'd give to anyone is to know what you want (or at least have a concept) before diving into anything head first.
"We Are What You Say" is just a sarcastic way of saying 'whatever we are to you, we'll never change'. Its a triumphant song about getting away from all the confusing advice coming from every direction, and the pain that comes with the thought of giving up.
Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself and learn more about the album right here!
