Song Of The Week: 7/20/14

Song: "Version 2.0"

Artist: Staring Back

Album: "On"

Year: 2002



"Version 2.0" is a song that appears to be about the vocalist wanting to make a better version of himself. He wants to be motivated by creativity, not fearful that what he creates won't live up to expectations. He wants to stand up for himself and man up to confrontation, not shy away from it and be content to be in the same place all the time, the safe place. He basically doesn't want to be afraid to grow, to evolve. Staring Back formed as a band back in 1997, hailing from Goleta, California. There's not a whole lot of information out there about this underground pop/punk band but here's what I do know. In 1999, Staring Back self-produced their first EP, "The Mean Streets Of Goleta". This EP caught the ears of Lobster Records who worked out a deal with the band to distribute the album. In 2000, Lobster Records would release Staring Back's debut full length album, "Many Will Play". After a few line-up changes, mostly due to guys going back to school (the guys formed the band in high school, at this point some guys decided to go to college as the band was really making hardly any money), Staring Back released "On" in 2002. It was at this point that the band secured a spot on one of the small stages on the Warped Tour that year. The band filmed a video for the song "Version 2.0" off of "On", my song of the week! Currently, Staring Back doesn't appear to be making a comeback anytime soon. Since 2004, the band has been inactive and they did announce their break up on their PureVolume page. Their style was that of a pop/punk band, mainly in the same vein as bands such as Yellowcard, Riddlin' Kids and No Motiv. The band never quite crossed over as a band like Yellowcard did, nor did they have at least one credible hit as the Riddlin' Kids did. They just were another band in the pack that kind of got swallowed up. Some band members have found homes in other bands, most notably Yellowcard and Bayside. Other than that, the book is closed on Staring Back.