‘The Quiet Life of August’ by Cut The Kids In Half
‘The Quiet Life of August’ by the dynamic duo Cut The Kids In Half is a raw display of distorted guitars and passionate vocals that captures the complexities of working class families. The song is written from the perspective of an aging parent reflecting on their life and the lives of their children.
Jack and Charlie Silver hailing from Rahway, NJ spent their time in Los Angeles in the summer of 2022 writing and recording, the band of brothers decided to release and share their debut single ‘The Quiet Life of August’ this past December. ‘The Quiet Life of August’ starts off with layered “ahs” and hefty guitars. When we get to the verse, we experience an astonishingly rich bass voice”.
“The life we had imagined
Don’t let the kids see you cry
Who knows what kind of damage that could do to them
Maybe this is more than I can manage”
The second verse gives us some tasty new vocal harmonies just before the singer laments over the gargantuan amount of effort it takes to wake up and try and get through today. Despite the overarching theme of anguish and feelings of helplessness, there is a glimmer of light within the song: the kids.
“But If they become something more than what we became
I’d do it all again”
Cut The Kids In Half have a lyrical aptitude and sophistication that is unequaled. This hard-hitting verse is eloquent yet tragic.
“And when the evergreens turn gray
When I forget their names
They’ll fight the urge to let the hurt defeat
The promise of today”
Cut The Kids In Half is composed of not only two brothers, but rather, two insightful old souls. ‘The Quiet Life of August’ captures the essence of middle agedness – The loneliness, agony, and willingness to sacrifice it all for the kid.
What inspired you to choose “August” as the main character’s name?
The song was written the night before the last day of August. It was our birthday gift to our mom, and though it wasn’t explicitly about her, the lyrics are told from the perspective of a similar parent. To us, the end of August represents a time for quiet reflection before leaving summer behind and returning to the chaos of life. We never put much thought into “August” being the name of the parent, however it wouldn’t change anything in our eyes.
Where did you record the single when you were in LA?
We recorded in our producer, Lee DeWyze’s home studio near Hollywood. Despite it being our first time ever recording music, the homely location made us comfortable and eradicated any nerves that may have been there.
Is your band name, Cut The Kids In Half, a reference to Radiohead’s ‘Morning Bell’? What inspired you to choose the name?
After searching endlessly for a perfect band name, Charlie turned to a few of our favorite artists for inspiration. Eventually, we settled on the cryptic Radiohead lyric off of Amnesiac. The name itself doesn’t hold much meaning for us, but we thought of it as a way to pay homage to an incredible band (in the same tradition as Radiohead taking their name from a Talking Heads song).
When did you both begin making music (either together or separately)?
Charlie had been playing music since Elementary School, while Jack began writing stories around the same age. At 13, Charlie decided to write his first song, and naturally as an older brother and writer himself, Jack decided he could write a better one. Over the course of the next year, we settled into our dynamic; with Charlie playing and writing the music and Jack singing and writing the lyrics.
If you could perform at any venue in the world, where would you perform?
We’d have to say the Hammersmith Apollo (which used to be known as the Hammersmith Odeon), since it was the venue for one of the greatest live performances in rock history. Bruce Springsteen’s 1975 show there is incredible, and visiting London would also be an amazing opportunity.
How did you feel so deeply into the experience of growing older, while you yourselves are both still in your teens?
The entire song was crafted in a single night, with Jack often leaving for a half hour to write a single line. while Charlie continued messing around with guitar parts. The goal was to write a song for our mom that was genuinely authentic to her experiences raising two kids in a household that is always on the edge of falling apart. Interestingly, the “growing older” aspects of the song are more about the kids aging than the parents. The truth is we don’t know how it feels to be middle-aged and raising teenagers, but someday we’ll realize what it takes.
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