Circling From Above

Circling From Above
Written by Tommy Shaw, Will Evankovich
Lead Vocals by Lawrence Gowan

Wasteland
In the skies
Open up your eyes
It's no surprise
It's a labyrinth in your mind
Circling from above
Created once with love

Will they ever find a way?
To the ground or lost in space
Will they crash into the Sun
Could they rain on everyone
See the wasteland
Of all our hopes and dreams

Interpretation

We have launched so many satellites into orbit that the debris from out of service satellites, discarded rocket stages, and other space junk has created a wasteland in orbit.  We set everything up with good intentions and have gotten good use out of much of it, but it shows how our technology just doesn't last.  As the orbits decay over time, pieces will be raining on the earth, if they don't burn up on re-entry, for decades or longer to come.  It is a reality that also symbolically can represent any dreams of the past that have turned out to be fruitless or abandoned.

'Circling From Above' New Studio Album Available Now! – Styxworld 

Midway through writing the album, a loose theme began to orbit the band’s creative process — a gravitational pull, if you will, guiding them down the straight road Shaw describes. In a moment of studio serendipity, talk turned to an app that tracks abandoned satellites, those silent relics of once-lofty ambition. From that spark, the opening tracks — including the title cut and “Build and Destroy” — took shape, tracing the tension between human ingenuity and the dreams we sometimes discard in its pursuit.

“When they were shot up into space, these satellites were somebody’s dream and ambition,” says Shaw of the once-cutting-edge technology now floating aimlessly through the atmosphere. “They served their purpose and they were cast aside. It’s a wasteland up there, but they were once created with love. We’re all humans, and who’s to say our love project is better than someone else’s?”

Look closely at the album cover art and you will see this thematic overture take flight. Thousands of starlings — chosen specifically for their supreme ability to work in concert together with their flight patterns — in the shape of one bird, soaring over a dilapidated satellite dish.

“They’re prevailing and we’re failing,” notes Evankovich of the cover. “We’re not like the rest of the creatures that work in stewardship together, like the birds and the bees and all the other things. We do things and then create waste for ourselves that ends up harming us.”