The Black Swan (Story Of The Year Album)
The Black Swan is the third studio album by American rock band Story of the Year. The album was named after Nassim Nicholas Taleb's book, The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable, on unpredictable events and randomness and was their first album recorded with indie label Epitaph Records, after switching from major label Maverick Records. Commenting on this switch, lead singer Dan Marsala said in an interview, "Making this record felt like starting over. We're like a brand new band. You can hear it in these songs, we're excited again. I think we've really stepped it up on this record." Guitarist Ryan Phillips adds, "Epitaph seemed like the perfect place for us at this time in our career. It's a much more creative environment."
One theme found in a few of the songs ("Wake Up", "Terrified", and in particular "Pale Blue Dot (Interlude)") is the concept that human existence is insignificant in comparison to the universe as a whole, and that wars, fighting and killing seem pointless. The song "Pale Blue Dot (Interlude)" features an excerpt from Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space, read by its author, astronomer Carl Sagan. The band believes that people should live their lives to the fullest extent. Other themes include political and social issues.
The album debuted on the UK rock charts at number 6 and at number 18 on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling about 21,000 copies in its first week.
Read more about The Black Swan (Story Of The Year Album): Track Listing, Release History, Chart Positions, Personnel
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—Jacques Roumain (1907–1945)
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