Say You Mean It
I want you to mean it
Alex Gaskarth. Not a name familiar in my town. Indeed, many of my friends don’t even know he exists, let alone sings in a band named All Time Low. But to me, he’s even more than that. He’s my hero, and I owe him for a hell of a lot.
I guess you could say it all started before I’d even heard of the band. A few years before, probably. A lot of people know I’m deaf. I’ve always been deaf in my right ear since I was three years old, but one April morning in 2007, I woke up completely deaf. It tore my life apart more than I imagined it would. I lost friends, I lost faith in many things, and of course, I lost the ability to hear music. I hadn’t really been that much into music before, just a few songs here and there that I liked the sound of, but it had always kept me happy and I used to dance round the room to them. I couldn’t do that any longer, even at full volume, I couldn’t hear a thing. So that was it. I was to be living in a world of silence from now on.
But we live in the 21st century, where technology helps us in places which we never thought possible. And so through a series of tests and accounts, in February 2008, I received the operation for a cochlear implant. Two months later, after my stitches healed up, I was given the external piece of it. To put it frankly, cochlear implants take sounds around them electronically and then take them through directly to the cochlea in my ear, going straight past my damaged eardrum. But because it was electronic, everything sounded different, so I had to go about learning new sounds for everything.
Fast forward to around August 09. I’d learnt stuff pretty well and could hear people so much better, and could listen to music fairly well, although I still had to memorise lyrics from a sheet to know what the singers were singing. Then my mate Alex linked me to two All Time Low music videos. One was the song Poppin’ Champagne, and the other was the more recent song, Weightless. Since then, I haven’t looked back. I started learning more about the band, and usually I like the guitarists in bands best. But something about the singer took my attention. He was attractive, of course, but something about that cheeky smile had me wanting to know more. I learnt his name, Alex Gaskarth, and something happened. Him, and the band, were no longer the ones who’d made just a few songs I liked. They became the first band ever that I started to get into, and with Alex, it was a helluva lot more. I’ve never admired anybody’s voice like I admire his. Of course, I have said some singers were good, but this was different. His voice managed to get the ability to cheer me up whenever I’m down, something no music could ever do before on its own, unless I was dancing round my room. I can sit still and just listen to Alex’s voice, and suddenly everything’s okay, no matter how bad I’d felt previously. Most people listen to sad songs when they’re upset to suit their mood. I can listen to one of Alex’s slow songs (Remembering Sunday is most common) and I’ll immediately feel better, even if I’d been crying before. That’s what his voice does.
It’s not just his voice that makes me feel this way, either. His pictures, his tweets, interviews, Stickam shows, everything he does just makes me feel incredibly happy. And somewhere along the way, as weird as it sounds, I fell in love with the guy. I’d heard of girls proclaiming their love for their favourite band members before but I dismissed it as some crazy fan girl exaggeration. Not so. Alex made me feel a burst of feelings that just made me feel as if anything is possible. And he pushes it the feeling himself, he can be an idiot at times, but at others, he can be a thoughtful person, and some of his quotes ARE inspirational, making me feel even more confident.
He’s not just any singer putting it on, either. Most ATL fans will know of the Six Flags incident. Fans amongst the crowd got maced by security. Alex didn’t ignore this, as some singers would have. He came down and argued with security, and although it did end in a fight, I know he had good intentions in what he did. He wouldn’t stand of any mistreatment of his fans. And that in itself is something inspirational, he cares about his fans. He’s not in this for all the fame and fortune.
Not that it’s ever crossed my mind he is. I think he’s in it just because he wants to make the most of life, and he really does this. He’s achieved his dream and he’s living it out in full. In May, the band released their band DVD, aptly named Straight to DVD. In it, I just can’t stop laughing because Alex kept making these witty one liners or jokes. Him showing he can live out his dream to the full. Of course, there’s his amazing singing recorded live on there too, and he’s adorable, but he’s done what he manages to do best. He manages makes me smile and think that everything’s okay.
Maybe it’s a bit of an over the top obsession, but he makes me happy in ways that I never knew possible. He makes me think there is hope in the world, if there’s boys like him out there. Fun loving, kind, friendly boys. Granted, he has his faults, and I don’t deny he’s done a lot of stuff he shouldn’t do. He still does it now. But he’s 22 years old, and he’s living out everything he’s ever wanted, and through his experience, I can hope that if he’s able to do everything and still remain the good guy at heart, he’s a hero in my opinion. He’s one that’s kept me upright through everything I’ve been through for the past year.
I love you, Alex. Thank you for everything you’ve ever managed to do for me. You’ve also given me new friends and led me onto more music. I hope I can one day actually tell you all this and more. Thank you for changing my life.
I guess you could say it all started before I’d even heard of the band. A few years before, probably. A lot of people know I’m deaf. I’ve always been deaf in my right ear since I was three years old, but one April morning in 2007, I woke up completely deaf. It tore my life apart more than I imagined it would. I lost friends, I lost faith in many things, and of course, I lost the ability to hear music. I hadn’t really been that much into music before, just a few songs here and there that I liked the sound of, but it had always kept me happy and I used to dance round the room to them. I couldn’t do that any longer, even at full volume, I couldn’t hear a thing. So that was it. I was to be living in a world of silence from now on.
But we live in the 21st century, where technology helps us in places which we never thought possible. And so through a series of tests and accounts, in February 2008, I received the operation for a cochlear implant. Two months later, after my stitches healed up, I was given the external piece of it. To put it frankly, cochlear implants take sounds around them electronically and then take them through directly to the cochlea in my ear, going straight past my damaged eardrum. But because it was electronic, everything sounded different, so I had to go about learning new sounds for everything.
Fast forward to around August 09. I’d learnt stuff pretty well and could hear people so much better, and could listen to music fairly well, although I still had to memorise lyrics from a sheet to know what the singers were singing. Then my mate Alex linked me to two All Time Low music videos. One was the song Poppin’ Champagne, and the other was the more recent song, Weightless. Since then, I haven’t looked back. I started learning more about the band, and usually I like the guitarists in bands best. But something about the singer took my attention. He was attractive, of course, but something about that cheeky smile had me wanting to know more. I learnt his name, Alex Gaskarth, and something happened. Him, and the band, were no longer the ones who’d made just a few songs I liked. They became the first band ever that I started to get into, and with Alex, it was a helluva lot more. I’ve never admired anybody’s voice like I admire his. Of course, I have said some singers were good, but this was different. His voice managed to get the ability to cheer me up whenever I’m down, something no music could ever do before on its own, unless I was dancing round my room. I can sit still and just listen to Alex’s voice, and suddenly everything’s okay, no matter how bad I’d felt previously. Most people listen to sad songs when they’re upset to suit their mood. I can listen to one of Alex’s slow songs (Remembering Sunday is most common) and I’ll immediately feel better, even if I’d been crying before. That’s what his voice does.
It’s not just his voice that makes me feel this way, either. His pictures, his tweets, interviews, Stickam shows, everything he does just makes me feel incredibly happy. And somewhere along the way, as weird as it sounds, I fell in love with the guy. I’d heard of girls proclaiming their love for their favourite band members before but I dismissed it as some crazy fan girl exaggeration. Not so. Alex made me feel a burst of feelings that just made me feel as if anything is possible. And he pushes it the feeling himself, he can be an idiot at times, but at others, he can be a thoughtful person, and some of his quotes ARE inspirational, making me feel even more confident.
He’s not just any singer putting it on, either. Most ATL fans will know of the Six Flags incident. Fans amongst the crowd got maced by security. Alex didn’t ignore this, as some singers would have. He came down and argued with security, and although it did end in a fight, I know he had good intentions in what he did. He wouldn’t stand of any mistreatment of his fans. And that in itself is something inspirational, he cares about his fans. He’s not in this for all the fame and fortune.
Not that it’s ever crossed my mind he is. I think he’s in it just because he wants to make the most of life, and he really does this. He’s achieved his dream and he’s living it out in full. In May, the band released their band DVD, aptly named Straight to DVD. In it, I just can’t stop laughing because Alex kept making these witty one liners or jokes. Him showing he can live out his dream to the full. Of course, there’s his amazing singing recorded live on there too, and he’s adorable, but he’s done what he manages to do best. He manages makes me smile and think that everything’s okay.
Maybe it’s a bit of an over the top obsession, but he makes me happy in ways that I never knew possible. He makes me think there is hope in the world, if there’s boys like him out there. Fun loving, kind, friendly boys. Granted, he has his faults, and I don’t deny he’s done a lot of stuff he shouldn’t do. He still does it now. But he’s 22 years old, and he’s living out everything he’s ever wanted, and through his experience, I can hope that if he’s able to do everything and still remain the good guy at heart, he’s a hero in my opinion. He’s one that’s kept me upright through everything I’ve been through for the past year.
I love you, Alex. Thank you for everything you’ve ever managed to do for me. You’ve also given me new friends and led me onto more music. I hope I can one day actually tell you all this and more. Thank you for changing my life.