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Scott: The name of the song comes from the 1960s comic book character The Peacemaker, who was the basis of the Watchmen character The Comedian.
The references to the Peacemaker and The Comedian are not coincidental, but their respective symbolisms here had nothing to do with each other.
The lyrics came about because I had this record by the Dutch hardcore band Balthazar Gerards Kommandos, and in the song "Blank Stare - Sharp Shot", I could make out the lyric "somewhere in the city, some crazy army vet...". I couldn't make out any other lyrics in the song, but that one phrase really stuck in my imagination. I ran with the idea, writing a song about a crazy army vet somewhere in the city.
Frank Miller's 1986 graphic novel Daredevil: Born Again featured a mentally unstable, drug-addicted super-soldier who also had an impression on me.
Naked Raygun had a song called "Peacemaker" which might have literally been about the character, and which was written before Watchmen was published. I was aware that I was stealing the title of this song, but didn't think it was a big deal.
The melodies were written on a toy Casio keyboard before I had bought or played a bass. The bells in the drum track were there so I would know when to switch riffs.
Deron: Not sure what the clean guitar tone is all about. Also, I seem to have started my lifelong battle with rushed timing. Amy and Scott hold it together well.
Amy: This was the first song that we learned as a band, so it brought me a great deal of excitement and anticipation…I still shiver upon hearing that opening bass line. I also think the guitar and keyboard timbres work in perfect sync with the bass to create a desolate atmosphere of delusion. These are reasons why this song, for me, encapsulates our band identity.
I never realized this before, but "Peacemaker" evokes the murder ballad tradition. I dare say we beat Nirvana's Unplugged album to the punch in that respect.
Although the bells before the instrumental chorus served as a musician's cue to be removed in the final mix, I couldn't imagine the song without them now.
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