The Stone (Ashes Divide song)

"The Stone" is actually derived from a song done by Billy Howerdel during his time in A Perfect Circle. An instrumental named "Army" has many similarities with this song. It was done during demo sessions that yielded material from their first album, Mer de Noms. It apparently wasn't deemed a fit for A Perfect Circle music, so Billy re-worked it on his own for years until it appeared in this form.[2]

Howerdel said he had most of the verses written, but was stuck on the chorus, so he reached out to Johnette Napolitano, singer of Concrete Blonde, who wrote a few lines in the chorus, adding a "maternal" touch to it, according to Howerdel.[3]

On the lyrics, Howerdel said, "It's this push-pull of protection, feeling the need or want to protect your loved ones in a way, but not being worthy enough with yourself to accept that same protection, that same kind of love. A lot of these songs are dealing with pushing people away, with not loving yourself enough to let somebody love you."[3]

1. "The Stone" - 3:49

"The Stone" garnered attention from U.S. rock radio stations and has been regularly played on the airwaves. It peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and No. 10 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.[4][5]