| The Drones – Locust Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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Ether is referenced in another Drones song, 'Scrap Iron Sky' from 'Here Come the Lies'. I read somewhere that Port Hedland (known for it's iron ore mines) is Gareths' hometown, so this makes sense. I guess calling it Ether refers to the dulling of the sense that happens when you're isolated in little country towns (i oughta know!) The prison is also referenced in 'Scrap Iron Sky'. The bit about blacks living outside of town is pretty (sad but) true for a lot of northern WA mining towns. The next few lines illustrate the xenophobia and stereotyping you tend to encounter in these areas, where even though Australias wars were fought against Japan and Vietnam, all of asia is to blame. I'm guessing "louie in the jack" refers to shooting up speed. In all a just a song about living in typical Aussie town... |
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| The Drones – Jezebel Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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Total amazing song, so many different ideas squeezed in there (nearly 8 minutes, but it still flies by). Some of this info comes from an interview Gareth did in Mess + Noise magazine, some I've interpreted myself. The Strontium 90, Iodine, milk, Jezebel (a cow, apparently) come from when nuclear testing was done in Woomera in outback South Australia. The fallout was carried to populated parts of Aust and "rained down", was absorbed into grass, eaten by cow and then affected a whole generation of kids. Gareth's home town of "Ether" a.k.a. Port Hedland, may have been one of the areas affected by this. This next few verse switch to talking about war in the middle east. Uranium tips refer to the "depleted" uranium ammunition used by the US which is now suspected to be causing radiation sickness in their own troops. "Night vision, cruise missiles" refers to the footage ithat was seen almost nightly during the first gulf war. Bethlehem is obviously a biblical reference. The "does my bomb look big in this" line I love, because it seems to reference 2 things, The use of suicide bombers/IEDs and also the westernisation of the middle east (i.e. the vanity of "does my bum look big in this) Dan Pearl was a US journalist executed in the middle east (try youtube). The camera, effigy line I believe means: I am not a machine, I cannot view this image without emotion and a human cannot be treated as something to be destroyed in order to make a point, political or otherwise. The next verse is about the "blood for oil" war. New Scar = G.W. Bush? Is Goliath (another biblical reference) the US, riding the middle eastern oil drum through their hurricane Katrina? Tyrant: Saddam, now gone, but the Iraqis are left with a civil was. |
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| The Drones – Jezebel Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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Total amazing song, so many different ideas squeezed in there (nearly 8 minutes, but it still flies by). Some of this info comes from an interview Gareth did in Mess + Noise magazine, some I've interpreted myself. The Strontium 90, Iodine, milk, Jezebel (a cow, apparently) come from when nuclear testing was done in Woomera in outback South Australia. The fallout was carried to populated parts of Aust and "rained down", was absorbed into grass, eaten by cow and then affected a whole generation of kids. Gareth's home town of "Ether" a.k.a. Port Hedland, may have been one of the areas affected by this. This next few verse switch to talking about war in the middle east. Uranium tips refer to the "depleted" uranium ammunition used by the US which is now suspected to be causing radiation sickness in their own troops. "Night vision, cruise missiles" refers to the footage ithat was seen almost nightly during the first gulf war. Bethlehem is obviously a biblical reference. The "does my bomb look big in this" line I love, because it seems to reference 2 things, The use of suicide bombers/IEDs and also the westernisation of the middle east (i.e. the vanity of "does my bum look big in this) Dan Pearl was a US journalist executed in the middle east (try youtube). The camera, effigy line I believe means: I am not a machine, I cannot view this image without emotion and a human cannot be treated as something to be destroyed in order to make a point, political or otherwise. The next verse is about the "blood for oil" war. New Scar = G.W. Bush? Is Goliath (another biblical reference) the US, riding the middle eastern oil drum through their hurricane Katrina? Tyrant: Saddam, now gone, but the Iraqis are left with a civil was. |
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| The Drones – I Don't Ever Want to Change Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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I think this song is about going on a seachange, a popular concept in the land where dead wood aches. People from the city move to small coastal towns and "get away from it all" for a while, doing jobs totally removed for their big city lifestyle. There are a shitload of lousy TeeVee shows about this concept on at the moment, I think this is Gareth's cynical take on it all. Also note the repeat lyrics " it was salt in my wounds man I won't ever be free Though alone on a beach getting drunk ain't a bad way to be" also used in Baby Squared for their previous album |
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